Chicago's homocide toll reaches 500 for the year 2012

As heart wrenching as the Sandy Hook story was, this news is just as devastating for me. Not to trivialize what happened in Connecticut, only trying to say any time a life is taken needlessly, it is a tragedy and should be treated as such. But, this is everyday life in the city of Chicago. Hip Hop Wired reports: 

As 2012 comes to a close, Chicago has reached a terrible milestone: 500 homicides in the city for the entire year.

Nathaniel T. Jackson was killed Thursday (Dec. 27), becoming the 500th person to die in the city.
The victim was gunned down on Chicago's west side  at around 9p.m. Jackson was standing outside of a store when someone walked up and shot him in the head. He was taken to Stroger Hospital where he died.

“He was a lot of fun, very good at imitating people,” his cousin Gaves Bates told the Chicago Tribune. “He just had so much fun all the time. And we all grew up together in the same house.”

Bates said that Jackson, 40, was staying with a friend of the family after getting out of prison in August. “The last time he was out, someone had shot him several times in the back,” she added. “He was a fighter, he was a survivor.”

Residents held a “peace dinner” Thursday to discuss ideas to bring an end to the violence, with Alderman Anthony Beale placing the blame on Police Superintend Garry McCarty. “His philosophy is not working. We need to put resources where the problems are, and then you will see crime drop across the city.”

While community leaders have pledged to try and curb the violence, Chicago was unable to break itself of such a pattern. The last time the city surpassed 500 homicides was in 2008, when the number was at 512.

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Chicago was hit hard by gun violence in 2012, and it turns out the crimes occurred in specific places. A report in the New York Times, details just who (typically Black men) tend to be the shooting victims in the nation's third largest city, and where the shootings occur.
As previously reported, 40-year-old Nathaniel T. Jackson became the Windy City's 500th homicide for 2012. However the final death toll stopped at 506 before the start of 2013.

Many of the shootings have occurred on the city's West and South sides. “It's two different Chicagos,” noted Rev. Corey B. Brooks Sr., who led the service for James Holman, shot to death last month. At Holman's funeral another victim, 21-year-old Sherman Miller, was shot and killed in front of the church where the ceremony was being held. The location, St. Columbanus Catholic Church, is the same place where  President Barack Obama fed the homeless after his first election win, in 2008.

While police have classified many of the shootings as being gang-related, Brooks pointed to the racial divide in the city. “If something like that had happened at the big cathedral in downtown Chicago, or up north at a predominately white church, it would still be on the news right now, it would be such a major thing going on.”
Violence at funerals is nothing new to Chicago. During the funeral held for up-and-coming rapper Joseph “Lil JoJo” Coleman, crowds got out of hand, nearly knocking over the casket holding the teen's body. Months later aspiring rapper, Joshua Davis, was killed allegedly for wearing a sweatshirt honoring Coleman.

Over 80 percent of the shootings in Chicago occurred in the 23rd police district, while nearby areas like the business district reported no killing for the entire year. “I don't go out at night,” said Jess Martinez who owns a business on the South Side. Martinez was robbed a few years ago and recalled having a gun put to his head.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has stressed the importance of unity in the city, calling for all residents to see the violence as an epidemic regardless of where they reside. “ A child shot is a child of the City of Chicago,” he said during an interview. “Don't anybody think that it's ‘over there.' It's a tear on this city.”
The exact explanation behind the shooting sprees may not ever be pinpointed, but in addition to gangs,  hot weather over the summer months earned some of the blame.

No arrests have been made in the deaths of Holman or Miller.

Youtube cracksdown on industry's biggest artist over fabricated view counts

Well it appears that Youtube is no longer standing for the industries smoke and mirror of the music industry's biggest companies. I personally have been telling people for years, that numbers lie just as much as men and women do. Now, there is proof. Hip Hop Wired reports:

The world's biggest online video site, YouTube, has pulled bililons of view counts from some of the music industry's biggest artists due to what seems to be fabricated view counts.

Universal was the hardest hit of those pages. The label home of Rihanna, Kanye West, Nicki Minaj and Justin Bieber, lost a total of one billion views in the video site's biggest ever crackdown on artificially inflated figures. In total, Universal lost a grand total of 1,015,800,118 video views.
 
