This is a press release that was e-mailed to Y2Hiphop.com from an employee from The Source Magazine:
In an editorial posted today on The Source magazine’s recently re-launched website (www.thesource.com), Online Editor-in-Chief Jonathan “Gotti” Bonanno addresses the recent battle between rappers Eminem and Benzino, as well as attacks made by Eminem against The Source, and the current state of hip-hop. “As the only independent voice for hip-hop…certain situations require us to speak out and take a more active role…and the ongoing battle between Eminem and Benzino has taken to task issues that we feel affect each and every member of the hip-hop community,” writes Mr. Bonanno.
Breaking his silence on the issue, David Mays, co-founder and CEO of The Source, states, “While Eminem claims he’s received unfair treatment in The Source, the truth is that he was not only discovered by our magazine’s Unsigned Hype column, but has always received fair and impartial coverage, including several highly-coveted covers of our magazine and trophies from The Source Awards. Our credibility among the 7 million readers of The Source each month is our most valuable asset, and for Eminem to attack that is an attempt to avoid addressing the true issues raised by Benzino.
“Raymond ‘Benzino’ Scott has been a close friend and business partner to me before The Source even existed, and I have always and will continue to stand by him. I strongly believe that his recent songs have opened up an enormously valuable discussion about the current state of hip-hop from a cultural and economic standpoint. These are issues that The Source will address, in depth, beginning with our upcoming February issue.”
In his editorial, Mr. Bonanno warns readers not to allow hip-hop to follow the path of Jazz and Rock ‘n Roll. “Hip-hop became the voice of a generation who struggled to make something out of nothing. But now that the mainstream media has become extremely comfortable with hip-hop, they’ve begun changing it to fit their standards,” he writes. “Ten years from now, when mainstream media looks back and explores the topic of hip-hop, it’s quite possible that the important accomplishments of some of our culture’s strongest contributors, from Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa to KRS-One to Tupac, will be ignored for familiar faces like Eminem.”
Mr. Mays agrees, saying, “As hip-hop continues to strengthen itself as the voice for a generation of young people of all racial, socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds, it is only becoming more powerful. However, as our culture is embraced by the corporate world and mainstream society, we believe it is our duty as ‘watchdogs’ to ensure that outside forces do not exploit or take hip-hop away from the community that created it.”
In an editorial posted today on The Source magazine’s recently re-launched website (www.thesource.com), Online Editor-in-Chief Jonathan “Gotti” Bonanno addresses the recent battle between rappers Eminem and Benzino, as well as attacks made by Eminem against The Source, and the current state of hip-hop. “As the only independent voice for hip-hop…certain situations require us to speak out and take a more active role…and the ongoing battle between Eminem and Benzino has taken to task issues that we feel affect each and every member of the hip-hop community,” writes Mr. Bonanno.
Breaking his silence on the issue, David Mays, co-founder and CEO of The Source, states, “While Eminem claims he’s received unfair treatment in The Source, the truth is that he was not only discovered by our magazine’s Unsigned Hype column, but has always received fair and impartial coverage, including several highly-coveted covers of our magazine and trophies from The Source Awards. Our credibility among the 7 million readers of The Source each month is our most valuable asset, and for Eminem to attack that is an attempt to avoid addressing the true issues raised by Benzino.
“Raymond ‘Benzino’ Scott has been a close friend and business partner to me before The Source even existed, and I have always and will continue to stand by him. I strongly believe that his recent songs have opened up an enormously valuable discussion about the current state of hip-hop from a cultural and economic standpoint. These are issues that The Source will address, in depth, beginning with our upcoming February issue.”
In his editorial, Mr. Bonanno warns readers not to allow hip-hop to follow the path of Jazz and Rock ‘n Roll. “Hip-hop became the voice of a generation who struggled to make something out of nothing. But now that the mainstream media has become extremely comfortable with hip-hop, they’ve begun changing it to fit their standards,” he writes. “Ten years from now, when mainstream media looks back and explores the topic of hip-hop, it’s quite possible that the important accomplishments of some of our culture’s strongest contributors, from Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa to KRS-One to Tupac, will be ignored for familiar faces like Eminem.”
Mr. Mays agrees, saying, “As hip-hop continues to strengthen itself as the voice for a generation of young people of all racial, socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds, it is only becoming more powerful. However, as our culture is embraced by the corporate world and mainstream society, we believe it is our duty as ‘watchdogs’ to ensure that outside forces do not exploit or take hip-hop away from the community that created it.”
