A year on the road with The Roots has left me with a multitude of ideas about reshaping the current state of the music industry, a slew of great stories, an amazing appreciation for hard work, a bucket full of foreign currency yet to be exchanged, an uncanny ability to over pack, and a severe loss of hearing. Working hand-in-hand with Goodtimegirl to road manage The Roots was an incredible experience, and now I’ve wound up here at Okayplayer, the ultimate playground of ideas and possibilities…

So, we’ve been kicking around ideas about how to improve Okayplayer.com. Basically, I want to reach out to you for ideas.

Historically okayplayer.com has been a meeting place for those who harbor a love of genuinely great hip-hop, left-of-center thinking, and those artists who defy the norms and challenge hip-hop in the most creative of ways. Sometimes, it’s been a place for those who hate genuinely great hip-hop too, but most importantly it’s a space that enables open dialogue and encourages discussion. As the Point gets Tipped (ummm…?) we hope to facilitate a forum for progressive minded individuals that spans broadly into the creative universe, extending it’s reach beyond hip-hop alone: A cultural hub of sorts. This is certainly not to say that hip-hop won’t remain the foundation, the very building block of okayplayer.com. However, we hope to include the many other interests and passions that we have watched surface on board conversations throughout the years (though I haven’t managed to sell them on okayporn quite yet…). We’re talking about music that won’t fit into your mama’s cabinet of neatly arranged plastic figurines from the 99 cent store, the ish that makes you wake up in cold sweats like “what the eff did I just hear?!?” without any named category to place it in. I’m speaking of a range of sounds from electro-rock-R-n-B to Negroclash (a term coined by Cool Magazine #1) to hip-pop to neo-whatever. I’m talking about that band you might’ve heard down on the Lower East Side blazing electric guitars over samples made by their thirteen year old cousin on his hacked-out Nintendo Gameboy. The possibilities are endless. And they stretch beyond music. We are thinking writing, fiction, art, photography, film. Okayplayer.com should be a location to discuss the extra-ordinariness and the vulgarities of the world (not just my potty mouth) through expression, and the particular way it touches the hip-hop community. A few weeks back, as I sat in the Decon offices listening to thousands of home-made hip-hop tapes (told you I keep it retro) I was awed (and sometimes horrified) at the creative spirit that had touched so many. We envision a creative outlet that pushes the boundaries… perhaps there are just as many fiction writers harboring fresh ideas out there as there are innovative beat-makers and rappers. Why limit ourselves?

So, what would you like to see? What could you imagine as a visual improvement to okayplayer.com? How should it look? What design functions could be improved? What could make it easier to navigate and more interesting to look at? In a minute- Gingerlynn

is long overdue.
upgrading would improve the functionality big time.

just wondering... what specifically with the forums should be improved? what kind of new software?

Ok I'm actually having second thoughts about this now...
But essentially the difference between OKP and all the other forums I participate in is that OKP hasn't moved to that 'flat' style of posting that most other places have.

To elaborate - at okp when you start a thread, people post, and then they reply to either the original post (keeping the thread flat) *or* they reply to a reply, which creates that branched structure we're used to here. I think that has its pros and cons and I'm curious to see what other people have to say about it.

Basically the more up-to-date way of doing it would be to not create those branches, and keep everything 'flat.' This improves functionality a great deal in my opinion. Posts should be divided up into pages, and users should have the ability to jump from page to page, right away, even from the page that lists all the threads in the first place.

I can appreciate the branched structure, as it allows people to have multiple discussions take place in a single thread. But at the same time I wonder if those multiple discussions warrant their *own threads* which would invite more participation in any given topic (since it would be displayed more prominently than burried in an existing thread.) Furthermore, it's still possible to 'reply to replies' as long as there's a strong quote function in the forum software.

To me the branches overly-complicate the discussion, and limit the participation. It's also a pain to be clicking around post-by-post within a branch. There's no need to display links to each and every post if they're all displayed by default and divided neatly into managable pages.

This is hard to articulate in text, so hopefully I've got some people's gears going who want to help me, or who want to ask more questions about the changes etc...

okayplayer wold not be the same, and i am not just saying that to be conservative

having branched discussion creates the very community we have, where people can easily get into long discourses

with the page format, newbies would rarely learn who is who and vets would lost track of friends


very much against this

i like the way okp does its boards. the other way websites do it sucks in my opinion, impossible to follow a particular thread within a post

>i like the way okp does its boards.
^^^^^

I like the branched structure too.

.
.
. schönberg.
.
. ""
.
. ""
.

i agree..keep the boards the same...

very in favor of the branched structure. Cause otherwise there IS no structure, imo. It really helps you to find the points in a discussion that are of interest. In other forums you are very limited with that "postersoandso said:...."-frame in your answer frame.

did I manage to express myself??!!!?

the board format is perfect. you can't improve it.

and are a KEY component to the culture that has evolved here. the very types of convos we have would be vastly different if we changed the threading of posts, and it's a primary reason why i find almost all other message boards extremely hard to use and frustrating.

i love loosie (okp's more insular cousin), but the post threading makes it hard to have the kind of interplay that we have here.

now, as a techie, do i think that there are things that could IMPROVE upon okp? sure. but don't change this basic element. its much more important than most people realize. (also, we had the same convo w/ dan a while back on GD, coming to this same conclusion).

peace & blessings,

x.

"I'm on the Zoloft to keep from killing y'all." - Iron Mike

the PHP based forums. Threading is a great feature that makes it much easier to converse with people online. The "modern" message board you speak up not have this feature. Because it's easy to see when someone has responded, specifically, to my post, there's a sense that you are talking to individuals when you want to. I think that's why I spend more time on OKP than on the other boards I visit (spitkicker.com, loosie.com, africana.com).

One of the main reasons I post here is because of the way you can reply to a reply and start branches. If this was a flat forum like SpitKicker or something like that I wouldn't even take time to read it let alone post anymore. The forum as it is now is a plus for Okayplayer.com!!!

the boards have the perfect format, please don't touch em

I always compare this board to Rakim's "Guess Who's Back" -An extremely dope song with one of the wackest videos ever.

Try vBulletin or EZboard or something. This board's a mess.

---------------------------

Holland European Champions 2004

this feedback is very helpful. i am also interested in the simplest aspects of your experience on the boards: do you like the colors? fonts? are the topics easy to get around? can you find what you want or is there another way that would make things more clear?



some ideas we've been kicking around:
an op/ed page featuring editorial pieces, talking about new music and artists (not just okayartists) and contemporary news too... any items of interest to the okaycommunity..

okayquotables... posting a section with the "best of" quotes

okay cut of the week... djs and/or okayplayers alike talk about what they are spinning/listening too

designwise: being able to post under every topic/article, blog-style (seperate from the boards)

easy ways to post/stream music and photos

in terms of look and format of the boards, i'd say don't fix what isn't broken
fine to improve, but don't lose this structure for that previously mentioned 'flat' kind of format because it will ruin what is unique to these boards
you can't get this sort of interaction anywhere else

the boards are set up fine to me and alot of other people
in terms of colours i like them. kind of classic and easy on the eyes
when you're on here for an hour or two its good that they don't distract from the reading n stuff. conducive to long sitting hours hehe

that's my 2 cents on that though

i think you'll find majority of people happy with the structure of the boards and it will be a big problem if its changed.

i agree. but, this post has provided a lot of great, creative feedback... i am more interested in content, and possible changes to the front page, or added pages... less in changing the boards... although i'm open to listen... some of this criticism has been really helpful...

yeah that's cool

good idea this though

if changes are decided on, how long you think before they are made etc?

(dunno if thats been answered before..)

I don't understand yall. The colors are alright, but the lay out is a mess. Sure after 1000 something posts you'll get used to it whereas vBulletin is a lot easier to adapt to.

If this forum had the right software it'd would be the GOAT Hip Hop forum and it would put allhiphop.com and sohh.com out of business for real.

---------------------------

Holland European Champions 2004

why is it a mess?

That way, people can make comments to news items there on the front page, so that people arent' confused in the forums when someone makes a post related to the front page but doesn't provide a link or context.




<-------------------- I see you!

______________________________________________________________
An Official Okayplayer.com Midnight Marauder



Hip-Hop Quotable of the Moment:





SPORTS CORNER
NBA: San Antonio Spurs
NFL: Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans
College Football: Texas Aggies, USC Trojans

there seemed to be a unanimous decision to keep things the way
they are...
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OKP Anti-Fanclub Fanclub™: The fanclubs haven't gotten carried away...but they need to be
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-*****

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
usually i don't do this but uuu... keep the S!G going
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-******
I'm the man you think you are.... If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing--only more of it. - Malcolm X

"it's better to have fought for redemption than to just sit silently sulking over the past" theScholar3000

When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.

... is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very message board ...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
COMING SEPTEMBER 2004:

™ presents:



featuring: , , Eternal, ,
, , & Plee.

First single:

"I'm Writing" featuring Donwill of ILWIL

&

"Irony" featuring Plee

.

"This is GOD's movie and I'm just tryin' to play my part..." -

I understand everyone is attatched to the branched thread discussion format. GIVEN THIS FACT...

There still *has* to be a way to make those threads easier to navigate. Am I seriously the only person that thinks it's a pain in the ass to go on a click parrade to get through the thread?

Lets hear some ideas.

It may be in little circles, and definitely away from OKP proper, but it's happening. Are you suggesting the use of all of these things in an official capacity?

p.e.a.c.e.
-
---------
UNLOCKED Show #3 ready for
---------
Read my new weekly hip-hop column, "The Run-Off Groove" @
---------

>Are you suggesting the use of
>all of these things in an official capacity?

yeah, very much so... we've been brainstorming a ton of ideas about how this could happen but i am interested in what everyone on the boards thinks...
i'm talking about okayplayers writing short pieces on their favorite local bands and streaming the music for everyone to hear... more official than a link at the bottom of their post...
profiles of okayplayers, little interviews that could engage the community on a more personal level...
-GL

The site already has created a community, or sets of communities, and perhaps by branching out to do other things, it's one way of the site saying "you guys can talk the talk, now do it".

