VOLUME 1 NUMBER 1

¢50

BIG JIMMY:BIG TIME DOPE DEALER OR SMALL TIME HUSTLER

www.teambayoupresents.com

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 1

EXECUTIVE EDITORKATIMA EPTING

PRESIDENTMARCUS BAKER

CONTRIBUTING WRITERSGRAVE DIGGABIG HOOTCEDRIC HENDERSONVITUS SHELL

GRAPHIC DESIGNERVITUS SHELL

PHOTOGRAPHERVITUS SHELL

STORIESFEATURE STORYBIG JIMMY:BIG TIME DOPE DEALER OR SMALL TIME HUSTLER BY MARCUS BAKERLOCAL OPINIONSDIGGA’S CORNERLOCAL BEAUTYLOCAL BUSINESSPOLITICSLOCAL HAPPENINGS SPORTSWORD FROM THE STREETZENTERTAINMENTINDUSTRY INSIDERGRAVE’S CORNER

ROE CITY LIGHTSTEAM BAYOU MANAGEMENT1002 WINNSBORO RDMONROE, LA 71202318.699.9966

A note from the editor: Hello there! I’m Katima Epting, Editor-in-Chief of Roe City Lights. It is my honor to work with the best staff to bring our commu-nity the best writing, research and informa-tion ever obtained from a publication. It is my prayer that we will keep your interest and help to inform you in so many ways about the very community you live in, those you have elected to serve the community, those that entertain you in the community, those that benefit from your business in the community and those who share the struggles and tri-umphs as you do, in the community. I was born and raised in Monroe, La. I went to Swayze and Robinson Elementary Schools, Jefferson Jr. High, Wossman High School (graduated), ULM and Grambling State Uni-versity (Bachelor’s degree in Political Sci-ence). I am a member of DellWood Church under the great leadership of Pastor David Profit. I am a writer, poet, innovator, inspirationalist, advocate of the poor and mother of two beautiful girls. I am founder of N.O.W. (No Ordinary Woman), designed to assist, educate and give hope to the least ones. I enjoy inspiring with my writings or when speaking to others. I’ve seen Monroe at better times as well as worse. I’ve always been involved in the community one way or the other but I’ve kept a low profile. I have a lot to say and will express it to you in each and every edition! I pray and know that you will enjoy, be inspired and encouraged. Thank you for supporting Roe City Lights! My first desire is to address the churches. There is a church on every corner but not church in the corner of every heart; that is why there is so much suffering, dying, murder and suicide. In order for church to be in hearts, people must know the truth and have understanding and that is only obtained by hearing God’s word and seeing it put into action effectively. People are more concerned with the building itself than they are with building relationships with others they feel aren’t as close to God as they are. It is very important that everyone takes praise, respect, togetherness and the word further than inside the doors of the church. This is a dying world and the only help for that is God, Jesus and the word that reflects them both. Church has to be when one sees another going the wrong way, he/she gives that person an alternative to a better way. Right now, so many people are more concerned with how they feel; therefore, they forget that God is God alone and He doesn’t need their judging others. He needs workers for the harvest. I am not at all criticizing churches; I am instead encouraging those who just prac-tice Godliness behind the church doors to visit the hood, the streets, and where others won’t go and talk to God’s least ones and help them if you can. Find out why so many teens are dropping out of school, so many children are going to bed hungry or have two outfits to wear for the whole school year, so many have holes in their school or have to wear sandals in the winter time or boots in the sum-mer, why a young man felt the need to rob or young lady steal, why so many young ladies feel that lying down with any man that calls her beautiful is so popular, why so many young ladies define their worth with a few dollars, so many children know how to speak profanity better than add or speak properly and why so many people feel that there is no hope, no God and no love. We want a better community but very few are willing to sacrifice a little comfort to obtain that. Let’s do better for God, self and others. We want to be blessed but refuse to be a blessing! If you want change, start with self!(These views expressed are those of my own. These are not the views of Roe City Lights as a whole. This is truly my thoughts and my corner.)

