News In Rap

Rather than freestyling this week, I'm sharing this new song I've recently written about current events in the Tiger Woods story. Enjoy, or don't.

Swing over and hear this week's news-lite rap. Or don't. Either way, you should go watch my new music video. Cheers, Seth

Back in action for December! So, a little something different today. First of all, we're back to my other Pelicaine-made beat, which has a slightly looser flow. But more importantly, rather than trying to summarize all of the news this week, I only hit a few stories briefly before launching into a 6-minute in-depth report on one story. You'll hear all the details you need in the podcast, but if you'd like to read more after listening for further information, I was referring to this article. Cheers, Seth

Another News In Rap. I have to say, somehow the joy isn't there anymore for me, in the way it was when I started these. Oddly, I find my other freestyles much more satisfying. I think in the coming weeks, I'll be playing around with doing different things for News In Rap, whether that means changing up the beat, not just reading the Google Feed, or something else. Not really sure what I'll do next week. But it won't be quite the standard thing we've gotten used to. Cheers, Seth

Definite ups and downs in the rap this week. There are a few minutes of terrible ADD-laden half-rhymes, and a few minutes of solid flow. I got caught up clicking through one story and got distracted. But there was some other story where I randomly had a rhyme I really liked. I can't remember what it was, but I'll guess I'll go listen after I post it. Did you know that Bill Cosby has some new hip-hop project? As someone who likes both Bill Cosby and hip-hop, this interests me. If you haven't already voted for my SongFight song, now is an excellent time to do so.

I am sort of tired and on a post-event slump. Nerdapalooza was amazing, I got to freestyle with some cool people and meet and hang out with many more. Then I came home to a poetry slam hosted by Taylor Mali, which I managed to win. (No, Mali wasn't competing, just hosting. If he was competing, there's no way I would have won, because he's Taylor fucking Mali.) I wonder if there are standards for vulgarity in the episode description? Guess I'll find out.

I apologize that it broke me out of my rap when I saw the headline, but honestly, five weeks straight where one of the top headlines is that the fight against the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka will be over any day now? Come on. It's like waiting for that package from Amazon that never ships. Unrelatedly, root beer floats with chocolate ice cream are awesome.

Howdy Folks, Well, as you hear during the prologue, I got some disappointing news this week. But I'm trying to stay positive, and to that end, I'd like to invite you to watch my new hastily-made rap video, which I recorded and submitted to YouTube for a contest in which I am attempting to win a microphone. If it racks up lots of views in the next week, that would be keen. Take a look. Thanks, Seth [email protected]

I just found out Jedi Mind Tricks may be playing near me tomorrow, but tickets are pricey and only for students. Do I schlep out anyway to see what's up? A definite maybe. Oh, and there's some news and stuff you could listen to.

So, while rapping through the headline about the risks of ADHD drugs, I suddenly became highly distracted. I'm not sure whether that's coincidence, or psychosomatic, or what. I can't believe it's almost April. And not butter. Oh, and since someone pointed out to me that my icon was way too big, I resized it. I guess I presumed it would make things icon-sized automatically, and just uploaded my picture. Sorry about that.

For some reason, it occurred to me today while rapping what an odd thing it is that I'm doing. It occurred to me, of course, very briefly, because I can't really have thoughts that last for more than half a second without losing my place. But still, in case you forgot: This is a weird podcast. Ah well. Thursday night is a poetry slam at a local pub, where I'll rhyme about something that isn't the news. Should be fun.

I am back from the west coast, where my rap credentials increased slightly. I randomly approached a man with gold-plated front teeth and asked him where I could find local freestyle sessions. And although his advice didn't pan out, I later rapped along with a street drummer in San Fran and managed to draw a pretty decent crowd. Anyway, today's news features the economy sucking a lot. My advice: Get used to it.

I am hale and hearty once again! In recent weeks I've been focusing more on my poetry than my rapping, and the only rapping I've done has been these podcasts. I hope I don't fall out of practice, but I did win the poetry slam, so I really can't complain. Anyway, this episode features a whole lot of Obama, and I have a feeling the news cycle is going to trend that way for a while.

I made it about halfway through before I got too sick to continue, but I figured I'd come back and finish up the mp3 today just to post it. Healthier rap next week.

Special Opinionated Edition! I'm back for February with vigor and VIM. I even started throwing in my opinions to the rap, which sadly meant there was not quite enough time to cover every single story on the page. If *you* have an opinion as to whether you prefer hearing my own opinions or just straight factual news rap, drop me an email at [email protected] and let me know. Cheers, Seth

I'm in a bit of a fog. I just recorded this episode and already have no idea what I rapped about. I only read the headlines, I don't remember them. Last Thursday my freestyle rap at the local bar was pretty well received. It wasn't about news, though.

First News In Rap of the new year! Now with even more stories I know nothing about!

There's not much else to do on Christmas Eve aside from recording another episode of News In Rap. Tomorrow, however, I'm totally going out for Chinese food. Happy holidays! Oh, and if you're religious (Judeo-Christianly) and enjoy rhyming, check out www.GodToVerse.com. Best, Seth

Oh the weather outside is frightful, But the podcast's so delightful. So when it's raining and sleeting and crap, News in Rap, News in Rap, News in Rap. --S.

I have to say, the "feature" of Google News that causes it to auto-refresh every few minutes is not helpful to my rapping. But I can't see where to turn it off. As always, if you enjoy the podcast, please tell a friend about www.NewsInRap.com. If you don't enjoy the podcast but feel you could, let me know how I can improve it. Thanks, Seth [email protected]

I open Google News. I turn on the backbeat. I begin freestyle rapping. Every week. That's it. Last week was essentially episode zero, since it used my old debate beat. This week is the first episode with the official News In Rap beat, created by the incomparable Pelicaine. As always, if you enjoy it, please tell a friend. (And possibly me.) Thanks, Seth [email protected] www.RisingPun.com

Hello again! With the presidential debates out of the way, I thought I'd try bringing you all the other news you may have been missing. If you'd like to know what's going on in the world, in the country, in health, science, entertainment, and sports, but don't want to waste time and be depressed by watching the network news, then tune in to my podcast starting now. This week's stories include: Isiah Thomas, Obama's Grandma, a McCain Staffer, Google Android, OPEC, the World Series, and Flatulence. News In Rap is created by my scrolling the news feed at news.google.com and freestyling all the main stories. It turns out to be much easier to read headline summaries than to read debate transcripts; I was able to keep this under ten minutes, while still hitting most of the stories on the page. As always, if you enjoy it, please tell a friend. Thanks, Seth www.RisingPun.com [email protected]