While cruising Facebook the morning of July 25, 2011, My Brother from another Mother Ricarto Brazela posed this question on his page:
"Examples R. Kelly, Alicia Keys, Lauryn Hill... Does the way they live their lives outside of the recording booth/stage impact if/how you view their music? What if their lifestyles contradict the music they put out? Should that matter?"
*Putting on the Pondering Face...*
Looking at the list of Artists that Ric laid out, two of these kids did similar wrong things. And one of these kids did a whole different level of wrong. Let's examine, Shall we?
Alicia Keys, Lauryn Hill, and R. Kelly are MAGNIFICENT Artists, and I am confident that no person will dispute that fact. 20 Grammys between the three of them, and many other awards as well. Their music has touched many people and received a lot of airtime, and download props. Here are three great examples of their Skill:
Add on Alicia Keys being a Philanthropist, Lauryn Hill being a Huge Influence to many Artists, and R. Kelly working with Many Artists and helping them Sky Rocket up the Popularity Food Chain, it is EXTREMELY HARD to Not Love their Musical Contributions (I may not have their CDs, Vinyls, or Download their Music, yet I do listen to what they do and Smile with a steady Head Nod).
Although their styles are different, Alicia Keys and Lauryn Hill both have done something that is so commonplace in this Era that I'm not even the least bit surprised:
Broke Up Marriages for THEIR Selfish Purposes.
Before ANYONE gets Episodic and Disown Me, DO NOT forget who is speaking on this; Andrew "Mr. Controversy" Boyd, AKA Phoenix, The Reborn© (Phoenix, The Reborn is a Registered Copyright of Andrew R. Boyd). You know I'm going to rub A LOT of people the wrong way with what I am going to say, and I welcome Anyone AND Everyone to "Drop Their Knowledge" on this topic. Your Rebuttals ARE Expected. Yet, I humbly ask that you all be open minded with what is coming out of my Mind and being written here.
I'm going to start by saying a quote that My Dad has been saying for Years, and is SO VERY Appropiate in this write:
"In this Day and Age, Women Believe that A Piece of Man is Better than No Man."
Let me start with Lauryn Hill...
For those that did not know, Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean dated through the majority of The Fugees early tenure, a relationship that friends have called "complicated". Then in 1996, she met Rohan Marley, a son of the Late and Great Bob Marley, who himself was already married. Even though he was married, they started a family; 3 Boys and 2 Girls (BEAUTIFUL Children!! Baby number six, a Boy, has been reported today that he is Not Rohan's Son). I'm sure once Rohan's
Wife NOW Ex-Wife caught wind of the Extra-marital Affair (whether by his words or Lauryn's), she was not Farting Rainbows and Shitting Sunshine. And we have received confirmation that Rohan left Lauryn for 28-year-old Brazilian Model Isabeli Fontana. Here are a few pics of her:
She's Very Attractive, as is Lauryn. It seems apparent that Lauryn's indiscretions have come back to haunt her and Isabeli is merely stealing a page out of Lauryn's Play Book.
Or is that REALLY the case...?
When you think about it, I can honestly place blame on Rohan as equally as I would Lauryn, for the simple fact that he is A WEAK MAN (Damn Right I said it, and you can Quote Me on it, too!!). He allowed TWO Women to interfere in his Life the way that they did. A REAL Man, is a One Woman Man; Remember, Rohan was Married when he met Lauryn, and Rohan was in a Relationship with Lauryn when he met Isabeli.
Doesn't say much for Anyone's character here, does it?
Let's examine Alicia Keys...
To Summarize what is going on here:
Alicia Keys was friends with Swizz's Wife. She was Humping the Man like a Horny Dog all the while smiling in her "Girlfriend's" (Swizz's Wife) face (ALLEGEDLY). Swizz and Wife get a divorce. Swizz and Alicia date, Alicia got preggers, get engage, and are married with an ADORABLE Little Blessing named Egypt (REMINDER: Egypt didn't walk up to his parents and Ask to be Conceived or Born; EVERYONE walking this Earth didn't ask for that. So therefore, Egypt, as are we, ARE A BLESSING). Here's a pic of the Little Marvel:
Now, we have to see who Swizzy left so he could be with Ms. Keys...
Swizz's Ex-Wife is Very Attractive, just like Alicia. And she has a Brand New Little one, like Alicia.
Once again, is this a case of a Woman going after someone that was once unobtainable by being Deceitful, Dishonest, and all around Disgustingly Dirty in her Trickery and Methods, or another Weak Man failing to Prioritize in the Realm of the Heart?
To be Very Honest, we don't know what the EXACT Circumstances were when it came to these two situations and more than likely we NEVER WILL. Just know that What is Done in the Dark WILL Come to Light. There may be a day where the Truth will come out, but do not hold your Breath.
Looking at these two situations, they remind me of the "Family Guy" Episode "The Cleveland–Loretta Quagmire," Where Cleveland Brown's Wife Loretta had an Affair with Cleveland's Best Friend, Glen Quagmire. The End Result is Loretta and Cleveland Divorcing after Loretta left him, and he and Quagmire closed the show reminiscent to "Rocky III".
Only difference, Boys and Girls? No Children are in the Mix and this is a Cartoon. Actual Lives as well as Families are Fucked Up and Destroyed because of Selfishness ALL ACROSS THE BOARD. There is no way that ANYONE can Justify this Madness between those two. If anyone can, it'll lead me to believe that You Yourself are a Man-Jacker or a Woman-Jacker (NOT Judging; I am ASSESSING. Please don't confuse the Two).
Bottom Line: The True Victims are the Children Involved in this Bullshit, and I pray for their Young and "As Innocent as Possible" Souls.