Roe City Lights Thank you for purchasing the first edition of our publication. We’re very excited about the wonderful informa-tion that you’re going to receive after ready each edition! Our publication covers local government, entertainment, businesses, top news, highlights of events and much more! We decided to give Northeast Louisiana a boost, real-ity check and reason to smile all in one. It’s out with the old and in with the new. We are the “new” and we are the change that you’ve been looking for when you want entertainment but truth and substance also. In this issue, it is a must that you check out our stimulating stories from our interviews with CHS head football Coach Hamilton, CHS Quarterback Ja’Mond Collins, Local business owner (EZ Bail Bonds) Brian Johnson and State Representa-tive, Rosalind Jones! Also, if you need to know what’s going on in Monroe in entertainment this week, we are your information source. We have a major cover story that’s going to get you to thinking! We’re happy to serve you and look forward to grow with you and your needs throughout the years to come! Roe City Lights has just taken flights. From Our Staff to you and yours- Happy Holidays and enjoy!

LOCAL OPINIONS

“Yes, because people believe you have to buy gifts, but that’s not what Christmas is about. The majority of people believe in Santa Claus when it’s suppose to be about Christmas.”

Harlon Matthews

“Christmas is not about what get. Put more thought and meaning into the gift, not price.”

“I don’t think it’s overrated; I think it’s over commer-cialized.”

Lonnikia Williams

“Yes! People think it’s about the mall and shopping in-stead of Christ-mas.”

Vandy Jenkins

IS CHRISTMAS OVERRATED?

BIG JIMMY:BIG TIME DOPE DEALER OR SMALL TIME HUSTLER

MUST READ

When I was a child, my mother used to tell me, “a lie is a lie - it doesn’t matter who tells it.” That is why I do not to believe everything I hear. We as a people have the tendency to believe anything we hear without any investigation and no pass on misinformation. So when the Big Bully Bust took place here in Monroe- you heard all sorts of half lies and untold truths. According to the streets, Big Jimmy is the biggest alleged Dope Dealer that has ever been caught in the city of Monroe. What a joke! Remember my telling you what my mother said (A lie is a lie - it doesn’t matter who tells it), well in this case Big Jimmy is being used as a Blood Sacrifice, and the United States Government is shedding the blood.

They used the news media to capture our at-tention with an early morning warrant roundup, which yielded federal indictments for 13 individ-uals in the city of Monroe, with Big Jimmy be-ing the lead figure. Then there come the rumors “Man the FBI stopped Jimmy with a hundred and seventy eight thousand dollars going to score”. “Nah, they kicked his door in and he had four kilos under his bed.” “Nah man, they caught Mexicans bringing the dope to him”. Neither of the above mention is true nor is the picture the media painted accurate.

According to the U.S. District Court Western District of Louisiana case name USA v. Mitchell, Big Jimmy is actually being charged with the distribution of four ounces of powder cocaine that is only 52% pure; yet the local news media portrayed Big Jimmy and his alleged associ-ate as Major Drug Dealer. We need to ask ourselves, is Big Jimmy a Big Time Dope Dealer or a Small Time Hustler? A lie is a lie it doesn’t matter who tells it and that’s the truth!

I’M MASHI PEREE’ ORIGINALLY FROM LOUISIANA BUT VENTURED TO DALLAS TO SPARK OFF MY CAREER AS A MODEL/ACTRESS. MY MEASUREMENTS ARE 34 23 38. I HAVE DONE VIDEOS WITH LOCAL ARTIST AND A FEW BIG NAME ARTIST SUCH AS DORROUGH AND LIL WIL(MY DOUGIE). I HAVE CO HOSTED SEVERAL CE-LEBRITY PARTIES WITH DALLASSIGHT.COM AND CITY ANGELS, I HAVE DONE A 2010 CALANDER WITH UN-DISCOVERED ANGELS, COUNTLESS OF EVENTS WITH WWW.DALLASSIGHT.COM (YOU CAN SEE SOME OF MY WORK THERE ALSO), I HAVE WORKED WITH SEVERAL DIFFERENT PHOTOGRAPHERS, I HAVE DONE ENCORE HAIR MAGAZINE, DALLAS 2009 INTERNATIONAL HAIR &FASHION SHOW, MONROE,LA HAIR SHOWS, I HAVE DONE SOME LOW BUDGET FILM WORK,I HAVE DONE ALBUM COVERS FOR ARTIST, I HAVE BEEN FEATURED ON SEVERAL DIFFERENT WEBSITES SUCH AS WWW.IREPDLEAGUE.COM, WWW.KRUSHINMAGAZINE.COM, WWW.JOURNALICIOUS.US, WWW.TAWAGPROMO-TIONS.COM, AND MORE. MY GOAL IS TO BREAK BAR-RIERS IN THIS INDUSTRY AND MAKE A POWER MOVE TO THE TOP. YOU CAN ALWAYS CHECK ME OUT AT Www.modelmayhem.com/mashiperee WWW.TWITTER.COM/MASHIPEREE, WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MASHIPEREE, WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/MASHI-MODELPEREEEPTING, AND http://www.modelrok.com/member/mashi%20peree ! I CAN BE CONTACTED FOR BOOKING AT MASHIPEREE@GMAIL.COM.

