Taylor Walker Archives - Page 3 of 8

The HashTag That Lasted All Week: #ImSoBaltimore

Is it over yet?

For the past two days, I’ve watched my city shine with pride as people participating in a game online through their Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter accounts. My online friends shared memories of growing up in Baltimore by posting photos and statuses about moments they remember while living in Baltimore under the #hashtag #ImSoBaltimore.

I recall there being other hashtags, like #ImSoDC and #ImSoHarlem. But because majority of my time lines are recipients of Baltimore City, I rarely saw those posts. So like a throwback Thursday turned into an entire week of nostalgia, I was swimming in Baltimore pride all week.

Just the other day, we complained about how we hated where we were from. Two weeks ago, we screamed of how no one will ever make it out of this city with the lack of support from other people who live here. But what I see, with the addition of support from people who attended Artscape, we’ve gain quite a supportive presence by showing our pride in where we come while simply posting statuses about things done in and only in our city.

I spent most of my Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday liking other people’s posts, thinking to myself: I remember doing that or saying I wish that place never went out of business. We aren’t just the home of the Wire. We’re more. We just needed to let others know for a sec.

I miss Baltimore the way everyone remembered it. We talked about it like we don’t do these memorable activities anymore. It opened up my eyes into looking for new memories to capture while I continue to live here. Although, I already have started picking up the habit of doing things that can only be experienced here, I hope that others developed that sense to do the same. We can create more of these Baltimore memories.

Check out some of the things people said while participating in this week’s popular #hashtag. (All these status updates were taken from my Facebook time line. These were not submitted to me. I simply stumbled across them.)

We had a few downers who complained about this online burst of Baltimore pride, of course. It never fail to have someone representing that “crab-in-a-barrel” mentality. I’m glad someone chose to speak up about it, though.

IKR! Just log out because it’s not over yet. Baltimore for life! We’re SO BALTIMORE!

What are some of your memories about Baltimore? Share some in the comments below.

Did you participate in the #TwitterPurge? Read WTF #TwitterPurge on Doc’s Castle Media.

YTube Vid of the Week: If Black People Said The Stuff White People Say

Sometimes I wonder do people actually think before speaking. Someone can tell if you didn’t. This week’s YTube Vid of the Week is a comedy of Black people saying things that white people may say to Blacks that just seems plain retarded questions to ask. There may not be such a thing as a dumb question, but there is such a thing as questionable questions. In this video there is a plethora of those.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1zLzWtULig]

What can you do when someone asks you something like the questions in this video but ask another question back? Some of these things mentioned will make you turn your head in curiosity because you’ll wonder Do white people really ask questions like this. Uhh, yeah. I personally get rhetorical questions about my hair.

Why do you think we never say anything about these crazy, and my opinion sometimes ignorant, questions? Do you think it’s because we don’t want to be labeled as an “unruly black person?” Leave your comments below.

Did you watch last week’s YTube Vid of the Week? Watch Kids React to Gameboy on Doc’s Castle Media.

Happy Batman Day!!

I like comics on the low. Though, I don’t actually read comic books because I prefer to read a novel, I do continue to keep up with comic book characters and their storylines through different comic universes. In my house, there’s a library of Marvel and DC encyclopedias. I like to read about each character’s story and lifestyle. It’s cool.

Batman is one of the characters that I know a little something about. He gets a special place on Doc’s Castle Media because DC comics declared today as the official Batman day! It’s Batman’s 75th anniversary celebration and they’re giving away a free special edition of DETECTIVE COMIC #27 at participating book retailers to batman fans.

Since the 1940s, Batman has fought crime in Gotham City. All I can say about all those long drawn out years of being Gotham’s vigilante is “I never want to move there, ever!” Check out some of my favorites from Batman over the years.

Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight was the best played Batman.

He seemed the most realistic.

My Favorite villan from Batman The Animated Series The Joker.

I loved that purple suite. He was funny, too.

Of all the different theme songs that have come from this long Batman reign, my favorite is the Batman Beyond theme song!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8Y5SLcBJks]

This is my sister’s ringtone.

And lastly, my favorite relationship was of Batman and Wonder Woman in Justice League Unlimited.

They’re the cute power couple in the group.

What would you say are your favorites from Batman? Share some in the comments below.

Have you read about the TwitterPurge yet? Read WTF #TwitterPurge on Doc’s Castle Media.

WTF?!?! #TwitterPurge (Rant)

So on July 19, 2014, I was surfing my Twitter timeline, as always, and I couldn’t help but notice an excessive amount of naked women on it! There’s always people reposting pictures exposing women on my timeline. (I don’t know what’s wrong with these horny people.) But last night was just ridic.

