Echo Simone Notes

Run-D.M.C. brought guitars to the block and hip hop to the world. This is the moment it all shifted.

🔗 medium.com/the-riff/the...

We didn’t want to lose conscious hip hop — it was replaced.

New from Echo Simone:

Dilution by Design - The story of how the culture got monetized, muted, and sold back to us.

medium.com/the-riff/dil...

#hiphop #rap

Missy "Work It"

As soon as I hear it, I’m on the floor. What’s your track that makes the whole party move?

No worries — if a hurricane hits, the alligators can double as evacuation transport. MAGA Water Uber, swamp edition. Just hold on tight and scream “freedom!” 🐊💨

It would be hilarious if it weren’t so grotesquely inhumane — and morally bankrupt to the core.

In 1989, Public Enemy didn’t just make noise — they made purpose.

The Anthem. The Outcry. The Awakening.

Read the full Echo Simone essay:
medium.com/@echo.simone...

Parts I & II are live - below are the links...

Part 1: medium.com/@echo.simone...

Part 2: medium.com/@echo.simone...

Planning a 90s-themed birthday cookout in August—music is the soul of this thing. I’ve got the basics (BBD, TLC, Montell Jordan, etc.), but I want to make sure I don’t miss any classics.

What must be on the playlist?

Drop the tracks that bring back the smell of charcoal and plastic tablecloths 🎶🔥

Flat-style illustration of a roller coaster, a cereal box labeled ‘Cereal,’ a bowl of colorful cereal, a calculator, and papers marked ‘BILL’ and ‘WORK’ — symbolizing the mix of childhood joy and adult responsibilities.

I usually write soul-stirring music essays.
Today? I’m talking about adulthood & why it still doesn’t feel official.
(Bills? Paid. Identity? TBD.)

✍🏽 “Things I’m Unlearning as I Get Older”
A little humor, a little truth, and zero shame about watching Netflix all weekend.

medium.com/@echo.simone...

If you're looking for music shares, I'm the one. I listen to EVERYTHING 😀

Thank you so much. If you're not a member, no worries. I always share the free link!

A vintage boombox sits behind two cassette tapes labeled “Public Enemy” and “X-Clan.” In front, a black snapback hat reads “KNOWLEDGE” in bold white letters. Beaded necklaces with Afrocentric medallions—a red Africa silhouette and a red-black-green ankh—rest on a wooden surface.

Next week, I’m releasing a 3-part series on how hip hop once taught, armed, and awakened us—and how the industry silenced that message. Truth was replaced by spectacle. The mic became a muzzle. This is about what we had—and how it was taken. medium.com/@echo.simone...

Right?? That pairing says so much without even trying. Two generations, same weight. Appreciate you catching that.

No, I haven't heard of Alice Russell but I will check her out.

Two generations. One purpose.
From Gil Scott-Heron to Kendrick Lamar — voices that testify, resist, and reflect.
New from Echo Simone Notes.

🆓 Read it here and share this free link: medium.com/@echo.simone...

#hiphopculture #EchoSimoneNotes #Blacksky

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YouTube video by XscapeVEVO Xscape - Just Kickin' It (Official Video)

Dorm room phone. A whole crew of us harmonizing terribly on the answering machine like we were signed to NOT So So Def. Just kickin’ it… every time it rang. 😂🎶

www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_BT...

The Torch That Burned at Both Ends: Janis, Amy, and the Price of Feeling Too Much There’s something unsettling about the way we romanticize the 27 Club. We string together names like Jimi, Jim, Kurt, and Cobain into…

Two voices. One fire. A reflection on the emotional power—and tragic cost—of Janis Joplin and Amy Winehouse.
medium.com/@echo.simone...