LOCAL BEAUTY

LOCAL BUSINESSWhat’s the Business? (by: Katima Epting)

Local business owner Brian Johnson, who is general manager of EZ Bail Bond, has been a local business man for ten years; since he came to Monroe, Louisiana. Johnson chose to go into the business because of his desire to help the community in it’s time of need. He said that sometimes citizens find themselves being treated unfairly upon arrest and don’t always know answers or have sufficient amount of funds to bond out of jail, once they’ve been detained. The very name of his business- EZ is how he wants to help make things for the individuals who seek assistance in this time of trouble. The 8th Amendment (non-excessive bail) is one thing that Brian goes on in this line of work. He tells how our founding fathers believed in bail because there is nothing more precious or valuable than one’s freedom. He keeps a small busi-ness because he wants to give back to the community. Johnson says that this gives him the greatest feeling. Johnson’s interest is service. He believes in being available, no matter what time of the day or night or where because he feels if a person has been detained, they need to be reunited with their family as quickly as possible. Johnson operates EZ bail bonds in both Monroe and Farmerville and can handle any jail in northeast Louisiana. John-son does home visits as well- for those families who don’t have any means of transportation. He said, “If family can’t get out to us, we’ll come to them.” He explains rights and different avenues on getting family members out of jail as soon as possible. Johnson says that by being involved in his community and concerning him-self with helping others, he’s met some of the best people. He re-alizes that even those with negative attitudes, turn out to be some of the best people, because he’s learned that some people are under the pressures of the economy and everyday trials and tribu-lations and that is the way they express their needs and wants. Johnson offers the services of giving individuals the opportunity to see if they have warrants and what they can do to clear them up; this is a free service; Also, advice (steps) on what to do once you’ve been arrested. Johnson slogan is “Sometimes bad things happen to good people”. He strongly believes this and that is why he is here. Individuals arrested should know that they do have a right to remain silent and a right to a phone call. Make that phone call count by calling: (318) 322-2245 (EZ Bail Bond). The office is located at 1002 Winnsboro Rd where service is waiting on those who so desperately need it!

Politics (by: Katima Epting) Advocate of the poor and working citizens, community activist, community leader, mentor, active church member, attorney and State Representative Mrs. Rosalind Jones Lewis is working diligently for her constituents. One of Jones’ jobs is attorney-at-law. As a general practice, the law firm handles civil litigation, trial protection, criminal liti-gation and wrongful death cases. Jones also holds the state representative office, which entails representing the constituency, proposing legislation to benefit the constitu-ency, appropriating funds for services, helping by navigat-ing through state government/policies, aiding in the re-lease of government funds (i.e., unemployment benefits, SSI), effectively managing the budget so the delivery of important programs such as healthcare are secured and much more.

