Idolator

So author Norman Mailer, called "pugnacious" or "a genius" or "a jerk" or all three in no less than 8,000 obituaries, kicked this weekend. Meaning everyone's rushing to squeeze Mailer references into articles where they might not fit so good. Like this Mpls./St. Paul Magazine review of a Rakim/Ghostface Killah/Brother Ali concert in Minneapolis. Which springboards off Mailer's infamous tract "The White Negro." Because it seems that "deep down, back in '56, Mailer wished he could flow like that, wished he could approach anything as 'far out' as Rakim doing what he do." A full 12 years before Rakim was born, even. Oh, and you also learn Ghostface is the "McCartneyesque 'cute one.'"

Hip-Hop Live At First Avenue [MSPMag.com; HT: Matos]