IZ's 2008 prison blog entry 3: The County Lockup: Dicks and Politics

The County Lockup: Dicks and Politics

Let me take a moment to clear some things up for those reading this blog...The intent of this blog is mainly to satisfy your curiosities about jail life and also to keep me from being bored to death in here...There is, however coincidentally, another by-product which arises out of my ranting which is far more important than just entertainment or simply killing time. This blog sheds light, albeit accidentally, on issues concerning the public jail system including but not limited to: overcrowding, lack of funding for programs as well as food and the inhumane / unlawful treatment of inmates...

Over the course of my first few days in jail, I've seen multiple instances of police brutality which were completly un-called for, nor were they investigated....I've seen inmates verbally abused and kicked around like dogs amidst racial slurs and disparaging comments. These issues must be addressed...

Decades ago in Orange County Main Jail, the staff began to permanently house inmates in a section of the facility called the IRC...The purpose of the IRC was to hold incoming and outgoing inmates until they had been classified and were ready to be moved into regular housing or be released. The IRC is a 22 hour lockdown facility which was never inteded to house inmates for an extended period of time. I once did 15 months straight in the IRC. The holding tanks then took the place of the IRC even though they are not supplied with any hygiene items such as soap or toothpaste. Requests for toilet paper are often ignored for hours by the Correctional Officers...This is not what the holding tanks were inteded for, the IRC was. Hence the acronym: IRC (INTAKE / RELEASE CENTER...)

In all fairness, I must concede that there are still good cops (I say that with extreme discretion). They do exist and it is unfair that the ones who serve with honesty and integrity should have their images tarnished by those who choose to abuse the power given to them BY THE PEOPLE. Some take their jobs much too seriously, and others dont take their vows of service seriously enough. It is a tragedy that in my personal observations, I see a tendancy towards vice and corruption among C.O.'s compared to a dwindlng number of those who do their jobs professionally without prejudice.

In short, jail SUX! To any students reading this: don't come to jail because it is equivalent to the longest detention you will ever serve...I was probably just as bored writing about the loop as you were reading about it. Imagine living through it...THE LIFE OF A "G", GLAMOUR AND FAME RIGHT!? Think twice youngstars...

-IZ

IZ's 2008 Prison Blog. Entry 2: The Loop cont.

"the loop" part 2
2:30AM - I wake up after less than an hour of sleep to the sound of another guy screaming... I don't give a sh*t what anybody says or how cold hearted you claim to be, but hearing a fully grown man scream because he's in pain is disturbing...It doesn't seem to be bothering the deputies though...O Shiet! WHADDAYAKNOW? It's the same guy again, this is definitely not his day...The guys next to me are debating odds on whether or not he's going to get "mashed on" again. I say it's about 50/50~ Once they've 'put hands' on you, you've already attracted too much attention and thats the last thing you want in jail: to be targeted by the cops as well as other inmates. Its definitely not a good look. (A quick side note: At this point I haven't seen food in almost 24 hours. Time seems to stand still when you're hungry...)

5:00AM - Finally! Food! I've never been so glad to see a nasty ass sack lunch in my life! Dry ass carrots grown at a prison farm by other inmates who dont give a fuck if u think the carrots are dry, stale ass bread that also serves as a bludgeon, and of course, "mystery meat"~ Anyone who's ever been incarcerated knows exactly what I'm talking about. It tastes like ass, soybeans, and leather boot...straight nasty! But hey, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do~

9:30AM - This is where it gets ridiculous, after waiting all this time with no soap, no toothbrush, barely any sleep or food, guess what? We change back into our street clothes and get transferred to another jail...I've been through this before and at this point, all I can do is laugh at the situation. You don't like it? Don't get locked up right?...

5:00PM - Finally, the wait is over. After 15 hours in a concrete room, being handcuffed to a NATIVE-AMERICAN guy with stank-ass breath named JARRET KNIFECHIEF (NO B*LLSH!T) on a county bus, being re-booked for another 7 hours at a different jail, you get a mattress and a bunk...The mattress is only an inch and a half thick but hey...anything is better than cold-ass concrete~NAW MEAN?!


(*NOTE! All times are approximate, there are no visible clocks at any point during "the loop")

---> NEXT BLOG - The County Lockup: Dicks and Politics

IZ's 2008 prison blog. Entry 1: The Loop

- The LOOP

January 11th, 2008

1st hand description of the loop...(booking process) while it's still fresh in my mind. (As if it mattered)

3:30 PM - Enter jail, get strip-searched, go into holding tank...wait...

5:30 PM - Move from one holding tank, to another equally disgusting one...wait...(For those who are unclear as to what a holding tank is, it's a cold or hot concrete room that smells like piss).

7:30 PM - Take digital fingerprints...go to another holding tank...wait...

8:30 PM - More people are brought into the holding tank...

9:45 PM - The air begins to suffocate me...I notice the maximum occupancy sign says

16, there are more than 25 people in the room...My stomach is growling...Wait some more...

10:15 PM - Im watching 3 deputies repeatedly slam a guys face into the wall for not following directions. He looks like he's kicking (withdrawing from) heroin...He looks absolutely confused...I feel sorry for the guy...Being in the "the loop" is torture enough, to be kicking "H" on top of that....that's harsh...He's not throwing up so I know he's a few days into it already...The reason he's so confused is because hardcore heroin addicts can't fall asleep for up to weeks after they stop using...I've seen guys in jail who think that they're at 7 eleven buying cigarettes after not sleeping for a week or 2....Staying awake high on meth, and not being able to fall asleep while kicking heroin are two completely different things...On meth you're spun out and amped up, when you're kickinng heroin, you just can't fall asleep. Either way, neither is a healthy way to live...In this case, however, this guy can just be a flat out moron, there's plenty in here...

