il rated v shiekn & stirred

Il Rated (The Kim Jong remix)

Kim Jong Il, the North Korean dictator is a huge............Chicago Bulls fan? Get out of here, I hear you say! Well according to the San Diego Union Tribune:

"While the rest of the world watches Kim Jong Il, fearful of North Korea's nuclear threat, the dictator often can't take his eyes off the NBA......."

"By most accounts, Kim is a totalitarian despot who is hell-bent on developing nuclear weapons to gain diplomatic leverage against the rest of the planet and who may or may not sell that technology to raise cash for his impoverished nation. But he also is an avid basketball fan, experts on North Korea say, so much so that he is said to have regulation courts at most of his palaces plus a video library of practically every game Michael Jordan ever played for the Bulls."

“Kim doesn't want to die,” Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., said a few years ago after one of Kim's missile tests sent waves of fear across the globe. “He wants to watch NBA basketball.”

Think the Miami Heat will win again this year? I might get Kim Jong to nuke you!

Shiek(n) and stirred


Yes, I'm glad Shiek Hilaly stood down (DJ Ho edit: Apparently he hasn't stepped down, only because of his illness). You can't blame women for getting raped for wearing skimpy clothing. In the one speech he said the following stuff below. I've paraphrased but if you want the full english translation click here.

"But in the event of adultery, the responsibility falls 90 per cent of the time with women not men. Why? Because the woman possesses the weapon of seduction."

No! Men and women are equally responsible for their actions. Men also posses the weapon of seduction (well, we think we do!). That statistic is hugely skewed.


"She is the one who takes her clothes off, cuts them short, acts flirtatious, puts on make up, shows off and goes on the streets acting silly. She is the one wearing the short dress, lifting it up, lowering it down, then a look, then a smile, then a word, then a greeting, then a word, then a date, then a meeting, then a crime, then Long Bay Jail (laughs), then comes a merciless judge who gives you 65 years... "

I'm not even going to comment on this one. That is just wrong. I can't even fathom how he could even say that stuff.

"If one puts uncovered meat out in the street, or on the footpath, or in the garden, or in the park, or in the backyard without a cover and then the cats come and eat it, is it the fault of the cat or the uncovered meat? The uncovered meat is the problem. If it was covered the cat wouldn't have... it would have circled around it and circled around it, then given up and gone."

What an idiot! This analogy is degrading to women. He is squarely putting the blame on women that get raped, not the sexual predators themselves. A woman should be able to wear whatever she wants without feeling a shred of guilt. They should not be held accountable for the reactions of men. Being "uncovered" does not invite the unwanted sexual advances of men. It might encourage it but a woman should be able to refuse it if she so desires.

I am suprised that the Muslim community has put up with his views for so long. The current comments outlined above have marginalised and divided the Muslim community. And I would think, based on what I have been reading in the newspaper by other prominent Muslims, that the majority do not agree with what he has said.

I'm out like Kim Jong Il's Michael Jordan video collection,

DJ Ho

Music Recommendations

Yo, what up punks?! I haven't blogged about music in a while or gone to any concerts recently. Been caught in the 9 to 5 work game for too long. Here are two music recommendations for y'all.


Dance with Me debuts on 96.1FM

A good mate of mine Bosco aka 2Bsharp is a fledging producer and has made his first radio debut. The Edge 96.1 FM featured his hot new track "Dance With Me" in its rotation yesterday. The track features 2bsharp laying down a soulful speedup beat with OnlyKC supplying the buttery smooth vocals. You can check out his music on his myspace page. The song has a really catchy chorus and we'll soon be singing "What up Ma, come and dance with me " in da club.


Jesus Signs

Wow, this a piece of genius right here. It's an excellent parody of the Snoop Dogg/Justin Timberlake song "Signs" remixed into a Christian song. When you first hear it, it sounds a bit lame but trust me its really good. Even if you ain't religious, you should check it out cause its funny and just amazing how they actually put it together. Props to Howard for giving me the heads up. The video is produced and features a dude called Joseph Smith, who was a few grades above me in high school and might have been the school captain.

What's your fantasy? (NBA)

It's NBA season soon and of course that means Fantasy NBA season is on. I'm in 2 Fantasy NBA drafts at the moment. These are my random points for this season:

- I hope Darko Milic becomes the player we all want him to be. To realise his potential and put to bed those ideas that he was a bust. Redemption baby. I believe this guy has talent but didn't have the confidence or opportunity with the Pistons. In a way, I'm rooting for him cause he's kinda reminds me of myself.

- Rajon Rondo v Sebastian Telfair: Unfortunately, I didn't stay up for the 11pm fantasy draft on sunday so i got auto picks. I didn't get a decent point guard, so I had to take a free agent gamble. I picked up Rondo and I know this sounds bad - but I'm banking on Telfair going to jail over his involvement in shooting the rapper Fabolous.

- Somehow I managed to pick up 3 triple double threats: Lebron James, Lamar Odom, Boris Diaw. Luck or genius in letting the computer pick for me?

- J.R. Smith: Again, I hope he does well. The Hornets traded him, and the Bulls basically gave him away to the Denver so they could acquire Adrian Griffin. You never like to see a young player with loads of talent get labelled with a attitude problem. Play some D son!

- The darkhorse this year I reckon will be the Orlando Magic. Dwight Howard is low post monster and is a beast. Once he refines his offensive game and meshes with Darko Milic - who complements him quite well with his shooting, they will be unstoppable. Add in the improving Jameer Nelson and the so called "best shooter in the world" JJ Reddick, they should make some noise. And they have this guy called Grant Hill on the team?

