Atlanta Music Scene

By J.James

August 18, 2008 2:38 PM | Link to this

Geez…if anything could make me think less of someone who attained such greatness as Phelps it is this.

I wish he had kept his playlist to himself…I guess it just goes to show that athletic prowess and taste do not always go hand in hand.

For the record: Hip-Hop/Rap is total CRAP. It glorifies a lifestyle that is utterly contemptible. It seeks to amplify exactly what is wrong about our sickened culture. Its proponents and purveyors are almost without exception the lowest among us.

By AtlantaCyclist

August 18, 2008 2:53 PM | Link to this

I think the question should be “Can music in general help athletic performance?”. The answer is heck yes. I cannot run without listening to music. I need music to motivate me to run harder.

By Steve

August 18, 2008 2:54 PM | Link to this

So that’s how he won all of those gold medals! Listening to all of that crap got him p** off and crazy. It’s a good thing they didn’t have any guns around or he would have been shooting people like the local trash does here after listening to that stuff.

By nypeach

August 18, 2008 2:54 PM | Link to this

J.James, lighten up! Sure, some rap music is mysogenistic and glorifies violence, but there are some great artists out there. As for your comment that “the purveyors are almost without exception the lowest among us,” most purveyors of rap today are young, white and suburban. No, really. So get off your (ancient) high horse and stop being so judgemental.

As for inspirational songs, I’ve gotta go with LL Cool J’s battle rap in “It’s Jigglin’ Baby.”

By JohnnyReb

August 18, 2008 2:55 PM | Link to this

J.James, amen! Phelps is like all too many other young White kids these days, reeled in & deceived by the intentional “mainstreaming” of this garbage. I lost alotta respect for Phelps knowing he listens to that mess. Like most of these deceived, oblivious young White snot-nose kids, Phelps needs to drop that ghetto garbage & listen to some good music like Hank Jr, David Alan Coe, Waylon, etc. Rap is Crap is Rap!!!

By nypeach

August 18, 2008 2:59 PM | Link to this

oh, oh I forgot:

Public Enemy “Don’t believe the hype.”

By Music Lover

August 18, 2008 3:01 PM | Link to this

Mr./Ms. James - perhaps he listened to the BEAT and not the lyrics? Obviously listening to hip/hop no more makes you want to do a drive by than country makes you want to go cow rustlin’. Where’s the big outcry over death metal and those sick bands who glorify blood, death, and rape like Slayer, Metal Death, and Morbid Angel?

“Death metal’s lyrical themes typically invoke slasher and splatter movie violence, but may also extend to contain themes of Satanism, criticism of religion, Occultism, mysticism, and/or social commentary. Although violence may be explored in various other genres as well, death metal elaborates on the details of extreme acts, including mutilation, dissection, torture, rape and necrophilia. The genre often glamorizes violence and obscurities, there is equally as much fear and disgust amid the exploration. Heavy metal author Gavin Baddeley stated that there does seem to be a connection between “how acquainted one is with their own mortality” and “how much they crave images of death and violence” via the media. Additionally, contributing artists to the genre often defend death metal as little more than an extreme form of art and entertainment, similar to horror films in the motion picture industry. Needless to say, this has brought such musicians under fire from activists internationally, who claim that fact is often lost on a large number of adolescents, who are left with the glamorization of such violence without social context or awareness of why such imagery is stimulating.”

I’d like to see the AJC make as big of a fuss about THIS than hip/hop.

By Vick Supporter

August 18, 2008 3:03 PM | Link to this

Typical, racist white people responses. I like to listen to Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd. Is there something wrong w/that? So what that he likes rap music. At least he’s not a racist and respects other genres of music besides today’s BS rock music. These rock bands today, you can barely understand and tolerate all of the f’ed up “playing” that they do. The best people that white people have ever had is Led Zeppelin. At least their music is understandable and actually has a groove. That band is the greatest of all time, and I’m black.

By Jim H.

August 18, 2008 3:10 PM | Link to this

God bless him and more power to him — but if I had to listen to that stuff I would swim straight to the bottom of the pool and not come back up!

I’m just from a different generation I reckon (one that knows what good music is). What works for me as I work out hard at the gym (at a fit 48 years old)?…..The Allman Brothers Band, Stevie Ray Vaughan. Skynyrd, Zeppelin, Bob Seger, etc…..Now THAT’S motivational music.

