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11/28/2005 - Stacks Vinyl Gift Certificates Now Availiable For The Holidays!

Don't know what to get someone for the holidays? Stacks now offers gift certificates! They can now choose to buy whatever they want from movies, clothes, CDs and vinyl!

GIFT CERTIFICATES NOT VALID FOR ONLINE PURCHASES!

 

Music Industry News

Student Stands Up For Right To Sit Down During Pledge Of Allegiance- courtesy of mtv.com

Cameron Frazier said he was ridiculed and punished for not standing up during the Pledge of Allegiance at his Florida high school. But the 11th grader isn't taking the abuse sitting down.

On Thursday, with the help of the American Civil

"I believe that the real meaning of the flag — freedom, liberty and equality — has been tarnished by the recent policies of our government." — Cameron Frazier, student

Liberties Union of Florida, he filed a federal lawsuit against the Palm Beach County School Board, asking the Palm Beach federal court to declare a Florida statute mandating that students receive written permission from a parent to decline reciting the oath unconstitutional under the First and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The ACLU is also asking the court to prohibit school officials from disciplining or retaliating against Frazier for refusing to stand.

"The courts have ruled time and time again that students in public schools have the First Amendment right to remain quietly seated during the Pledge of Allegiance," attorney James Green, legal panel chair of the ACLU of Florida's Palm Beach County chapter, said in a statement. "Cameron is a very patriotic student, but his is a quiet form of patriotism. In a very polite and respectful way, he declined to stand for the Pledge and the teacher berated him in front of his classmates."

In addition to the school board, the suit named math teacher Cynthia Alexandre and assistant principal Richard Poorman as defendants. According to the suit, Alexandre ordered the 17-year-old Boynton Beach Community High School junior to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance during her fourth-period math class on December 8. When Frazier refused, citing the fact that he had not stood for the Pledge since sixth grade and that he wasn't going to change his practice, his teacher said, "Oh you wanna bet? See your desk? Now look at mine. Big desk, little desk. You obviously don't know your place in this classroom."

Frazier then said, "I thought this was a classroom. Why must you insist on taking this so far?" Alexandre reportedly responded, "I will take this as far as I need to. I will fight this to the top." When Frazier again apologized and said he does not stand for the Pledge, Alexandre became visibly angry and said, "I'm sorry, did you say you don't stand for the f-----' flag?" Other students then backed Frazier up by saying he said "flag" but did not use the expletive.

Alexandre handed Frazier a copy of the Florida statute about written permission from parents and the student said he had heard about it before and was told he did not need parental permission to excuse him from standing. At that point, the complaint says Alexandre berated Frazier by saying, "You clearly have no respect! You are so ungrateful and so un-American. Do you know what's out there fighting our war? That flag you refuse to show respect to."

"No, our soldiers are fighting a war," Frazier responded. "The flag is an inanimate piece of cloth that doesn't move and surely can't hold a gun." At that point, Alexandre said she was "sick" of Frazier and ordered him to leave the classroom.

In a statement, Frazier said, "I believe that the real meaning of the flag — freedom, liberty and equality — has been tarnished by the recent policies of our government. Patriotism is more than going along with everybody else and just saluting a flag. It's about things like supporting our troops during the holidays and helping hurricane victims."

Florida has a state law that mandates the Pledge be recited at the beginning of the day for all elementary, middle and high school students and that students must stand, even if they are exempt from reciting the Pledge with a written request from a parent. If they refuse to join, they must stand quietly during the exercise and not disrupt the recitation.

School district spokesperson Nat Harrington could not be reached for comment.

Read full story online:
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1519337/20051227/index.jhtml?headlines=true

Patrick Swayze Working With Rap - courtesy of allhiphop.com

After years of being indirectly involved with Hip-Hop music, actor/pop singer Patrick Swayze is finally experimenting with rap music.

 

Swayze recently said he was experimenting with “rap rhythms as an emotional undercurrent for ballads.”

The 53-year-old Swayze had a massive hit with the song “She’s Like The Wind” from the soundtrack to the film "Dirty Dancing" in 1987.

The song is one of the most played songs in the history of radio and helped the Dirty Dancing soundtrack sell over 11 million records.

Hip-Hop fans are familiar with Swayze, who has starred in such classic movies as “Red Dawn,” “Roadhouse,” “The Outsiders” and “Ghost.”

Swayze’s last name has been used as Hip-Hop slang since the early 1990’s, when EPMD popularized the term on various albums.

In U.S. rap vernacular, the term "Swayze" means to “leave” or “disappear,” cleverly derived from the title of his 1990 hit film “Ghost.”

Swayze resurfaced in the rap world again in 2002, when he starred as an aggressive FBI agent named “Detective Fitzgerald” in Ja Rule’s video “Reign,” taken from Ja’s The Last Temptation album.

The controversial video came during an actual federal investigation of The Inc.’s Irv and Chris Lorenzo for money laundering, charges the brothers were eventually acquitted of.