- Will the three headed monster of Jason Maxiell/Nazr Mohammed/Dice be enough to replace Ben Wallace?

- Will the game change with more uptempo style with skilled smaller players ala Phoenix Suns/Mavericks? I reckon its awesome how the Suns force other teams to go with smaller lineups by using Boris Diaw at centre. Now with Amare back will that change their style?

Only time will tell.

I'm out like the NBA off season,

DJ Ho.

I wonder where my life will take me. What is to be and what is to come. At the moment I have some idea where I want to go. No definite ideas, perhaps a few dreams. Are they real, will they ever come to fruition?

I just want to be successful in life. Is that asking too much? Perhaps we should be striving to be satisfied in life. Not meaning that we should be content to be happy with what we have (and that's perfectly fine) but looking to obtain a good quality of life. It's hard to express what I really mean, but I don't need to be filthy rich (though that'd be nice!) or the CEO of a fortune 500 company (yet!)

I want to be satisfied that I've achieved the goals that I've set for myself, have a healthy work/life balance, to grow as a person, to have good friends that I can laugh with and occassionally bitch to when things aren't going so well.

My career is important to me, and a lot of times I put this above everything else. I've worked my whole life for this. Or perhaps its that my parents worked their whole life for my career. Everything has been a stepping stone and a sacrifice. From the moment I entered primary school, then high school, uni and now the workforce. Working is just the next phase of my life - well for about 40 years or so.

I gotta find some things that I'm really passionate about and to really go after it. Unfortunately, there aren't many jobs for full-time bloggers. Or basketball players that are 6 foot that are slow, unfit and don't have a consistent jumpshot.

Bob's Your Uncle

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

"Bob's your uncle is a slang expression in British English meaning "no problem" or "the solution is simple", as in: "insert the plug, press the switch, and Bob's your uncle."

Is it not an outrage that Bobby Flynn has been kicked out of Australian Idol?

With a voice that is so calm, relaxing and soulful. A voice that hails back to an era long gone. The guy that stunned the nation with his remake of the Rick James classic "Superfreak". Bobby is just so easy to listen to. If he releases an album, i'll be the first to download it.....oops I meant buy.

It's typical of these so called fans that vote on Australian idol to go for the hot guy, the young girl that they can identify with, rather than someone with true talent. Yeah, he has an afro. He can't dance. He's been called a "full mong" by one of the judges. He's not your conventional pop star. His hand shakes uncontrollably when he sings.

BUT HE'S GOT TALENT!!!!! HE CAN SING!!!!

Bobby Flynn should be in Australian Idol. And Bob's your uncle.

Hot Off The Press

Didn't I tell you two weeks ago? Yes, Aleks you read it here first!

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Private equity squeezes $202bn profit from an increasingly sceptical world

The Australian
Tom Bawden, New York
October 17, 2006

PRIVATE equity firms have earned worldwide profits of $US152 billion ($202.5 billion) in disposals made in the past year, a figure that will fuel the backlash against the industry's rapidly growing economic power.

Firms including Permira, Blackstone and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) jointly returned $US130 billion of profits to investors and retained a further $US22 billion themselves from sales, floats and refinancings, according to Private Equity Intelligence, a research group.

Bain Capital, Texas Pacific and Goldman Sachs are expected to net about $US2 billion in profits by the time they finish divesting their stakes in Burger King, which they floated in May after three years' joint ownership.

Debenhams, the chain store, which also floated in May, is on course to yield CVC Capital Partners, Merrill Lynch and Texas Pacific more than pound stg. 500 million ($1.24 billion).

The bulk of private equity profits are made from the sale of investments that are between three and seven years old - the typical period of ownership. (DJ Ho - I quoted approximately 5 to 10 years)

Last week, the US Department of Justice launched an investigation into possible collusion among leading private equity firms to keep down the prices they pay for companies. The buyout firms KKR, Carlyle Group and Silver Lake Partners are understood to be among firms from which the department has requested information.

Institutions have argued that management buyouts - as distinct from those private equity deals not involving the target company's executives - are an area of particular concern to institutions because, they say, these deals pose significant conflicts of interest.

The managers had a fiduciary duty to get the best possible price for their company, but, on a personal level, the lower the price the greater their potential payout when the business was next sold.

Survivior: Race Wars

I've had a really busy week. Been putting in the long hours. Went to work on Saturday, clocked in at 11.30am and left at 11pm. Then went to Martin Place Bar and went clubbing til 3am in the morning. Was going to leave at 1am but then I met M* (see footnote).

Outwit, outplay, outlast , ............outrace. This year's Surivor: Cook Island series is very interesting because they included players reppin' 4 different races and divided up the tribes into racial groups. It's sparked a whole new level of interest in the show. And controversy. But hey, controversy has always been good for ratings right?

It's no longer just a match of brains v braun, young v old, male v female. It's race against race, player. African-American. Asian. Caucasian. Latino's.

So far, the Asians have been kicking ass. REPRESENT! But honestly though, I think it's good how they have done this way. It's a social experiment so see how people perform when they are put into their own racial groups and unite against other races. And it's also interesting seeing how even within the racial groups, there are similarities and differences. Take the Asian group for example, you've got Koreans, Chinese (I think), Viet, and a Filo.