By black panther

August 18, 2008 3:14 PM | Link to this

1989 the number another summer (get down) Sound of the funky drummer Music hittin’ your heart cause I know you got soul (Brothers and sisters, hey) Listen if you’re missin’ y’all Swingin’ while I’m singin’ Givin’ whatcha gettin’ Knowin’ what I knowin’ While the Black bands sweatin’ And the rhythm rhymes rollin’ Got to give us what we want Gotta give us what we need Our freedom of speech is freedom or death We got to fight the powers that be (faint voice in the background)Let me hear you say

Chorus Fight the power Fight the power Fight the power Fight the power Fight the power Fight the power Fight the power Wheve got to Fight the powers that be.

As the rhythm designed to bounce What counts is that the rhymes Designed to fill your mind Now that you’ve realized the prides arrived We got to pump the stuff to make us tough from the heart It’s a start, a work of art To revolutionize make a change nothin’s strange People, people we are the same No we’re not the same Cause we don’t know the game What we need is awareness, we can’t get careless You say what is this? My beloved, lets get down to business Mental self defensive fitness (Yo) bum rush the show You gotta go for what you know Make everybody see, in order to fight the powers that be (faint voice in background) Lemme hear you say… Fight the Power

Chorus

Chorus

Elvis was a hero to most(3x) But he never meant, s** to me you see Straight up racist that sucker was Simple and plain Mother f*** him and John Wayne Cause I’m Black and I’m proud I’m ready and hyped plus I’m amped Most of my heroes don’t appear on no stamps Sample a look back you look and find Nothing but rednecks for 400 years if you check Don’t worry be happy Was a number one jam Damn if I say it you can slap me right here (Get it) lets get this party started right Right on, c’mon What we got to say Power to the people no delay Make everybody see In order to fight the powers that be

Chorus

What we got to say fight the power,cmon(x3)

By nypeach

August 18, 2008 3:15 PM | Link to this

The responses remind me being a teenager and coming back from vacation with my parents to find that someone had broken into our Queens, NY home. The police officer asked my father what was stolen. And my father replied in a horrified voice, “You can tell they had bad taste because the stole all of my kids’ rap albums and left mine behind.” The floor was littered with my dad’s country albums. We still laugh about this and my dad STILL fails to see the humor.

By Hip Hop for Life!

August 18, 2008 3:17 PM | Link to this

HA HA. You chumps are mad at Phelps for listening to hood music. Haters! Hip hop rules and will continue to rule to the end of civilization. You don’t like it? Who cares, we don’t like you either!

Hip Hop 4-Ever!!!!

By Zedd

August 18, 2008 3:17 PM | Link to this

@Vick Supporter- no one made the connection to the hip hop trash and race until YOU DID. So what you are saying is that if I don’t like rap music I am racist?? Well try this on. I too love Zeppelin. Led Zep’s music has its roots in blues. Blues was born from black artists. So am I still racist?

By Vick Supporter

August 18, 2008 3:29 PM | Link to this

@Zedd, I responded to the posts from earlier from J.James and JohnnyReb, i hate that alot of white folks are so quick to call hip/hop crap music, yet you have your “death metal”** thats ten times worth and they don’t even mention that. Go back and read them for yourself. Those look like racist comments to me and its typical of them to do so. And I agree, Zeppelin is the greatest band of all time.

By Jason

August 18, 2008 3:30 PM | Link to this

“Most purveyors of rap today are young, white and suburban. No, really.”

I don’t think you know what “purveyor” means.

By T

August 18, 2008 3:34 PM | Link to this

LOL. I am guessing that these are just some of the songs he likes. They have a fast tempo. Something to get you hyped to swim fast. Maybe, if he was doing a little bit of sycronized swimming he would of had a little waylon jennings on the old ipod. But really, who cares? Don’t like what he listens to, don’t borrow any of his cd’s or his ipod. lol.

By Reality

August 18, 2008 3:44 PM | Link to this

What is about some whites who think that if ain’t white it ain’t right? During the advent of Jazz there were those (white) who said some of the same negative things about that genere. Check it out for yourselves if you don’t believe me. Please give it a rest, hypocrits. We have been on to your hypocisy since 1619. Peace, and have a good day.

By E$

August 18, 2008 3:46 PM | Link to this

No “Champion” by Kanye? lol

By CommunistAJC

August 18, 2008 3:47 PM | Link to this

Who cares? I mean, let him listen to whatever he wants. He has every right to listen to that stuff even if most of it is garbage. The guy is the all-time Olympic medal champion.