Jones represents District 17 which includes Ouachita Par-ish, Monroe City, and Police Jury areas. Everything south of Louisville including Charming dale and Richwood are included also. Jones has accomplished a lot as represen-tative, but amongst her many achievements; her two most important accomplishments are the redistricting (redrawing of the district line) which has gained more territory/more cit-izens who can vote and make a difference; and, effectively managing the budget so that the delivery of healthcare and healthcare facilities are secure (such as, protecting E.A. Conway against closure). This also includes protecting educational facilities such as local universities (i.e., Gram-bling, Delta and ULM) and keeping them open and tuition affordable for students seeking higher education. Jones said that it is extremely important to maintain the budget, informing me that it is already 1.5 billion dollars in the red. This is detrimental to the economy being that it will greatly affect the work force; because of the chance that jobs will be lost because of forced layoffs. There has to be enough money to balance the bills in order for this not to occur; if not, something will have to get cut off. She gave the exam-ple of one getting a paycheck that doesn’t cover their bills/expenses. That person will make a decision in the end on what is most/least important and the most important will be paid while the least is cut- like a cell phone bill opposed to paying a light bill, (one will most likely choose lights and cut the cell phone bill). The only way to help with this problem is by paying (more) taxes or coming up with better ways to improve revenue. If citizens are not willing to agree with an increased tax proposal, then cutting off some programs is inevitable. Jones stresses why it is equally important to elect gov-ernment officials who are sensitive to the needs of the poor and working citizen. When it comes down to certain cuts or proposals, this is the time that whoever citizens have elected makes a difference. Common assistance such as welfare and food stamps, unemployment, SSI, Medicare, Medicaid and even DMV fees, will be affected by the bud-get. Also, institutes of higher education are targets. There is the Grad Act, which proposes a 10% raise in tuition for college students. “Which is more important of the two” Jones asked- “the president getting an increase

POLITICS

POLITICS continued.in pay, who already makes six figures or the students who are striving to do better by obtaining a higher education?” These are important issues that Jones and other elected officials have to tackle, but citizens play a very important role in it all. Jones said that she is pleading with citizens to get involved in their local and state government by calling/writing elected officials, demanding that they do their jobs that they were elected to do and help citizens. Jones also said that there are town hall meetings every year (pre/post session) where information is giving on what happens after session begins. Jones just feels that the people deserve so much more but are demanding so little of a government that can do so much for them. Jones is pleading with citizens to complain, ask questions, read, stay informed and get involved or problems will not be resolved and will only become worst eventually. Jones stresses that it is not about an office, but serving the community. Citizens have to become more active in making the community better though, because officials can only do so much alone. Jones deals with bills dealing with the courts, taxing districts, criminal and juvenile justice also. She has learned that most individuals serving jail terms are uneducated or not properly educated. There is an increase in eighth grade drop out rates and is greatly seen in the prison system. More and more students are dropping out of school before they even get to high school. Education is imperative and has a vital connection with the incarceration rate. Jones said that some officials (James LeBlanc is one) are working hard to help recycle prisoners, meaning helping them get work training and education programs and making sure jail is more therapeutic than punishing so that inmates can get out and become productive citi-zens, instead of putting them back out to get right back into trouble. She has worked with others on implementing ideas that would help get nonviolent inmates increased chances of approval when going to face parole boards; also, giving prisoners accessibility to partaking in the voting process. Jones is also working on the commissary prices in prison (getting the cost down) because inmates are now being charged too much for the items they need to purchase. Jones has worked towards getting the juvenile facilities better in living arrangements. She also informed me that convicted felons, who have served their time completely, can vote and can go to school. They just can’t receive government assistance to do so. There is nothing the local government can do about that; therefore, her office as state representative cannot impact the decisions made by the federal government. Though, a great deal is being done, Jones said that there is still more to go and more assistance needed. She is work-ing very diligently to continue to make changes but Jones makes sure she is very accessible for the citizens she represents. She learned from her greatest influences Carolyn/Charles Jones (parents) and to add to her list of titles, wife is now one! Rosalind Jones is now Rosalind Jones Lewis after being married to Eric Lewis on October 1st of this year. Jones definitely can relate to family and the needs thereof. Jones invites all who may need her services to call her assistant- Katrina @ 318-362-5476 or call 318-325-2644. Email her at: Jonesr@legis.state.la.us.

LOCAL HAPPENINGSBJ Bell’s Christmas on the East, Thursday, December 23rd at the American Legion Hall on Powell Ave. 10 Admission and early arrival is strictly encouraged, Doors open at 9pm.

The Night Grave Stole Christmas at Club Infinity, Free Moscoto for All Ladies!!! 1st 25 Ladies $10, 25 and up.

