Once is an honest story of music and lyrics, of guy meets girl, and of love and letting go. The guy is a vacuum repair man by day and busker by night who resides in Dublin with a broken heart. The girl appreciates music, sells flowers by day, and plays a piano by lunchtime.

Musically, I am charmed by the duo who sounds alot like Damien Rice and Lisa Hannigan. Their little stories disguise between the music and it works like magic.

The love they share is not a big love story but an honest and simple truth. While fairy tales have happily-ever-afters and lasts a lifetime, real love does not promise the same. Real love is meeting another person who helps you create yourself and sets you out to everything you need to be. Hence, I believe this is an important love story.

The truth is that oftentimes, practicality reigns over love but that doesn’t make it a sad story. Once excels at being a simple love story that is bigger than its simplicity.

The entire world had the privilege of watching Kanye’s reputation showdown on MTV Video Music Awards 2009. Kanye West abruptly stole the microphone from country singer, Taylor Swift, during her acceptance speech for Best Female Video. He had to tell the world there and then that Beyonce was more deserving of that award for her work on “Single Ladies”.

Apparently, Kanye’s thoughts labored like a 9-month old foetus who just broke Mummy’s water and had to come out a.s.a.p. Ouch! When it comes to opinions, Kanye is a master of “Keeping It Real” but remains a young Skywalker when it comes to “Keeping It In”.

While Kanye may have previously been crowned “Hottest MC In The Game” by MTV, the aftermath of this showdown was the littering of his name on all social networking sites, crowning him as “The Douchebag”. This was reinforced with more backlash from 50 Cent, Pink, Tim McGraw and many more.

A few radio stations and also Entrepreneur/Famewhore Donald Trump hopped on the bangwagon and may have gone overboard when they decided to boycott Kanye. Kanye even had President Obama calling him a jackass.

It seems that we live in a world where brutal honesty takes precedence over diplomacy. While I do not condone pretentiousness, Ican’t help but admit that no one is ever so real.

Kanye seems to be a serial villain when it comes to dealing with the media. In the past, he had been charged for assaulting and throwing tantrums at paparazzis. Though I may not understand why Kanye West is so angsty, especially since he has Amber Rose as arm candy, it proves to be high time for anger management classes for him.

To make amends, Kanye expressed his apology in several avenues such as Tonight’s Show With Jay Leno and on his blog. He also called Taylor Swift to apologize to her personally.

It is without doubt that Kanye is one of the brightest stars in the hiphop industry today. He started out as a record producer under Jay Z’s wing and began to flourish as a mainstream conscious rapper shortly after Jay Z announced his “retirement” from his rap career. While he may not be getting popularity hits, he continues to produce good music.

To err is human, to forgive is divine. While we may not be made for divinity, he’s lucky that we have bigger problems and short attention spans. Realness is never an excuse for rudeness. That is the moral of this story.

The Dark Knight is a brilliant follow-up to Batman Begins. In this instalment, Batman faces his arch nemesis, The Joker, who is a homicidal clown maniac that mocks the ways of the world today. With the help of Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent, Batman sets on a treacherous mission to soil The Joker’s plans of terrorizing Gotham City.

Christopher Nolan is serially known for directing psychological thrillers such as Memento and Insomnia. Known for his dedication and darker characters in movies like The Machinist and American Psycho, Christian Bale reprises his role as Bruce Wayne.  The Joker is played by Heath Ledger who gave a truly memorable and haunting adaptation of The Joker.

When you package a movie with the talents of Christopher Nolan, Christian Bale and Heath Ledger, you get a pretty awesome surprise. Be prepared to be at edge of seat for a pure adrenaline ride that will shock your senses and bring food for thought.

Sometimes, a true hero has to sacrifice himself at the mercy of others for a bigger cause. Not only is this movie the ultimate showdown between Batman and The Joker, it the true fight of good versus evil.

After the jump, is an impersonation of The Joker, written as a tribute to such a bold character.

The Joker – A Tribute

I have a few dollars to burn. Can I buy some time from you?

I have forgotten my name because it became unimportant. When you bid good riddance to your insecurities and instilled beliefs, your name is just a trivial matter that doesn’t define your identity. It’s weird how people confuse identity for a name and a few digits.

I am the epitome of actualized individualism and you think of me as a fucking nightmare. You people are a funny bunch but you call me the joker. At least my ideals do not drift and I do not rationalize my adversaries like a prostitute robbed of freewill.

I believe in a society based on mutual respect and logic. There are many differences between my cape crusader friend and I, but I respect him for being the unorthodox hero and standing up for what he believes in, even if it seems like he’s fighting a lost cause.

It seems that life as an extension of art, with no masters, no slaves, no walls, is just too fucking poetic. So, we must destroy in order to rebuild. I used to be like you, bogged down by chains but I’ve mastered the art of self-destruction. Now, I wear the world on my sleeve. What do you wear on yours?

Stop being so scared shitless all the fucking time. What are you so afraid of? Change? I make and break change.

Come minions. It is time to make superior changes in your minute lives.

Based on a true story of the great adventures of Christopher McCandless, Into The Wild is a story of escapism made real in the 20th century. Christopher is brilliant young man who is hungry for realness which came to him in the form of an adventure.

Upon graduation, Christopher leaves his worldly possessions in pursuit of self-realization. Past adversaries played an important role in pushing him out of society and into nature where he would find truth in simplicity. He disregarded worldly possessions as a hygiene factor of society, gave his life’s savings to charity, and burnt away his money.

His mission was to wander the wonders of Alaska. In that journey, he found friendship, joy and peace in strange places and most importantly, himself.

Into The Wild is the needful version of American Beauty, minus consumerism. The cinematography is a sight for sore eyes – mountains, plains, sky, rivers, and animals. Acoustics from Eddie Vedder enhances the experience, making this one of the movies that deserves remembrance.

Born and bred in the gritty streets of Somalia, K’naan offers new insights on the everyday struggle of a developing nation unknown to the rest of us. Turn off your Akon and turn up your stereo for this up and coming rapper.

Troubadour is his sophomore album and it is delivered with a fresh seal of his unique combination of a Somali accent and nasal-enunciating voice. His album strikes a balance between pop-leaning songs, dope hiphop beats to revolutionary anthems.

“Waving Flag” is a noteworthy song which has the potential to grow into a classic in the likes of the great Bob Marley. K’naan is truly a gem in addition to the current mainstream hiphop industry with his honest-storytelling.

K’naan teaches us through Troubadour that through struggles, comes a fierce fight for survival and an increasing propensity for appreciation. Besides, it’s high time we poke our noses outside of America and learn about the world that still suffers from poverty in such a day and age.

Similar Artists : K-OS, Bob Marley, Wyclef Jean