There’s a magazine I started grabbing off the newsstand recently, and now, it kinda makes me sick. It’s a fashion and lifestyle publication that targets young women with flashy covers of recognizable white women in bright party dresses and wind-swept hair. 

As someone who’s kind of a tomboy, reading this magazine has served as a monthly reminder that I actually have a girly side. For the last 6 months or so, I’ve flipped through makeup tips, nail polish colors, and fashion trends that I’ll never follow or even purchase, but reading this stuff makes me feel like I’ve made some attempt to get glamorous. 

I always finish the magazine with a list of changes I’d like to make: try a new red lipstick; give high heels another chance; find my “signature fragrance.” But the real me always comes to the surface. To this day, I’ve yet to cross anything off this mental checklist. Truth is, I prefer Vaseline on my lips, comfy sneakers on my feet, and the strong smell of perfume makes me nauseous. I used to eat this magazine’s content like candy, daydreaming about a closet full of sparkly tank tops, figure-flattering pencil skirts, and “statement-making” jewelry.

Surprisingly, what made me toss this month’s issue in the trash, is not the fact that I have to skip over the entire hair section (the tips simply don’t apply to my kinky curls), or even that I have to breeze through the makeup pages (the “For Dark Skin Tones” suggestions are just too broad for the many hues of brown women). Nope, I’m actually accustomed to being excluded from magazines. I was a confused adolescent who grew up reading Teen, and YM magazines, where spotting a black girl in the issue was like catching a glimpse of the damn Loch Ness Monster.

What actually changed my mind was noticing the heavy, almost obsessive push to satisfy and attract the opposite sex. This magazine—from cover to cover—caters to the one thing young women have far too much of: insecurity. Insecurity about our bodies and how to use them, our facial features, and how to glam ourselves up to win the ultimate prize: a boyfriend who’s good enough to marry.

I can’t tell you how many articles I’ve read about pubic hair—the “To Wax or Not to Wax” internal debate. I’ve learned—and re-learned—that the most sensitive part of a man’s anatomy is the underside tip of his penis. I know how to have more sex, how to watch porn to enhance that sex, how to be more confident about sex, and how to anticipate what your man desires during that sex. I’ve learned that a man doesn’t care if your bra matches your panties, but then a few pages later see a sexy lingerie spread displaying beautiful La Pearla and Agent Provacateur thongs that are “sure to make his jaw drop.”

Who cares?

Does it make sense to pay $5.00 to a) feel like shit, and b) learn more about providing happiness to someone else? In a couple hundred pages of glossy ads and “flawless” models, I’m equipped with the proper tools to fix myself up to become more attractive to the world. I’m told how to be a sexier, smarter, better version of me—only that version has nothing to do with cleansing my thoughts and strengthening my spirit. It does, however, have everything to do with embodying a sense of self-hatred that keeps the beauty business booming.

I’m soooooo over it. Giving and sharing are wonderful acts of love, but my main concern right now is sharing the joy from within, not sharing my body simply to keep a man happy and in my bed every night. Sorry. It took me 6 months to realize that this magazine, and so many others, has it all wrong. Red lipstick and sparkly mini-dresses will do nothing to attract this ideal Prince Charming. It’s merely a cover-up, a disguise that hides, confuses, and discourages young women from being themselves. It’s impossible to “work what you got” if you have no idea what you have to begin with. I challenge women around the world, including myself, to look past the flashy covergirls and look within. Corporations can’t tell you how to be beautiful. That exciting job is entirely up to you.

You’ve probably heard the progressive sounds of Nneka by now. If not, consider yourself officially pulled from underneath your rock.

This Nigerian-German singer and lyricist has been taking over stages, iPods, and Best New Artist lists since her debut U.S. release, Concrete Jungle, hit the masses this month. Check out this review courtesy of Okayplayer and get the album now.

Here’s a sample (along with some tunes from featured album, Kind of Blue):

[View with PicLens]

Some exciting and groundbreaking records are mentioned, but where’s Prince’s Purple Rain? That album was a definite game-changer, and anything highlighting Tina Turner as the rock-and-roll goddess that she is should have been included.

What do you think of the writer’s compilation?

Two friends introduced me to this orgasmic music paradise that’s crammed with endless rows of everything–classic rock, soul, reggae, electronica–on vinyl. You could literally spend days combing through the stacks of records, CD’s and movies, reminiscing over famous album covers, and even getting lost in the separate jazz room where Monk and Miles play over the loudspeaker.

Obviously, I was a kid in a candy store. I didn’t spend much time in Amoeba on my LA trip, but I got a chance to pick up these guys:

Teena Marie: It Must Be Magic

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Motown; 1981

I started appreciating, purchasing, and jackin’ classics from my mom’s collection several years ago. The goal is to hand-pick a library of artists and visionaries that rivals Questlove’s, and even this guy’s:

The Archive from Sean Dunne on Vimeo.

What are your favorite records? Discovered any new artists or albums lately?