Pimp Tyte Ent presents the 1st Annual Bluesfest, the 1st Blues Show of the year, Saturday, January 8th, 2011, Doors open at 9pm, Shows starts at 10pm. DJ Scott Banks on the 1’s and 2’s. Advance tickets $15 and $20 at the door. Reserve Tables at 318.267.8794. Tickets available at The Best Buy Restaurant. 318.801.4152 or 318.267.8794

Bobo’s Sports Bar & Grill- Monday Nite Football Mondays, Snap Snap Tuesdays Poetry Nite, Thursty Thursdays Live Dj Ladies free before 9, Drink specials all nite, Feel Good Fridays $3.50 drinks all nite, Mar-tini Saturdays, Big Six Sundays with Domino Tournament. Also Book Birthday Parties and other events with us. 318.323.8099

Circle Bar- Monday thru Thursday Happy Hour from 6 to 10, $5 Fri-days, Saturday is regular club nite, Seductive Sundays. 318.884.0227

Club Nuvvo- Each and Every Sunday Nite with the Go Dj’s amd Kun-tryboyz Ent in the building. Doors open at 10 and Ladies $5 before 11.

To be added to the Local Happenings Calendar, please contact 318.557.6303 or email teambayoumanagment@gmail.com before the 1st or the 15th.

Sports Corner (by: Katima Epting) 5ft. 10in. tall, 195lbs quarterback, Ja’Mond O’Quis Collins is a phenomenon. The Carroll High School quarterback led his team to a 10-3 season, which included one of the biggest victo-ries of Carroll’s football team in 33 years- a 12-7 victory over the Neville Tigers! This victory not only inspired the players, but the Carroll nation and many in the city of Monroe. I was privileged to interview Mr. Collins, along with his wonderful coach- Mr. Jackie Hamilton. They both gave important insight on their contribution to the Bulldogs football establishment. The man in charge, Mr. Jackie Hamilton (Head Coach), in-formed me that he attended Carroll Jr. High School and is a grad-uate of Carroll High School also; so, Bulldog is deeply rooted in him! Hamilton said that he always knew he wanted to be a coach after being under the powerful influence of two great coaches- the late Coaches Dorth Blade and legendary Eddie Robinson. He said that coaching at Carroll is nothing short of a blessing and the true meaning of living out one’s dream, since he’s living out his dream as CHS football coach. He knew that Collins was the man for the job because of his innate sense of picking out great athletes. He recalls Collins as a younger boy, throwing balls, passing out water and just helping out with the team pe-riod. Coach Hamilton is an inspiration to his team and said that he wants them to get more out of football than just the game. He wants them to be able to survive in life even “after the air leaves the ball” (A quote that one of his coaches taught him). Coach Hamilton has been productive for 18 years, in which he’s made 4 years as head coach. In rating his love for football, Hamilton gave it a 10 plus. His main goal as a coach is to establish a foun-dation; therefore, he works on building character in the young men. He set a goal his first year as head coach and that was for CHS to be high school state champions! With the fifth year approaching, it looks like the goal is now closer in reach. He has faith that next year, CHS will be high school state champions! I enjoyed speaking with the young, well-mannered, talented CHS quarterback, Ja’ Mond Collins, who said that for three years, he grew up under Brandon Landers and Antron Mason (two of his greatest influences). He looked to them both for in-spiration. Football is a very important part of Collins life and he works hard at being his best. Knowing how important an educa-tion is and knowing the standards of the Louisiana High School Athletic Association (LHSAA) require an athlete to have an ac-ceptable GPA, Collins said that it is very important for him to do well academically as well as athletically. His family and fans are other important ingredients to his recipe for success. He said they have taught him to work hard, believe in himself and never give up, but he also knows from his coach that some fans will come and go; so, it is very important that he believes in himself, even when no one else does. His coach believes that people have not seen the best of Collins. He’s only a junior; so next year- Look Out! Collins says his coach stays on him to ensure he does the right things. He smiles while telling how his

grandmother brags on him to everyone. His mother and grandmother are both happy that he is playing football and not in trouble. His father also plays a major role in his life and is very supportive. Collins sees himself as a role model for elementary students and his peers. He tells those around him that one may not always win, but it is important to always strive and believe. He credits his wonderful coaching staff and team for a wonderful season that ended with a 10-3 record. One of Collins goals is to play for the University of Florida and his ultimate goal (as far as football is concerned) is to make it to the NFL and retire from the NFL. Collins doesn’t just want to be successful at football, but also being an all around good person in life. Here are Collins stats for the season:

Passing: 127/205/1335 (5 ints-14 TD) (61.2% comp.avg) Rushing: 142/866 (26 Td) (6.1 yd. per carry) Receiving: 3/195/ (2 Td) (65 yds. pre-reception) Total: 2,396 (184.3 yds. avg. per game) 28 Tds.

