Life in a Shanty Town

By Byron Crawford

A free, weekly email newsletter from the pioneering hip-hop blogger and author of books like Infinite Crab Meats and No Country for Black Men, with topics including racism, homophobia, healthy living, respect for women, tolerance for religion and who really runs the music industry

Previous issues

Only the best artists are MeToo'd

#95 Feb 15, 2019

The lord giveth, and the lord taketh away

#94 Feb 8, 2019

Who really put a shoe on Jussie Smollet?

#93 Feb 1, 2019

#92

Jan 25, 2019

Why Big Boi, Travis Scott and Gladys Knight agreed to perform at the Super Bowl – Internets,When I wrote, a few weeks ago, about Jay-Z trying to talk Travis Scott out of performing at
#91

Jan 18, 2019

What's Hov got to do with it? – Internets,Jay-Z has been suspiciously quiet about the Lifetime R. Kelly movie, for someone who, not t
#90

Jan 11, 2019

Surviving Touré – Internets,I believe it was Willem Dafoe in the movie The Last Temptation of Christ, or possibly 2Pac,
#89

Jan 4, 2019

R. Kelly must be trying to buy NBC – Internets,I wasn't sure how to feel about the fact that R. Kelly was once married to Aaliyah for a ho
#88

Dec 28, 2018

Put a culture vulture on notice in 2019 – Internets,One of the few things giving me hope going into 2019 is the fact that Dame Dash is still ou
#87

Dec 21, 2018

Travis Scott doesn't need Jay-Z's advice – Internets,Jay-Z is trying to talk Travis Scott out of performing at the Super Bowl, but I suspect tha
#86

Dec 14, 2018

Ebro, Kodak Black and the business case for virtue signaling – Internets,I applaud Ebro for taking Kodak Black to task for his alleged "non-con" lovemaking, not bec
#85

Dec 7, 2018

Kevin Hart stood tall, despite physical limitations – Internets,I never thought I'd be giving props to Kevin Hart, and yet here I am.I have no use for the
#84

Nov 30, 2018

Why I'm glad Meek Mill is not in prison – Internets,I have no interest in Meek Mill's music, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel a deep se
#83

Nov 23, 2018

Tekashi 6ix9ine only commits sex crimes – Internets,It's not in a black man's nature to send out a free, weekly email newsletter the day after
#82

Nov 16, 2018

Bhad Bhabie is not to be toyed with – Internets,The video of Danielle Bregoli, a/k/a Bhad Bhabie, throwing a drink on Iggy Azalea was the m
#81

Nov 9, 2018

Country music is a menace and should be banned – Internets,Let the record show that I raised a concern about violence in country music after the Las V
#80

Nov 2, 2018

Make low information voters apathetic again – Internets,Kanye West seems to have renounced the Sunken Place, and just in time for the midterm elect
#79

Oct 26, 2018

When you dis XXXTentacion, you dis yourself – Internets,A few weeks ago, Vic Mensa offended much of the hip-hop community by dissing XXXTentacion a
#78

Oct 19, 2018

Political rap is back and better than ever – Internets,You can hardly blame Snoop Dogg for the fact that he only just now heard the rumor that Dra
#77

Oct 12, 2018

More like Koon-ye West, amirite? – Internets,I knew that Kanye's White House visit had been planned, but nothing could have prepared me
#76

Oct 5, 2018

Is a mumble rapper 2Pac? Sure, why not? – Internets,When it was announced the other day that 2Pac's family—whoever that even is at this point—w

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