Sony BMG was the second hardest hit of the crackdown, losing 851,488,973 views and Britney Spears' page, Britney TV lost 462,567,893 views. ‘This was not a bug or a security breach. This was an enforcement of our viewcount policy,' YouTube said in a statement.
 
Chris Brown's page, ChrisBrownTV, lost 187,412,448 views while Beyonce lost 151,445,205 views and TPainVideos lost 110,169,389. Google confirmed that the companies violated its terms of services, which prohibits users from artificially inflating video views. Google also notes that the view stripping was “an enforcement of [the company's] viewcount policy”.
 
There are many sites on the internet such as YouLikeHits.com that can inflate your viral statistics like YouTube views, Facebook friends and Twitter followers for a fee. YouTube viewer figures are valuable to channel owners since it is the way the site works out how to share its advertising revenue with partners.
 
Also, it affects Billboard's "Social 50" chart, which was only implemented in 2010 and is a ranking of the most active artists on the world's leading social networking sites.

The Vincent Tucker Radio Show celebrates 5 years on-air with Terrell Owens and Dawn Richard

Vincent “Heartbreak” Tucker celebrates Five-Year Anniversary of Syndicated, Award-Winning Program The Vincent Tucker Radio Show.

Dec. 8 broadcast to feature future NFL Hall-of-Fame Wide Receiver Terrell Owens & Dawn Richard.

DALLAS – Entertainer, radio personality and humanitarian Vincent Heartbreak” Tucker and fbrn.us are proud to announce the five-year anniversary of the syndicated, award-winning broadcast, The Vincent Tucker Radio Show. On Saturday, December 8, Heartbreak and his co-hosts Myskenna, Yellostar, J.B. and “The King of Chaos” Comedian Savel Rhines will celebrate the milestone with a special broadcast featuring future NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver/actor Terrell Owens, former Danity Kane and Diddy-Dirty Money singer/songwriter Dawn Richard and Capone the Comedian.

"“When I think about the last five years, it’s so amazing to think about the wonderful things that our award winning show has accomplished,”" stated Tucker, 2012 fbrn.us Radio Award Winner for “Male Host of the Year.” "Working with an excellent team of co-hosts & support staff, we’ve built a brand that pays homage to those that opened doors for us like Steve Harvey, Tom Joyner, and Doug Banks while changing the stereotypes of internet shows that aren’t managed by a big corporation. I thank my mentor Sammi Martinez & Ella Granados with fbrn.us for their support as we continue to position ourselves as the future leaders of syndicated Urban Radio programming.”"

Asipiring rappers arrested for trying to kidnap a producer

When keeping it real goes completely wrong. The struggle files are reported on Hip Hop Wired:

Record executives get extorted all the time. But it's a problem when said wannabe record exec is the son of a prominent Goldman Sachs broker and has no problem going straight to the cops.

The New York Daily News reports that on Thursday (November 29th) 27 year-old Jon Fontein, son of Goldman Sachs broker Andrew Fontein, initially agreed to pay 33 year-old Ryan Mixon and 28 year-old Andres Lozano a cool $50,000 to make a record. But, at the end of the meeting the three were having at Pera Soho in NYC, Fontein tried to back out of the deal.

However, sources say Mixon (who is from New Britain, Conn.) and Lozano (who is from Washington Heights) threatened to kill Fontein's girlfriend, and his family, if he didn't come through with the funds as allegedly promised. This is where the struggle increases exponentially.

The New York Times reports that one of the men brandished a gun and forced Fontein to take a cab ride with them up to the Apple Store on 5th Ave and 58th St., where he was prompted to buy $3,800 in products, including warranties.

The next day, Fontein went straight to the police. While Fontein met with detectives, one of the would be rappers sent a menacing text to Fontein about dropping off the money at Pera Soho.

When Mixon and Lozano arrived, the cops were waiting, posing as customers, and they were promptly arrested. The duo was booked on charges including kidnapping, robbery and extortion.