Look out everyone! I know that some university will be proud to have Collins and we can all look forward to tuning in on NFL Sundays, seeing this spec-tacular young man!

SPORTS

Word On the Street

by Big Hoot

It’s the Twenty First Century and why are we still not able to go and come as we please. The Monroe Police Department are here to protect and serve not to pre-judge and harass. There should be no rea-son why black men and women should be stopped and asked “Why are you walk-ing.” “Then asked why are you walking in this neighborhood.” but remind you that the officer is holding your identification that shows that you reside just a couple of houses down from where he pulled you over at. And when asked the officer why am I being stopped, he replys “because you are walking in the street and this is a high crime area!” But once again, I remind you that there are no sidewalks in the com-munity and as of high crime I don’t see it. Only crime I see is (blacks) being prejudge and harassed and the officers that are do-ing these horrific acts. They are the ones that are detrimental to my community, then back up is called to the scene that’s when you are the victim of racial profiling and being belittled. I understand that crime happens but everyone in this area are not criminals. You call this community high crime but we call it home.

Checkout music by Big Hoot at www.myspace.com/bighoot318

NEW ABLUMS OF THE MONTH

Music Promotion: A Persistent and Sustainable Approachby Scott James I remember back in the day when I played my first show with my first real band. We were really excited about the whole thing and eager to promote it. This was well before MySpace or Twitter or Facebook and at the time the obvious way to promote was to put up flyers. And put them up we did. We made tons of them. We made some really big ones too. Getting them in very visible or creative places was a source of pride. The theory was that if 0.01% of people who saw the flyer came to the show then we could pack the venue by making sure that 50,000 people saw the flyer.The attendance at our first few shows was decent, so we continued with the plan. After trying this for a short while though, we just didn’t see any correlation between the flyers we put up and the attendance. The people who came to the shows were friends and their guests or people who had found out about us by word of mouth. We lost our enthusiasm for plastering the town with our propaganda. This was always kind of a fuzzy topic for me for a long time. It never really clicked for me until I read something by marketing guru Jay Conrad Levinson. He stated that after exhaustive tests experts found that on average it take 9 exposures to a product for someone to make a purchase. Suddenly this started to make a lot more sense for me. It’s something that I guess I knew on some level, but until that moment it was an abstract understanding of something that still frustrated me somewhat. The truth is that virtually no one will act on your band’s marketing until they’ve had a number of exposures. Higher quality exposures can generate quicker sales, like if someone sees you as the opening act at a live performance, but advertisement re-quires repetition to work. I’ve seen artists make mistakes in this area at great cost to them. It’s generally a very bad idea to purchase expensive advertising without the funds to launch a sustained campaign. You can’t spend a bunch of money on a full page add in a magazine and expect to get results, unless you can afford to continue targeting those same people over time. As a web designer I saw the traffic statistics of a client’s website after an expensive national television commercial. The add was specifically designed to drive traffic to the site. The results of the first add? Well, let’s just say you could buy the same amount of traffic from Google pay-per-click advertising for the cost of a good meal. Ouch. So what this means for you is that in order to be successful in your marketing you want to be persistent and consistent and promote in ways that you can sustain. Expect that people may have to hear about you from someone, see a flyer, see that their friend added you on Facebook, and then hear about you again before they decide to listen to your music. Then they may become a fan on Facebook, see one of your videos and think to themselves “I really should go see these guys”. Then they may see a post on Facebook and think about going to the show that you’re promoting. They may miss that show, but a month later their friend says something about your next show and they end up going. That’s just one example of how it might go down, but the point is that it’s a process. You need to generate as many exposures as you can for your target audience and you should expect your marketing to take some time to produce results. If you don’t reach your potential fans enough times then you can be sure that very little will happen. What I wish I would’ve known with my first band was that 0.0% of all people who saw my flyer only once would actually go to a show, but if we had stayed with it and continued using other avenues of promotion as well then we could have gotten much better results in the long run.

