... his recent uptick in activism (not that he was ever short on political activity, messages, or activism, but these prison shows/benefits he's been doing are fucking A++++++++) as well as his last album and this dude is on absolute fire.

Agree re: seeing our childhood heroes succeeding like they are. It's really amazing and great to see. And the fact that they were able to do it mostly on their terms is the best part. I'm sure there's more to it than that ultra-simplification (unseen struggles and compromises, etc.) but for the most part, at least from what we can tell, these folks have not fallen victim to the demands of the industry and instead have largely marched to the beats of their own drums to achieve success on *their* terms. That makes me really happy, assuming that I'm accurate in that general assumption.

Props to Common. Props to the Roots. Props to Kweli going the independent route. Etc. etc. etc.