Robert Kelly AKA R. Kelly AKA "The Pied Piper of R&B" :
Riddle Me This, Mr. Kelly:
With all that you have accomplished in the World of Music, as well as garnering the Love and Admiration of So Many People (Myself Included), WHY OH WHY did you pee on that Girl AND Video Tape it?
I feel a couple of References coming on...
"R. Kelly is mad at me! That ain't a Joke; That Nigg@'s MAD! He came up to me asking, 'How are you going to do a Video about me peeing on somebody?!' Nigg@, how are YOU going to make a video about peeing on Somebody?!" -Dave Chappelle
February of 2002, R. Kelly was accused of making a video, allegedly showing him engaging in sex with an underage girl. It was released by an unknown source, and was sent to the Chicago Sun-Times; the newspaper that broke the story. Now, from what was rumored, he was looking DEAD INTO the camera and proceeded to turn an underage girl into a urinal. And who better to do that to than Sparkle's Niece? Sparkle: YOUR PROTEGE!!!
Let me get this Right: Sparkle's Niece, YOUR Protege's Niece, is peed on by You AND You Video Taped the whole thing? And to top it all off, it was either someone you screwed over in the past and kept around you, or a Jilted Ex (Let's clump them together and say "Someone with A NASTY Grudge against You") that took That Tape to the Press, and you got your Tardy Ass Arrested.
To be BRUTALLY HONEST, Robert Kelly IS a Pedophile. Look at his Track Record:
-1994: Kelly meets his future wife Andrea Lee when she auditions to be a dancer for the 12 Play tour (she was 20 at the time). However, he first marries 15-year-old Aaliyah (using a falsified marriage certificate that lists her age as 18) in August.
-Dec., 1996: Suit Filed Against Kelly; Tiffany Hawkins, 20, files suit against Kelly, saying he picked her up at his old high school in 1991, had sex with her when she was only 15. Then in Jan. of 1998, R. Kelly pays Hawkins $250,000 to drop her lawsuit (I'm not Legal Savvy, BUT I do Believe that Payoff is an Admission of Guilt).
-April of 2000: R. Kelly begins a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old record-label intern named Tracy Sampson, according to her 2001 lawsuit. In December, the Chicago Sun-Times publishes an article about the investigation and Kelly's "pattern of pursuing underage girls for sex." The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services launches a probe.
-January 2003: R. Kelly is arrested on 16 additional charges of child pornography in Miami when authorities say they found photos of a nude underage girl while searching his residence during the previous arrest. The Florida charges are later dismissed due to an anomaly in the search warrant. Despite Kelly's failure to phone his probation officer while shooting a video in January in Florida, Judge Vincent Gaughan overlooks protests from prosecutors and grants the singer permission to leave the state for two brief tours, one in August and one in October.
-January 2008: Ne-Yo sues for breach of contract for being fired from the Double Up tour, while the judge orders Kelly to cancel a show so as not to miss a court appearance the following day. In February, Regina and George Daniels clarify that Kelly had a sexual relationship with their college-age daughter, whom the singer has known since she was 7 (College-Age could mean either 17 or 18; dependent on Age of Consent in the State at the time, R. Kelly COULD have been in the Clear).
You are NEVER an Official Celebrity until you have a Mugshot! *Rolling Eyes*
I don't care how Hard you defend this dude, fact of the matter is Robert Kelly has a LAUNDRY LIST of Pedophilic tendencies. I'm on my knees
BEGGING for someone to Justify Mr. Kelly's Heat Seeker being set to "Teenage Girls". What, R. Kelly: Is it the fact that Women your age are a Challenge and you are Fucking Lazy, or is it the Fact that you have a Sick, Warped, and Twisted way of Manipulating Young and Naive Minors for your own Sexual Satisfaction and Gratification? TELL US, SIR!!
Maybe I answered my own question, I don't know....
To be Fair and Objectionable in this debate, those Little Girls could have looked at R. Kelly and said "No!" Instead of doing that, those "Little Women" chose to be "Grown Up" in their actions, they got what they paid for (LITERALLY); A Media Circus and Labeled as Victims (Other Words come to Mind, but that would be Low, even for Me). And to add onto it, I'm throwing in a "Boondocks" Reference:
Riley is DEAD ON; the girl could have Simply MOVED OUT OF THE WAY!!!
The One Thing that we MUST Keep in Mind is that there are two sets of individuals:
There is Alicia Keys, Lauryn Hill, and R. Kelly: THE ARTIST, THE PERFORMER, AND THE POSITIVE ROLE MODEL TO THE COUNTRY, IF NOT THE WORLD.
And there is Alicia Keys (Alicia Augello Cook, born January 25, 1981), Lauryn Hill (Lauryn Noelle Hill, born May 26, 1975), and R. Kelly (Robert Sylvester Kelly, born January 8, 1967): THE PERSON BEHIND THE MUSIC.
Ladies and Gentlemen, PLEASE Learn to Separate the Two Individuals; the Performer and the Person. That is Common Logic 101, and Common Sense 101.
Bottom Line: No Matter Who You Are and What Your Status is in Life, you are a HUMAN BEING First! And from my Point of View, from what I have Observed from Afar, as well as What was Presented to the Public via our Great Media Coverage *Rolling Eyes AGAIN*, They are No Different and No Better than Anyone Else that pulls the EXACT SAME SHIT! They have Pull, so the Rules DO NOT Apply.
*Sarcastic Applause* Just Fucking Awesome.
Let it be one of us Common Folk, with NO PULL at all; we would be Labeled AND Condemned for what we have done in regards to what they did. No Ifs, Ands, Or Buts About It.
My Question for You, Those that lump ANY one of them as The Performer, Artist, AND Person: If you are such a Huge Supporter of their Music, does that Mean You Condone what they have done outside of the Studio and Off of the Stage as well?
~© 2011 Andrew Boyd~