Sure it creates controversy and I'm sure the viewers make a lot of inappropriate racial comments when watching the show - it's a natural reaction. But who cares? It's entertaining TV!

Do people perform better when they work with others of similar racial backgrounds?

I work with a lot of Asian people but I'm not sure how to answer this question appropriately. I believe that some people would feel more comfortable working with others of similar cultural/religious descent. Sometimes at work, I might be more comfortable bringing up a issue with another person of the same background. But that's just natural. You are going to more likely click with people of the same race because you have something in common.

Maybe an alternative question could be put this way: If you could choose to work with people of the same race, would you choose that option?

$64 million dollar question: Where did they get those Asian guys in the show from?

These guys are like....really built. Cut. With 6 packs. I've never come across any Asian guy that have bodies like them. Of course, these guys are not representative of the stereotypical asian male. I'm sure there was some underlying factor why they chose them i.e. to assist the Asians to win some of the more physical challenges.

I'm out like Surivior race wars,

DJ Ho.

*You'd like to know more wouldn't you?

Sneaker Pimps

Air Jordan 11

"The first thing people notice about you is your shoes"
- Anonymous

There's something about walking into a sneaker store. Scanning your eyes from the top to the bottom of the racks to check out the latest kicks. You grab one off the wall, check out its exterior, rotate it, flip it, peer inside, examine the price tag, and admire it in all its glory.

When I was in primary school, I was one of the first kids to be rocking a pair Nike Air Force. Kids would be staring at my kicks and whispering "where did you get them from?". I was quite lucky - a relative in Hong Kong had sent me a pair as a gift. I had no idea the ripple they would cause in the ashphalt playgrounds of primary school.

Soon I graduated to High School and also graduated to Converse. Although Nike was dominating at the time, a kid had to roll differently. Somehow I convinced my mum to buy me a pair of Kevin Johnson Converse React's. Black with blue wavy stripe down the side, the sole contained a yellow blob of react juice. It was supposed to make you jump and play like KJ (that obviously didn't happen).

After the react juice blob fell out of the shoe's sole, I desperately took it to the shoe tailor and pleaded with him to repair it. Unfortunately, I was told it was too expensive to repair and was better off buying a new pair.

Sole to Sole

Distraught from the Converse experience (How could a shoe made in China fall apart like that?), my love affair with Nike was rekindled as I remained loyal to the brand for the next decade. The Nike Air Max shoes had come back into vogue and I must have gone through 3 or 4 pairs of them in high school. You see a kid had to upgrade each year. With each pair, the bubble extended further to encompass the length of the shoe.

Graduating high school, I then moved onto uni and my Nike collection again expanded to include my first pair of casual low cut Nike sneakers: Nike Air Cortez which I still wear today. I could have gone with the Adidias Superstars, but hey I was a Nike man and I was going to stick with them.

Only recently, I have bought my first pair of sneakers that haven't been Nike. A flashy pair of And1's, the new shoe for wannabe ballers.

Even though I don't have an extensive collection of sneakers, I still love the smell of fresh sneakers, reading about them, visiting the old Nike factory at Petersham (RIP), and now the one in Auburn. There's nothing like the feeling of walking into a store searching for a pair of cheap kicks.

Pimp my sneaker

I've spent most of this Sunday afternoon checking out various sneaker websites. I started watching a couple of videos of the top sneaker stores in New York (if you click on the link - scroll down to the bottom and click on the picture of Flight Club, Dave's Quality Meats or ATMOS). The Dimemag crew go to Flight Club in New York, which is a store that sells sneakers on a commission basis. Members of the public bring in their shoes and split the proceeds 80/20 in favour of the seller, so the store keeps 20% of the sale price. The sell their shoes through the vintage kicks website.
Air Jordan 1 Retro

Then there's Dave's Quality Meats, which is a store in New York modeled on a butcher shop style concept. The sneakers are like the prime Cuts, and the t-shirts are on a meat rack. Just watch the video, it explains it better. Of course, Japs do it better with ATMOS. I also came across this store in Boston called Bodega, which is just unreal. The shop front is like a convenience store but hidden in the back is a state of the art sneaker store complete with DJ Booth!

Keeping with the food concept, check out Pharrell's Reebok Ice Creams. You know that line in Drop It like It's Hot where Pharrell says: "Uh! I'm a nice dude, with some nice dreams/See these ice cubes, see these Ice Creams?". And I gotta mention the BAPE shoes (A Bathing Ape). It's a popular Japanese streetwear lable and now mainstream in the US. All the shoes look like they are very similar to Nike Air Force 1's - check'em out.

I'm out like Ice Creams,

DJ Ho.

Barbarians at the Gate

It's Private

One thing that I've been interested in lately is an industry known as "private equity". I must say that its been in the news a lot lately. Especially after the biggest private equity deal in Australia with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) buying a part of Brambles. There has also been rumours that the Coles supermarket might also be bought by KKR.

Everytime I pick up a financial newspaper or a business magazine, the phrase "private equity" is coming up more often. I'm not sure why I'm interested in it, but its definently more than a trend. It's becoming a lot more prominent in the business world.


I guess the starting point is - what is private equity?

A lot of people get it confused with the term "venture capital" and perhaps even "hedge funds".

I would argue that private equity is a form of financing. It is commonly used when a company (typically an unlisted company) is seeking finance but might not be able to go down the traditional route and obtain a loan from a bank. What happens instead, is that a private equity firm would provide the finance in exchange for a controlling stake in the business. It might even buy 100% of the business and gain control of it.

The private equity firm would seek to shake things up in the company by streamlining operations, making the business more profitable, installing more appropriate management, basically restructuring the business.

The aim of all this is simple: it is to invest in the business for the medium term and exit in 5-10 years. Exit typically happens via:

- IPO (initial public offering),
- sale of the business to someone else e.g. management, another company, or even a another private equity firm.

To analogise, private equity (PE) is similar to a property investor who buys a bargain house and renovates it, hoping to resell it at higher price in 5-10 years. The difference is that your buying a business instead of a house. Private equity houses usually seek to buy an underperforming business at a discount, pump it full of debt finance, renovate and resell.

The reason that they have to resell in 5 to 10 years (or a similar approximate timeframe) is that they raise the money via funds from investors and must return the money to the investors in 5 to 10 years. Hence they must "unwind" all their investments after 5 years.

Private equity firms sometimes concentrate on a particular industry sector while the bigger ones simply buy any kind of business from health care, transport, consumer goods, etc... Half the time is spent looking after their current investments and the other half in originating new deals (e.g. scouring for new investments).

Venture Capital

Private equity is to be contrasted with venture capital (VC's) which typically seek to fund businesses in the earlier stage of the life cycle. You often hear about entrepreneurs going to VC firms to finance new business. I guess you could say that venture capital is a form of private equity aimed at start up businesses.

Usually these businesses backed by VC firms are in IT companies, biotechnology, health care or have higher risk profiles than your normal mom and dad type business. The reason is that your normal bank is not going to touch these types of businesses with a 10 foot pole. Financial institutions typically look for stable businesses with predictable returns. VC's and private equity houses are have a bigger appetitie to take on more risk for higher returns.

What makes VC's and PE finance attractive is the people that supply these finance offer more than just money. They are willing to get involved in the business and offer their expertise in finance, strategy, marketing or general business nous. That is why you find VC's and PE houses stocked with ex-investment bankers, strategy consultants and people with expertise in the fields that the houses specialise in (i.e. health care business managers in health care VC's).

The Major Players

The big US firms (i.e. the major players) in private equity are Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Carlye Group, Blackstone, Texas Pacific Group and Bain Capital. In Australia, we have firms such as Ironbridge Capital, Allen & Buckeridge, Private Equity Partners, and Champ Ventures.

The biggest and most famous private equity buyout was by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, who paid $33 billion dollars for the biscuit company RJR Nabisco. It is by far the biggest amount of debt paid by a private equity firm which is never to be repeated again. They even made a book and a movie about it titled "Barbarians at the Gate" to emphasise the corporate greed of the 1980's.

A Hip Hop Snapshot

Mobb Deep @ Metro

Havoc and Prodigy rapping at the Metro @ Town Hall.

I can clearly say that this is one of the worst hip hop concerts I've been to. It was an hour of performing all their new stuff from their latest albums before they finally did their classic songs like Shook Ones and Quiet Storm. Meanwhile they kept screaming out "G-Unit" every chance they could.

The Alkaholiks @ Gaelic Club

J-Ro (White hat) and Tash (Blue shirt) rocked the Gaelic Club.

The GZA @ Home

The Genius rapping til the sun came up.

Racism still alive they just be concealing it

Racism still alive they just be concealing it/

But I know they don't want me in the damn club/

They even made me show I.D to get inside of Sam's club/

It really pisses me off when I get refused entry into a bar or a nightclub. It hasn't happened to me that often (I struggle to recall the last time), but last Friday was really something. A work friend was having her farewell drinks at The Loft @ King Street Wharf.

I arrived at 7pm, rocked up to the door and said "Hi, How's it going?". The door bitch didn't sound so excited so see me there. There were two bouncers also at the door. The one carrying the "Black book" asked me if we were on the guest list. I was thinking "What? Oh, we are with A from work". I knew that our friend wouldn't have any guest list being a last minute decision. And I knew by the way that he looked at me, he wasn't going to let me in.

"You are not on the guest list and we are full tonight. Perhaps you should try next door at Bungalow 8?"

That really annoyed me, the fact that he probably didn't even check the guest list which we both knew we were not on and his excuse that it was full. Me and my two companions trudge to the sidewalk, and call up our friends inside. Their response "It's not even full!? That's BS!!"

This picture is taken from a website which orginally took it from the Loft website. How's this for publicity?

As soon as we hang up on our phones and turn around, the bouncers let in a flood of (let's be politically correct) here, a bunch of white females. Then an Australian couple rock up and they have no problem getting in. And to really top if off, one of our friends rocks up by herself. She happens to be another Australian white female. Just out of earshot, they gave her the preliminary question "are you on the guest list"? She says "No, but my friends are upstairs" and points inside. The bouncers motion at her, and again, the magic door opens for her.

I think out of all the people they let in, the last person who we knew, that really made me mad. Here we are, going to the same bar to meet the same people. She was allowed in essentially with no questions asked.

My only crime? Being an Asian male.

Crime by association? I was with another Asian male and Asian female.

Victim of fashion perhaps ? The fact that I was dressed casually but they let in a whole bunch of other people in casual clothing.

More pictures of the dungeon known as the Loft

I could have walked up to the bouncers and the door bitch and given them an earful. But I was too mad, too worked up, too embarrassed, too ashamed, too pissed off.

I could have called up some of our friends to help us get in but I guess I wasn't in the mood to go into a place where the staff are giving me attitude.

