Today marks the release of Common's (damn-good) new album, The Dreamer/The Believer. And it also marks the end of that whole "controversy" that started yesterday between the Chicago rapper and poet/author Dr. Maya Angelou, who appears on the album's opening track, "The Dreamer." As we reported, she was "surprised and disappointed" by his use of the n-word on the song, though her feelings were slightly blown out of proportion.
As she says in the above telephone interview on BET's 106 & Park, Dr. Angelou wasn't disappointed, merely surprised. She adds that she thinks Com is absolutely brilliant and on his way to becoming an artistic genius. Her most telling statement on the entire matter is the following:
"I know that we are all in process and young artists are in process. It’s important to realize that all of you – all of us – [are in process]. There was a statement made by Machiavelli in the 15th century. He said if you want to control the people, separate them, and you can rule them. Divide them and you can conquer them. I will not be divided from Common."
Well, that certainly ends that.