It could prove to be very interesting. I have a few ideas roaming in my head. I'll post them in a few.



p.e.a.c.e.
-
---------
UNLOCKED Show #3 ready for
---------
Read my new weekly hip-hop column, "The Run-Off Groove" @
---------

i had some ideas to improve the usability of the forums and maybe add some features to the homepage and maybe add some more 'community' (chat rooms, userlists, radio) to the site. i'll try and work up a document and post it so that people (if interested) can give their feedback.

i have some experience as a web designer/programmer and it would be cool to help out or work on a team to improve what is one of the best sites on the web.

first off i would like to say that ive been checking this site since around 2000. i would mostly come thru and check the home page, then breezed thru the forums and read different posts that were interesting to me (and there were alot). i actually joined a few months ago. but i am wondering what people would think about a live chatroom option. when i first got into the whole internet thing heavy it was back in around 97-98. the first spot that i checked was a site call go wendy.com, hosted by non other than you guessed it wendy williams. it was basically a run of the mill chatroom, but for some reason that site was hot as hell. you could roll thru, search for you peeps, and chat live and i immediately fell in love with it. of course with the chat format you dont have the option of searching thru posts and responding at a later date, but being able to communicate live added an element that posting doesnt have...so perhaps okayplayer could utilize the best of both, keep the posting boards but also incorporate a nice chatroom also. i would like to end by saying that this site as it is is hot as hell...i havent found another where you can come thru and find as much stimulating conversation topics as i have found here...this is a wonderful forum to have available and bigups to all who keep it available.

"you wanna see god? take a look in the mirror..."
-kris parker

"oh i wish...i was a catfish...swimmin in laaawd...the deep blue sea.... id have...all you pretty womans...fishin after me...."
-Jimi Hendrix

R.I.P.
Sweet Dan
Humpback
C-bones
C-black

it got replaced by the "tour journals" but the boards were
more popular anyway so you won't really find alot of people on
the chat room... plus everyone that really "chats" is an aimplayer...
★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★


OKP Anti-Fanclub Fanclub™: The fanclubs haven't gotten carried away...but they need to be
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-*****

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
usually i don't do this but uuu... keep the S!G going
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-******
I'm the man you think you are.... If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing--only more of it. - Malcolm X

"it's better to have fought for redemption than to just sit silently sulking over the past" theScholar3000

When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.

... is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very message board ...

i think Okayplayer should establish itself as a solid hiphop/R&B/soul record label before it begins to expand to other types of music or other types of expression...we need to make sure that when some1 talks of Okayplayer to the average hip hop head they know wtf were talkin about...i think Okayplayer should just build up from there depending on the amount of success there is

EDIT: well, i'm kinda serious.

there seems to be, most likely because of $$$ and information reasons, more shit on okayplayer.com, from fans and staff alike, about maybe one or two of the acts, versus spanning all the artists.

maybe i'm just salty because i haven't gotten any good Avant news recently.

Nicolay

|
_______________________

Phonte & Nicolay are... THE FOREIGN EXCHANGE

"Connected" EP (June 8):

Side A
001 All That You Are
002 Nic's Groove
003 The Answer
Side B
001 Be Allright
002 Nic's Groove (Nicky Mason's Electric Bounce Rock Skate Remix)
003 All That You Are (Nicky Van Halen's 1987 Monsters Of Rock Tour Remix)

"Connected" CD, LP and LPi (July 13)

on BBE Music

though I wouldn't want it *too* classy myself..

www.thefoundationlive.com
www.alishaheed.com
www.gardenseekerproductions.com

looks dated & cluttered. i have stopped going.

This really isn't vital to the goals that you stated, but I definitely think it would be cool to have OKP email. It could draw more people to the site if executed properly.

Maybe a forum for musicians and artists to hang out not to discuss other artists, but what they are working on. This would allow people to pool ideas, collaborate, etc... and could very well lead to some sort of OkayCulture.
It would also give a much broader definition of "Okayplayer artist." Instead of claiming the 12 on the artists page, there would probably be a few thousand.
Maybe have a page like the front page dedicated to these artists, and have a weekly update showcasing music, poetry, visual art, etc.. that would be determined somehow to be exemplary, ideal, definitive, highly acclaimed, or just plain cool. A few contests here and there, maybe eventually even some kind of published mag or CD or something, which could get distributed to the hands of non Okayplayers. These boards would probably have to be heavily moderated to stay on the right footpath, but I think it would be pretty cool.

Some kind of organized directory of Okayplayers by region would be cool too. It would give an opportunity for people to meet eachother in person, and take the okayplayer idea far beyond these message boards.

Just brainstorming...

Edit: one more thing, I've seen other fansites create and post some sort of name tags that kids wear to the shows so they can meet their fellow board postin compatriates.

the groups of people posting and discussing their work: the lesson

little brother baiscally got most of their initial props and buzz from the lesson alone

contest and such woudl be great, but...

getting the artists (okartists) to post is a challeneg. quest is the only one that feels like it mostly. kamal used to post and though posted like twice, but this has always been ?uestos baby....we'll see

all of a sudden, america is a spanish speaking Blk woman who might or might not be a lesbian, who never goes to church, who saw the passion of the christ as a theory @ best and a snuff film @ worst, who sells dildos over the internet to plushy fucking former mormon chinese eating spaghetti while beating off to the powerpuff girls

the illustrious and praise worthy binlahab

love your thinking...

co-signing this

>This really isn't vital to the goals that you stated, but I
>definitely think it would be cool to have OKP email.

i agree...but then again there's the inbox

>could draw more people to the site if executed properly.
>
>Maybe a forum for musicians and artists to hang out not to
>discuss other artists, but what they are working on. This
>would allow people to pool ideas, collaborate, etc... and
>could very well lead to some sort of OkayCulture.

The Lesson

>It would also give a much broader definition of "Okayplayer
>artist." Instead of claiming the 12 on the artists page,
>there would probably be a few thousand.
>Maybe have a page like the front page dedicated to these
>artists, and have a weekly update showcasing music, poetry,
>visual art, etc.. that would be determined somehow to be

Freestyle Board

>exemplary, ideal, definitive, highly acclaimed, or just
>plain cool. A few contests here and there, maybe eventually
>even some kind of published mag or CD or something, which
>could get distributed to the hands of non Okayplayers.
>These boards would probably have to be heavily moderated to
>stay on the right footpath, but I think it would be pretty
>cool.


>Some kind of organized directory of Okayplayers by region
>would be cool too. It would give an opportunity for people
>to meet eachother in person, and take the okayplayer idea
>far beyond these message boards.

The Okayplayer Directory
http://www.punchdouble.com/okayplayer/index.htm

>Just brainstorming...
>
>Edit: one more thing, I've seen other fansites create and
>post some sort of name tags that kids wear to the shows so
>they can meet their fellow board postin compatriates.



★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★


OKP Anti-Fanclub Fanclub™: The fanclubs haven't gotten carried away...but they need to be
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-*****

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
usually i don't do this but uuu... keep the S!G going
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-******
I'm the man you think you are.... If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing--only more of it. - Malcolm X

"it's better to have fought for redemption than to just sit silently sulking over the past" theScholar3000

When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.

... is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very message board ...

Kind of. The lesson tends to be mostly discussions about other artists that don't fit in the Okay artist discussion. Im talking about a place where I can go and post a track im workin on, and get some good ffedback, or a picture of a painting in progress or something. The lesson is not really the right place for this.

If the okay directory was organized by region, it would be step up.

The inbox is just for okayplayers... If i write my email addy on some survey, or whatever im siging up for, someone might see okayplayer and then stop by and check out the site.

The freestyle board definitely represents the poets and mc's, but where can I go and post this painting of erykah im workin on right now?

Most of what I said is almost already happening, I'm just suggesting we take it to the next level.

Instead of this "forum" serving as another board, it could be more of a showcase for artists "approved" by the Okay community through a democracy. People could vote on artists from a selection of many. Similar to how The Runners from the True Notes contest were being spotlighted, but a rotating selection of artists that runs continuously.

This could work well in streamlining the "discovery" process for any up and coming OkayArtists as well, such as Little Brother and Nicolay. Sort of like an online talent show and you could have some interactive commentary and judging as well with different OKP's running the thing under the watchful eye of the OkayPolitburo.

Sort of a staging area for OkayRecords potentials and for anyone else popping in who wants to check out what's left-of-center in the music universe.

what about more of an editorial slant... like blurbs and articles about new artists, everything from the crazy avant-guarde to local hip-hoppers, and instead of any kind of "approval" just letting everyone know whats out there, streaming music and video and links to websites, and then you have enough info to make the decision yourself, if you're feelin it or not? we could feature artists daily or weekly on an editorial page... and, any okayplayers who want to submit an article with some music could. there is so much happening in many local communities, why not have a space where you could write about the hot show you saw at Uncle Joe's bar last night?

I think it would be a good idea for Okayplayer to write articles and/or link to articles that are out there.

I don't think it would be a good idea to open a "editorial" section up to all members. That's what the boards are for.

Those are good suggestions, but I'm thinking it would be cool to have a popular consensus vote of what people like on here from "undiscovered" artists. Sort of like what Garageband.com used to be like. Artists could get feedback and there could be a Top Ten or Twenty for different genres.

I like the thought of reading articles about music, interveiws and whatever on this site.

PEACE to the Gods and Earths

"Essvee them niggaz is Ul•ti•mate!"

It should be a place for people to pool ideas together. Perhaps start off small with a basic art category then as it gets bigger add specicifc sections such as film, music, art, etc.

I think it would be really cool if the Okay artist would include all the arts not just music, if you guys see some one worthy let’m shine. Or if not an okayartist, if some one has some dope art work, song, etc. It would be cool if they could get some "front page" shine

More interviews, and reviews of music, movies etc.








