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Editor’s note: DAVEY D won’t let ERNIE go away on a bitter note.

Ernie,

This is not Hip Hop you’re speaking about. Yes it involves people who came from that culture. And it involves people who have known pretty much only this all of their lives. However, this thing about people living in a time warp and having nothing to show for their accomplishments is a continuum of things that have afflicted our fathers, grandfathers and fathers before them.

We have not learned to age gracefully. And that aspect is complicated by a outside power structure that has pushed relentlessly for folks not to respect their elders.

Once upon a time our elders managed to maintain a sense of purpose and importance by becoming Deacons in a Church or head of the Elk Lodge or some other organization.. We in Hip Hop have never done that… and impacting us is the fact that there is no blueprint.. This is not by accident its by design

With that being said.. lets remember that the war being aged against us never stopped. Collectively speaking, many of us got too comfortable and left our posts. We got addicted to drugs, fame and rich white acceptance so long as we were the only ones in the room. This is not to blame anyone per say, but to remind folks that we are still in a fight and the rule of thumb is as it always has been work twice as hard to get to where you need to be going.

Working doesn’t mean slaving away at somebody’s 9-5 on a corporate plantation. It means to continue making a way out of no way. It means tapping into that spirit that blessed us to be innovative in whatever craft we practice. If any of us have forgotten how to do that then we have lost our connection to God..

Drug addiction is no joke… The first wave of Hip Hoppers got hit with it after the government tried to wipe out our liberation movement with straight up assassinations and heroin. Hip Hop came out of that and demonstrated the potential to pick up where the the liberation movement leaders of the 60s and 70s left off. So this time around they used the art of pimping and seduced many of us into cocaine, crack and reckless behavior that continues to this day. JDL is a victim of chemical and biological warfare.

The people from dipset who seemed to be exploiting him are victims of mind control. In short they are being pimped by a system that has convinced them that they somehow are running things. Should we not be surprised as we watched that video that these gentlemen are following the same ghetto-keep it real script. If I closed my eyes, JR Writer could’ve been the guys who have a similar video who live right next door here in Oakland..

Here’s the bottom-line… We are at War.. so lets learn to truly love and appreciate one another. Lets not forget how to think and out think our situations.. For example, I can only go by what I saw on the video, but I think perhaps a conversation with Writer and Dipset to see if they can help put someone on could yield results.. better yet, maybe someone can inspire them to do something like what Shock G did 15 years ago when he opened up a bone marrow directory. maybe those who are doing well can help set up or support a free clinci where guys like JDL can get help. The possibilities are endless.

Also while Dipset and other younger rappers can have their coattails pulled, lets not forget the real devils, the owners of the labels, radio stations and every other outlet that delivers Hip Hop. Jeff Smulyan who owns Hot 97 owes us a paycheck much more so than does Lil Wayne who is addicted to drugs himself. Clive Davis needs to sponsor an old school boutique label just like they do vintage Jazz which never makes money but gives the labels prestige. Last nighht i was talking with Black Thought of the Roots and he was developing some sort of concept which would allow artists to tour and record for the older audiences that grew up with them. A 45 year old artist does not need to be pretending and competing with a 20 year old..We are past the age of being cute.. War is upon us.. so lets protect our necks..

In the spirit of love
Davey D

Editor’s note: Excerpted from a conversation between ERNIE PANICCIOLI and DAVEY D

As an elder, and as a man who has devoted his entire adult life to documenting Hip Hop I have to drop some science and set the record straight and if it hurts anyone’s feeling fuck them.

Let’s start with the death of Frosty Freeze. I was asked to go to his memorial by several people, my response was simple and to the point: When the brother was alive most of you motherfuckers would not give him a dollar to go see a doctor. His name and image was not even on the Rock Steady Crew website when he was alive. So going to his wake/memorial was just a chance to see old friends, wear your tired Kangol hats, Wild Style t-shirts and pose with a whole lot of broke ass, braggin’ ass motherfucking (I was the first to do this, to do that etc, etc, etc, I was the first Korean to dance in Texas or the first left handed Graf artist or the first DJ to perform in the subway station or the first emcee to get shot or the first B Boy to smoke crack or the first Albino to tag on the 7 line) lames who fail to realize that this is 2008 not 78 or 88 and if you’ve done nothing creative in the past two or three decades it means whatever you did and whatever your contribution was then, it was just a fluke or something caught by Charlie Ahearn’s or Henry’s camera which is still being shown today due to them and their hustle and not due to your particular “genius” or talent.

One of my happiest days was being asked to be part of the historic Federation For The Preservation of Hip Hop. I was hoping the true pioneers would reignite true school Hip Hop. Wow, did I get a wake up call. Every time I was on TV or Radio I shouted out the Federation, when the pioneers were on Tv especially BET they talked about their sneaker collections or took off their shits and showed their muscles or talked about some lyrical beef from 35 years ago, or big upped some wack assed clothing line, not a word about the federation.

Even Kool Herc has no CD’s and all of the music (to my knowledge) available from the rest of the pioneers profits only the bastards that put out the compilations and nothing goes to the artists. Is it any wonder the current generation of rappers and Hip Hop heads laughs at them?

There are damn few real emcees in the current crop or rappers (with the notable exception of Immortal Technique) and even fewer who know or care who came before them. Most of them think Jay Z, L’il Wayne and Puffy (Diddy) are good rappers. Most would not be able to pick out Grand Wizzard Theodore, Rakim, Vulcan or KRS1 out of a police lineup. And 99% of them have never read a book, listened to Jazz know who John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Gil Scott Heron, Richie Havens, Marcus Garvey or Crazy Horse are.

Mos Def said it best, “Hip Hop is us, if we’re violent Hip Hop is going to be violent, if we’re smoked out, Hip Hop is going to be smoked out and if we’re wack, Hip Hop is going to be wack.” As far as getting angry, nah, check back in 5 years from now and see if anyone remembers Dipset or how many members of the crew are still alive or even have ten dollars in their pockets.

In my photographic archive I can show you hundreds if not thousands of washed up, forgotten, exploited, broke, dead, rappers, DJ’s Graf Artists, B Boys and self proclaimed “artists’.

Now let’s ask the hard question then you can go back to your IPOD, Cell Phone, Video Game, Cable Show, DVD or MYSPACE:

Where is our Hip Hop Museum?
Where is our Hip Hop School?
Where is our Hip Hop Political Movement?
Where is our Hip Hop Health Insurance?
Where is our Hip Hop Emergency Fund?
Where is our Hip Hop Detox Center?
Where is our Hip Hop Building?
Where is our Hip Hop Radio Station?
Where is our Hip Hop TV Station?
Where is our Hip Hop Hospital?
Where is our Hip Hop Foster Care?
Where is our Hip Hop Anti-Gang Initiative?

If you answered any corporate-owned (Russell Simmons/ Puffy/ Industry/ Smithsonian) entity to any of these questions then your answer is null and void.

As long as we have to have “Hip Hop events” at devil owned places like Powerhouse Arena, or see 45 year old men still dressing like they are 17 yrs old, or celebrate the 35th anniversary of Wild Style or Krush Groove like they are somehow true Hip-Hop and religious events, and as long as Zulu has to fight, beg, borrow and steal to pay for their anniversary then Hip-Hop to me is just a sad joke.