Details continue to emerge in Jovan Belcher's murder-suicide incident

I must admit, I haven't paid much attention to this story all week. I remember briefly hearing about it before the games started on Sunday, but the details were kind of sketchy at the time. But, now the details are starting to surface and we are learning more about the case. Hip Hop Wired reports:

Although the shock of the murder-suicide case involving Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher and girlfriend Kasandra Perkins is still fresh on the minds of many, new developments in the case have revealed a list of chilling details. An exclusive report highlights graphic information from various police sources, offering a tense account of the actions leading up to the killing of Perkins and the aftermath that ensued.  From the Kansas City Star:

Seconds after fatally shooting his longtime girlfriend, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher leaned over her in their master bathroom, said he was sorry and kissed her on the forehead.

His mother, who heard gunfire as she stood in the kitchen, rushed to her son's bedroom and watched his remorseful goodbye.

Belcher apologized to his mother, kissed his 3-month-old daughter and fled his rented home in the 5400 block of Crysler Avenue in his Bentley.

The 25-year-old NFL player was said to have had a turbulent relationship with Perkins, 22, who was also the mother of their newborn daughter. The pair fought about money, and there were troubles about the relationship itself, which sparked frequent arguments. Belcher's mother moved from New York to her son's home to help quell some of the couple's issues and assist with her granddaughter as well.

Chiefs brass was aware of Belcher and Perkins' problems, and reportedly offered counseling and other types of support. This past Saturday however, there wasn't any way his coaches or management team could have prevented the tragedy. Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel and linebackers coach Gary Gibbs encountered Belcher, who drove to the team's practice facility after shooting Perkins. Genuflecting and making a cross over his chest, Belcher fired a single shot to the head as he knelt behind a parked vehicle.

Several reports have come out saying Perkins attended a concert featuring R&B singer Trey Songz, while Belcher was at another event. A friend of Perkins said Belcher was angry that his girlfriend remained out later than expected after the concert, leading to the fatal argument.

In response to the tragedy Songz, released a statement via Twitter. “As sad as it may be, it has nothing to do with me. Sending prayers up to the families and friends of the people involved.”

The littlest victim of the altercation— the couple's newborn daughter— is expected to remain in the care of Belcher's mother.

Marley's Mellow Mood causes middle school students to get sick

I'm not sure why anyone thought this was a good idea to give to students, but someone did. I'm not sure why anyone would drink a downer either. But, hey, apparently the Marley family thought it was a good idea. Hip Hop Wired has the story:

Marley's Mellow Mood, an all natural relaxation beverage,  was removed from schools after several students in New Jersey got sick, according to a school report released Friday (Nov. 30). The Bob Marley name was given to the drink to parallel its “anti-energy” effects, but unfortunately, it left students ill.

Some students suffered headaches, lethargy, and elevated heart rates while others felt nausea and vomited, after ingesting the drink. 

Students at William R. Satz Middle School and Holmdel Middle School in Holmdel, N.J., have been buying the refreshment in the school cafeteria, but no signs of side effects were shown until recently.

The beverage contains all natural botanical chemicals, valerian root, and chamomile to help with relaxation and reduce stress. According to its nutrition facts, Marley's Mellow Mood may cause drowsiness, and is not recommended for children, as noted by parent Toni Monticciolo. “They should never have sold that to 12-year-olds,” he told a local news station.

The school district food service, Chartwells School Dining Services, removed the product from all schools in the area as of last week. Chartwells claims that the beverage was an “unauthorized purchase not approved for sale in schools managed by Chartwells,” and has removed an on-site manager while  they look for the cause of the sickness.“We sincerely regret that this product was sold and that students had an adverse reaction to it. Chartwells takes great pride and care in partnering with our school communities to provide the best school dining experience possible and we take this situation very seriously.”

Officials announced that they will update parents at the completion of their investigation.

Judge orders WI man to stop conceiving children

A judge up there in the state of Wisconsin should be given a public service medal. The state has ordered Corey Curtis to stop procreating...the man owes $90,000 in back retro-child support. Hip Hop Wired reports:

A Wisconsin man was ordered by a judge Monday (Dec. 3) to stop having babies until he can afford to take care of his offspring.