By All Respect Lost

August 18, 2008 3:55 PM | Link to this

So sad.

All the respect most of us had for him is now gone.

He should have kept that humiliating play list to himself!

I wish I had never known this.

I wonder why he was too stupid to know he would be throwing his image in the trash can by releasing this playlist!! Did he not know so many people would go from being so proud of him to being ashamed?

And what a boost this does to our poor, misguided young black kids, who now are saying, “Ha! We told you so! We don’t need to learn to read! We don’t need to learn to write! Rap rules the world! All we have to do is rap and we can go to the Olympics! To hell with school!”

By Vick Supporter

August 18, 2008 4:00 PM | Link to this

Mike Phelps loses respect from the white community because he likes rap music? What a disgusting way of thinking, like ya’ll have always been since slavery

By joe

August 18, 2008 4:10 PM | Link to this

I listen to a mix of metal, alternative, and rap during lifting sessions. Jay-Z, Cypress Hill, Linkin Park, Metallica, Korn,DMX, Rage Against the Machine, ice Cube, White Zombie. Whatever, gets you excited or in the zone after working for 9 hours. To each their own. Leave it at that.

By Out of Atlanta

August 18, 2008 4:12 PM | Link to this

The original question asked is interesting to understand what motivates an athlete to compete at a high level. Would some of the above responses be posted if it was known that Michael Jordan listened to The Carpenters before big games? At the end of the day, who cares? Phelps musical choice is not a reflection of who he is as a person. Looking further at AJC, where are the editors? Why do they present this drek of a topic when they know it will elicit racist responses. Don’t become trapped in sensationalism. Maybe if the community was more focused on the Olympic games, instead of the type of individuals the athletes may be, the 1996 Games would have been hosted much better!

Curious the Baltimore Sun, Michael Phelps hometown newspaper, is not running this story.

By reservoirDAWG

August 18, 2008 4:18 PM | Link to this

I could care less. If an athlete knows what gets their motor running they can decide on the music they want to listen to. As far as all this rap sucks talk goes, there is just as much rock that is awful.

By JohnnyReb

August 18, 2008 4:49 PM | Link to this

Hey Vick Supporter, I said anything about death metal…that’s stuff’s garbage too! I just stated the fact that rap/hip-hop is crapola & is packaged with the ghetto culture & marketed to duped young White kids (for various nefarious reasons). The rap=crap “culture” is glorified by Zionist controlled “Madison Avenue”! Fyi, yer boy Vick embodied everything wrong with the thug/hip-hop culture in pro sports & was totally overrated as a QB (he couldn’t hold Peyton Manning’s jock strap). But ol’ Vick got his just rewards..yo! LOL! >:-)

*BTW - Pullin’ the race card & throwing out the ubiquitous “racist” label doesn’t intimidate me one iota son. I give a solid middle finger to Marxist spawned “political correctness” and all it’s propagators & subscribers!!!

By johnny t-bone

August 18, 2008 5:05 PM | Link to this

The guy’s a human dolphin, no doubt about that, and the Olympics feat of 8 gold medals is amazing, but other than that he’s a dope, with a past DUI.

Doesn’t surprise me at all he listens to rap/hip-hop, which is nothing but crap. For anyone who mentions “musical genre” and that it will be around for ever, y’all need to come out of hiding from behind the bling. There is nothing musical about this crap. And for the race hater’s out there, spare me, I’m the biggest fan of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Clifford Brown on this board. If you don’t know who they are you should never comment about anything music related ever again as long as you live.

Rap/Hip-Hop artist is an oxymoron.

How about we post the lyrics to all of those songs and detail the inspiration. There’s plenty of euro pop bass heavy killer beats he could choose to listen to, but please spare us the excuse he’s only listening to the beat. If you are a fan of this trash, that kind of comment only digs a hole in your own argument.

How many of you rap fans would proudly read those lyrics to your kids?

By JP

August 18, 2008 8:38 PM | Link to this

of course rap is motivating. look at all of the young black men it motivates as they run from the cops.

By malm

August 18, 2008 8:46 PM | Link to this

Well, it didn’t take long for me to start disliking Phelps. Too bad he didn’t keep that moronic list to himself. Just another stupid lemming…

By Christian

August 18, 2008 9:41 PM | Link to this

Very disappointing.

