Music Video: Nas –‘The Don’

The past two weeks have been an extended holiday for Nas fans, and the gifts just keep coming.  “The Don,” now has visual accompaniment courtesy of director Aristotle.  It’s a veritable NYC travelogue, opening with a nice wide shot of the Staten Island Ferry en route to Manhattan.  It’s the first image in cool opening credits sequence that reminds me of the one from David Fincher’s Panic Room.  Cormega should be delighted to see Nas in yet another pink suit like the one from the “Street Dreams” video.  I guess Nas won’t let snaps or insults dictate his fashion choices.  The theme seems to tie in with album title. Life is indeed good.  A seemingly more mature Nas is shown balling out in a relatively refined manner.  After enjoying a fine meal, Nas gets chauffeured around NYC while sporting a bow tie.  For some reason, the bassline feels even more imposing when playing underneath these visuals.  That’s interesting seeing as how nothing in the first half of the video looks or feels particularly threatening.  

A Life-Size Valkyrie Rides For the 30th Anniversary of ‘Macross’

Two cartoons in the 1980’s introduced me to the wonderful world of anime.  One was Voltron, the other was Robotech.  Robotech was actually made up of three different mecha anime series edited together into one giant story arc for American syndication.  The most notable of the three series was The Super Dimension Fortress Macross, which celebrates its 30^th anniversary this year.  

Three and Back Again: "We Had to Tear This Mothaf**ka Up"

‘There and Back Again’ is a series of articles in which I reflect on my upbringing in Lithonia, Georgia and my eventual return to New York in the mid-1990’s.  Much of it relates to Hip-Hop, and how I truly discovered a culture that would eventually define my outlook on life.  This was my world from childhood to adolescence.  This series began as an ongoing column on Planet Ill.  It now makes it official debut on ‘Scottscope’ with this piece, written in memory of the 1992 Los Angeles Uprising.

‘Prometheus’ Featurette Offers New Footage

Despite all of the trailers, viral videos, and various other marketing materials, the mystery of Prometheus somehow remains intact.  As much as I’ve seen, I don’t feel like I have a real idea of what the movie is about.  Punches are clearly being pulled, but the jabs still have me stumbling around the ring.  The latest blow from the 20^th Century Fox marketing flurry comes in the form of a featurette released just yesterday.  The clip is little more than ninety seconds long, consisting mostly of testimonials by the cast and Ridley Scott himself.  It also bears quite a bit of new footage.  Like just about everything that has been revealed of this film, it raises just as many questions as answers.

Arnold, Bruce, and Sly Let the Lead Fly in New Image from ‘The Expendables 2’

Some pictures don’t need captions.  If you were born in the late 1970’s and had HBO during the late 1980’s, this image will make your heart sing.  These actors ushered in an era where might made right.  The screen was littered with bursting squibs and muzzle flashes.  The soundtrack roared with automatic gunfire, shattering glass, colliding cars, and explosions.  Every now and then, all of those visual and sonic elements actually accompanied a good movie.  All of the stars in the above picture were at the center of a quality production or two during their prime.  Now all are well past their heyday, but they refuse to leave without a fight.  They are shown here standing side by side and laying down the law in a new image from The Expendables 2.

L.A. Confidential: An Interview with Retired LAPD Detective Greg Kading, Author of ‘Murder Rap’ Part 2

In part two of Scottscope's interview with retired LAPD detective Greg Kading (Click here to read part 1 if you haven't already), Mr. Kading talks about being taken off the Biggie and Tupac murder investigations before his team was able to make a single arrest.  He also delves a bit deeper into the criminal ties of Marion "Suge" Knight and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs.