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#103455 05/18/2003 3:03 PM
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>Unbelievable! THIS Is In the Dictionary?

"Bling-bling" will soon be entered into the Oxford English Dictionary. What started out as hip-hop jargon has turned into slang. And it's not just for teenagers. CNN Headline News can't get enough of "bling-bling." Listen carefully and you'll hear it on ESPN commercials. Newsweek used it in its May 12 edition in an article on, of all things, Costco. Newsweek's exact phrase was "Ring up the bling." At Costco. All of which has gotten the very proper people at the very proper Oxford English Dictionary interested in "bling-bling." And not just as a noun. They're interested in it as a verb and adjective, too!

What is "bling-bling"?

The Record, a newspaper serving Bergen County, N.J., explains it for the unhip: Coined in 1999 in a song titled "Bling-Bling" by a New Orleans rapper named B.G., it refers to big showy jewelry. It "sets off alarms at airports and goes bling when it collides with other bling," says The Record.
Who has "bling-bling"?
According to Record reporter Virginia Rohan, here's a list of who has it:
50 Cent has it.
Elizabeth Taylor dripped it.
Liberace flaunted it.
Carmela Soprano is a walking advertisement for it.
P. Diddy is real-life poster boy for it.
Jewelry designer Robert Verdi aspires to it.
and who doesn't (but thinks he does):
Vanilla Ice.

You know a word is no longer cool and cutting edge and oh-so-MTV when it lands in the dictionary. You know it's crossed over when your mom starts using it in everyday conversation. And what does Cash Money artist B.G. think about the word he coined way back when? He told MTV News, "'Bling-bling' will never be forgotten. So it's like I will never be forgotten. I just wish that I'd trademarked it, so I'd never have to work again." He's right. It won't be forgotten. Once a word goes into the Oxford English Dictionary, it never comes out. Ever. "Bling-bling" will join a host of other hip-hop words: "jiggy," "bootylicious," "breakbeat," "dope," and "phat." <






#103456 05/18/2003 4:40 PM
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I just wish that I'd trademarked it, so I'd never have to work again.

yup. bling-bling missed the ching-ching.



formerly known as etaoin...
#103457 05/18/2003 8:00 PM
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That's a great piece of writing, Juan! I loved your title.

PS "Dope" is a hip-hop word? What does it mean?


#103458 05/18/2003 8:20 PM
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That's a great piece of writing, Juan! I loved your title.

T'anks, AnnaS!

And hear that, eta?...with AnnaS's encouragement, I'm hereby trademarking OEDeified® so I don't have to work for the rest of my life.

dope

Like, dope is a hip-hop word? With some kind of new nuance that's never been tried before? What's the dope on that? I mean, I ain't no dope, but I was wondrin' the same meself. Or was the writer jus' smokin' some good dope? Anybody?


#103459 05/18/2003 8:24 PM
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Sorry, Juan. Not sure who the dope is here.


#103460 05/18/2003 8:26 PM
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well, here's the first link that came up on a "news" google:
http://southend.wayne.edu/days/2003/may/5152003/misc/bling/bling.html

but I can also tell you that it's NOT in OED online. so either this is still pending or it's just codswallop (Nonsense, drivel [OED]).


#103461 05/18/2003 8:31 PM
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Black English slang (orig. U.S.).

Chiefly among rap musicians and enthusiasts: excellent, great, impressive.




#103462 05/18/2003 8:42 PM
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Thanks, tsuwm. Any illustrations of usage? For instance:

Man, that's a dope song! (or)

Man, that song's the dope!

I had some black musician friends who used "joint" like that, going back to the late 70's...man, that's the joint! But it was always "the joint", and it always ended the sentence...joint never stood alone in that context as an adjective (joint tune, for example). And I think that expression caught on in a large way for awhile in the late 80s or so.


#103463 05/19/2003 1:55 AM
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Ok, I looked up some rap music reviews. This one uses dope at the bottom, but I thought I'd include some of what preceded it, well, just because...
14) Chitty Bang/Feat. Flavamatikz, Didats, & Menace

Ok, the problem is, the whole Chitty Bang is too retarted to be feelin' like this. The flow is real tight on this, all the flows, I guess I gotta give it props, but the hook is annoying, and lame, the whole chitty thing is crap. But the flow and lyrics make this club worthy, and some of the lyrics I was really feelin'. The bass line is on target too. Bump it.

15) Mami Can I/Feat. Flava, Menace, Santo the Honduspitfire, & Lay-Lo

Noooo! He get's back to the LL Cool J flow again, you can't hate him for it, but you know he's tryin' to sound sexy. The hook is crap. I'll be real, Jigga's "Ain't No Nigga" to me was the worst hook ever used, cause it just wasn't worth anything, regardless of whether it was too sound bad or not, the singin' on this is purposely crap, but it don't work. The flows are all crap, maybe on a possee album, but it doesn't work on this album. The singers on this one better get serious if they wanna get signed. Skip this track.

16) Mic Man/Feat. Flavamatikz, Guchione, Didats, & Cocorote

Ok, Guchione and me gon' hook up and do a track, he's a tight rapper. The track ain't no good, but he is. The flow just becomes repetitive way to quick. I can't say I was feelin' it, regardless of the flow. Skip this track.

17) Bailalo/Feat. Cocorote

This track's ok, the flow works, it hits with the beat. The hook is different, but not horrible. The combination of english lyrics, and another language lyrics is different, not a good different, kind of annoying. Overall the track is decent, it oughta be a single if there is one, it's single quality. Check it.

18) Real Love/Feat. Medea & Cocorote

A mix of R&B showcasing the talents of Medea. This track is ok, and bad, when the flow from Knowa starts, it starts to build up with a decent use if the bars that have been set up for and R&B song, but overall the signing becomes quickly annoying, but it can be overlooked, and possibly dealt with. Check this track out.

Ok, I think this guys mixed, who's to say, he's a decent artist, but he just tries a few ideas that really sound lame, the Alphabet song almost made me trash the album, his boys definitley have some talent, and he does too. Given some time and exposure, he'll be an excellent rapper. Check this album out, nothing is spectacular, but it's not a horrible debut album, I've heard worse. I'd give it a 3.

Dope Tracks: 10

Whack Tracks: 5

Skits Good: No


http://www.realrap.net/review.html?id=38



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