Who decided to start the hashtag #twitterpurge? It’s just really inappropriate and embarrassing to watch people take part in such nonsense. If you’ve missed it, #TwitterPurge is when people post nude photos of people they may or may not know, exposing them entirely to the public. That’s pretty much it. There were even memes that emerged from people’s participation in last night’s popular hashtag fiasco.

I was embarrassed more for the people who chose to uncover what should have been sacred for many of those people who were exposed. I’m sure the people who were in those photographs trusted the person responsible for posting their naked selfies at some point of their lives. There has to be over a thousand folks “beafing” with each other after last night. That could have been easily avoided. Now I suspect there’s more tension in the atmosphere that doesn’t need to be there.

What the hell does this #twitterpurge have to do with the film that was released this past Friday in theaters? There’s no relation at all. I wonder what producers are thinking after witnessing a popular hashtag take complete control over the idea of what the purge is because I know it has nothing to do with people sending photos of other folks. Are the producers scrambling to save their box office sales because of a group of teens unknowingly sabotaging their general idea, or will there be an increase in box office sales today? Will producers have to hear the mouths of thousands of angry parents? Sheesh, I would hate to work on their PR team now.

The purge is said to have started by a group of teens in Santa Clarita Valley in Los Angeles under a page named “SCV Purge.” The page encouraged teens to send nude photos to the account. After the account attracted 3,000 followers, it must have started a chain reaction because there was another Twitter account created that also accepted nudes. This #twitterpurge can be compared to the thousands of Instagram and Facebook pages made to do the exact same thing, tarnish the reputation of it’s teenage victims. All I do is shake my head at it’s disgrace.

This is the first time I’m choosing to address this “social media pornography” but I see it happens often. Sooner or later, we’ll be desensitized from it and learn to accept these pop-up pages. It’s like the children of our future show no remorse for others. Their ruining other people’s lives for laughs and giggles and I’m sitting in awe. I wonder how society will try to intervene in trying to take control of an issue like this.

What do you think? In what ways do you believe society will grab a handle of this type of indecent exposure? Leave your comments below.

For those people who are convinced that The Purge Anarchy is about naked people, here’s the trailer to fix those assumptions. We can’t have you judging whether to see a movie based of your experiences on Twitter.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzFCDqKE4yA]

YTube Vid of the Week: Kids React To Game Boy

Kids say the darndest things! Remember that show hosted by Bill Cosby? When I was watching it, it was coming on Nick at Night after Rugrats aired. After I watched this week’s YTube Vid of the Week, I immediately thought about the kids who were guests on Kids Say The Darndest Things.

It’s funny talking to someone who’s so young. They’re so oblivious to what happened in this world before them. The kids in this video were so shocked to have learned about the functions of one of the first portable game consoles. I just loved hearing the things they said about something I use to play to pass time by as a child. Some loved it and others got bored with it quick. While I was cleaning my room the other day, I found my old Game Boy and started playing it. The kids were right. It is boring to play now. We need complex games and easy access. I guess that’s why we cling to our phones like crazy.

TheFineBros have lots of videos on their YouTube channel of people reacting to all kinds of things. I recently looked at Teens React To 90s Internet and said to myself, “I remember when the Internet became popular.” I felt so old after I said that. I can only imagine when I have kids the things they’ll say about the technology that I grew up using. I’ll be viewed as a dinosaur!

What’s a technology you’ve reacted weird to that you’re parents may have used in the past? Leave comments below.

Have you watched Beauty and the Beat? Watch last week’s Ytube Vid of the Week on Doc’s Castle Media.

What’s Love Got To Do With It

I recently watched the movie What’s Love Got To Do With It starring Angela Bassett, and I never realize how accurate the film was until I took the time out to analyze how real situations in people’s love lives over power their decision-making process. Have you ever come across someone who’s accepting of so much distress from one person only to find out it’s because they “love” this individual entirely too much?

People choose to stick with the wrong people a little too often.

When the bad outweighs the good in someones relationship, it becomes hard for me to comprehend why someone would stick around with another person for long periods of their life. If the heartache outweighs the happiness, what kind of repayment are you receiving after investing your time to this one person? I don’t get it.

In What’s Love Got To Do With It, Tina Turner was caught up in some warp spell with Ike Turner. No matter how shitty he treated her, she stuck around because she loved him. This man yelled at her over simple issues, beat her when he felt she was disrespectful, he basically treated her like she was his pet, in a way. This guy even raped her. What the hell was keeping her around?!

It’s sad the reality of a situation like Ike and Tina’s. So many others go through it everyday because of the fear of having to start over with someone new. I say screw that! That’s not a reason to refuse to leave a bad place in your life. What’s love got to do with it if you’re getting disrespected everyday dealing with this “love.” To me, it’s not love at all. It’s simply fear and confusion. The fear of stepping out on someone they’re obviously confused about.

Are you aware of what’s right and wrong in your relationship?