Corey Curtis, of Racine, fathered nine children with six different women and owes $90,000 in back child support.

The 44-year-old was sentenced for skipping out on the bill, but was cut a break so long as he can stop making babies. In accordance with his three-year probation the serial procreator has been ordered to put a lid on his overactive man juice, which was all the judge could do since he's not allowed to make Curtis have a procedure to end his baby-making spree.  “Common sense dictates you shouldn't have kids you can't afford,” Judge Tim Boyle said.

Boyle got the idea to include the stipulation as a condition of Curtis' probation from a 2001 Wisconsin Supreme Court case which allowed a judge to order a defendant not to have children without proof that he is financially able to do so.

Curtis has every intention of holding fast to the ruling. “Judges, they make rulings,” he said. “They make them kind of hastily. So, if that's what he feels one of my conditions should be then I'm going to abide by it.”

Subway pusher charged with second degree murder

This is a sad on both ends. After someone was struck by a train in the subway of New York, the man who pushed the guy on to the tracks is being charged with 2nd degree murder. Hip Hop Wired reports:

Naeem Davis, the suspect accused of pushing  a man off a Subway platform, is blaming the tragic incident on the victim. Davis was arraigned on a second-degree murder charge, in a New York City court Wednesday (Dec. 5) . “He attacked me first,” Davis told reporters of the altercation that turned fatal after the victim, Ki-Suck Han, was struck by a Subway train. “He grabbed me.”

A witness to the incident also placed Han as the aggressor in the situation. “The victim kept saying ‘Hey! Hey!' at the suspect, getting closer and closer to him. At first Davis appeared calm, saying ‘I don't know you, you don't know me, get out of my face,'” recalled Leigh Weigus.

Footage captured by a cellphone shows the altercation between Davis and Han. “Leave me the f-ck alone,” Davis can be heard saying after being confronted by Han. “Take you're a-- over there, stand in line, wait for the ‘R' train. That's it.”

According to prosecutor James Lin, Davis saw the train hit Han before he fled the scene, yet when asked by the media, if he meant to kill the 58-year-old, he said “No.”

“The defendant never once offered any aid to the victim as the train approached the platform and in fact this defendant watched the train hit the victim,” said Lin.

Davis, who is homeless, has a previous arrest record in New York and Philadelphia.

At a news conference held yesterday, Han's 20-year-old daughter, Ashley, spoke fondly of her dad, and said “What's done is done,” when asked about no one helping him to safety. “The thought of someone helping him up in a matter of second would have been great,” she added.

Instead of being pulled up, Han's photo was captured by a freelance photographer, who asserts that he was too far away to be of assistance. Instead he assumed that the flash from his camera would alert the train driver—which didn't work. Han was crushed by the train, and pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Man robs bank dressed like Tyler Perry's character Madea

So, uhhh...yeah. These people will never learn. You can't go around trying to do everything you see on TV or hear in the music. Especially when it comes to Tyler Perry movies. Hip Hop Wired has the story of Marvin Webb:

While millions of people across the country took advantage of  Black Friday sales, a criminal robbed a bank, dressed as Tyler Perry's infamous character.

Marvin Webb, 45, robbed the First Security Bank in Robinsonville, last Friday. Webb, who is also a person of interest in a robbery that occurred in late October , stood confident and tall in drag. Dressed in a scarf, a woman's coat, and a hand bag, Webb actually got away with some money.

A picture taken from a bank surveillance camera circulated around the Robinsonville community, while police got to work identifying the suspect. He was eventually nabbed, and faces charges in Tunica County.

Due to the obvious resemblance to the popular and mischievous Perry character, the Robinsonville police humorously named the investigation “Operation Madea.”

Freddie Gibbs discusses why he chose to stay out of Jeezy beefs

Having appeared on Dirty Rotten Radio before, The Urban Advocate makes sure we stay tuned to anything going on with Freddie Gibbs. Earlier this week, "Gangsta Gibbs" sat down with the Breakfast Club to discuss why he stayed out of his comrades' issues. Hip Hop Wired reports:

Freddie Gibbs sat in with Power 105.1's always entertaining morning show, The Breakfast Club, to speak candidly on a variety of topics. During the interview, the Baby Faced Killer updated fans on matters involving his ESGN imprint, his current situation with Young Jeezy's CTE records, the controversial Post-Tribune cover and more.


