‘State of the Culture’ is the show you turn on to hear unfiltered, unapologetic, gritty opinions in regards to topics within hip hop culture — whether you agree with what’s being said or not. Joe Budden, Remy Ma, Jinx, and Scottie Beam aren’t here to hold your hand in their debates and sugarcoat their words. They’re here to say what everyone else is afraid of saying, and do so with no hesitation. From talking about music, politics, sports and everything in between; the hosts are always with the shits. Welcome to ‘State of the Culture.’
This week on “State Of The Culture,” we’re recovering from the Instagram shit storm that’s been raging over the past week. From Kodak Black’s unwarranted advances toward Young M.A. to Jess Hilarious’ insanely misguided comments about Sikhism, it’s enough to make you miss the days before social media when there wasn’t so much transparency between fan and artist. Unfortunately, we wish there was a little more transparency in the case of Wendy Williams and her seemingly unstable marriage. Finally, stick around ‘till the end to watch the “SOTC” squad lighten the mood with their fun, autotune-assisted game show. You know we aim to please!
Check out the nine highlights from this week’s “State Of The Culture” below.
‘State of the Culture’ | “The State of Social Media Ignorance” (Full Episode)
1) New Zealand bans semi-automatic weapons, but guns alone don’t cause hate crimes
After the mass shooting in New Zealand last week that left 50 people dead and 40 more injured, New Zealand swiftly banned citizens from having semi-automatic weapons. It’s refreshing to see gun control enacted immediately after such a devastating crisis, but this does nothing to address what’s at the root of hate crimes. Jinx says, “You’re talking about trying to fix hate. I don’t know. That’s a big issue…a lifestyle.” Remy feels that while the banning of semi-autos is a step in the right direction, it’s important for folks to have the right to bear arms to protect themselves in tragic situations like this one. “Just think of all the young black men that have been shot and killed not just by police officers, but by people like the asshole in Florida,” she says. “Think about if they had been able to legally have a gun on them just to shoot back or get someone off them.” Scottie reminds us that the same rules don’t apply to those with melanin, stating, “If we’re protecting ourselves, we go to jail for it.”
2) Scottie and Remy Ma disagree on Jess Hilarious’ anti-Muslim airport rant
Jess Hilarious ticked a lot of people off when she singled out two Sikh passengers boarding her airplane. The Insta-comedian initially doubled down on her comments, saying she felt “unsafe” in their presence, but later apologized. Scottie calls Jess “extremely ignorant” while hoping that she, at least, learned from her mistake. Remy Ma looks at the situation a little differently. “What I saw is what they planted in us,” Remy says. “When 9/11 happened, they programmed us to look at people from Muslim countries and of certain religions as the enemy.” Jinx feels that, no matter how you slice it, Jess putting her views on a public platform was the wrong way to go about it. “What she did was dangerous,” he says. Joe says he’s been dragged in a similar fashion for comments he’s made, and learned to see things differently. “I’m not mad at anyone being afraid, just get there logically. Not because he’s wearing that or looks like that,” he said.
3) Joe wants J. Cole to live up to his Top 3 MC status
J. Cole graced the cover of GQ last week and it was all the talk on social media — mainly because folks enjoyed seeing him in rare high fashion form. We can talk about the interview and the look all day, but Joe has to get his beef with Cole out the way. “J. Cole is a top three MC,” he declares. “I would like him to look and sound like a top three MC sometimes.” Jinx is a little bit more understanding. “He lacks experience in that area,” he says. “He’s not on magazine covers left and right.”
4) Put some respek on Wendy Williams’ name
As polarizing of a figure as Wendy Williams can be, Remy Ma applauds her for being honest about her current struggles with sobriety. She said, “Being in this business for so many years, whether it’s the infidelity rumors with her husband and the drug abuse, she still came out there and said what was going on.” Scottie hopes this will be an opportunity to rethink the salaciousness of her hot topics. “She’s dragged people for less than addictions,” she reminds us. “People are going through their own struggles. Yes, they’re celebrities but they’re human, and I’m hoping she sees that with herself.” Love her or hate her, Joe thinks Wendy Williams is an undisputed icon in media, and says her show going under would be a loss to daytime TV.
5) Kodak Black’s comments about Young M.A. steps way over the trolling line
Young M.A. has made it clear that she’s not here for Kodak’s lewd comments about her on Instagram, and Scottie thinks his comments are especially disturbing considering the legal trouble he’s currently in. “I don’t think a person with a pending sexual assault case should be talking about penetrating someone who doesn’t want it,” she says. “I wouldn’t feel comfortable with someone saying that about me.” Jinx is side-eyeing the hell out of Kodak even for the way he went about it. “You know what’s crazy about dudes who sometimes get accused of these things? Sometimes, they snitch on themselves. Even ‘penetrate’ as a word isn’t something normal niggas say,” he said. Joe isn’t excusing Kodak’s behavior, but thinks his antics are fueled by the era of attention seeking. “What I notice with these kids, they only continue with things that gain traction,” he added. Joe also points out that Young M.A. herself has rapped about famous women that she’s want to sleep with. “Bars in a song is not sexual harassment. Nobody said anything when Nicki put out ‘Barbie Dreams,’” he mentions. “Equality should mean equality.”
6) Miami spring break took things too far this year
If you’ve heard anything about the mayhem in Miami last week, you’ll know this wasn’t any ordinary spring break. A man was taped knocking a woman unconscious, unspeakable sexual acts were recorded and went viral, and things got so crazy that the mayor of Miami had to issue a letter. Joe wonders what happened to the good Freaknik days, and why college kids can’t just make poor decisions without hurting people. “They’re broke,” Jinx says. “You spend all your bread getting there, and you don’t need no money to be on the beach. And when there’s that many kids, the cops can’t do shit.” Remy suspects a good majority of the folks wreaking havoc in Miami weren’t even college students. “Every hood I’ve lived in my entire life…all the raggedy, straggly bumskis were scraping up their money going to spring break.” Joe also questions how indicative spring break in Miami really is of college culture.
7) Joe thinks he’s too rich for a GED
Here’s an interesting tidbit. As it turns out, Remy asked Joe if he’d ever go back and get his GED. “It’s hard to tell you kids to do something that you didn’t do,” Remy says making the case for Joe to go back to school. But, ol’ Joey is good on that. “I’m rich!” Hey…can’t argue with that.
More from Jasmine Grant: