The following joint is an exclusive excerpt from award winning writer Edward M. Garnes, Jr.’s long awaited collection Other Side of The Game: Rare Testimonials On Music & Black Cultural Production to be published by Home Grown in 2009. This was the first story ever written on Anthony David way back in 2000.

Celebrating his Definitive Collection release, Kuti talks freedom, black music, and second slavery in a rare interview with Ed Garnes. The following interview is an exclusive excerpt from award winning writer Garnes’ long awaited collection Other Side of The Game: Rare Testimonials On Music & Black Cultural Production to be published by Home Grown in 2009.

Hayes music will still be the soundtrack for a groovy Friday night with your foxy lady, a funky good time at a modern day juke joint, or theme music to your Saturday afternoon cleaning ritual. He is still our past and present all in one. Future generations should take notes from Black Moses’ ability to let the music speak, even though he no longer can.

There is hip hop outside of the billboard charts. Artists like Killer Mike, Little Brother, Dead Prez, and Jean Grae–to name a few–are dope but rarely get their just desserts when it comes to folks ‘best rappers” lists. Lil Wayne’s flow is sick, but to say he saved hip hop discounts the contributions of so many underappreciated hip hop heads keeping the spirit alive.

It was the smoothed out love letter every brother in the world wanted to write….but was too damn cool to tell his women!!! Maxwell’s 96′ release also marks a dramatic tone shift in music as mid tempo grooves, jam sessions, and incense became the craze as industry execs, looking for a clever marketing term to push record sales, developed the flawed title neo-soul ( soul is soul…and that never get’s old)

To be frank, Erykah Badu is further from the stereotype of project baby mamas than the Pluto is to Earth. The key difference is Badu ain’t runnin’ around lookin’ for the next man payin’ for nails and hair with a car to take her shoppin’. She has built sound relationships with some cool brothers and it didn’t work out the way we, on the outside, thought it should.