We live in a traditionally sports minded culture. Deeply rooted in athletic traditions, we are surrounded by memories and monuments dedicated to competitive heroes, and are steeped in the slow motion glory of endless highlight reels. We live in a society that does not scoff at the price tag of $300 million stadiums, or the exorbitant salaries of $200 million stars. 

This is America, and we love action; crunching tackles, sprinting runs, and high stakes risk. Why then, is rugby union not included in our palette of much hyped sports? 

After all, rugby is the precursor to American football, and many of football’s current elements are native to the game of rugby. According to legend, the game of rugby began as the result of a soccer player picking up and running forward with the ball during a soccer match in 1823; mankind’s lust for aggressive action then inevitably intervened. And many years later, the game of rugby has evolved into arguably the world’s most physically demanding and competitive sport. 

Played without the protection of NFL style padding, 15 players on each side battle it out on a quest to the opposite try line, through 80 total minutes of near non-stop play. The game is played on a pitch (field) similar to soccer dimensions, and the ball is thrown laterally or backward (no forward passing). So, the question remains; why not rugby?  It’s among the top 3 most watched and played sports globally, and among the most rapidly rising sports here in the States.

Give yourself a break from time-outs, first downs, commercial breaks, strike-outs, and NASCAR, and charge head first into the organized melee that is rugby.

Jullien Gordon wants to help you realize your purpose. Not an easy task I know, but one that this motivational teacher has been mastering for years. 

At only 27 years old, Jullien has already tucked some incredible accomplishments under his belt, earning two masters degrees from Stanford University and launching the Department of Motivated Vehicles (DMV), a thriving business designed to help people dedicate their lives to developing their passions. As an extension of this movement, Jullien just published his first two books, The 8 Cylinders of Success and Good Excuse Goals, and is preparing to host the world’s largest goal-setting movement on January 2^nd, replacing the traditional New Year’s Resolution with the New Month’s Resolution. 

Whew.

And that’s not even half of the innovations this young entrepreneur has developed. I had the pleasure of catching up with Mr. Gordon to get his thoughts on following your passions, sidestepping procrastination, building your brand, and stepping out on your own.

Listen to our conversation…

image: kevinnottingham.com

After listening to the Asher Roth parody, “I Love Knowledge,” TheCoolAid officially loves A Cool Stick.

Live from Baltimore, this five-piece hip-hop band released their debut EP, ACOOLSTICK.com back in November, playing with words, instruments, and inspirations. Get the free album download here, and catch a live show next month if you’re in the Baltimore/DC area.

*Thanks to DJ Khalid, the music mole, for sending the link.

Enjoy the moment people. Whether you’re home alone, stuck in an airport, tanning on the beach, shoveling snow, or passing platters around the dinner table. Right now is the perfect time to be happy, because right now is the only time you’ve got.

Once you’re able to look past the frenzied greed and corporate-sponsored hype that this season inspires, you’ll find that this time of the year can be pretty damn exciting. Holidays force you to soften up, open up, and for god’s sake, smile for a change.

One full year of trials, mistakes, gold stars, and attempts are behind us. Our bags are packed tight with lessons learned, and now it’s time to move forward, always keeping ourselves open to the riches sitting right in front of us. Keep taking those steps. Believe me, the folks behind this website are taking them with you.

Be grateful. Stay woke.

TheCoolAid.com

P.S. Here’s some Christmas cheer fo’ that ass…

Sayonara, Breakfast Club!

Shorewood High’s entire student body is living proof that high school can be awesome. With quality video production that rivals almost any musical, Shorewood gets about a thousand cool-kid points for integrating art and education in a time where arts programs in public schools are a distant memory. If you aren’t moved by their rendition of the (500) Days of Summer musical number, you have no soul!

Now, don’t you wish you were that cool in high school?

If you haven’t seen the indie hit starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, be sure to pick up a copy December 22nd.

If you were to throw Kanye West into a blender with the Power Rangers, you would probably be left with The Five One, a greater D.C. area hip hop band whose original mash-ups of popular and indie songs have gotten them attention. Known individually by their assigned colors (GREEN, RED, BLUE and GOLD), the guys are putting an unexpected twist on well-known hits.

“Everything is organic. Even if we have some projected formula, we’re always changing as the song goes, but our message stays the same,” says group member GREEN regarding the bands writing process. “In the words of Guru from Gang Starr, ‘We have formulas we just keep updating them.’”

Though their productions may seem unconventional—“Stuntin’ Like Mufasa,” mixes lines from a classic Disney movie with a track by hip hop’s current top artist—the combination flows. The group often gets their ideas naturally, rather than trying to force things together. “That’s how The Lion King and Lil’ Wayne and Weezer and Kanye get mashed up, because it’s all in our brains so we push it out that way,” GREEN says. “We have no inhibitions when it comes to making art, ‘cause you’re not supposed to I guess.”

Currently, the band is working on an EP album called Deuce Day World due out next year, and starting in January, you’ll be able to catch these guys live. In the meantime, download some tracks, and listen to some music below.

Find more music like this on Deuce Day World