Talk:Talib Kweli

Rise to Popularity

Would anyone object to the addition of the reference by Jay Z to Talib Kweli in his song Moment of Clarity? In case anyone doesn't know, the specific line says, "If skills sold, truth be told, I'd probably be lyrically Talib Kweli." Kweli had his own response in Ghetto Show when he says, "If lyrics sold then truth be told I'll probably be just as rich and famous as Jay-Z."Troyc001 23:41, 14 December 2006 (UTC)

I always thought this reference was neat. A little obscure though, might fit better in a Trivia section? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 156.34.232.33 (talk) 01:37, 25 April 2007 (UTC).

Vandalism

How many people are monitoring this? and can we report the vandals? 71.235.19.106 18:24, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

Chappelle Show Success

"He has since broken through slightly more towards the mainstream, thanks in large part to several appearances on the comedy show Chappelle's Show, both solo and with long-time collaborator Mos Def; this is due to a friendship between the host and creator of the show, comedian Dave Chappelle and the rapper."

Wasn't "Get By" already receiving considerable MTV play before his first Chappelle Show appearance?

I believe so yes.

I think Chappelle show reached more people that would be into him seriously 71.235.19.106 18:24, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

Muslim?

I see that Talib Kweli is categorized under "Muslim Americans". In the song "Around My Way" he says the following:

"People let me paint the picture. You know I ain't a Christian, I ain't a Muslim, ain't a Jew, I'm losing my religion. I speak to God directly..." Arnemann 11:22, 18 June 2006 (UTC)

i think he's christian. —Preceding unsigned comment added by FragRebel (talk • contribs) 17:34, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

singles?

any chance of having a 'singles' section of the discograpy..?

Name etymology

The article says his name is "Arab" but Talib said it is "African" at his show the other night. Hair splitting aside, I think it would be better if the article reflected his own self identification and was changed. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.249.153.174 (talk • contribs) 02:55, September 8, 2006 (UTC)

I think it is Arab. it comes from the same word as taliban. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.235.19.106 (talk • contribs) 18:24, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

Taliban isn't Arab, It's Farsi. Talib Kweli is african for son of equality. (nmandala47) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 164.47.45.35 (talk • contribs) 19:13, November 13, 2006 (UTC)

Of course, "african" isn't a language. 208.120.84.99 23:58, 12 September 2007 (UTC)

"Talib" is Arabic, meaning "seeker" ("Taliban" is a Pashto plural variant of Arabic "Talib"). "Kweli" is Swahili, meaning "truth" (among other related meanings).

I've seen many sources that say that "talib" as a name generally means "seeker of truth", so Kweli's middle name just emphasizes the truth aspect. I haven't seen a reliable source that showed that's why his parents named him that, but it seems likely that they knew the meaning given their background as professors. Mike Dillon 06:53, 14 November 2006 (UTC)

"Talib" does mean seeker or student of truth/knowledge in Arabic. This implies "religious truth", as traditionally there is no other kind of truth in Arabic. It's the same word as used by the Afghanistan theocratic terrorist group. (Although Kweli obviously does not have any support for them, nor is he even a moslem.) Because Arabic is the langauge of the Qur'an, and seen as "the true word of God", the langauge is studied by the entire muslim world (spreading from Northern Africa to Southeast Asia) and has influenced their local langauges for hundreds of years. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 156.34.232.33 (talk) 01:03, 25 April 2007 (UTC).

Muslim revisited

I've removed recent attempts to claim that Kweli is or is not a Muslim. Without a reliable published source like a well researched biographical article or an interview, we can't claim one way or the other. We need a definitive source before making claims about religion in the biography of a living person. And no, the song lyric stating "I ain't a Muslim" doesn't count. Mike Dillon 05:05, 28 November 2006 (UTC)

Based only on his lyrics, which are very consistant, he is expressedly not a Moslem or follower of any Abrahamic religion. He seems to share a view common among comteporary afrocentric intellectuals that Abrahamic religion (Christian, Moslem, and perhaps even Rastafarian) has really done little to help the plight of the Pan-African, and tend towards a Hegelian or even Marxist view of Religion as a social tool. However, he often uses religious and biblical references, and obviously sees some wisdom in them. He also often expresses an almost mystical sentiment about "God".

He sees idiology in general as something personal and not something that should necessarily follow a specific organised religion, so probably it's best to not to claim he 'is' or 'isn't' a member of a certain religion.