(((I'm Broke Biotch)))

"And then this chick comes up to me and she's like "hey aren't you that dude?" and I'm like "yeh whatever".

okay? player!

check my art and animation at www.fatnek.com

For example. Poetry in addition to music. Maybe there's a way to give that an outlet here.
______________
stop the liberal nonsense and make things uncomfortable ~ OKP vex_id

We give them books because they can't eat them ~ my friend on US and Africa

Wish I could reposess my own dreams ~ Supastition

As I was sitting in my garage smoking a newport and painting a cover to Black Haze with Jimi and Jay Z featured in the picture.

id like to see some art on the forum as i am an artist and like that sort of thing

The ones we have are shit.

i take it you signed the petition to get Quest4Knowledge replaced...
★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★


OKP Anti-Fanclub Fanclub™: The fanclubs haven't gotten carried away...but they need to be
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-*****

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
usually i don't do this but uuu... keep the S!G going
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-******
I'm the man you think you are.... If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing--only more of it. - Malcolm X

"it's better to have fought for redemption than to just sit silently sulking over the past" theScholar3000

When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.

... is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very message board ...

keeps track of the posts you've replied to within a certain period of time.. and more giveaways and contests would be cool too.

cosign

and ads

for real people, we woudl get soooo many more features if this site was generating more money

who cares about one pop-up when you log on

deal with it


one tiny ad above the initial list of boards

big whoop




i say, sell out


400K hits a day?

any webmasters here know what that would translate to?

Invite other non-Okay Artists (maybe just a small ring of affiliates) to do the Tour Journal thing but inform them that it should be updated regularly. I really do dig the tour journal's alot but once the okayplayer tour is done, im guessing they will be done.

Contests, cuz I like free-ish shit.

"Ask Questo A Question" - Or some form of this, basically people from the site e-mail their questions to Quest (or any other OkayArtists who will do this weekly) and the Questions & Answers are posted each week. Could be questions about anything. Like a Dear Abby thing but with OkayArtsits.

I think the thing that makes OkayPlayer succesful is that it's interactive. If quest didnt post, skillz didnt have such a great tour journal, and the artists didnt even pay attention to this site, it would fail. Because I'm not that brite, I can't figure a way to do this, but the general theme of interaction should be continued and expanded.


BTW, I dig the colors but if their was some way to personalize it, or maybe u had a few options and each person could select their option.

not alot, just a bit more, but that's just me.
i like the idea of an art forum too. somekind of okayimage gallery.
i hate the internet.
hi ginny.
•

the•division•group

the ladies would love it.

yeah, that's it
we should start an okayplayer dating service, match.com would have nothin on that shit!

Ben, I swear you broke into my house and took a pic of my cat

I like the format of the boards, its easy to find old topics and unlike some other boards it doesn't become a type of instant message conversation.The only problem is there should be some option to view the entire thread without sigs. A quote page would be great for some of those long sigs, because they're a good read but really clutter a page.

As for different artists having little side pages (like their band of the week,etc.)there should be some directory created with a description of whats goin on or links to whatever that artist has recently contributed. You have to realize that the majority of people that come on here probably don't intend to debate the lyrics of dywm vs. halflife, they just want to say "I talked to Quest and he thinks...." So if you want to branch out you have to cater to those people and get them interested

I would kill for an okayplayer radio station (with exclusives from established artists and clips from the lesson and hot underground shit) but some art gallery would be a really logical first step.The record label I also really am hoping to see take off.

By the way- how big is the staff and does the site really pull in any money?

>I would kill for an okayplayer radio station
that would be heat right there. jose3030 could be one of the deejays. ?uest could do
some guest appearences like once every few months.
•

www.thedivisiongroup.com

dude, i'm pretty honored.

i appreciate the love.

they are making moves to get this off the ground...

i'm sure they would love some official backing...
_____________________________
UW
bored in wisconsin since 1981...

Nobody in football should be called a
genius. A genius is a guy like Norman
Einstein." --Joe Theisman

Streaming internet radio would be great. In our country we don't have any urban radio stations so me and my friends mostly listen to internet radios (mostly bbc 1xtra). You could have okayplayers and/or okayartist hosting their own shows, concerts, showcasing some underground okay acts...

I also miss some okaygallery on the site.

funny shit
watch, a bunch of dudes enter just to hang out with Quest, haha

the lesson sleeps on rock for the most part.

co-siggy with ben on this one - I'm all about the rock music baby!

ummmmmmm

On ESPN.com (and elsewhere) you can submit questions for a live chat session with a sports expert or athlete. It would be great if okayplayer did that with individual Roots, okayartists, and affiliated musicians, and really anyone they could get to do it. that would bring fan-artist interaction to a whole new level.

That is exactly what okayplayer needs...not only ?uest, cause I have no idea where he gets the time for all he does in the first place and the boards have kind of turned into that already...but with all the other artists. Like i would love to talk to Aaron McGruder or see what his responses are.

I think a couple of months ago there was a thread where people jsut started asking Ben anything, and that really was interesting and showed a lot about and beyond the music (or art, etc. whatever gets added)and overall personality(which after seeing a few incubus interviews I'm in love)

I caught the ESPN chat once, but unfortunately it was Rick Sutcliffe and he went on some tangent and never really adressed my question, but it was still a good experience(especially since I'm from San Diego and he's in pretty deep with the padres, for any of you that care)

check it out
http://www.punchdouble.com/okayplayer/index.htm

i think this should be moved to OKP's server, instead of a
single okp having to house the directory...
★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★


OKP Anti-Fanclub Fanclub™: The fanclubs haven't gotten carried away...but they need to be
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-*****

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
usually i don't do this but uuu... keep the S!G going
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-******
I'm the man you think you are.... If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing--only more of it. - Malcolm X

"it's better to have fought for redemption than to just sit silently sulking over the past" theScholar3000

When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.

... is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very message board ...

http://www.okayplayer.com/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?az=show_thread&om=11278&forum=DCForumID19&omm=0

check out the thread...i think it would be an excellent idea
for OKP to "officially" have a radio program to get new artist,
new music...etc out there to the OKP fam...
★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★


OKP Anti-Fanclub Fanclub™: The fanclubs haven't gotten carried away...but they need to be
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-*****

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
usually i don't do this but uuu... keep the S!G going
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-******
I'm the man you think you are.... If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing--only more of it. - Malcolm X

"it's better to have fought for redemption than to just sit silently sulking over the past" theScholar3000

When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.

... is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very message board ...

Streaming radio featuring OKArtists and new underground talent, as well as music submitted by OKPlayers would be apart of the playlist. OKPlayers with special privileges (admins if you will) would volunteer their time to monitor submissions, and there could be a voting feature that is used to determine what songs get more play in the queue after submission.




<-------------------- I see you!

______________________________________________________________
An Official Okayplayer.com Midnight Marauder



Hip-Hop Quotable of the Moment:





SPORTS CORNER
NBA: San Antonio Spurs
NFL: Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans
College Football: Texas Aggies, USC Trojans

the simplicity of okayplayer is what makes it special...
the black, grey, and white are like school colors...i could
see enhancing the front page but why not just keep it simple?
★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★-☆-★☆★☆★ - ★☆★☆★


OKP Anti-Fanclub Fanclub™: The fanclubs haven't gotten carried away...but they need to be
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-*****

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤
usually i don't do this but uuu... keep the S!G going
*****-*-***** - *****-*-***** - *****-*-******
I'm the man you think you are.... If you want to know what I'll do, figure out what you'll do. I'll do the same thing--only more of it. - Malcolm X

"it's better to have fought for redemption than to just sit silently sulking over the past" theScholar3000

When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.

... is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now in this very message board ...

maybe they're not meant for regular visitors, but i glance at them every time they get a facelift, then that's it.

i don't have any ideas on how to fix them, but i thought i'd point it out.

I'd like more updates on the artist pages in terms of news.

yeah, you could even stick the tour journals on the artist pages

i'd like to be chatting with the artists more in these forums - the tour diary is nice but the more accessable they are to the community - the more love they can generate for the whole okayplayer mission with that small investment of time.

emoticons need to be brought back to the boards.

i have brought this up in the past, not a new item

for these questions:

"anyone know html?"

"how much is rent in new york?"

"whats a good price for a hotel room in france?"

stuff like that

name it ?uestions, or something to that effect, and have QoolQuest be a co-moderator ( even if he chooses to be as active as wreckk)

and have a moderator who will actually try to help people. they feel like its a duty to help someone if you can, its fun for them.

i think about the tech talk questions that come up, and people are quick to answer them and send links.

the same premace, but on living as a whole.

combining all the questions that slip thru the forums.

we can all teach each other something, or get information in particular.

i agree...ive only been hittin up okp boards on the regular for bout a month..but ive been stoppin by for bout 3yrs..i will admit alot of things are confusing so it would be nice to have a questions or help or FAQ'S type thing to help newbies like me.

>emoticons need to be brought back to the boards.
>
>i have brought this up in the past, not a new item W

i've been here since the summer of '99 and have watched OKP grow and evolve and all that, and here are my thoughts:

- keep the branched discussion:

while seemingly archaic compared to the aforementioned "flat" discussion board programs, i think it helps people respond directly to each other and it's pretty helpful in keeping track of and reentering discussions.

- a one post per forum per day limit:

while people will balk at this and say it limits their free speech or some nonsense, this one post per forum per day policy is something i've been talking about for a long time.

cutting the post limit from 2 to 1 would cut down on post traffic (even some of the best/most vibrant discussion topics fall off the boards within a day in GD) and would tighten up post quality. with only one post to use per forum per day, i think most people will think twice before they post nonsense* and would cut down on multiple-posts-on-the-same-subject stuff that goes on (people using the "search" option before posting is a beautiful thing).

people will claim that the one post rule will make people login with aliases to get around the rule. i think that's pretty unlikely considering that aliases are used today, not to get around the 2 post rule we currently have but, to have fun "in character" or to fuck with people without any consequence to their login's reputation (whatever the hell that means). regardless, anyone that would sign up for an alias user name just to get around the rule would be a sucker anyway.

the one post rule would be geared toward more substantive discussions and would cut down on the clutter in all forums.

* as much as i enjoy nonsense/random posts, it gets tiresome seeing the boards bogged down by bullshit posts by people who feel a compulsion to post 2 posts per day per forum via some weird sense of entitlement.

