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Three Quick Thoughts About Robin Thicke's "Get Her Back"
1. I don’t know how sincere Robin Thicke’s begging happens to be. None of us do, actually. Not even Paula Patton. But, I do know, though, that by crafting this album, he makes us all skeptics. Perhaps I’m just a natural skeptic. I still don’t believe it’s not butter. But, if someone is sincerely trying to…
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"New Black" Is The New Black
This level of awareness isn’t inherently negative. The process of thinking about Blackness doesn’t make you love it any less. Sometimes, it makes you love it more. And, as The Blackest Names tournament proves, it can be fun. But, an existence in and navigation of a place where you’re perpetually forced to examine how your…
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Jason Whitlock, Greg Howard, And Speaking Around "Company"
Because of some mechanical issues, a Megabus trip last week from D.C. to Pittsburgh — a journey that’s usually six hours long — ended up lasting close to nine. Aside from spending an hour cursing my decision not to just drive to D.C. and back, I spent a good part of that trip reading Greg…
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Why I'm Totally Here For Kyla McMullen's List Of 73 Sexy Science Sistas
1. Because my homie Dahlia Haynes is on it. She’s #30. And I don’t know if she’s rocking a shirt or one of Jadakiss’s jean jackets with the sleeves cut. 2. Because I can think of several women who could have made the list, but didn’t — including the women I profiled for EBONY’s “Sistas…
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Welcome To The New VSB
“What the hell are we doing?” This is an accurate synopsis of each of the dozens of conversations Panama and I have had in the past three years about the future and direction of VerySmartBrothas. We’ve both often joked that it has managed to stay afloat in spite of ourselves. But, after a couple years…
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A Story About My Dad
It was a Monday. I was 11 years old, a guard on the St. Barts Bruins JV basketball team. We were a week away from our first game of the season, and our hot-to-death new uniforms — reversible tanks with our last names on the back and long cotton shorts with the school’s logo on…
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I'll Never Stop Saying the N-Word
Writing at Very Smart Brothas, Damon Young says that there is an appropriate time and place to say the word “nigga,” and determining one’s audience is an integral part of figuring out when that time is. Interestingly enough, my knowledge of and affinity for words could be an argument for not using some of them. Since there are…
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The NBA Finals' Most Annoying Viewers
Before Thursday night’s big game, Very Smart Brothas’ Damon Young offered some very direct words of advice to basketball novices, including must-know facts and essential etiquette. … 1. Shut the f*ck up There’s nothing wrong with being an NBA novice. Basketball isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, so it’s perfectly understandable if you just don’t happen…
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The NCAA: Too Good to Be True
While the nation is fully engulfed in March Madness, Damon Young writes in a piece for Ebony that he’s been reminded of why college hoops could never replace pro basketball. Like millions of other sports fans, I spent countless hours following and/or watching the first couple rounds of the NCAA tournament last weekend. And, like much of…
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Kevin Hart, Revolutionary
(The Root) — There are many people who do not think Kevin Hart is funny. This in itself is neither a surprise nor particularly noteworthy. There is no comedian who everyone thinks is funny, and, aside from Michael Strahan and a few four- and five-year-old boys, there is no person who thinks everyone is funny.…