The fact is the three of us were there to farewell a good friend of ours and simply looking for a good time. And that just ruined it.

We tried our luck at Bungalow 8, and again we were refused entry. Apparently we were dressed too casual, the bouncer pointing at me and my other friend. But the funny thing was, there were other people inside that we dressed casually. I have never had a problem going there but usually I've been in work clothes.

I had enough of this attitude from the bouncers at King St Wharf and went to O'Donoghues and an Irish pub nearby. One of the few places in that part of the city that don't question what you wear or what nationality you happen to be, as long as you produce evidence that your over 18. then it was off to a high class joint like Scruffy Murphy and Pavillion, where all they want to check is if you are carrying weapons.

Charlie Murphy! Scruffy Murphy! An uber high class bar in the Chinatown precint

Hey, I'm Asian, we all must be carrying machetes, knives and guns. That's why they don't let me into places like The Loft.

I'm out like racist bouncers at the Loft,

DJ Ho.

To Live and Die A Rap Immortal

I hear the doctor standing over me/

Screamin I can make it/

Got a body full of bullet holes layin here naked/

Still I, can't breathe, somethings evil in my IV/

Cause everytime I breathe, I think they killin me /

I'm having nightmares, homicidal fantansies/

I wake up stranglin, danglin my bed sheets/

I call the nurse cause it hurts, to reminisce

How did it come to this? I wish they didn't miss/

Somebody help me, tell me where to go from here/

Cause even Thugs cry, but do the Lord care?

Only God Can Judge Me - 2pac

I didn't realise it at the time when Nate sent around this article about 2pac yesterday, but it was 10 years since the very day that 2pac passed away.

He was a great rapper - in my top 5 of all time. Admittedly all his songs aren't that great, but he's definently got some really good songs in there. I first heard 2pac on his All Eyez on Me album, he just seemed like some glorified thug. To some of us he still is. It wasn't really until I got his older album "Me Against The World" and the album released 13 days after his death "Makaveli" that I really started to appreciate his work.

He had the deep lyrical songs like "Life Goes On", "Only God Can Judge Me", "Brenda's got a baby", and "Dear Mama" which made you sit up and think. Switching it up he had the songs with the party vibe like "California Love", "How Do You Want It" and "Toss It Up". And who could forget the straight up angry Pac with "Hit'em up"?

To live and die in LA, where everyday we try to fatten our pockets/

Us niggaz hustle for the cash so it's hard to knock it/

Everybody got they own thang, currency chasin/

Worldwide through the hard times, warrior faces/

Shed tears as we bury niggaz close to heart/

What was a friend now a ghost in the dark, cold hearted bout it

- To Live and Die in LA by Tupac Shakur

Did the world change on September 11, 2001?

Today's date probably doesn't mean anything. It's September 10, 2006. In a few hours tomorrow will come and mark the anniversary of one of man kind's most tragic days. The day that the skies of New York were filled with smoke, ash and the smell of death in the air. The day that the world trade centre came crumbling down (for the second time), and with it the lives of thousands of people. The day that New York, America and the world was never the same again.

It's one of those moments in history, where we all remember where we were. Like how old folks recall when JFK was shot, when the Berlin wall came down, when DJ Kool Herc had his first block party, when Jordan hit that jumpshot in the 98 Finals.

Some of us were up late at night on September 11 watching the news before The Mother Of All Exclusive News break came on. Me? I was sound asleep! I woke up the next morning to the shock of the photograph on the front page of the morning newspaper. I still remember that image. The image that became synonmous with that date:

I come now to the crux of my post: Did the world change on September 11, 2001? Without a doubt it did. The loss of life and the destruction of one of New York's icons shook the Western world to its core. I mean it was New York that was being attacked! America's homeland became the new doorstep of terrorism activity. American lives would never be the same again.

The fact that it could and DID happen in the backyard of the world's most powerful nation. The image that was so symbolic of American capitalism and everything that it stood for had just been torn down into a pile of melted steel and ash. The land of the free lost their sense of security and their ability to move freely without intense scrutiny.

But it was more than that. It affected people in other nations. We came to the stark realisation that a terrorist attack could happen anywhere, anytime. Suddenly New York and major tourist destinations didn't become such "hot" destinations. In the back of our minds, plane travel became a lil different. We became suspicious of people of Middle Eastern appearance. Fear and hatred develped a heightened sense of racism towards anything associated with Arabic people.

September 11 created a butterfly effect. It set off a chain reaction of events. The war on terror. The attack on Afghanistan. The Madrid Bombings. Bali Bombings. London subway bombings. The invasion of Iraq. The countless bombing plots that were thwarted. And many more lives were lost along the way.

Although the world did change since that fateful day, I'm not sure if my own life really changed as a result. I didn't lose anyone due to any of the bombings. I still went to uni, work, in the same way I did pre-September 11. Maybe in Australia we were too remote from the situation, being halfway around the world from New York, New York. But I recognise that the world around me did change and it changed the lives of many people, for the worse.

I'm out like September 11,

DJ Ho.

W.O.R.K State Of Mind

Stressed Out

Over the last couple of weeks I have been overly busy. Two weeks ago was one of my busiest and most stressful I've had in my life. Dealing with uni and exam pressure was one thing but juggling multiple tasks and meeting work deadlines are another. The thing is, you have to come through. And I feel like I did. I delivered time and time again, like when Guru raps!