Communication is key in every relationship so why not address what the correct things are for the both of you in your relationship. Who likes what? Who believes getting beat is what happens in a relationship? From day one,a person’s wants and needs should be hashed out in a mature conversation with their significant other. Maybe not the first date, but while both parties are getting to know what they like. They’ll truly be spending their time getting to know someone they should care about.

Later when the both parties have spent so much time getting to know each other, they’ll be put in a better position to be happy with each other. If a person is unable to communicate their concerns, they won’t comprehend this most important step. Assumptions rule that person’s ability to make rational choices. Sometimes that’s what makes me believe influences someone’s decision to put their hands on another person, through their assumptions and inability to solve problems. Simple communication can fix that.

Know when their time is up!

When is the correct time to know you’re tired? Some people miss the point where they should say, “Look, I’m tired of this happening to me.” Should a person wait until they’re in the hospital while their health is not too great, should they wait until your spirits are sucked from within and they see it’s impossible to move on to something better for themselves. That cannot be me at all.

I’m sorry if I’m coming off a bit passionate about this subject. It’s just when I’m watching TV, why do I have to be reminded of the dumb things I’ve seen at some point in my life. I’ve known people who I’ve seen first hand go through what my generation may call the “Ike Turner.” Ha-ha! It’s no reason to glorify it.

When someone’s time is up, they’ll feel it in their soul and know enough is enough. It’s when that person will finally grab their dignity and say no! They’ve finally gained respect for themselves. They finally love themselves.

Move The F*%# On

So someone’s hand is slapping you across your face. Are you going to hit them back, let it happen with no consequences, or walk away with your dignity in tact. Uhh, I suggest a person to walk away because they’d look really retarded standing there getting hit, giving the permission to another person to continually put their hands on them like the person is above them.

There are billions of people on this earth. Forget that one crummy person who can’t respect someone they claim to love. We don’t bring down others self-esteem over here! We uplift them and this post is meant to uplift another. Rise up from what you’re comfortable in being involved in and change your life around.

Can you name a circumstance where you knew someone was in a bad predicament, like domestic abuse? Share them in the comments below.

Read Petition to Comb Blue Ivy’s Hair on Doc’s Castle Media

YTube Vid of the Week: Beauty and the Beat

I watch cartoons faithfully, as if I’m still 8 years old. I recently watched The Little Mermaid and song along with it like it just came out in theaters. I’m such a kid on the inside. But what’s up with these memes and videos that I come across on Facebook and Instagram that constantly tries to ruin my childhood memories by tainting them with adult messages.

Like this one:

Haha! They’re wild! I can’t help but laugh.

When I came across Beauty and the Beat, I died from laughter! It’s a parody of the song “Belle” from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, recreated to follow Belle’s day to day activities in a new perspective. IsBelle’s living in the hood!?

Boojie Belle has the attention of all the hood; hoodrats and thugs watch her go about her day. She’s the talk of the neighborhood.

It’s amazing how growing up can change your outlook on something so innocent. I can’t even imagine what the producer of this video was thinking. What’s really funny about this short is it plays off the stereotypes of blacks. So some of the things that happen in this video is funny because I picture a group of black people talking about a white girl coming into a majority black environment, similar to a previous YTube Vid of the Week: Mean Gurlz, which was also created by Todrick Hall.

I’m experiencing what happens to people when they get older and have kids themselves. Majority of adults no longer watch at cartoons that were created by people who were older than us as a child. (I’m talking about those 1980s and 90s babies aren’t looking at new cartoons.) So we’re watching what we’re familiar of. Now we’re finding that the adults creators of our childhood cartoons left subliminal messages to be unraveled. If there weren’t any subliminal messages previously in our kiddy shows, we create them anyway for laughs for my generation’s age of ignorance. Poof! There goes our memes.

While my generation does this, I can fathom what my children’s generation will be or how their kids will utilize new media. But my generations love making jokes of my childhood innocence.

What’s the most funniest meme you’ve come across in the past 2 years? Leave your comments below.

Did you watch the last Ytube Vid of the Week: IceJFish Like I Want To (Official Video). Watch it on Doc’s Castle Media.

Sign The Petition Against WERQ-FM’s Local Artist Airplay Time Slots

I know many may say they don’t listen to the radio anymore. But when you do want to listen to something new, what do you prefer? Do you listen to the local DJs on your cities radio station or do you listen to Spotify and Pandora? In the case of Baltimore, do you listen to 92Q or WMSK Online Radio?

I still listen to the radio. But it’s not my primary choice for new music. Whenever I feel the urge to listen to something new, I find myself running to soundcloud or YouTube rather the radio because the radio plays the same songs too often. When will the music gods ever change that? Honestly, does this city care enough to want to change how we hear new music?