By Roland

August 18, 2008 11:39 PM | Link to this

YOU PEOPLE ARE SO SAD!!!!!!!! The Greatest Olympic athlete of all time who just happens to be WHITE listens to of all things BLACK music. OBVIOUSLY, the people on this blog are or never have been ATHLETES of any kind. What you might not know is that all sorts of athletes from high school to the PROs listen to hip hop before competition.

YAO MING for Christ sake has been known to listen to hip hop. You think the Chinese are PATHETIC enough to disown him for it. SICKENING!!!!! TURN OFF THE COMPUTER, GO OUTSIDE AND DO SOMETHING WITH YOUR LIFE INSTEAD OF JUDGING SOMEONE FOR HIS CHOICE OF MUSIC.

THE ALLMAN BROTHERS AND JOHN COLTRANE IN HIGH PACED SPORTS?!!!!!!

Oh by the way, Im WHITE and also HATE RAP music but this AMERICA to each his own.

By Roland

August 18, 2008 11:51 PM | Link to this

You guys are a bunch of COMMUNISTS. Judging someone because you don’t like his music even one as stupid as rap.

But put a monkey on a shirt and call it Barack OBama, hey its FREEDOM of SPEECH and his God Given AMERICAN right… HYPROCRITES

By johnny t-bone

August 19, 2008 12:00 AM | Link to this

Yao Ming gets a pass because he can barely understand the language. I would bet all I have that he can’t follow any lyrics of the hip-hop trash he listens to.

Phelps should understand he is going to be a role model for youth and therefore should distance himself from the trash that is rap/hip-hop. Maybe his sponsors will take note and punish him appropriately.

For all of you so proud of this “art form”, feel free to post lyrics of all the songs listed. I’m sure they are inspiring and will make us all realize the incredible contribution they have added to our society.

By Roland

August 19, 2008 12:53 AM | Link to this

Here we go again with that role model bull crap. LISTEN, I hate rap just like the next man, but our children should aspire to grow and be like their PARENTS, not a 23 year old swimmer who only works every four years.

Thats the problem with society today, we are so busy letting POP culture raise our children that we want to them to be more perfect than we are. And we WONDER why Paris Hilton is relevant enough for McCain to use her in an ad. Bull crap.

Raise your children to be next whoever they were destined to be, not the next freaking Michael Phelps or Tiger or whoevever…

By Manny

August 19, 2008 6:01 AM | Link to this

So all Country, Rock, Heavy Metal, and other genres of music’s lyrics are inspiring, huh? Before you answer, be warned: I have all of those genres in my MP3 player, so I can post lyrics of those too.

Michael Phelps’ music tastes are his. While I may not personally like the songs, it doesn’t speak to who he is or his character. I can’t believe how incredibly stupid some people are!

By just can't see beyond your nose can u?

August 19, 2008 7:56 AM | Link to this

this isn’t racial… it’s conservatives doing what they always do best, judging anything that isn’t them as inferior. They did it to Elvis & Rock-n-Roll and every new idea in history. If it were up to conservatives the world would still be flat and we would still be sailing around in wooden ships.

New is always controversial, and a white athlete proudly listening to urban music is as new as a black Democratic being elected President.

I’m not a thug or a criminal nor are any of my friends but we all listen to urban music. Why? Because if you put me in a room and played Heavy Metal, Country, Rock, Pop, Techno, Latin, or any of the other “real music” that has been discussed in the previous posts I wouldn’t feel anything and that’s not some random choice i made because I thought it’d be cool; it is who I am. I listen to what I listen to because of how it makes me feel…it feels like music to me therefore it is. It makes me nod my head, tap my feet, sing along, and dance just like your music does you. Rap is not about admiring the art form like a static painting on the wall…it’s about feeling what the painter felt when he painted it; something you will never understand until it touches you.

YOU PEOPLE ARE ESSENTIALLY SAYING I AM HUMILIATING MYSELF BY LIKING WHAT I NATURALLY LIKE.

I guess liking what I like makes me a lesser person than all of you high and mighty anti-rap people. It kind of reminds me of the pro-slavery mentality that blacks are lesser people than whites.

That is the message the youth that you care so much about is receiving….that it’s not ok to be yourself and if you don’t conform you are less than we are.

I applaud Phelps for being one of the few who can get on TV and be himself despite the negative comments and badgering.

Anyone who says Phelps has lost their respect from this never respected him in the first place…and you probably voted from idiot Bush too.

(If anyone needs to have lost all respect GW would be the one.