- regarding additional forums:

i think the two most needed boards right now are:

-- the OkayHustle board: this is something that poetx has been advocating for a while and i'm definitely for it. its focus would be career help, personal finances, and small/independent business money matters. OKP is full of talented people that have managed their finances well or have taken the plunge into their own ventures that have plenty of valuable advice for the youngsters. i think that since OKP's demographic includes people that don't necessarily have these resources at their immediate disposal or don't know where to start, that it justifies starting the OkayHustle board.

-- the OkayCreativity board: as a way of gathering artistically-minded people (writing, art, photography, film, etc.), this might be a good idea. this board could be a user-driven resource for people that need constructive feedback, technical pointers, and the like. the only downside that i see is that more often than not, people want instant props rather than an outsider's insight - which is one of the reasons i stay out of Freestyle. for everybody else, though, i think it might be something to consider.

that would make 10 forums in all on OKP, a nice, round number.

- Experimental/Independent Music & "Stay in yo' house!":

a quick story - after a show, some friends and i were hanging out in the parking lot where we were approached by a homeless man. instead of asking us for change, he wanted to share his love of music with us, and promptly started giving us lessons in Motown-style singing & harmonizing.

despite the fact that i don't sing well, i fucking love singing and my zeal was a little too much soul to control. i constantly was trying to hit notes out of my range to hilariously bad results. the homeless man kept instructing me, occasionally angrily, to "stay in your house!" i.e. to stick within my boundaries.

OKP started with ?uestlove (and the help of Angieee) wanting to give Roots fans/hip hop heads a home online and has obviously been successful. while it seems like that'll be kept as the foundation for this new vision for OKP, i think that trying to squeeze boundary-pushing, genre-defying music into the fold might be a tight fit for what's already here.

this is coming from someone who is into experimental/independent music, so it's not just some cranky, closeminded grump who's naysaying your idea.

i think another option would be to set up a partnership with other websites that feature/showcase such music & art. with a single post on the Lesson requesting the info, you'd probably get a good sampling of left-of-center websites that would be worth linking up to.

hope this helps, even though it feels like i've forgotten something.














oh yeah,

The site should be handed over to Mosaic because these are the best ideas I've seen in this thread. I like the 1 post limit, even though I'm guilty of commiting the crimes that you speak of. I'm in love with the ideas for the 2 new boards, and basically everything here sounds great.

Here are some ideas that could be used for a redesign of the site.

Improvments/modifications to the site:

Forums:
The forums would keep the same 'conversation style'. (the option to have branched discussions). There would be features added to improve accessability of the users and hopefully keep conversations lively.

Features:
* Alerts (messenges sent through IM) sent to a user's IM name(hourly or when a post has been added to a post)

* Saving posts to an internal account. (that way if there's a post that you really liked and it didn't get archived you can reference it in another post or read it whenever you want)

* Ability to post through a wireless device. (this would allow a user, when they're away from their computer, to post a message from their cellphone, PDA)

* List of recently posted topics

* Multiple signatures (this would give users the option to choose a particular signature for a board/time of day, etc)

* Emoticons

* Larger avatars (if the page would load significantly slower on a dial-up connection this could be 86'd)

* The ability to have more options in a poll along with being able to post a 'list'
+ a list would be a list of something (artists, albums, milk products) that the users would select on a scale of 1 - 5 their level of approval.

Chat Rooms

* Chat rooms would be organized by topic (music, movies, general discussion) and then by a subtopic which different users have decided to discuss. (for example, if you checked out the chat room on movies you might be able to find people discussing how much they didn't like Fight Club. you could then click on the icon for this chat and join the discussion. this might be able to keep down on chatrooms that aren't discussing relavent topics.)

Radio

* Streaming audio with shows for new artists

* A place for the okayproducer contests


Bands/Artists

* Tour blogs/diaries

* Gigography with user defined ratings for shows

* Ability for users to post photos/art that was inspired by the show or recordings of the show

* More streams of songs/ videos (with permission of labels)

News

* An extensive archive of photos and copy of the news

* Slots for 'promos' of okayartists & recent/upcoming events of okayartists

Lists
(A list would be a collection of similar things (artists, albums, computers, PDA's, video games, etc)

* Dynamically updated lists based on current user opinions.
(or in english, let's say if someone posted a list of the top 50 MC's that list would change, daily or whenever someone added a vote, based on the user's input)

* Archived lists

Ratings
(A user could enter or select a product and then other users could post their opinions and rate the product)

* Grouping of products based on level of ranking, type of product, similar products

Directory
(a list of okaymember approved websites)

* Sites would be added by users and then approved by okaystaff

FAQ

* A list of do's and dont's not only for site ettiqute but for information relating to the theme of the section/site.

* sortable by board topic (okayproducer, okayactivist)

User Options

* Directory of users sortable by interest and location

* 'Groups' (a group would be a collection of members that had similar interests that would be led by a highly respected okaymember. for instance okaymember "filmAfficinado" would be the leader of a section of the community for people who were interested in classic film appreciation.

* Email (maybe a 5 MB limit)

* Ecards

* Point system - a user would accumulate points based on user activity and the points could be redeemable for goods in the store, etc.

* A 'homepage' where okaymembers could post personal things(photos, artwork, etc)

Board Sections

* Okayartist
* The Lesson
* Okayproducer
* Okayactivist
* Okaybooks
* Freestyle
* Okayhustle - (would businesses listed in directory have to be approved by okayplayer?)
* High Tech
* Movies
* Entertainment (TV, Comics)

Ringtones

Wireless Site

* News
* Blogs
* Tour dates

Thank you for mentioning this. I've learned so much about music in this board and as I'm strugling to finish school and start my own venture, I only imagine how helpful it would be if the same type or knowledge I've acquired about music was available here about entrepreneurship. I'm all for this and would definitely volunteer to help this happen.

>
>-- the OkayHustle board: this is something that poetx has
>been advocating for a while and i'm definitely for it. its
>focus would be career help, personal finances, and
>small/independent business money matters. OKP is full of
>talented people that have managed their finances well or
>have taken the plunge into their own ventures that have
>plenty of valuable advice for the youngsters. i think that
>since OKP's demographic includes people that don't
>necessarily have these resources at their immediate disposal
>or don't know where to start, that it justifies starting the
>OkayHustle board.
>


___________________________________________
http://www.windowsonhaiti.com

__________________________________________________
I don't take it personal, I take it seriously
_____________________________
1804-2004

that, i saw this mad late (gingerlynn, this kind of discussion should be had on GD, fyi, or at the least simulcast/simulposted to all forums).

actually, i was building w/ some folks last week and was given the idea (d'oh) to go ahead and build the HUSTLEBOARD on illslimm.net (yet another ok-spinoff). i archived the hustleboard post somewhere, including the ideas for what could be accomplished. the net of it is that this would be MUCH more than just an exchange of info, it could be that connection between likeminded, concerned individuals and actual action that could benefit our communities.

the Digital Divide ink we'd get off of a functional HustleBoard would be ample advertising, as well.



peace & blessings,

x.

"I'm on the Zoloft to keep from killing y'all." - Iron Mike

think almost famous.
politically correct afrolicious cats
need pussy too.
sup wit dat there?

What happen to the "TastyJawns" that use be at Tastytreats at Filos? They were fine goddesses. Now that Tasty Treats is at Fluid ...the game just isn't the same.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3913381111&sspagename=STRK%3AMESE%3AIT&rd=1
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4152721274&sspagename=STRK%3AMESE%3AIT&rd=1



http://www.phillyhiphop.com/_features/vibin/6-mil.html

- more artist involvement
- some mixtapes and/or playlists from ?uest

---------------




"He's had three real stinkers now, but you know what? I'd take a Jack Bauer bad day, I really would. I'd take the stress, the guns held to my head, the serial kidnapping of my only child, the requirement that I kill innocent people from time to time, the fate of millions in my shaky, heroin-addicted hands. I'd take it all if I could, just for that one day, have the cellphone reception that guy gets. "
--King Kaufman, Salon.com, regarding '24' hero, jack Bauer.

you should let some peeps on dis board give suggestions on
who the next ok artist should be

You have to pay to be an okayartist. What are they suppose to say "We voted you as a new artist on our site, now pay us bitch."


http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3913381111&sspagename=STRK%3AMESE%3AIT&rd=1
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4152721274&sspagename=STRK%3AMESE%3AIT&rd=1



http://www.phillyhiphop.com/_features/vibin/6-mil.html

on the payroll
head for business and a body for sin

p.e.a.c.e.
-
---------
Read my new weekly hip-hop column, "The Run-Off Groove" @
---------

It seems this is a website for them
Fuck Little Brother
Fuck Nicolay
Fuck the Justice League

bitch

Fuck you faggot.

err, I believe it is the JUSTUS League, not Justice...

DAMN HIM TO HELL!!!










__________________________________________
" of on thats ...
n!&&@$ .."


"On a sesame seed bun... On a sesame seed bun, ya big DUMMY!!!"

There are some great ideas bouncing around here. Use them. I especially liked the Okayplayer email idea.

Okayhustle would be great too - there's a lot of advice traded on here, and centralizing that in one spot would be a very useful tool to the community members. Only downside is that it wouldn't have any direct benefit to the Okayplayer brand name, except for building site/brand loyalty.

I would like to see some further refinement of the forum categories...
-Someone in the Lesson proposed recently that it be broken down into a hip-hop forum and an 'everything else' forum. I don't know if that's a good idea, especially with many lessonheads' eclecticism, but I do think the idea seriously worth considering.
-Also I see above much support for what was once proposed - and ultimately considered, but not seriously - as the Okayproducer board. Again, I don't have a strong opinion (except that this would clear up space in the Lesson) but do feel the concept is ripe for consideration, albeit for all recording folks, not just producers.
-Better definition for the Reviews forum.
-More geographic spotlights on bands I wouldn't have heard otherwise, as with Maktub. (i know, this depends on the labels shelling out cash.)
-Expansion of OKP brand officially into other genres that might appeal to folks here. While hip-hop is the core, there are hundreds of us who visit everyday for other reasons. (I know, this depends on labels shelling out cash.)
-Ever think about Okayplayer magazine?