We moan and groan about why our local radio stations refuse to play local artists music for our community to hear and support, but won’t make a difference about it. What’s going on here? Nothing is adding up. Someone’s making an effort, for sure. We’re just so blind to what’s happening in our community that we’ve overlook it. I’ve come across a petition,which entire purpose is to stop WERQ from playing only industry crap during the hours of 6am to 12am, and mix up the music selection with more local/independent artists during those time slots.

The Petition was created by Catherine Moran, and this woman makes a very good point for why we, as music lovers, should sign in agreement for changing when WERQ should play independent music.

Allot 1/3 of their playlist to local Baltimore artist between the hours of 8 a.m. & 6pm daily. Songs should be chosen by the people NOT the PDs, Asst PD, or DJs. There needs to be a voting poll via 3rd party site example “Polldaddy.com” where the results can be viewed by the public with real-time updates, to insure radio staff are not fooling people.

For too long our radio station has put on this front calling themselves the “People’s Station” when in fact they are not helping our “People (local talent)” at all. Every time you turn around they are creating more and more ridiculous policies to discourage artist from trying to get on radio, and justify shutting them out. This needs to end today.

VIEW THE CATHERINE’S WORLDSTARHIPHOP VIDEO & SIGN THE PETITION HERE

I already signed the petition. I want local artist to have more opportunities to shine. I want the city to be behind this because many of Baltimore residents claim there is never a time where we have a voice. If we could rally up more people to sign this petition, we face a chance in being recognized as another city full of very talented people with the potential to go as far as anyone who may come from New York, Atlanta, or Los Angeles. We can make this happen!

Do you think this petition can be the starting point for big change in the music industry? Leave you comments below.

Have you read Doc’s opinion for why she thinks Baltimore isn’t supportive their artists? Read Baltimore Is Too “Cliqued” Up To Have Supporters on Doc’s Castle Media.

The 3rd Annual Natural Is Beautiful Summer Bus Trip

Natural is Beautiful Expo goes to a whole new level by allowing their event goers access to a special field trip to their 3rd Annual Natural is Beauty Expo in New York via coach bus!

It’s just a few bucks to spend the day in the Big Apple. The expo is held smack in the middle of Times Square at the Marriot Marquis. Spend the day away from home while continuing to embrace your natural beauty. How about it this July 19th? For more Ticket information, make sure you check out their official Natural is Beautiful Events website.

I attended the Natural Hair Care Expo held in April 2014 and really enjoyed myself. To read more about my experiences, make sure to read 2014 Baltimore Natural Hair Care Expo on Doc’s Castle Media.

Doc Attends The Real News Network Grand Opening

Now let’s learn to be more politically correct here. Knowing that the majority of my audience are 20-something-years-olds, a lot of the people I carry a conversation with lack awareness for what’s really happening in the media. Just the other day, I asked one of my friends were they going to vote and they didn’t realize there was an election going on. Now that’s a problem. That exact incident weighed heavy on my mind at last night event as I attended The Real News Network’s studio grand opening.

It was such a nice little shindig. Multiple people took part in the celebration and opening of the year old independent online news site in downtown Baltimore, MD. From rappers, noteworthy guest speakers, poets and even a special appearance from actor/film director Danny Glover, we all came together on one night to recognize what’s really important while streaming our concerns to the rest of the world from the Real News Network website. We’re came together to show that we care about our community’s well being. Along with the extravagance of being blessed with the presence of some very important faces, we still participated in celebrating something that I love so much, hip-hop. It was a very good night.

I saw some familiar faces, too…

As I attended the grand opening, I wrangled up a few important messages that caught my ear. The messages constantly being pushed at last night function by the keynote speakers were

“we should participate in what’s happening in our communities,”
“we should become the government that we want instead of bashing what we have,”
“we should always love who we are,” and
“we should work hard to become who we are and not let anyone stop us from doing what we love.”

With every speaker and performance, there was a sense of power that came with their presence; the kind of power that makes you want to leave from the event and create a masterpiece of your own. You can’t tell me I wasn’t ready to go write an opinion essay after I left out of there. My notebook gained 4 more pages worth of “scrap literature.” Praise be to the motivation!

I look forward to learning more about The Real News Network. It’s still pretty fresh to me. But when something is unfamiliar, I don’t hesitate to learn more about it. I’m thinking of a way to somehow volunteer my services for them. They’ve also mentioned the need for a lot of help from people in the community so you should find your place in getting involved with The Real News Network, as well.

Take a stand! The Real News Network will also be having their part 2 to their grand opening tonight. If you’re seeking to get involved sooner opposed to later, go check ‘em out! RSVP at the Real News Network’s event page on Facebook and follow the address below:

235 Holliday Street

Baltimore, MD 21202

Have you attended any of the Beet Trip events? Read Beet Trip is the New Wave on Doc’s Castle Media.