Charlamagne stirs the pot early in, asking Gibbs why he didn't involve himself Jeezy's recent beefs with artists like Gucci Mane, Alley Boy, and Rick Ross.

"I look at it like this. I don't know none of those guys personally, you know, that he had issues with. When I get in something it can go to a whole other level," said Gangsta Gibbs.

"I just, you know, aint just about to just diss somebody just to be dissing them. You know what I mean? I'm kind of growing up in this game, and I got to see what the validity is of the issue. Cause you know, I'm gonna bump into you in the streets, and it can be a hand to hand or something like that."

Later during the sit down, Freddie Gibbs spoke positively about his aspirations to teach black history one day. "I think Black History is a lost subject in school period. And guys like Bun [B], they really inspire me to do that. I was just with Bun at Combat Jack Show. When he came on the show, he's one of those guys that make you want to shut the f-ck up and listen when he comes in the room," said Gibbs.

"He's one of the guys that I look up to, and I see him doing that. That's definitely something that I want to strive to be, because it's all about giving back."

Krayzie Bone ordered to take alcohol counseling after recent DUI

As a fan of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's music, I want to hear nothing but good news about it's members. But, for some reason that never seems to happen. Hip Hop Wired has a story on Krayzie Bone:

Krayzie Bone of Bone Thugs-N-Harmony has managed to avoid jail time in his DUI case. As part of a plea deal, all the rapper has to do to stay out of the bing is attend a court ordered alcohol education class, and stay out of trouble for three years.

TMZ reports that yesterday (December 5), as part of his please deal, Krayzie plead "no contest" to driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher.  The Ohio native was caught driving drunk after a routine traffic stop in Los Angeles back in July. After cops suspected he was under the influence, he failed the sobriety test by blowing a  .10 on the breathalyzer. The legal limit in LA is .08.

Krazyie was also charged with a DUI count and driving without a license but as part of the plea deal, those charges were dropped. Instead, he was charged with three year probation and must enroll in an alcohol education program stat.

Street legends connect to release mixtape series

These two gentlemen have influenced a whole generation of young wanna-be gangsters, wanna-be rappers and wanna-be gangster rappers. The man behind cult-classic Paid In Full and the man that got car jacked for his identity by a former correctional facility officer in front of the whole world are now joining forces to release a mixtape series. Allhiphop.com reports:

Two of America’s urban street legends who inspired dozens of rappers are teaming together to release a brand-new mixtape series.

Azie Faison And Freeway Ricky Ross are working on a new mixtape titled “Seeds in the Game: The Next Generation,” which will feature rappers from the streets of the East and West Coasts.

Azie Faison is a reformed street hustler from Harlem who earned almost $100,000 per week during the crack era of the 1980′s. His life inspired the movie “Paid In Full.”

“I wrote ‘Paid In Full’ not to lure other any other youth into the game of death (drug culture), but instead to show them that all that glitters is not gold and that everyone must seek God first,” Azie Faison told AllHipHop.com.

Rappers like AZ, Nas, Meek Mill, DJ Kay Slay, Curren$y, and Cam’ron have all paid homage to Faison in various songs.

Freeway Ricky Ross is a legendary former drug baron from Los Angeles who earned as much as $1 million per day from the crack trade. His life has inspired artists like Rick Ross and “Philadelphia” Freeway.

Azie Faison just launched his own record label Divine Evidence, which is being distributed by Chatto Music Group/Ingrooves Fontana.

Since the success of “Paid In Full,” Faison chronicled his run in the drug game with his two associates Richard Porter and Alberto “Alpo” Martinez in the DVD documentary “Game Over” and its companion book, which was released through Simon & Schuster.

Faison is working on a new film titled “Mobstyle.”

More details on the Azie Faison and Freeway Ricky Ross mixtape “Seeds in the Game: The Next Generation,” will be released next week.