Master P issued the following open letter in response to comments made by 50 Cent at a recent BET news conference.
IT'S TIME FOR CHANGE
Curtis Jackson's comment motivated me. There are a lot of immature
people in the world. Oprah Winfrey is absolutely right, we need to grow
up and be responsible for our own actions. I paid for Curtis's first
rap tour through the south. He was such a humble guy at the time. Most
artists' mission is to sell records. My mission is to help save and
change lives. There's a lack of knowledge and false information out
there. I could actually say Little Jay and Rap-A-Lot Records inspired my
successful career and I will always respect them no matter what. I wrote
the blueprint for this generation. The only difference is there's no
more honor and respect in the game.
Think about it: people in jail are not writing letters proclaiming to
come out and do the same thing that landed them there in the first
place. People in the hood don't want to stay poor for the rest of
their lives. They want to change. Parents that really love their kids
would rather sacrifice their own lives so that their kids could make a
change to have a better life and a better education. I'm glad that
there are people like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and organizations like
the NAACP that are out there fighting for our rights and dignity. I have
finally realized that EVERY person is either a part of the problem or
part of the solution and that is why I have decided to take a stand!
I'm reaching out to corporate America to form an alliance for the sake
of putting the value back into our communities by rebuilding and
developing schools and businesses.
First of all, it's simply disappointing to see people that are in a
position to help make a change just sit back and entertain the
negativity. It's sad to see Steven Hill set all of these programming
standards at BET, just to contradict himself for the sake of marketing
dollars or artist performances in order to create the appearance of a
successful award show. The record company with the biggest marketing
check controls the music video stations so we need to go after the
people who actually control these programming networks if we want real
CHANGE.
I guess by taking a stand, my son and I will probably not be invited
back to the BET awards. But it's O.K. I got love for BET; there are a
lot of good people there. Hopefully, this will help people to see the
real changes that need to be made. My son and I will sacrifice our
airtime because this is bigger than us, this issue desperately needed to
be addressed a long time ago.
There are four things that differentiate me from artists like Curtis
Jackson. One, I can honestly admit that I was once part of the problem.
Two, I don't want my son to grow up and be like me. I want him to be
better and do better - and that is why he is taking the time to pursue a
college degree. Three, money don't make me, I make money. My goal is
to educate our people in building generational wealth and knowing how
important it is to own real estate. Four, I'm a TRUE entrepreneur; my
boss is God not Jimmy Iovine. From one brother to another, if you
misunderstand my purpose you could always pick up the phone or talk to
me in person. I'm trying to be part of the solution not the problem.
The media thrives on entertaining, especially the negativity no matter
what the cost. I'm praying for the brothers that are lost out there.
Throughout the years, I have lost so many relatives and friends. This
year, I'd like to focus on the comedy movies because we need to laugh
more. The first movie that I'm producing is "Black Supaman" and
thereafter will be "The Mail Man" starring Tony Cox and myself.
I'm setting up a book tour for "Guaranteed Success" and a Hip Hop
Business class with financial expert Curtis Oakes for those seeking
knowledge. I understand that I can't change the whole Hip Hop
industry; I'm only trying to do my part. If you're real, be a part
of the positive movement with Take A Stand Records.com Look for the
first single "I Wanna Be Like You" from the album "Hip Hop
History." I'm in negotiations with Wal-Mart and Target for direct
distribution. Those are all examples of the positive difference I am
trying to make in this industry.
I'm reaching out to my friends Shaquille O'Neal, Will Smith, Russell
Simmons, Queen Latifah, Derek Anderson, Charles Barkley, Emmitt Smith,
Beyonce, and Reverend Run to help contribute to this positive movement.
I will also be holding a press conference with the president NAACP and
will be able to answer any questions at that time.
I am not asking any other hip-hop or gangsta rap artist change what they
do; that's how they make their money. Furthermore, I am not a
preacher; I'm just telling the world what I'm doing and the changes
that I am making because it's something I want to do. If that's
sending mixed signals to people then they need to deal with their own
conscience first.
P. Miller
Watch out Curtis... don't forget about P...lol