'Read a book' cartoon ruffles some feathers
Ashley K. Washington
Staff Reporter
Issue date: 8/27/07 Section: Arts & Culture
- Page 1 of 1
Read a Book , take a bath, and buy some land are some of the messages that appear in the a popular video that has become a viral video phenomenon on Youtube.
The song, Read a Book, has many people on edge with varying opinions about the vulgar way the messages are given.
The song was written by hip-hop artist and poet Bomani "D'Mite" Armah from Washington D.C.
Armah uses attention grabbing beats by converging Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 with catchy lyrics typically associated with crunk music popularized by Lil Jon.
The song uses profanity and repeats the n-word numerous times which to some obscures the message.
"The concept of the video makes sense because it is true, but the content of the song is unnecessary," said Brandie Ricks, a junior health sciences major from Cincinatti. "He didn't have to use that video or use those words to get his point across."
Some students such as junior Tiffany Currie also feels that the way the song was done was inappropriate.
"I disagree with the way he brought the message to the community," said Currie, a business marketing major from Detroit. "Personally, I would have read it if it was still a poem."
However, not all students feel that the song was done in a negative way.
"It's funny to me (because) I think it's crazy," said Kevin Howard, a freshman architectural engineering major form Chattanooga, Tenn. "The kids today like videos with the booty shaking. The creators of that video simply took that concept and added a twist. They took the things we like and added an educational song to it."
Bomani feels that the purpose of his song outweighs the negative response it may receive.
"As an artist it is not my job to make people feel good, it's only my job to make people feel," Bomani said. "I love that everyone has dramatic feelings about the song, no matter if they love it or hate it."
Bomani said he feels that the use of profanity in the song isn't negative because he isn't using the words to disparage.
"As far as the language, there are no such things as bad words, only bad intentions," Bomani said. "For example, the word 'love' is not positive or negative; it all depends on the contexts.
"If you say 'I love to kill people,' that would be profanity."
With all of the controversy surrounding this innovative new song, Bomani still manages to keep his creative juices flowing.
His new album, Ear Banger, is available online and he has no plans in stopping what he's doing.
"I haven't gone platinum yet, but I got people listening. At the very least, I wanted people to be aware of someone doing something different with hip-hop music," Bomani said.
The song, Read a Book, has many people on edge with varying opinions about the vulgar way the messages are given.
The song was written by hip-hop artist and poet Bomani "D'Mite" Armah from Washington D.C.
Armah uses attention grabbing beats by converging Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 with catchy lyrics typically associated with crunk music popularized by Lil Jon.
The song uses profanity and repeats the n-word numerous times which to some obscures the message.
"The concept of the video makes sense because it is true, but the content of the song is unnecessary," said Brandie Ricks, a junior health sciences major from Cincinatti. "He didn't have to use that video or use those words to get his point across."
Some students such as junior Tiffany Currie also feels that the way the song was done was inappropriate.
"I disagree with the way he brought the message to the community," said Currie, a business marketing major from Detroit. "Personally, I would have read it if it was still a poem."
However, not all students feel that the song was done in a negative way.
"It's funny to me (because) I think it's crazy," said Kevin Howard, a freshman architectural engineering major form Chattanooga, Tenn. "The kids today like videos with the booty shaking. The creators of that video simply took that concept and added a twist. They took the things we like and added an educational song to it."
Bomani feels that the purpose of his song outweighs the negative response it may receive.
"As an artist it is not my job to make people feel good, it's only my job to make people feel," Bomani said. "I love that everyone has dramatic feelings about the song, no matter if they love it or hate it."
Bomani said he feels that the use of profanity in the song isn't negative because he isn't using the words to disparage.
"As far as the language, there are no such things as bad words, only bad intentions," Bomani said. "For example, the word 'love' is not positive or negative; it all depends on the contexts.
"If you say 'I love to kill people,' that would be profanity."
With all of the controversy surrounding this innovative new song, Bomani still manages to keep his creative juices flowing.
His new album, Ear Banger, is available online and he has no plans in stopping what he's doing.
"I haven't gone platinum yet, but I got people listening. At the very least, I wanted people to be aware of someone doing something different with hip-hop music," Bomani said.
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