I was working til 10pm or 9pm each night. Other nights I took work home to do. And when the weekend came, I spent nearly all of Saturday night and sunday working on three different things. I handled my biz.

The X.O experience with the Likwit Crew

And to top if off, they had Tha Alcaholiks concert on a Thursday night! Got home at 1.30am. Can't believe on a work night, I was bumping to DJ Ticklez spinning Wu-Tang's Triumph @ Gaelic Club, then the Liks came out and the crowd went bananas. I don't know if I can handle going to concerts on a weeknight, especially when I've had such a busy week. Getting too old for this! I promise I'll stick up some photos.

The concert was good, and true to their name, J-Ro ended the concert in a drunken stupor and was kinda unconscious, and about 20 girls from the audience on the stage. Tash on the other hand, with his raspy distinctive voice was off the heezy.

Kebab Shop conversation @ Thursday 10pm

Before the Lik concerts Nate, Plunk, Kris and I hit up a kebab shop near the Gaelic club for a pre-concert snack. I'm not sure how it started but we started throwing up hip hop questions. My recollection isn't 100% (and it never would be before an ALCAHOLIKS concert and if you were under the influence like everyone else). Peep the following:

Best record label?

DJ Ho: Loud (unanimous nods).

Kris: Rawkus records

Nate: Deathrow. They got Dre, 2pac, Snoop.

Nate: Ruthless (DJ Ho laughs). Def Jam (a few nods).

DJ Ho: Sony!

Nate: BMG! Mushroom! Universal! (Group cracks up laughing)

Best Producer?

DJ Ho - DJ Premier. Dr Dre. Timbaland. Swizz Beats (I think someone mentiond them).

Best Hip hop Beat?

I went for the early answer knockout blow with "Shook Ones" by Mobb Deep. Mutual agreement. That's a mad beat. There were some other good nominations like I got 5 on it by Luniz. If I had my time, I would have also gone for some DJ Premo beats and "Guess Who's Back" by Rakim (I think that's the name of the song).

Best Wu-Tang Member?

The conversation then took a heavy slant towards one of hip-hops all star groups - the Shaolin clan. I let the others have their say, but my man Raekwon wasn't getting his due props. I argued that Raekwon's Only Built for Cuban Linxs was superior to any Ghostface Killah album. However, I hadn't heard Rae's followup effort which apparently flopped and the counterargument was that Ghost had two really bangin' albums. Still I went down fighting!

Rankings (Almost unanimous): Ghostface Killah, Method Man, GZA, ODB, Raekwon.

Biggie or 2pac?

Like I was on autoplay - I quickly said Biggie. Ain't no way 2pac matches his lyrical content. Nate took his time and anwered 2pac. I asked him to justify how 2pac comes close to Biggie. Hit'em UP. Changes. I was like no way, if you look at Biggie's whole body of work (Ready to Die, Life after death) which is still relatively short, its quality over quantity. Biggie out trumps Pac in every way. Lyrical flow, beats, content, etc....

The final question as we walked out the shop......

Should the Source be allowed to re-adjust their rankings for 5 mic albums?


Bit of background. The Source was the hip hop bible. The magazine for hip hop heads. Their reviews were critical and to some extent did influence sales of hip hop albums if you took them seriously. I really didn't but I read them like every one else. They ranked albums out of 5, with a mic for each rating. One mic out 5 meant it was garbage. 3.5 was average, 4 was defintnely worth a listen. 5 mics meant it was an instant classic - one of the greatest of all time.

The thing is, a while ago, The Source went back and readjusted some of their rankings including bumping up Biggie's "Ready To Die" from 4.5 mics to 5. Ready to Die is one of the greatest albums of all time and most hip hop fans would agree. Some would even say that changing the ranking to 5 mics was justified.

However, I believe that you have to judge an album at its time of release. In its context. You have to judge it against whatever is out there and in the past. You can't go back, and say, "hey that WAS a classic". Of course you can do that but to legimately review an album you have to make that call then and there. That is what makes the review good, if it can pick out an instant classic.

A lot of this is irrelevant now since The Source's standards went out the window. The founder ordered that a group which he managed, called Mademen be bumped up from 4 mics to 4.5 mics. Benzino, a rapper in the group also had ownership in the Source. Corruption I tell you. Then they gave Lil Kim 5 mics and The Source became garbage.

I'm out like 5 mic classics,

DJ Ho.

Hova comes to Sydney!

I'm makin short term goals,wonder whether foes/
Just put away the leathers and put ice on the gold/
Chilly with enough bail money to free a big willy/
High stakes, i got more at stake than philly/
Shoppin sprees, copin three, duece fever i guess its fully loaded,/

- Jay-Z on Can't Knock The Hustle

Just found out that Jay-Z is coming to Sydney on October 25th with Ne-Yo and Rhianna. Tickets go on sale soon, can't wait.

Pics of the week

Liks concert on Thursday night

Melo: Best player on team USA? Most consistent offensive threat? Who woulda thought.

Sometimes you meet a bunch of people and you don't realise how well you get along. How well you will work together. And how successful you will all be one day.
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In December 2002, I had this crazy idea of doing this uni competition called HEWSO (Higher Education Workplace Olympiad). It occurred to me that I didn't have a lot of stuff to fill out my resume. Me, being one of those prepared people, I was already looking out for summer clerkships and internships in 2004. I needed some ammo to sell myself.

So I decided to put my name down and convinced Dawen, Tim and Carol to join in. Suffice to say, I was only prepared to put in minimal effort over the course of the summer. It turns out that we also had extra group members join us - Malik, Rosa, and Olivia.