I've actually seen him smoke weed... I don't know how many real Muslims smoke weed or drink liquor.

Although drugs and alcohol are banned by more orthodox mainstream Moslems (Sunnis, Shi'as, NOI), lots of black muslims smoke marijuana. Particularly the Nation of Gods and Earths, the more extreme off-shoot of the Nation Of Islam which popular amoung rappers. (ie Rakim, Busta, Lord Jamar, pretty much anybody affiliated with Wu-Tang, etc. - many of these rappers have been quite vocal about their smoking.) I should add though, there is no religious signifigance of marijuana (as in there is to a degree in Rastafarianism) for Gods and Earths -- it's founder, ("Allah") Clarence 13X seems to have the same view on drugs as the rest of the NOI had. Gunja is just part of the same culture that an extremist interpretation of Master Fard's already pretty radical version of Islam is popular with.

dude, when he talks abt u kno i ain't a jew etc etc, he's talking about losing his way. it is the song, nothing to do with him. DAMN ppl u gotta learn how to read context. okay firstly, he's from brooklyn, ny. his parents are both black. btw religion is a way of life, u become it when ur born. jus sayin —Preceding unsigned comment added by FragRebel (talk • contribs) 17:37, 26 September 2007 (UTC)

Right About Now

Stop lieing. You don't have to like that Talib released Right About Now, but he did. Hell, I don't like it either. The album sucks. There's one good song. But you can't pretend he didn't release it just cause you don't like it. This is an encyclopedia, not a fan boy club. Let's forget trying to make your favorite rapper look good, and just tell the damn truth!

It's a mix CD. It even says "Mix CD" in the title. There's nothing fanboyish about calling it what it is. Mike Dillon 04:52, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

I looked into this a little more and it seems to be somewhere between a "studio album" and "mix tape". It's basically a bunch of minimally produced tracks that all feature Kweli. It isn't clear what it is exactly. Mike Dillon 05:10, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

"A rose by any other name ..." The CD is really more of an album than a mix tape. A "mix tape" is a mix of different artists, and that's not what this album is. Kweli sings every track, and as far as I know, the songs aren't available elsewhere, so it's not even a "best of." Except for the word "mix" being in the album title, this really doesn't meet any of the requirements for actually being a mix tape. And, at least where I live, the CD was marketed and reviewed ( in the local alternative papers ) as an album. Maybe not a studio album, but surely a single artist releasing a collection of new songs, performed only by himself, is an album. 71.216.188.161 19:21, 1 December 2006 (UTC)

Def Poetry Jam

No mention of Talib Kweli appearing on Def Poetry Jam the past two seasons? Might be an interesting point of reference for a trivia section or something. --69.203.122.177 05:25, 25 February 2007 (UTC)

Controversy

Does anybody else think the Mims diss track should go somewhere else, maybe Trivia? It's not really controversial. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Sayler (talk • contribs) 03:49, 30 April 2007 (UTC).

As lackluster of a rapper MIMS is I beilve he is popular enough for the section to deserve a section possibly with lyrical examples from the diss track.

it is a remix dissing fake rappers. it is up to audience to determine who it is aimed at. FragRebel 07:32, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

Criticism

Possibly a new section should be added about how many Kweli fans beilve that kweli is "selling out" by not only changing his style but working with pop artists and producers such as Justin Timberlake and Will.i.am. This section would also mention how kweli has a propensity to mention problems without even proposing solutions.

Roots

He's partly Ghanian as shown from a song from clinton sparks: get familiar track young, fresh and clean 'kweli ghanian and they still can't pronounce it' —Preceding unsigned comment added by FragRebel (talk • contribs) 11:13, 26 October 2007 (UTC)

Portrait

Is it me or is that pic disgusting. Why do we have to use pictures that people take. Why can't we just use pictures off of google. This is just ridiculous. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Deville75 (talk • contribs) 16:52, 9 November 2007 (UTC)

Next Album Name

Not an article editor, but saw an edit I thought was worth bringing up. What is the name of the next album Talib Kweli is planning on releasing. Is it "Prisoner of Conscious" - as this article says - or "Prisoner of Conscience", which actually makes sense. Even the bleak "Prisoner of Consciousness" would make more sense.

156.33.138.39 (talk) 13:58, 21 November 2007 (UTC)

Breaking in?

WTF is 'breaking in' supposed to mean? Sounds too much like a PR buzzword.

And I'm not sure all that personal stuff deserves to be in the introduction.