10:16 PM - Waiting commences...

2:00 AM - We strip down again, take cold showers and go into another holding tank...after the shower, the room doesn't smell as bad....Or more specifically, the people don't smell as bad~ I fall asleep...

(the loop... to be cont...)

-IZ

First letter and Intro to "What its Really Like to Live In Here"

To all my peeps on the streets:

Much luv and respect....Due to unfortunate events, and a foul-ass bitch named Priscilla Suzuki-Johnson (my P.O.), I will be incarcerated for an unspecified amount of time. I was taken into custody 1 week before Christmas, ain't that some shiet!? Some foul sh*t from a foul b*tch..

Anyways, I just want to reassure everyone that I am just as passionate, if not more passionate about my music despite this F*CKED UP SITUATION! I got plans to come back 10x stronger, and 10x harder, believe it!!!!

Until my release,however, I will be keeping a blog which will be hosted and updated frequently by kali kaliente... These blogs will give an in-depth description of the daily life of an inmate, brought to you live and direct from someone actually living it as you're reading it... As I'm writing this, I'm steadily examining 4 brick walls, a steel door, and my sanity. But that's for a later date.

So keep posted and stay swingin! Sincere thanks to all of my supporters and growing family. One love.
I'LL BE BACK MUTHAF*CKAS!!!!

-IZ
(New blog entry coming soon: Dicks and Politics 1)

Youtube video- "Il-Rated Intro"

Here's an intro/theme song I did for my homie Il-Rated's radio show out in Chicago...
Cuts by the one and only scratchmaster: DJ Zo

FREE DIGITAL CD Next month!!!

Thats right, Im giving out a FREE digital cd to EVERYONE next month!!! It's gonna have all of my old school hip hop tracks from '07 including

-On My Feet
-Tie Your Shoes
-the Il-Rated Intro
-For Ma People
-Do Da Same feat. J Riggs
-A New Beginning

As well as some new ones that you've never heard... Of course "Never Fall 2010" will also be on there.
I decided to give this cd out for free because i want to show luv back to all the people that have supported and stuck with me as well as my music. All the way from back in '07 when i released my first track until today... Through my incarceration, ups and downs, all the peeps who showed luv through letters and prayers really got me through the hard times... If it wasnt for ya'll, I probably would have quit several times over...
Its also for the new family who may never have had the chance to hear any of the throwback joints. I really want to give those out for people to hear not just because they give you an idea of who I am, but because they are special to me. They have a very special place in my heart and I want to share them with you.
Hip-hop/rap and music itself is everchanging... I never want to get comfortable doing one thing. My aim is to be in a constant state of musical evolution, and of reinvention. So this year, Im dedicating most of my time into stepping back in the booth to make the hottest, burning your asshole tracks youve ever heard... Ill be collaboratig with some new people as well as some old friends that youre most likely very familiar with... Its a new year, time for some new SHIT!!! All the while enjoying the memories and sounds of the past... peace...

-IZ
PS. Ill be posting the blogs that I wrote from prison one at a time in given intervals... They'll give you an idea of what its like to be "Locked Up," from someone actually living it... hollaz

"NEVER FALL 2010" music video is here!!!

My first ever music video and its a big one! Its produced by LK of Red Reel productions... If you guys dont recognize the name hes the guy behind all the dope pictures and the TALKINISH trailer... yeah, that guy...








The people in the video need no introduction... First of all, my bruthas whove been schoolin me in the game FM(Far East Movement)

Ya'll already know they been doin big thangs... They just got back from a nationwide tour with LMFAO and thats just the beginning! They about to kill it this year no question!

Next is Ben Baller... Need I say more?

He's a jeweler to the stars... His A-list clientele boasts The Game, Nas, Fabolous, Fat Joe just to name a few... I met him a while back through FM at the Hot Import Nights and weve been down ever since... Hes shown me nuthin but luv... Sup Big Bro!

Lisa Kim Fleming...

This girl is dope... and im not just saying this shit to make her sound like a cool person cuz we're friends.... she is really down to earth... Not to mention she is ALWAYS lookin out for me in any way she can... but i wont talk about her anymore ill just add another picture! haha!!!


Ma brutha from da 60's Cuzzy Capone...



If you havent heard of this guy its only because he hasnt released his first mixtape yet... But imma let you know, this guy is da bizness... Cuzzy, along with Nipsey Hussle (Bullets aint Got No Name Volumes 1,2,3 sponsored by DJ Felli Fel) are the founders of the group The Slauson Boyz. Here's a taste of whats to come!

Here's Nipseys video too just for the fuck of it

Houston's Jimmy Boi

Lisa Kim Fleming introduced me to this homie from Houston... Word on the streets is Jimmy Boi a true hustla... From what Ive seen from him, he's definitely got that street hustle in his heart... He's constantly movin... Jimmy Boi is in LA now so expect some superdope collabos in the near future...
Alexia Lei

Another dope ass chick whos definitely doin her thang... alexia just graced the cover of Lowrider magazine but still showed luv and took some time from apartment shopping to bless the video... good looks alexia!

All in all, a lot of people showed luv and helped make the video what it iz... hope yall enjoyed it... hollaz!!!

-IZ
PS. (Ive had this blog for a minute but never used it... 2010 thats all gonna change... make sure to check back because im going to be doing frequent updates... Peace)