Contray to my original plans, we worked our butts off that summer. We met up every couple of days during our uni holidays, put in long hours, and even did an all-nighter. I was up til 3am in the morning preparing our report. Sat on the uni couches in the lobby with Carol who's car was locked in til 7am. Got home, slept like 2 hours, and went back to uni to add the final touches. This is what happens when you put a bunch of high achievers and motivated people together who don't want to let each other down.

The thing was, this competition didn't even count for anything! There was no credit points for this. It wasn't even a subject! A few weeks later we gave a presentation to Kimberly Clark (the makers of Kleenex tissues) and they loved us. I still remember the call from Carol, I think I was in a bit of shock when I learnt that we had beaten out all comers from UTS!

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Fast forward 3.5 years: Where y'all at now?

- Tim's on a working holiday in Canada, New York, UK after managing the family business.
- Dawen's a senior accountant at a top insolvency accounting firm
- Carol's an accountant at a boutique investment bank
- Olivia is a lawyer at a big law firm
- Cameron's doing his MBA
-Rosa's a business analyst at Big 4 accounting firm.
- Malik's working and studying an education degree at Newcastle Uni.

Me? I'm still blogging! Still the same old me.

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We had a great time at Baia, an Italian restaurant on Cocklebay Wharf reminiscing about that all-nighter, our team name ("NeoStrategy" - represent!). And then we topped it off with our favourtie team activity - Karaoke!

I don't know why, I have this urge tonite to do something I've been pondering for a while. It's been my dream to have my own business. And I also want to start making some investments as well - such as trading on the stock exchange. Not large amounts. Money that I can afford to risk/play around with (hopefully not lose!). Maybe its a result of meeting all those HEWSO folks again.

My eyes are on the bigger prize. I can see it now. DJ Ho Inc! I like the sound of that. Successful business people show traits from a young age. I dont know what I want to do. Import/Export/E-Business/Services. No idea yet. Where can I see an opportunity now or in the future that isn't being serviced by the market. An area that I can build up a competitive advantage.

Who knows. Maybe its all talk. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither was DJ Ho Inc.

I'm out like 3.5 years,

DJ Ho.

Hobbies I tell you

It's a saturday night, and i'm at home! arrghhhh! Not really in the mood to go to sky gardens nightclub for a party. Given that I've deferred studying for 6 months (well really indefinently) I've got free time on my hands. Every night I come home and I'm just heaps tired and just sit in front of the tv. Friday & Saturday nights, I'm usually clubbing and drinking. I'm thinking I should get back into some of my old hobbies and maybe learn something new.

I've been checking out my old martial arts school for starters. I really want to get back into that and learn how to snap a man in half again lol. Just itching to do those combinations again and get some of that bone on bone action to toughen me up - what i mean is that we didn't really punch bags a lot but rather practiced on each other. Walking through Bankstown station on Friday night and through the Viet areas wasn't a very comfortable experience. The fact that I took a quick shortcut through two semi lit alleys to get to a restaurant was actually quite a dumb idea even though i always take that shortcut in the day time. DJ, you got to be street smart about these things.

Also, after going to a couple of salsa clubs with Rob and PJ, I realised that I'd like to actually know the steps. So I'm looking to take a salsa class on a week night like Salsa Vibes. I know a lot of people doing it and looks like fun. And as Terry put it accurately, girls actually want to dance with you unlike at RNB clubs! haha.

On the creative front, I've also been looking at some classes at Sydney Community College. There's some interesting photography classes, journalism, and film clubs going on. I'd love to do the photography one except after the basic class you need a manual camera, and those things are quite expensive. In fact, I suspect photography is quite an expensive hobby. The film club looks alright, except I dont want to watch a lot of boring films! Though I'd love to expand my film knowledge (hey it might be a great conversation starter?).

On the weird front, I came across a criminal psychology course. At one stage in my first year at uni, I was really into my criminal law class and spoke to my lecturer about changing to do law and criminolgy degree. Then I spoke to my current law firm employer who advised me against any sort of career with criminals. Bring that stuff home with you she said. Well I wanted to be Criminal Minded. Maybe its my chance now.

PJ's also mentioned to me about taking a capoeria class - that brazilian sommersault cartwheel to the sound of beating drums dance. Except that it is a lot more complicated that it looks. Plus I know I'm going to look stupid doing that and has no practical use. Imagine getting robbed at Bankstown in some dark alley and breaking out into one of those brazillian cartwheels. Well maybe I shouldn't be walking down dark alleys in the first place!

On the hip hop front, The Alchaholiks tour is coming to sydney. Rocking at Gaelic Theatre August 31st. Probably going so hip hop heads holla back. Also copped The Game "Documentary" and Missy Elliot's "CookBook" LP. Yes I bought them - feel like giving back to artists instead of downloading. Currently in heavy rotation: Ne-yo's "So Sick"

And I'm so sick of love songs/
So tired of tears/
So done with wishing you were still here/
Said I'm so sick of love songs so sad and slow/
So why can't I turn off the radio?

I'm out,

DJ Ho.

And that's one small step for DJ HO....

Suprisingly I'm not doing too bad after running/walking 14kms in Sunday's City 2 Surf. Apparently its 30,000 steps. I walked up the hilly bits and ran the downhill and flat parts. I didn't really push myself too hard given that last year I ended up in the physio a few days later.

