I've been feenin' for this for years!!!

This "Passin' Me By" remix was one of the songs that showed me there was more to hip hop than just what was on V-103 on Friday night's Fresh Party. It's hard to conceive that there was no hip hop on Atlanta airwaves 24 hours a day when you consider that Atlanta is now a hub for hip hop and the music industry in general.

The original "Passin Me By" and this divine remix provided some of the auditory Heaven on Earth experiences I had on Sunday nights from 10 PM to 2 AM during my high school years. WRAS 88.5 FM played underground hip hop and all the goodies from '91 - '95 (a great time for hip hop). That's where I discovered Nas and "Illmatic", The Lords of the Underground, Common Sense (the deliciously gifted artist and actor we know as Common), Black Moon, Apache, The Pharcyde, and so many others. This is where I experienced the "jazzier" side of hip hop and anything other than booty shaking and coochie popping.

* For my FaceBook friends, go to my profile to hear the posted music or return to my blog: http://sunshynelyfe.blogspot.com.

Another Soul Train mystery solved!

Everyone should have memories of watching Soul Train at some point during their childhood. You loved different dancers like "The Asian Lady" featuring Her Hair. The Costume Guy might have freaked you out with some of his combinations, but he stayed on the main stage with "Ski" that was always walking around the stage in his shades or just posing in his suits, pretty hair, and light skin. I finally figured out that "Ski" needed attention. A LOT of attention.

Being the Greek Life lover that I am, I always wondered if there were any Black Greeks who ever showed up on the hippest trip in America and represented on syndicated television. I wouldn't expect stepping and strolling on Soul Train because that would just be ridiculous. Just wearing some 'nalia or throwing up a sign.

I learned the truth this past weekend. There WAS a Black Greek reppin' on Soul Train! Some of you might remember the chocolate-complected dude with the short jheri curl; he was known for wearing some fringed outfits. Maybe he was a clothing designer seeking his destiny just like a bunch of the dancers were seeking their fame in singing or acting. (NOTE: There were success stories like Rosie Perez whose rear you'll see for the first 1.5 seconds of the second video, Jody Watley, Jermaine Stewart, and more that are probably ahead of my time.)

Shock does not adequately describe what I found on either of these short videos. Seeing some of the fashions on Soul Train in the '70s and '80s is a stone gas, honey. Reppin' your organzation... priceless.

Diversions that you NEED

In this day and age of harsh realities (I ain't forgot about Jena at all), sometimes you just need a break. A break from the bullisht on your job because there's one person who steps over the line. A break from realizing that black folks have so far to go for our civil rights. A break from "the housing bubble" that's got folks being foreclosed on left and right. You don't have to marinate on these realities all of the time.

That's what TV networks believed in the '60s with classics like "The Munsters" and "Bewitched" being on television to divert us from the saddening news images of an unnecessary war that kept sending thousands of American soldiers home in coffins being broadcasted in our living rooms. Sounds familiar right?

Well, the idea is being recycled in 2007 with shows like "Heroes", "Bionic Woman", and what I'm expecting to be a great show (that'll get cancelled like all great shows) "Pushing Up Daisies".

Dwell on swell sitcoms for a spell.