Overall, though, I think the site's current incarnation & direction are excellent. The forum design is great as is, and, well, in short - it ain't broke.

she quotes ghostface AND has the proceed pt. III premiere on CASSETTE from radioactive!!!

This site is ugly as sin.

There's no real layout. The home page is a clusterfuck of ads, blocks of color and text. There's no style to this site whatsoever.

You guys sometimes hit it when you have the right talent doing the artists' sites (Erykah, BEP, Phren, Goapele), so why not match that sophistiction with the rest of the site.

Ginger's comments about this site's artistic and social leanings should be the cue from which a unique creative stance is taken for the look and feel of Okayplayer.com. Otherwise, it's just cookie-cutter grey and white, which we can get anywhere.

Just fuckin around with it. Didn't do the whole thing, but you get the idea. Of course, it could get a lot fancier, but simple is best.

http://www.filter9.com/images/okredesign.jpg

Someone did mention employment. ;)

i like that layout a hell of a lot better than the current one.

Problem, we read left to right, not right to left.
Personaly I really like the plain layout of the boards because I can read them while at work without drawing a lot of attention. You gotta keep the heads that work a 9-5 desk job in mind, im sure we make up a large percentage of the readers on this site. While having a lot of eye-candy colors and flash animations is nice; it would seriously limit those who prefer to keep their okayplayer surfing on the low.


-if only you knew

That looks like a generic ass newsletter.

nm

>You guys sometimes hit it when you have the right talent
>doing the artists' sites (Erykah, BEP, Phren, Goapele), so
>why not match that sophistiction with the rest of the site.

www.ohsonappy.com
www.alishaheed.com
www.gardenseekerproductions.com

Redesigning the site is one thing, but all the artist pages are in Flash, which SHOULD NOT be used for the main site. I hate Flash sites where I have to wait forever for the shit to load. Don't get me wrong - I think the artist pages are extremely well done - I just wouldn't want to see that on the front page.

Lost and Found Generation
www.lostandfoundgeneration.com

I actually prefer the plain front page layout. When I come to OKP, the last thing I'm concerned about is the aesthetic of the front page, because it's distracting to see all that when trying to read the news items. And having a whole bunch of graphics on the front page would slow the site down tremendously (it's already slow enough in the daytime as it is).

But perhaps you don't mean make it prettier, perhaps you mean make it easier to understand. I agree with you if that's the case, because the front page does look very cluttered. I think more could be done to consolidate and rearrange that information to make the page look less cluttered. For example, instead of having an entire update listed on the front page, just have an introductory paragraph and then a link to the whole story if the person wants to read the whole thing. Also, perhaps the Boondocks strip could be moved to the bottom of the page so that more relevant information can be seen on an initial view of the page. All of the "New Music" links could be placed in one small area at the very top of the page, before the updates, this would free up a lot of space and reduce clutter as well. The link to the forum topics toward the bottom of the screen could be eliminated, because I don't think anyone uses those to get to the forums anyway, and they're taking up valuable screen space. There are many more chagnes that can be made, but those are the most obvious ones to me right now.




<-------------------- I see you!

______________________________________________________________
An Official Okayplayer.com Midnight Marauder



Hip-Hop Quotable of the Moment:





SPORTS CORNER
NBA: San Antonio Spurs
NFL: Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans
College Football: Texas Aggies, USC Trojans

I like this site better and spend more time there it would be nice to have a one stop shop.

i like the idea of OkayHustle and OkayEmail...

i also think it would be great to absorb therootslive.com or some kind of live show broadcast, this could even be a pay for play premium service. everyone here knows how good okayartists are live, and if we could get maybe a streaming show a month, or access to soundboard quality shows (ideally every (!) show) i'm sure most of us would be willing to shell out some moola (think a working version of the npg club)...

some kind of daily/weekly profile on okp's may create an additional sense of community. i know i enjoyed the okayladies, and okayphotography months.
maybe some kind of okayphotography, or okayliterature, or okaypoetry page/forum.

also, since it seems a lot of people are looking for more contests, maybe there could be more show-involvement-type contests, like "introduce the roots" where people can sign up to get backstage passes, or get some kind of VIP treatment. (i'm suggesting this being one of the only wisconsin regulars, in a selfish sort of way)...

thats all for now... maybe i'll be back with other ideas...
_____________________________
UW
bored in wisconsin since 1981...

Nobody in football should be called a
genius. A genius is a guy like Norman
Einstein." --Joe Theisman

?uest album reviews

and i want phrenology liner notes

>?uest album reviews
co-sign


>and i want phrenology liner notes
co-sign

In some way or form....its pretty much getting to that point now with the OKProducer showcase and what not...but really push the envelope....how? I'm not sure myself..


"The camel never sees its own hump but that of its brothers is
always before its eyes"- N.African proverb
My PSA: "Soca muzik a run tings"

"The camel never sees its own hump but that of its brothers is
always before its eyes"- N.African proverb
My PSA: "Soca muzik a run tings"

n/m

Lost and Found Generation
www.lostandfoundgeneration.com

- I'd like to see links for copywrites and publishing
- More Okayartists Ie: Prince,Dave Chapelle

- I'd like the the colors of the site to change

- I'd like there to be live chats with the okay artist more frequently

- I'd like to never see pop ups
- I'd like the artists' sites to be better maintained and updated


As for the Okayplayer in General: I'd like to see an Okayplayer awards show produced by and especially for the okayplayers.

I think Okay player should look into becoming the NEXT black entertainment network. Where we watch everything that is okayplayer approved...Everything from videos to documentaries, to politics to whatever.

Let me tell you I hate BET they need some competition...yes they have improved over the years but I think the OKP Network can blow even MTV out the water...WE need to stop being lazy and Start being leaders cuz the ones we got ain't workin

> - I'd like to see links for copywrites and publishing
>- More Okayartists Ie: Prince,Dave Chapelle
-- that costs money, or the artists have to pay. if it costs money, see your fourth suggestion. If the artists have to pay, then its up to the artists, not okp.

>- I'd like the the colors of the site to change
--they do occasionally, nothing drastic though, how much would you like them to change exactly?

>- I'd like there to be live chats with the okay artist more
>frequently
--a lot of them are busy as hell though, and for the most part they're already paying for this site, so some of them may feel they do not need to put back into the community. You can't really make them chat, and would you really wanna chat w/ someone givin one word answers who didnt want to be there?

>- I'd like to never see pop ups
--then we can't really improve much. they need ads if they wanna grow in the ways you want them to grow.

>- I'd like the artists' sites to be better maintained and
>updated
-- again, see $$$.

>As for the Okayplayer in General: I'd like to see an
>Okayplayer awards show produced by and especially for the
>okayplayers.
--this is an idea. i dont know how realistic it would be to actually air it or even shoot it, but some official okayawards could be fun.



lessonhead™ - we have some last words, fuck all ya'll.

http://www.phishhook.com/lists/okplayer who wants to trade?
aim: okplayer greg

I think there are a lot of improvements that can be made with respect to identifying what messages are new and what messages are old.

First, the feature should be board specific. I may log on today and just go to OkayArtists, but just because I logged in, all the messages in all the boards will be greyed out.

Also if possible the new messages in color should be applied to individual replies within a post. When posts get long, it can be hard to find the new replies.

Someone else suggested this back in December. I'm not trying to steal the idea, but I thought it was a really good one.

I think we need an Okay Career board. Most OKPs are either in college or have finished and are working in their field. I think it would be a great idea to have a board that caters to student and workers. Maybe have resume advice, internships/coops info, networking opportunities, career discussions, scholarship info, etc. Maybe you could come up with a better title than Okay Career, but I think the concept is a great idea.

Okayradio - streaming (or downloadable) sets mixed by DJs from the boards or guest DJs.

Peace.

I don't know if these have been mentioned. Perhaps an association with a charity, or sponsorship, or maybe positive advertising. A hand in social action to attrack individuals who are involved in positive action so people can learn from eachother and about eachother. Involvement with the underground art and music scene, there are many photographers here, as there are designers, as there are musicians, perhaps a seperate board for each so that those can build together. Good luck with everything. This is a great board. Peace.

As you redesign artist sites (since you have to whenever a new album comes out), you might want to consider supporting multiple languages. The Roots have quite a following outside of the US; if you had french/japanese/german etc. support, it might improve your visibility internationally. Just have little flags for them so that they can choose which laguage they wanna read in.

Imagine something like this:

http://babelfish.altavista.com/babelfish/trurl_pagecontent?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.okayplayer.com&lp=en_fr

From my understand of how to build out websites, it doesn't seem to be TOO difficult; but i've never worked with flash, so that might be the deal breaker.


-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-
Check out my ever-evolving hip hop mix project, featuring folks like J-Live, Aceyalone, Outkast, Hiero, and Nas:
http://noronacorona.redirectme.net/TravellingMusic1.ram

And now I'm led to believe that life is all about CREAM
I'm living a life idealistically, principle over profit
But realistically good intentions are microscopic to fat pockets
-

Follow the cadence, just pretend like you know what I'm sayin'
Y'all let Mary get away with Holleration
- Encore

that ish is FRESH!!!! great idea.

Sorta like urban dictionary...but mostly to help newbies like me know WTF a jawn is, or n/m etc.
Just kidding...sorry to waste ur time. :(
------------------------------
Dark like the side of the moon u don't see
But a lot's going on beneath the surface if u look closely

Naija4lyf

And internationalize the store as well - the way it is now, i can´t find any info on whether you ship international or not, and if so, at what rates.. times, etc. All i see is a shopping cart and a U.S. phone number i´m not about to call.

Oh and as for site usability, maybe you need a site map or something - sometimes there are sections that aren´t included in
the top menu, like.. photo contests, for example.. and the only
way to get there is a link from a post on the boards or something.

*excerpted from the deceased HustleBoard poast in GD*


stm? (street team, much?) this is your spot.
need to diversify your bonds, ninjas? this is your spot.
tryna get some cats to come in on the groundflo' of your fledgling amway empire? this is *not* your spot.

we basically need someplace where we can build on business, economic and community development (don't even say activist), and various grown man/woman ish.

our people perish for lack of knowledge. on the who

description of the OkayArtist board at http://www.okayplayer.com/boards.htm.