Official Time = 130mins, but apparently you get a 8 min discount for being in HSBC start. So I actually did worse this year (122 mins) even though I started much further ahead. FYI last year's time was 120mins.

I'll train for next year, I promise.

Let's get Blown

Not sure how but I've managed to blow $150 each Friday in the last couple of weeks. For example, let's look at last Friday:

- Lunch @ Kingsley Steak House: Steak, side dishes, bottle of wine with 2 friends. $55. Each !!!!! This place is weird. it's like some kind of power lunch joint where only middle aged white males go. It's either a gay hangout or expensive busines lunch place. Imagine the looks I got, when I rolled into that place with 2 girls. And they were the only two females in the whole restaurant. You know how DJ Ho rolls.

- Dinner @ Capitan Torres: Tapas between 5 random people. $36 each! In fact, I don't even know these people. I know the sister of one of these guys. But it was some of the best food I've had in a while.

- Drinks @ Brooklyn Hotel & Cruise Bar: $50! Drinking and shouting people to Scotch & Dry's, Bourbon & Cokes, Beers can become expensive.

So that's $140 in one day. Man.

This friday night, I'm gonna head straight home.

I'm out like $150 Fridays,

DJ Ho.

Lets Talk About Sex

Raunchy music influences teens' sexual habits

The Age
August 8, 2006

TEENAGERS whose music players are full of music with raunchy, sexual lyrics start having sex sooner than those who prefer other songs, a study has found.
Whether it's hip-hop, rap, pop or rock, much of popular music aimed at teens contains sexual overtones. Its influence on their behaviour appears to depend on how the sex is portrayed, researchers found.

Songs depicting men as "sex-driven studs," women as sex objects and with explicit references to sex acts are more likely to trigger early sexual behaviour than those where sexual references are more veiled and relationships appear more committed, the US-based Rand Corporation study found. Teens who said they listened to lots of music with degrading sexual messages were almost twice as likely to start having intercourse or other sexual activities within the following two years as other teens who listened to little or no sexually degrading music.

Among heavy listeners, 51 per cent started having sex within two years, versus 29 per cent of those who said they listened to little or no sexually degrading music.

The Recording Industry Association of America declined to comment on the findings but Benjamin Chavis, chief executive of the Hip-Hip Summit Action Network, a coalition of musicians and industry executives, said explicit lyrics are a cultural expression reflecting "social and economic realities."

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What do I think? Of course sexually explicit lyrics would influence teenagers to having sex. But its one of many factors. Everything influences. It doesn't take a genuis to recognise the link. The people around you, your friends, your parents, and the people that interact with, the tv shows you watch, what you read, and what you music you listen to are just as likely to influence you. We are a product of our surroundings.

But its not logical to pinpoint one single factor like music and say "hey's that's the trigger". The article says something along the lines that "teenagers that listen to sexually explicit lyrics are twice as more likely to have more sex". C'mon, those teenagers are probably the same ones that are outgoing, that actually hang out with the opposite sex, that watch MA rated movies (shock, horror!), that are in relationships. That study proves nothing.

I will say one thing though. I believe that there is a link between people that are violent and violent movies. But you can't argue that everyone that watches violent movies is violent. However, I do think that a large proportion of violent people do watch violent movies. Is this an exception? Does this same analogy apply to listeners of sexually explicit lyrics and their sexual activities? I doubt it.

Let's look at some songs that pop up in my mind. Exhibit A, is Kelis on "Milkshake":

"My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard/
And their like/
It's better than yours/
Damn right it's better than yours/
I can teach you, But I have to charge/"

There's no doubt these are sexually explicit lyrics, but do you see some teenage girl acting like this? Of course not.

What about Fatman Scoop on Love Like This? Check the lyrics:

"To all my niggaz that hit it from the back/
Who wanna have sex with no strings attached"

That's not so bad is it? He's just saying I like the view from behind and I don't want commitment. Maybe the next couple of lines reveals his true intention:

"Lets Go! Who f*ckin' tonite Who f*ckin' tonite Who f*ckin' tonite?"

Hmmmmm.....maybe not the best example. Notorious B.I.G on the song "Big Booty Hoes" (I can hear the alarm bells ringing immediately) said the following opening lines:

"I got a bitch that suck my d*ck til I nut/
Spit it on my gut and slurp that sh*t back up/
Ain't that a slut (HELL YEA) she even take it in the butt
F*ck for bout a hour, now she want a golden shower"

Graphic, yes. Notorious was always ones to paint vivid pictures with his words whether they be violent, sexual, or deathly. Mr 50 cent on one of the biggest radio songs in the last 5 years came up with "In Da Club":

"I'm into having sex, I ain't into making love/
So come give me a hug if you into getting rubbed"

Sexually explicit lyrics are everywhere in popular songs. But does that mean people are more likely to have sex because they listen to these songs? I don't think so. Most people with a shred of reasoning and logic are not going to act on a impulse because they saw something in a movie or heard a line in a song. Yeah it might influence them, but then so do a million other things.

Perhaps Salt N Pepper said it best:

Let's talk about sex for now to the people at home or in the crowd/
It keeps coming up anyhow/
Don't decoy, avoid, or make void the topic/
Cuz that ain't gonna stop it/
Now we talk about sex on the radio and video shows..........
Those who think it's dirty have a choice/
Pick up the needle, press pause, or turn the radio off/
Will that stop us, Pep? I doubt it/
All right then, come on, Spin