INDUSTRY INSIDER ENTERTAINMENT NEWS

Kanye West and his fifth studio album, My Beauti-ful Dark Twisted Fantasy enters the charts this week at number one. The Chicago MC/Pro-ducer moves 496,000 copies almost making the half-a-million mark in a week.

He is immediately fol-lowed by Nicki Minaj, whose debut album, Pink Friday, takes the number two spot. Minaj sells 375,000 copies. She also has the second-best sales week for a female hip-hop artists, right behind Lauryn Hill.

Not bad for two albums that were heavily leaked before their release.

Rihanna drops a few spots but remains in the top ten. Her latest album, Loud, lands at number 6 and sells 133,662 copies. That brings the Def Jam artist’s total sales to 339,680.

Fellow Def Jam singer Ne-Yo also enters the charts this week, moving 117,800 copies of his fourth album, Libra Scale, and taking the number eight spot.

Eminem drops from 18 to 23, selling 49,858 copies of his latest album, Recovery. To date the Detroit MC has sold 3,055,678.

Lloyd Banks enters the charts two spots behind Em with his third studio album H.F.N. 2 (The Hunger for More). Banks moves 45,188 copies and claims the 25th spot.

Lil Wayne takes a slight drop, falling from 28 to 30, with his EP I Am Not A Human Being. The 38,509 copies moved by the EP this week brings its total sales to 512,415.

Nelly takes a 27 spot plunge and lands at number 37 with his return-to-the-game album 5.0. This week Nelly moves 28,528 copies bringing his total sales to 90,982.

Courtesy of allhiphop.com

This Christmas, Waka Flocka’s moth-er/manager Debra Antney and her Mizay Entertainment are planning to give back this Christmas. Antney’s roster of rappers, which includes Gu-cci Mane, Waka Flocka, French Mon-tana OJ Da Juiceman are planning to give away toys, clothes, furniture, electronics, gift cards and even cars, to families in need this holiday sea-son. The event, which is still being or-ganized, will take place on December

22. It will feature a variety of acts, including a performance by Waka Flocka. Money towards the event will benefit various organizations and families in the Atlanta metro-area.

Rap legend Queen Latifah has inked a deal with Sacramento Kings’ point guard Tyreke Evans, who will become the first sports star to endorse the new VBLAST! vitamin water product from her new com-pany, New York Sprint Water. Evans, who was the NBA’s 2010 Rookie of the Year, will kick off a national campaign to showcase thew new packaging that ap-pear in 7-Eleven stores later this month.Additionally, Evans, a Chester, Pennsyl-vania native, will is currently filming televi-sion spots and Billboard advertisements to promote VBLAST! and its sister product, Aqua84.“I enjoy VBLAST! and Aqua84 not only for their great taste and nutrients, but also be-

cause of the company’s commitment to help developing countries drill wells for fresh drinking water,” Evans said of the deal. “Giving back to those less fortunate is something I enjoy and do every day, so I am excited to be work-ing with a company that does just that.”In September of 2010, Queen Latifah announced that she was jumping into the lucrative, billion-dollar vitamin water market, via an investment in New York Spring Water.

The superstar rapper’s name was associated with a $250 million drug bust that yielded 500 bricks of heroin. Newark Police offers found the bricks of the drug hidden in a side panel of an SUV with the bricks and the packets of the drug packaged for sale under the name “Lil Wayne.” A police dog was called in to search the SUV and the dog helped find a sophisticated special compartment shut by a latch with a special motor, custom designed to deal the drugs. “The driver had no driver’s license. We at that point we decided to call for a narcotics dog. conducted a sniff test and sure enough right away, on the exterior of the vehicle, he had a positive reaction. This might pose a danger to the distributor himself, depending on the level he’s on. Whether he’s a mid level or lower level or he’s actually the main guy, somebody’s losing money right now.”