That way people don't get confused about who they can post about. (either that or make Mos official already, dammit!)

-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-
Check out my ever-evolving hip hop mix project, featuring folks like J-Live, Aceyalone, Outkast, Hiero, and Nas:
http://noronacorona.redirectme.net/TravellingMusic1.ram

And now I'm led to believe that life is all about CREAM
I'm living a life idealistically, principle over profit
But realistically good intentions are microscopic to fat pockets
-

Follow the cadence, just pretend like you know what I'm sayin'
Y'all let Mary get away with Holleration
- Encore

and the hustle and career board could be combined into the finance board or use hustle and tuck them all in there). whatever happened there? there was alot of noise on all the boards and nothing ever happened. it seemed like it had a lot of support. also the okay email seems like it would be a good idea it would get your name out there. i definitely would have a okayplayer account.

My guess is that DCForum uses a database and a server-side application that spits out HTML files as new posts are made; therefore each time a new post is made it has to update the database AND update the static HTML page at the same time. I believe this extra step causes the site to become unreasonably slow at peak times, because not only is tne database constantly being updated, so are the static HTML pages created by the DCForum each time a post is made. DCForum just recently released a new version that runs on PHP/MySQL, I think going with this new version that updates a database and creates pages on the fly would speed up the site significantly during peak hours.




<-------------------- I see you!

______________________________________________________________
An Official Okayplayer.com Midnight Marauder



Hip-Hop Quotable of the Moment:





SPORTS CORNER
NBA: San Antonio Spurs
NFL: Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans
College Football: Texas Aggies, USC Trojans

That way I can keep up with Okayplayer news with the news aggregator program I use to track Slashdot, Yahoo, CNet, and all the tech blogs I read daily.




<-------------------- I see you!

______________________________________________________________
An Official Okayplayer.com Midnight Marauder



Hip-Hop Quotable of the Moment:





SPORTS CORNER
NBA: San Antonio Spurs
NFL: Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans
College Football: Texas Aggies, USC Trojans

a place on the site where producers and mc's could post and exchange music and get feedback from other okayplayers?
for instance a producer could post a track, let a mc record a verse and then post the finished copy to get people's opinions.

A continuation of the tour journals into an ongoing blog from ? and others would be a nice start. An okayradio - radio station featuring whoever is on NHT plus okp artist tracks is a no-brainer as well. Adding maybe web design / traditonal art / graf etc. to an okaydesign section would draw off a different audience a little more. I like the op/ed idea alot, and some live chat with artists would go over well I think too. A monthly B Kyle video blurb with some tour footage / backstage / studio / partying footage would be a good way to lead up to the next roots dvd. DO YOU WANT MORE?!?!!?!??!?!

___<<<SIG>>>___________________________________

__ http://www.colossoul.com

__Dwayne Wade got robbed.

currently bumpin:
true notes
pretty toney
d12 world
james brown live @ the apollo
immortal technique vol2
gift of gab solo cd
dj muggs
al green
eels
elliot smith

someone please, or even better ROOTS TV

whatever happened to these ideas, I don't care if this has been covered before.

The DVD is great but some more in depth stuff would be nice

C'MOWN TITTAY!


i been holding that in for a week

ahhhh

a business/career/financial board











reject
authority_______________________

You cannot depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus. - Mark Twain
----------------------------
----------------------------
this is my website:
www.redishbrown.com


shameless plugs:
www.thesminc.com


this here, is not worksafe:
www.discreetly4u.com

the mods should be able to ban nuisance posters, or perhaps kililng someones posting rights for a day, a week, whatever. and they should also be able to ban IP addresses.

going back a couple years, if anyone went to the warren ellis forum on delphi, there was a team of mods who ran the place like a dictatorship, and, it was one of the most god damned pleasant places to visit. assholery was limited, and anyone who participated in assholery was quickly nuked.

link to the wef for perusal: http://forums.delphiforums.com/n/main.asp?webtag=ellis&nav=start&prettyurl=%2Fellis%2Fstart

some people might moan about free expression, but i dont really care to hear an assholes opinion, or someone whose purpose on the board is show up and call whoever it is they dont like a fag and whatnot. fuck that noise.

also as far as the boards go:

-- there should be an option that makes the viewing of avatars optional. if someone has issues about xxx pix showing up in avatars while theyre at work, they can kill the avs on their work machine. and theres a lot of people that are still on dial up, and being able to kill avs would speed things up.

-- and also in terms of speeding things up, while i agree that the branched structure should be kept, perhaps there could be an option of having 10/20/30 replies per page, or having all the replies on one page.

-- the ability to use html in posts. if i could type FUCK in big ass red arial font, youd think, damn, he must be serious.

-- hm. perhaps instead of having the mods do all the banning, how about an ignore option? leave it up to the individual whose posts they see or dont see.

this site could be everyones own tricked out honda.

I want to see a whole section of the site devoted to okayWRITERS. Those of us who are putting it down on paper like okayplayers put it down on the mic. I've just sent an email to Brian Peterson (okaybooks editor) because I'd love to be actively involved in such a venture as an okaywriter. As I told him, if you hit www.blacknews.com, there's a press release out there right now where I explain how hand-in-hand I believe music and literature to be. People should be rushing to this site to check the boards, journals, store and tourdates for their favorite established and emerging authors. Just a thought...michi

come full circle. then maybe close this bitch down. j/k

If Okayplayer truly wants to expand to being considered more than "The Roots' website" then I think a lot of the self-promotion has to be toned down, and there needs to be more info on other non-OKP artists. Exmaples of what should be fixed is the ad-nauseum Baadasss promotion and the fact that the only records listed on the list on the far left of the page are OKP joints. Give some love to some other people; there's no reason to still have Phrenology and Quality still on the front page.

Also, why not have a little section of links to important hard to find news items. I'm always amazed by the articles that I encounter in the boards, and I wish that they could be brought to the forefront. I don't think it would be too difficult to compile a number of stories sent in from Okayplayers. If Okayplayer wants to become a hip hop site, then it needs to start representing the culture and not just the music.

As for promoting new acts or unsigned talent, I suggest taking a look at zoetrope.com (Francis Ford Coppola's site). There they basically have a community of writers and musicians posting their own and reviewing others' works. That could be a great place for newcomers to try out their stuff and get feedback. Heck, some established artists might want to check it out as well.

Okayplayer is one of the best sites for an artist or collective, but that is all it is, the base of this site. It's not really for all hip hop; it's for Okayplayer artists and their fans. Until the content of this site expands to include more than just promotions and tour dates of Okayartists, I can't see it really becoming anything more than that.

A full, complete discography of The Roots would be very cool and is not existing so far (in the www). Beeing a collector is not that easy, if you do not have a list of releases. I don't mean regular releases like regular albums, i mean 12" singles, promo 12" singles, cd singles, promo cd singles and all that stuff. That would be really great. It's a tough job, I guess, but would make a lot of fans happy.

1. i want special icons for VETS. not based on posts. but based on time spent here and CONSISTANT posting. if you were here since 99, and still post...then i want an icon next to folks name so that way its easier on me when i do my sneaky lil lookout things (i hook yall mofos up sometimes on the low) and yes you dont just have to be here since 99 in order to be a vet. i think then we can reward VETS with special shit like free tickets and places on the board that only they have access to. kinda like frequent flyer miles. this way (without money) you are motivated to stay "in the community".---and we reward you as such (listening parties, meet and greats, mp3s)

2. i want to log on faster. there has GOT to be updated software that will let me respond once i log in---quicker than the 4 minute time it takes me to come on.

3. i want certain mofos to work full time round here. (if we get funding the REAL WAY) then i'd hire a number of you to work for the site. maybe jef can put us down with shit we dont know about. let fmwj and mike cash go round for round reviewing records on some vibe A vs B shit. dove can conduct interviews. i know a player who is hot to death that will be on some dr ruth sex advice shit.

4. up the sex quotient round here. maybe hire sinnanmon and kitten for stuff that will educate and titilate at the same time.

5. set up an easier system for producer cats to load beats with the quickness. and boarderline make em too on some fruity loops shit.

6. bring outside writers. kinda set up front page like a newspaper.

7. auction shit. use money to establish a scholaship. 2ce a year.

8. i want to reformat the front page to look more like USA today. so thus we gotta act like its a newspaper

9.radio with 3030. brain and laiyia.

10.moderator ability to put an asshole poster on "timeout". like i touch a link and you are banned from site a certain amount of hours.

11. (extra) JAWN AIDS!

I like the idea about writers...shit- I'd do it for a fraction of the normal column price, shit- I'd do it for a couple free tix a year.

If ya'll do that shit...post it out here in the boards so cats who aint graduate yet got an opputnity to compete.

let a nigga blow some comp out the water...

Avi? Jamaican Rugby. Yeah, they sorry, but they fast as hell shawty. Fast as hell.




___________________________

Inaugral Member of the OkaySports Hall of Fame
(They just don't allow me to speak on Roundball no mo')


"Afrika is our center of gravity, our cultural and spiritual mother and father, our beating heart, no matter where we live on the face of this earth." -- Baba John Henrik Clarke.

www.ayaed.com

maybe this could help in organizing & expanding on it?

---------------------------------------------
"Mein bratwurst has a first name, it's F-r-i-t-z/
Mein bratwurst has a second name, it's S-c-h
-n-a-c-k-e-n-p-f-e-f-f-e-r-h-a-u-s-e-n"

- Rainier Wolfcastle

Avi? Go on head now Mr. Cosby...






___________________________

Inaugral Member of the OkaySports Hall of Fame
(They just don't allow me to speak on Roundball no mo')

"The events which transpired five thousand years ago; Five years ago or five minutes ago, have determined what will happen five minutes from now; five years From now or five thousand years from now. All history is a current event.
Dr. John Henrik Clarke

Everything that touches your life must be an instrument of your liberation, or you must throw it into the trash can of history.
John Henrik Clarke






If something is yours by right, then fight for it or shut up. If you can't fight for it, then forget it.
Malcolm X
London School of Economics, February, 1965

Sounds solid...

folks from the reviews boards could do some film reviews.

veteran benefits.

if a vet posters gets injured at a roots show? veterans hospital.