P.S. There’s a rap song that comes to mind right now… the main lyric is “if you don’t like it f*** you!”

By Charm City

August 19, 2008 8:53 AM | Link to this

What do you expect from a kid from Baltimore ? - you can’t be soft and expect to thrive in that city - hip-hop’s origins are traceable to the eastern seaboard - he may not be from the roughest part of the city but B-more is B-more - no wimps allowed

By JohnnyReb

August 19, 2008 9:10 AM | Link to this

Hey Roland, speak for yourself son…I played Offensive Guard at VSU (started my last 2 years). If high paced you like, then how’s about some Flatt & Scruggs with Earl’s lighten paced banjo. BTW, I didn’t need any music to get me up for a game. Folks are free to listen whatever they prefer (junk included), but rap is toxic garbage and is directly marketed to these sheeplized young White kids (as is the whole “thug” culture). I blame the Zionists who control the so-called Entertainment industry, but these kids should be taught (by Momma & Daddy) not to pollute their ears & minds with crap like rap (you can add 90% of the trash on the boob-tube to that as well). Also, I don’t count these (largely caste system* enabled) primadonna pro athletes as “role models”. True role models are patriots like Smedley Butler, John Birch, Old Hickory, Jefferson Davis, Alvin York & Ron Paul!

• = http://www.castefootball.us

By Pete

August 19, 2008 11:01 AM | Link to this

I guess Michael Phelps is a gangsta-thug wannabe. I’m surprised he hasn’t started wearing a bullet proof vest while he is swimming. Oh, and he would also have to start carrying a gun and get some gold teeth too. Maybe start calling all the women by the pool b**ches and ho’s.

Maybe he could move here to Atlanta where he could be a hero just like the other thugs. I’m sure Ryan Cameron would have Michael on his show. Then he and Ryan could talk about what positive influences they are to the Atlanta youth while promoting this thug crap.

By thugs-r-us

August 19, 2008 4:03 PM | Link to this

what gives you the right to define what is good taste and what is not?

what gives any of you the right to define what is garbage and what is not?

who are you to judge another man’s personal preference?

I bet your wife is ugly…but beauty is in the eyes of the beholder right?

You guys are funny.

By 8 for 8

August 19, 2008 5:11 PM | Link to this

Wow, truly racist comments on here. I’m white and I like pretty much all of those songs. You don’t have to be black to like rap music. Get real. What should he listen to? Mozart…or maybe the Jonas brothers… Praise him for what he has accomplished instead of scrutinizing his taste in music. And that guy Pete is a f’n idiot. I bet he listens to Ryan Cameron while Star94 and Q100 is on commercials… loser.

By 8 for 8

August 19, 2008 5:11 PM | Link to this

Wow, truly racist comments on here. I’m white and I like pretty much all of those songs. You don’t have to be black to like rap music. Get real. What should he listen to? Mozart…or maybe the Jonas brothers… Praise him for what he has accomplished instead of scrutinizing his taste in music. And that guy Pete is a f’n idiot. I bet he listens to Ryan Cameron while Star94 and Q100 is on commercials… loser.

By JohnnyReb

August 19, 2008 7:45 PM | Link to this

Hey 8 for 8, I told ya’ll lefties this ol’ Outlaw Rebel don’t give a rat’s @$$ about the BS “racist” label! I think Phelps is an awesome athlete & I pulled for him to win those gold medals. However, he needs some better taste in music and some racial pride & identity…as do YOU!

http://www.cofcc.org

By smh

August 19, 2008 8:42 PM | Link to this

Are there really this many idiots in and around Atlanta? I bet all your kids will like a hip hop song or 2 in their lives… will yall disown them too?

By nick from jersey

August 20, 2008 11:42 AM | Link to this

Everyone rap is the music to listen to before competition. It gets you pumped. Before i go to my games i bump up some lil wayne. Its the best way to do it and its the only way to do it.

By Misunderstood

August 20, 2008 12:09 PM | Link to this

Ignorance is a sheild for vulnerability. Hip Hop is a culture that displays many styles and views upon individuals.Crime and explotation of women is the only focal point the media displays. For the most part hip hop music is a form of story telling, just like country music. Real music that comes from the heart and has meaning always touch the heart of men. So for the record Phelps is feeling motivation from a human perspective just coming from a Thugs point of view.

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March 13, 2009 2:38 AM | Link to this

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March 13, 2009 2:40 AM | Link to this

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