“Over the years, I have met a lot of people trying to get into the entertainment business and I always get asked the same questions: ‘Grave, can you put me in the game?’ ‘Can you tell me about the game?’ ‘What’s up with the game?’ ‘What does it takes?’ First of all, it takes a big sacrifice and if it’s something you are doing just for the fame, you need to get out of it. If it’s something you really love and you got passion for it, you stick with it and you go hard in the paint. First things first; this is not like the dope game. In the dope game, you don’t want to be all on the internet, broadcasting what you got. You don’t want to be all in the streets passing out information on how to get in touch with you or letting everyone know, ‘Hey this is what I got right here. This me; come holla at me.’ You don’t want that; so, that’s the first thing you got to do is throw the dope game mentality out of the game in which we call entertainment. It is a business and if you don’t treat it like a business, it’s going to happen to you just like a business you don’t respect: It’s going to get rid of you or there is no room for you. The first thing you want to do is- copyright everything you got. Anything you record, make sure you copyright it. Any beat that you use, make sure it’s your beat and you can go on and do what you do with it. Now if it’s a freestyle and you’ve busted a freestyle on somebody else’s beat- that’s fine. Just take the words that you use and copyright them and make them your own words so you can find your own beat and make you a hit with it. If it’s a hit with their beat, it can be a hit with yours. When it comes to recording, if you can’t afford to go into a top-notch studio; then, go where you can afford to go. When you record that one song and you know it’s that hit- save your money, make a sacrifice and go to a better studio and make sure you get your music mixed down and you want it to get mastered as well. Some may say, “I don’t have the money to get in there and do it like that bro. I don’t make money like that.” Then, guess what? Sacrifice and when I say sacrifice; don’t get the new J’s that’s coming out this week. Go to the studio. I see so many folks passing me CDs like, “Grave, check me out bro.” Know what I’m talking about: Mouth full of golds, mouth on bling, neck on shine, creased down, fresh T on, got your J’s on your feet- and your music sounds like trash. You music is a direct representation of you. The sound quality of your CD is the most important of everything. If we can get a song and we like it, but it’s not up to quality, then it’s nothing anybody can do with it. You can put all the promotion behind it in the world; it’s nothing we can do with it. You can put it on every radio station but they not gone mess with it, because it’s not mixed down right. We might like the song, but hey- remix it and bring it back to us. Also, you have to be able to take constructive criticism. A lot of folks can’t take that. You be like, ‘Man, I like the song, but this is what’s wrong with it.’ A lot of them get mad, pout, run their mouth, talk noise, this and that. That’s not a good thing and that’s not a good look. What everybody may tell you as a friend, ‘Hey man, you like my song? Yeah man, it’s jamming.’ Then, get to his other homeboy and say it’s boo boo, but they got you thinking that this is something that will be played on the radio right now. Then you take it to that DJ and that DJ tells you it’s not mixed down right, or this is not the sound we looking for right now and you get mad. That isn’t what you do. Take the same aggression and use it for promotion or get in the studio doing something different. Do another song you feel. Promotion and your appearance meant a lot to your career. Social networking has made it so easy for artist to get out here to promote until it is not funny. You can reach millions, literally sitting right in your living room. Post your song on Youtube, Myspace, Twit-ter and Facebook. I mean it’s so easy to get songs out here but yet and still, artists don’t want to get out here and move around. For instance, you are trying to get on in your own city, but they have artists coming from other cities to yours doing shows and all you have to do is do what that artist is doing- get outside of your market and do some promotions. Sitting at home, going to the same spots day after day, week after week, is not going to get it done. If you want to get your music out here for people to hear it, you got to get out here with the people. With so many people getting CD’s duplicated, flyers made and posters done- the prices for that have been cut tremendously compared to years ago. So, instead of asking someone to buy a CD they’ve never heard before, for five dollars, you can actually give it to him/her. A few years ago, I was blessed to live with and work with a multi-platinum artist: David Banner! Banner moved me down to Atlanta where he sent me down to pro tools school at Stankonia- OutKast studio. He kept me in the studio with other platinum artists such as, Lil Wayne, Akon, Rick Ross, E-40, Gucci and we also had the privilege to work with platinum producers such as Mannie Fresh and Jazze Pha; that’s just to name a few and every last one of these people did the same thing that I just told you about. Believe me, the game and the industry is not easy at all. All you have to do is remember: stay focused, promote, make sure your sound quality is good, be able to take constructive criticism and stay prayed up. You got any music you want me to check out, email it to me at: Diggamanent@gmail.com. Until next time, always think B.I.G. Believe in God!”

GRAVE’S CORNER