LOL.

how about a shock poster icon? if someone comes through putting up enough crazy shit, maybe they can have a clown icon next to their name so newbies won't take them seriously. LOL.

if the webmasters get burned out on updating, maybe some people could be asked to volunteer to be updaters? i mean, i've been in one very violent post (LOL) regarding updating, i'd hate to think someone is on the end of their rope then forced to update on top of that...

____

Please vote this year. Thanks.

Freedom Writer EP still available at Capital City Records (10th and U NW) and Brian McKenzie Infoshop (9th and P NW), for those who live in DC and/or give a fuck (ha).

would allow you to do alot of the technical stuff you were talkning about.

like stacies board, but 2.0

by setting the avatar size big, you can have flash swf files as posts.

http://www.ummah1421.com/boards/index.php4?act=ST&f=15&t=4293&s=224cd3c239d31d236337e9489cd676e9

http://www.ummah1421.com/boards/index.php4?act=ST&f=15&t=3521&s=224cd3c239d31d236337e9489cd676e9

http://www.ummah1421.com/boards/index.php4?s=224cd3c239d31d236337e9489cd676e9&act=ST&f=4&t=3258&st=0

but with the new and improved version, you can load mpeg, mp3 and mov files.

so audio and video files with sound for avatars, for certain posters.



use the people around you, talent is everywhere

>let fmwj and mike cash go round for round
>reviewing records on some vibe A vs B shit.

fmwj's reviews are what's really hood bitch!

peace~

T."The Beat Specialist"
| www.beatfanatic.com |
| www.slopfunkdust.com |
| www.littlebrothermusic.com |
| www.akrobatik.com |
| www.beatsociety.com |
| www.thefoundationlive.com |
| www.k-otix.com |

*Current Projects*

·JUSTUS LEAGUE //LITTLE BROTHER - "Mixtape Volume I: Whatever You Say Remix" 2CD
·AKROBATIK - "Balance" LP
·AKROBATIK - "Balance // The Beat Fanatic Remix Album" LP
·AKROBATIK - "Untitled" 12"
·SUPASTITION - "Chain Letters" EP
·UNSEEN - "THE IDEA" LP
·GRAND AGENT - Master Thieves 01: Fish Outta Water : The Remixes" LP
·TRUTH ENOLA - "Untitled" LP
·TRUTH ENOLA FEAT. DE LA SOUL - "Untitled" 12"
·KAY OF THE FOUNDATION - "Untitled" LP
·REEF THE LOST CAUZE - "Untitled" LP
·SLICK & ROSE - "Objects In The Mirror" LP
·DUTCH MASSIVE - "Music 2 Sleep 2" LP
·SUREAL OF DOUBLE HELIX - "Godspeed" LP
·KENN STARR - "You Are Mine" Comp CD

hip hop, beats, rock...whatever. Then other OKPs could reveiw it.

Because I just can't spell!

I'm here to help.

have someone sift through the archives and compile a "best of". Then take that and bounce it off of ?uest so we don't miss anything; then take that and give it its' own little spot or highlited link so heads can
- get up to speed as to the real flavor of okp.com
- longtime players can reminice and post all over again about some of the best discussions that have been had and add a new spin to the thoughts

seeing as how there are 150+ responses and i haven't cycled through them this could have already been said...but howabout public (or online even) showcases of okayplayer art. an okayplayer film festival in philly from films submitted by okayplayers. poetry slams, story readings, art exhibits. the possibilities are limitless.

as okayplayer.com is a community of creative and artistic minds, showcasing the talents of those who follow the roots etc. would be a great thing.

yeah, what he said

a different page for popular okayplayer cities to post local happenings and local events or said city.

http://www.okayplayer.com/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?az=show_thread&om=36948&forum=general1&omm=141&viewmode=

No one interested in a discography? I think that's more important than most of the other features on this site.
It shows what the group has done in all these years. It's something a collector nerd, like me, can use for crate diggin.
What do you think about that?

talking about the same artists is so damn boring

invite all types of important social voices to post.
besides musicians, weird politicians and activists might like to get our attention, no?

then we'll feel more connected to the world's goings on.

kinda like the boards at slashdot.com

So we could organize posts by score (this becomes necessary in posts with more then 20 responses).

This is such a great website....i love spending time looking through the news..the Now Hear This section and the boards. Everyone has the same thing in common..love for the Legendary...so it can't be better.

more okayplayers from europe.i feel lonely on this side of the atlantic.

A Few suggestions:


OkayArtist, Activist & Freestyle need to be condensed into a 3-4 page forum, each.

GD & Sports are fine

Tech forum needs to be discarded.

Lesson (Opinion) needs a name change cause cats aren’t really learning, no real constructive criticism goes on there.

Should add an OkayStyle page, i.e., photography, artwork, fashion, etc.

Also since it’s widely known that local musicians thrive on this site, you should add a local artist section where folks can post links to there music, info about gigs, local concerts, parties, etc, without clogging up GD

i'd like to quickly click to the news/tours/journal/store while i'm in each confrence. currently i have to reload the main page, or click the "back" button

I think they'd be a great edition to okayartist community


----------------------------------

"they say the end is near, it's important that we close...to the most, High. Regardless of what happens, on him, let's rely"
-common

"A-E-I-O-U...and sometimes Y"

"hip-hop ain't been the same since tupac moved to cuba on us"
-eminem

"squashed beef wit ice cube, came in this rap life new, now i'm fully clothed with flows."
-common

"many angels, fell to the dust, leavin me to trust, only in oooo"
-common

to all Americans



I couldn't choose a better location/

To penetrate my slugs you’ll feel a burning sensation/

getting closer to God in a tight situation.



I am appalled by your President’s support

towards our just elected by massive cheating

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA).

George W. Bush does not know squat

what really goes on in here, in our country.

So how can he support something he has no idea about?

Now that is stupidity.

To quote Van Gough, “There’s nothin’ more frightenin’ than ignorance in action.”

I ain’t denying that she has an ample amount of supporters,

but they could not, in no way,

outnumber us who are against her in any law-abiding way.

You see, only 2 years of well spent service of our

Lawfully elected therefore rightful President Joseph “Erap” Estrada,

they decided to oust him and put GMA into his shoes by what they call, the “people’s clamor.” The people’s clamor is to oust an elected President

in exchange of a person with full scholastic records.

Because members of the elite can not accept

that going to Harvard does not cut it no more.

Enter Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

After serving her tenure,

and declaring she has no plans to extend his Presidency,

she uses the oldest “I am a woman, I change my mind a lot” excuse

and runs again for the highest position in the land.

And because of her incumbent and inherent ways to cheat her way to the top,

by using government funds to support her campaign,

and by using force and intimidation,

she’s at it again. Believe me, you can ask any person

from our hood, ghetto, masses, that she did not win

in any honest way possible.

While her supporters are asking for a reconciliation.

Sayin’ even if she cheated,

we should forget that and move on

and sarcastically states that yes,

reconciliation means like in a couple that is getting back together

and should forget every bad thing that was done upon another

and forgetting who’s really at fault,

so therefore, we should forgive and forget her bad ways

and accept her presidency because she wants to be the President bad enough,

she was willing to lie and cheat.

And for that effort, we should appreciate her.

Her mindset is

“I can never feel their pain, but if I can fool them into thinking that I can, I’m in.”

It’s like GMA stole our lawfully wedded wife,

then after we let go and had moved on to another relationship,

she decides to marry our current girlfriend.

How hurtful is that?!

I can’t help to compare it to what y’all felt when Eminem,

after stealing your culture by deciding to make money off it

and can still have the audacity to mock an African-American

who he claims wronged him before.

Even if he already apologized, it is still

wrong.

BUT AT LEAST HE APOLOGIZED.



Here are the proofs of the massive cheating of the Royal Cheatness.



1) Consider this equation:



GMA vs. The King of Philippine Cinema

GMA vs. A Spiritual Leader

GMA vs. A Disciplined Law Enforcer

GMA vs. A Honorable Educator



GMA has no title, except for power stealer.

(so how can she win?)

And as a daughter of a former President, Diosdado Macapagal.

Is the situation familiar to y’all?

Yes, both GMA and George W. Bush

are related to a previous president of their respective countries.

Both of them are their dads. And maybe for that sole reason,

of being in the same nepotistic situation,

you dumb-ass President is supporting her.

Can you believe that your President is supporting her?

Imelda Marcos may have stolen some money,

but GMA is stealing the soul of our country.

Who’s more evil now?

People who don’t know the half of what we’re experiencing

should not give their 2 cents.

(Attention: Filipinos who are working overseas,

and Filipino-Americans residing there

especially Apl de Ap and

Americans as well, Fergie of Black Eyed Peas.

“Where is the love?” Applies here seamlessly,

but your group’s naiveté ruined it.

And Apl de Ap considers himself a Filipino?

If life is truly good here, why did your brother commit suicide

for the sole reason of poverty?

You don’t know the situation here man,

go have fun and earn your Benjamins on your tours.

You we’re right when you said

Will.I.Am is the political one in the group.

Y’all should leave to him all the politics

‘coz he’s POLITICALLY CORRECT member of your clique.

No pun intended



2) One(1) month before our election,

the suggested computerized system to tally the votes

were dismissed mysteriously by our Supreme Court

with no justifiable cause stated.

One(1) month after, on GMA’s inaugural speech,

she promised that next time,

the computerized elections will be a reality.

Do I need to explain this?

Even a ten(10) year old can understand the logic behind this.

(Let me cheat for one last time, next time I promise there will be no cheating no more)



3) Vast Amount of Voter Disenfranchisement.

A lot of voters were disqualified to vote with no apparent reason.

What can you say about that?



I am in no way connected with any political party here

but I just don’t wanna sit around while

our country’s shit is hitting the fan.

In a time of despair, at least

I’ve done somethin’ aside from adhering to a FASCIST.

Game recognize game, devil worshippers flock together.

Again, thank you for your President’s support to GMA.