Swayze, who has a role in the new flick “Keeping Mum,” did not peg a release date on his new material.

Swazye is currently filming “Fox and The Hound II.”

For this and all of the latest news updates, visit
http://allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/?ID=5193

Pharrell, TNT, NBA Link For All-Star Promotion - courtesy of allhiphop.com

Pharrell Williams recently partnered with cable network TNT to promote the NBA’s 2006 All-Star Game.

Williams will appear in commercials to promote the 55th Annual All-Star Game, which takes place at the Toyota Center, home of the Houston Rockets, on Feb. 19, 2006.

The commercial will air on TNT and features highlights from the NBA season mixed with shots of Williams in a recording studio.

The last time an All-Star Game was played in Houston was in 1989, when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played his record setting 18th and final All-Star Game.

The promo spots will run as Williams’ debut solo album In My Mind hits stores. The album was originally due in November and then it was delayed until December.

Now Pharrell’s solo endeavor, which features the singles “Can I Have it Like That” and “Angel,” is slated to hit stores on Jan. 24.

The 55th Annual All-Star Game airs live on TNT on Sunday, Feb. 19 and will be broadcast to over 200 countries worldwide.

Read full story online:
http://allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/?ID=5191

Brand Nubian's Sadat X Busted On Gun Charge In Harlem-courtesy of allhiphop.com

According to police, the incident started when Sadat X, born Derek Murphy, flashed a pistol at a group of teens in Harlem on 158th and Broadway.

Police said the rapper brandished a 40-caliber Beretta handgun and told the group of teens he was looking for a man with braids. He also allegedly threatened to “kill everybody.”

When authorities responded to a call about the incident, the group of teens pointed out Sadat X, who was still on the street with his gun.

Officers said they attempted to arrest the rapper, but the former 6th grade teacher allegedly fled on foot and was quickly apprehended and arrested.

Sadat X was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment and resisting arrest.

The rapper is a member of the critically acclaimed group Brand Nubian, which scored several hits over the years including “Wake Up,” “Punks Jump Up To Get Beat Down” and “Don’t Let it Go To Your Head.”

Last month, Sadat X told AllHipHop.com that he was on sabbatical from teaching to focus on music and touring.

His latest album Experience and Education is in stores now.

Read full story online:
http://allhiphop.com/hiphopnews/?ID=5187

Game, Older Brother Address Inner-Turmoil At Black Wallstreet- courtesy of ballerstatus.net

 

Rumors of inner-turmoil in the Black Wallstreet (BWS) camp has run rampant for the last few weeks and with Game launching a new official website for his company (www.theRealBlackWallstreet.com) recently, it has fueled the rumors even further and left fans wondering what the deal is.

Although both sides have been silent thus far, Game, being the outspoken man he is, has released a statement on his new site's message boards under the username "Hurricane Game" addressing the rumors.

"I was forced to switch the domain of my former website theblackwallstreet.com to therealblackwallstreet.com due to the disrespect shown towards me from ex-employees who decided to turn their backs on me and my imprint because they felt they weren't getting enough money out of me," Game wrote on his site.

He goes on the explain that over the course of 2005, he has spend more than $1.5 million on "homies and employees of The Black Wallstreet label," buying many of them cars, jewelry, paying for traveling expenses and even giving out cash to help out with their financial situations.

But, like the old saying goes, no matter how much you help someone, they are never completely happy. And according to Game, this is the case. He claims that ex-Black Wallstreet employees have continued to use his name to make money, keeping "100% profit" from mixtapes and T-shirt sale from his website. This is the straw that broke the camel's back and the rapper finally had enough.

"There came a time when I felt like I was being taking advantage of by the people closest to me," Game wrote. "Like anybody else would, I got fed up."

"I let n----s live, let them make money off me [by] using my name, selling my sh--, [and] all without asking for a cut. And gave them the opportunity of a lifetime to do whatever they want -- opening the doors very few ever seem to get in the business and giving them the chance to make something legal, positive, and legit out of their lives," Game continued.

On the other side of the fence, Game's older brother, Big Fase 100, contends most of what younger brother says is false. In a revealing interview from Allhiphop.com, Fase says that the $1.5 million that Game claims he has spent on his BWS team is "a lie."

"He says something like he flew us around the country and spent $1.5 million, which is a lie," Big Fase told AHH. "I ain't had $50,000 in my pocket since [Black Wallstreet] started. His Ford truck that he gave me got repossessed last month."

According to Fase, Game's entire persona was created by him, explaining that his life was the backstory the rapper's gangster image.

"Basically, what I've done is I've set the stage and I created the backdrop for The Game," Fase told AHH. "I mean, his n----s that have been visible for the past year, those have been my n----s. Basically, what I did, I provided the background story for Game. For lack of a better word, I certified his gangster. I set the stage and the backdrop and he’s living my life, basically."

Game's new Black Wallstreet website can be found at www.TheRealBlackWallStreet.com.

Read full story online:
http://www.ballerstatus.net/news/read/id/07579165/

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