Now how can I not comment on the recent actions by hip hop artist Akon? There are numerous incidents of the violence that many rappers and other artists propagate seemingly daily. Most of these incidents occur at night, in a club or strip club, but it’s not uncommon to hear about transgressions in airports or on city streets. This though is a new low, and some media seem more than happy to cover it up.
Some may be aware, in a recent performance, that
Akon assaulted a fan during the concert. It seems that both on purpose or by accident a fan threw an object at the stage and hit the entertainer. Akon stopped performing in the middle of a song and had the kid brought to the stage. The kid was then lifted onto the stage, picked up by the artist, and forcibly thrown off the stage. The kid had no clue any of this was going to happen, and was quite startled while it was happening. Akon then tells the crowd how lonely he feels (as best as I can tell) and begins to continue performing, having stated “he’s alright.”
I wasn’t there, so I’m guessing at the exact words. According to the Poughkeepsie Journal this entire event was simply an enthusiastic entertainer helping fan ‘crowd surf.’ Isn’t that nice. Reading their published article one would think it was quite harmless. Even the general manager, Mr. Jason Finkelburg, and Fishkill Police Chief, Don Williams, seem to feel it was unimportant. To their benefit, neither was at the event.
I would guess that the reporter wasn’t there either, or missed the event. I say this because it’s all hogwash. At best it’s poor reporting, at worst it’s a media cover-up, protecting entertainers that behave maliciously because they bring money in. How could I possibly say this? What gives me any more right than what was reported and said since I wasn’t there [and I couldn’t get paid enough to be there]?
Because there is a video of the event.
It’s just that simple. And the video can be seen on the Poughkeepsie Journal’s site. Obviously, in my opinion, the reporter failed to view it. If they had then I would imagine they would see it quite differently. It seems obvious that Akon isolates grabs and throws this
fan with intent to harm him. There is no music during the whole incident, no explanation. The kid looks bewildered. The
police officers shown in the video seem as startled as everyone else. The throw was hardly anything friendly or helpful. I’ve seem more kindness in a mosh pit.
The fans cheered this whole event. They thought it was great, seeing this entertainer enact violence on someone that could have just as easily been them. Imagine if it was your kid. Imagine if the kid was hurt.
Think about the fact that often hip hop artists and rappers go out and try to outdo each other in acts of violence and rudeness, in an effort to maintain their ‘street cred’. Absolute idiocy. But it happens all the time. So what do all the other tough, bad-ass, malefactors and nay-do-well’s do? What is the next step in this genre? Entertainers in gansta rap have already molested unwary women from the audience on stage, now this ups the ante. Perhaps an actual beatdown on stage. Or a gang rape. If neither of the other acts already done on stage caused a consequence, why should these.
I don’t know. I don’t pay to see an entertainer who pisses in my cornflakes, or those of a friend. I don’t want to see a wrestling match at a music show. Especially when it’s the equivalent of a sucka-punch, and the performer is surrounded by police officers and bodyguards. Yeah, Akon looked real impressive and manly. [That’s sarcasm for those that don’t get it]
I won’t say all rappers or hiphop artists act like this, but more than enough do. New rappers and many other entertainers try harder than the few that last a while. Too many take pride in being a bullet magnet, a dealer of death (drug dealer), and having a trail of women used for their bodies and children without fathers. The trend isn’t getting better, and newspapers misreporting these acts do harm to the general public.
This is what I think, what do you think?
**audio for this post can be found at
http://www.blackentertainmentblog.com/audio-post/audio.htmlLabels: Akon, gangsta rap, gansta rap, gansta rapper, hip-hop entertainers, music concert, Poughkeepsie Journal
I was just writing about Ms. Oprah Winfrey, and her up-coming fund-raiser for Senator Obama on my political blog, and I asked a question. Does the endorsement of a celebrity or entertainer make a difference in voting preference? 
for either Viewer’s Choice or Best Male categories. While TMZ was a bit smarmy in their comments it is an interesting question.