Chuck D, this is my song.



I'm only nineteen but my mind is old/and when the things get for real my warm heart turns cold. – Prodigy of Mobb Deep “Shook Ones Pt.”2





-Lavarias Ignatius



Panaque, Philippines

the boards are so fast moving that it would be nice if they were split up more. one idea could be splitting the lesson into like rock/hip-hop/jazz/funk, etc. categories. or each board (okayartists, the lesson, etc.) could have subsections of types of posts (polls, questions, etc.). not a big change, but would be nice nonetheless.

musical tastes, and discussions/arguments about them. segregation would probably result in a less interesting lesson.

-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-@-
And now I'm led to believe that life is all about CREAM
I'm living a life idealistically, principle over profit
But realistically good intentions are microscopic to fat pockets
-

I know I aint the only one that wants to see this. I made another post about it the other day, but really the ideal thing would be a function where you can go through and listen to all of the new and maybe some old material from okayartist/featured artist/now hear this spotlights and also you can throw in some of the stuff done by many of the talented people here on the boards. I am sure that a lot of the talented people that roam the boards would not at all mind the extra exposure and other than that it would really be fitting to what the site is really about, and that is great music and community. I think this is a feature that everyone agrees would be great.

I love the tree format it has now, but would there be anyway to keep that, and have pages within a post? Like, have the tree, then have 20 or 30 of the posts per page? That'd make it much easier than seeing 1 post at a time, or all 350 on the bigger posts.
Also, instead of having the archives as a small text link at the end of the page numbers, having it as a subforum in each forum would be beneficial because people barely look in those. As a heavy participator in hi-tech, I'm always referring people to faq's or howto's that are stuck in the archives and are all but invisible to most people. If they were in a subforum that stayed at the top of the hi-tech page (see sharingthegroove.org for a good example of what i mean) I think more people would visit them.
Continuing about the forums (can you tell where i spend most of my time?) maybe some sort of weekly/monthly picks for the lesson would be cool. Information about the most talked about artists/links to them/ something along those lines. The lessonheads could participate in the choosing of these artists, and it would stop a lot of the "who is zero 7" posts.
PHP or ASP wouldn't be a bad idea either, but i'm not sure how realistic it is without major reconstruction.

I really think more okayplayer participation (posters, not artists) would be great, such as the ability for them to share their art without having to find outside sources to host a pic or mp3.

As far as the front page goes, I liked quests idea of making it more like a news paper. Right now the semi-blog form just doesnt seem to be cutting it anymore. A newspaper form would allow for more inconspicuous ad placement as well. people were all up in arms when the ads came up in the forums because they stuck out like sore thumbs. If they were surrounded in text, or if they flowed better and weren't floating out in the middle of white space they would be less obvious. This would def provide more funding for the execution of these ideas.
The bar at the top of okayplayer is pretty outdated too. Maybe a better system of navigating the site (i like retouchpro.com's pop-out menu) could make things easier. Honestly, I have a bookmark to the forums frame itself and never even see the bar anymore.

My biggest one would be: keep doing what you're doing. The amount you allow the community to influence the site has really made the community stronger, and this discussion's really allowed that to show. It's great.

Working with the people who are trying to get okayradio off the ground would be helpful too.





lessonhead™ - we have some last words, fuck all ya'll.

http://www.phishhook.com/lists/okplayer who wants to trade?
aim: okplayer greg

Basically --- promotion nowadays sucks.

Unless you have a huge ass budget behind you, it's hard to promote. What better way to promote than to play people's music. If people like it, they go out and are inspired to buy it... That's what I've always been about. :)

Seriously, who doesn't love hoodie sweaters?!?! You know they are the best piece of clothing to own, and you can never have too many, cuz nothing's as comfy, warm and toasty as a nice hoody on a winter's day...and I'm tired of the same okp logo hoodie.
What about some album hoodies? A questo sig hoodie? Shit, a FAN ART CONTEST hoodie?

My dream: to have an illadelph halflife hoodie in the same color as my illadelph halflife t-shirt. I love that color of brown, it's just so damn cool, I might even buy a second t-shirt just to have one ad infinitum!

MORE COLORS, MORE DESIGNS...MORE HOODIES! Thank you.

Yo this sounds hot
I'm sure there are some good artists on here that could come up with a tight design

that's the worst part of the board, other boards save posts forever, you end with a lot less repeats when you can direct someone to an old post

I have 5 different screen names because I can never memorize my 6 or 7 digit password plus I forget which email address I signed up with. It would be really easy if we could assign our very own passcode!!

=) I feel stupid.

Okayplayer.com should offer (for free or a small fee) some Roots' ringtones for cellphones.

And in the meantime, could anyone help a new member, yet old Roots fan, on his ?uest?

'ppreciate ya.


"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly...who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat."

Teddy Roosevelt

She should be a hometown correspondent.

Fuck... She reps the site itself more than y'all do.










__________________________________________
" of on thats ...
n!&&@$ .."


truth0ne@gmail.com <--- hatemail goes here.

she's my catalyst.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
is where it gets complicated


okayquotes for the oh-fore:

it's okay. pussy is good for you. © brainchild

brrrrrring . . . dadadada! jeeeZUS! © karas

First, i'd like to mention that a lot of this might mean more work for ?uesto, but if he and the crew are up to it...

OKAYPLAYMYSHIT forum:
not just for hip hop producers or emcees...something like soundclick, but a smaller, more realistic community. If you are in a band or a DJ with mixtapes or in a hip hop group or you make electronic music or whatever you can submit your work for display on the site...For instance, I was a little disappointed that "the runners" thread for the honorable mentions for the okaycomp. only lasted for about 5 days.
I was considering having a ?uest appointed panel approve what can and cannot be posted, but I think the nature of the boards would keep the dope shit up and let the wacker shit slide...the only problem I see is newbie's getting ignored like what happens on the freestyle board. Plus Freestyle never gets any looks from the other boards just browsing...there would have to be a way to get people who aren't necessarily producers to check it out too...I KNOW! Take the hottest 10 or 20 tracks (judging on positive posts and general popularity) and post a link on the front news page for everyone to view and listen if they please. That would be dope

I like the region thing, cuz there could be more ways to meet some players other than going to a reunion that ain't in yo city. I think some should have the right to be annonymous, but if we choose, instead of me going to a wackass place like indianapolismusic.net where they talk about nothing but wackness...some like-minded players could post what's going on in Naptown or Chi or Cincy...I could finally get a chance to peep what a lot of these cats do in person.

I want to cosign with ?uest on the vet appreciation tip

-Have a "late-pass" section where there could be links to posts (not archived) about the most popular subjects to avoid a million Kanye and Kobe posts.

!?uesto's reviews are a must!

I don't know how big yall talkin' about being, but I don't see why we couldn't have our own writers and reviewers like all those hiphop sites and whatnot...Shit, I always read people's interviews in the Lesson that they did for another site or magazine and wonder why okayplayer just doesn't do interviews and articles/editorials...but we can add an okaytwist- have the articles be open threads for the first day or so, to see reaction to the article, pretty much like we do in the lesson, but with our own writers...well, that might be dangerous actually

We will never rid the world or the net of assholes, but if there were a way to somehow discourage the assholes and reward the cool folks (not the dickriders)...but I have no idea how

Now I work for monster.com, so I don't want to lose my job unless yall hire me, but it would be great to see a forum about career opportunities in music, art, production, auditions, internships, etc...this may also be able to be categorized by region.

-Partnerships:
do yall ever work with spitkicker? they could use help and it couldn't hurt to branch.

Maybe there is some sort of advertising/promotion deal you could work out with soundclick, so we can post our shit here and plug them, while they plug us on thier site

I'm sure there are a million others

Some DO NOTS:
-don't change the branch format
-don't make the site impossible for po' folks with 56k to use
-don't lose the realness

a few closing ideas:
-maybe we could have a profiles section where we can have more indepth profiles (like friendster, but not so gay) and pics and stuff...that might help (or hurt) some of us on the everlasting search for new pussy/dick/brain/heart/tits/ass/someone to talk to/at tip.
-an obvious way to reach someone in charge (like when angiee was here) if there is something we have to share that would be appreciated by all and deserving a news page link (yall Philly/NY cats get shine for everything)...not just some "check out my beats" shit, but if there is some real shit going on that yall ain't aware of out East and deserves to be known about
-I think okayplater could be like an online magazine...one to rival all the over-priced "hipster" mags on the newstand.

okay, I hope yall could read al that

We could have some OKP sponsored porn ... no? ... bad idea? Ok, nevermind.

online magazine, more formal than current blogs/webzines like gawker, slate, blacktable, etc. but with news/political section, financial, book & movie reviews, fiction, cartoons, history, gossip, guest writers(artists, authors, politicians), etc that have space below them for forums for response. i'm sure this has been thought of or dicsussed, but it would only take a few articles a month from a few writers to come up with something really worthwhile. i'm sure plenty of okayplayers could & would submit thoughtfull stuff. i'm sick of reading the crap that the media is putting out. an almost separate site that basically becomes the new york times of the okayplayer community. the boards are already great forums for ideas, but a publication could really become something incredible.

i haven't read this long ass post- so im not sure if this was requested already but what i'd like to see is ALL of the okp artists' videos (1st to recent) on site.
theres a post about the proceed vid w/ roy ayers and i think ya'll (we) should have that online for enjoyment.

I dont know if this has already been suggested, and realize it could be time consuming and difficult to organize, but perhaps adding voice chat or some sort of forum just for people to put their actual recordings on the site as a post, or a simple one time contest of the best whatever. Money, legal reasons, whatever ya got, just dont shoot it down and be mean about it,LOL....

Visually...SNEAK PREVIEWS OF ALL ARTISTS PERFORMANCE/MUSIC VIDEO EXTRAS

ARTIST WEBSITES....UPDATED NEWS...LIKE COMMON SHOULD AT LEAST HAVE TOUR DATES AND ARTICLES

MORE ACCESS AND IN YOU FACE HEADLINES/GRAPHICS THAT POP

i think this branch style is a little har to use but that may be because im ne. ill get used to it.