"I Party" Music Video directed by Choz Belen

Let me introduce you to Choz Belen. He has a cool animation style blended with real life... the dude is amazing and just released his epic mini film video masterpiece to the song “I PARTY” by FM, feat. me and DB Tonik from their ANIMAL album. This is a BEAST.

IZ's Prison Blog Entry 6: My situation at Wasco State Prison

My situation at Wasco

So here I am at WASCO state prison, and just like in the county, I’ve been housed in a 2 man cell. There’s one main difference here though, it’s 24 hour lockdown. You only get to come out of your cell once every few days for a 10 minute shower, if that. The C.O.’s will look for any reason to deny you showers because it’s more work for them. The C.O.s didn’t do a damn thing on the day of the Super Bowl as if Super Bowl Sunday was some sort of national holiday or something, bunch of fatasses! Or, portly gentlemen to be socially sensitive.

What makes things even worse, there are no phones at reception, and mail can take weeks. So they take you 15 minutes past butt-fucking Egypt, throw you in a cell designed for midgets , don’t allow you any phone calls, and give you absolutely no priveleges...I was here for close to a month before I heard from anyone...It’s almost impossible to get paper in here so I coudn’t write blogs or songs...All I can say is that it’s a stressful situation...

The degree of lethargy of the employees here at Wasco is ridiculous, or preposterous to be more precise...The policy is to get inmates processed to mainline prison within 60-90 days but that rarely happens. It usually takes 90 days to a year. can you imagine not being able to speak to anyone outside the jail for a year or more? Another thing that’s pretty laughable at this institution, if it can be called that, is the visiting process...You have to send out a visiting questionnaire to the person you want to visit, they then have to send it back to get approval. Once they’ve been approved, you have to send the approval notice back to that person and then they can finally visit. That takes about a couple months at best because it takes more than a week for mail to come or go. When the questionnaire finally comes back for approval, you have to wait until the staff of Snickers-eating fatasses in the mailroom get around to it. The average waiting time just for approval is about 45days. There’s an obvious question that arises out of this: If the whole process takes about 90 days, and they're supposed to get us to mainline prison within 60-90, when the fuck do i get my visit? I’m no mathematician but something about that equation is ERRR, FUCKED UP!!!

One of the inmates here named "Tank" had a problem with the visiting office "losing" his wife’s applications...They were apparently "nowhere to be found". That is until she personally went to the visiting office and found her applications within a matter of minutes, all 3 of them!!! According to Tank’s wife, there are 100’s of applications collecting dust in the office. Many of which will probably be "lost" within the next few days as well...that is of course until someone decides to look...


Sidenote: The starting pay of a state prison C.O. is about $35,000 .

Requirements are a G.E.D. and citizenship...tax money well spent :P

4c The Power event at Garvey Middle School

Working with children has always been a passion of mine. Whenever I get a chance to do so, I try my best to jump on the opportunity immediately. Recently, Ive had many chances to work with children through a great company called 4cthpower.

4cthepower is a company with one purpose: keeping kids away from drugs and gangs by giving them an outlet through which they can channel their creative energy. They've helped to raise money for countless schools through a variety of programs and workshops. Ive been fortunate to work with them on a number of occasions at various schools. The wokshops encompass everything from Hip-hop and R&B to spoken word and photography.

The world champion Gamblerz Crew, FM, AJ Rafael, and Vudoo Soul are just some of the artist who have contributed their time and talents to be mentors to aspiring student. Here a link to some pictures from the last event...

http://mylifeistaken.smugmug.com/gallery/11300443_vSsRA#793014316_Dw8nV



For more information on 4cthepower visit 4cthpower.com

New year, new moves, new company

Damn, shits been crazy last few weeks to say the least... When I said 2010 was gonna be great, I had no idea how great... So much to tell, so little time...

First, let me start off by congratulating my homeboys for finally getting what theyve always deserved: A major deal and everything that comes with it... Far*East Movement is officially signed to Cherrytree/Interscope records! That shit is huge! I dont know anyone who deserves it more. Im happy for you brothers, but truthfully, I knew it was gonna happen... Ya'll are way too driven not to get a deal, you woulda made it happen one way or another...

Someone else is getting signed too... Some guy named IZ... mighta heard a him... haha... Yup, ya boy (not "We Run LA" ya boy, the other ya boy i.e. me) is getting signed to a brand new independent label called 454 Ent... and believe me when I say this shit is real... Too real that even Im having a hard time believing... It seems my life is caught is some kinda whirlwind. Shit is happening so fast... ya boy (yes, the other one) aint had a chance to breathe in weeks... I've seen things I never dreamed I'd see in my lifetime... and believe me, I dream some pretty big things.

To give you an example, just the other day I sat with the CEO of my company on a board meeting where they discussed the structure of the new company... Picture this: 6 wealthy white guys, (the type that sign The Rolling Stones' checks wealthy), employed by one Asian guy whose falling asleep because no ones paying him to listen are talking about how theyre going to take everyones money all over the world... Through movies, music, trickery, that sorta thing... Im talking billions of dollars... and my big homie/future boss is still sleeping kinda as if to say: "If I knew or cared what they were talking about I wouldnt have to pay them to do it"... After about 20 minutes I have a pretty good idea about the company and where its going: up. Im talking guys with medium length, flowing white hair and British accents "up"... And my big bro employs all of them... He's definitely doing it... big... These things I never dreamed of seeing...

When I started rapping, I was confident that I would be successful, if only because i knew i wouldnt take no for an answer... I knew I would do whatever it took to make it... but "making it" in my eyes was not easily definable... "Making it" meant a lot of things. Getting signed was "making it," Having a hit album/single was "making it," helping my people move forward in the entertainment industry was "making it." Any of these things would have brought me satisfaction, would have given me a sense of accomplishment... It never even crossed my mind that I would seeing and working first-hand with someone who is really on top of everything looking down. In other words, the guy that signs the checks... The feeling is absolutely incredible and I feel blessed... I give thanks to God... "God, Im not sure if I deserve this but... Im definitely gonna run with it!!!"

Ill tell you more soon!

IZ's 2008 Prison Blog: Entry 5: "The Hole"

The hole is f*cked up! That’s just the best way to describe it. The hole f*ckin’ sucks, straight up. I’ve seen a bunch of people come out the hole and say "Oh, the hole ain’t shit," but they’re not fooling anyone, especially not me, because I was one of those people. I did 30 days in the hole in 2004. When I came out I said the same thing, "The hole aint shit! I’m a "G" homie! That shit don’t FAZE ME! Ill do that shit standing on my head" and so on and so forth. But that’s not what I was saying when I was in there. I wasn’t saying anything actually...there’s no one to talk to. There isn’t shit! Me, Myself, and I don’t count either... Also, because they pepper spray u when u get into fights, they use that as an excuse to strip u down and take your clothes, even if there isn’t any pepper spray on them. So besides being bored out of your mind, you freeze your ass off too.

(Before going any further, Id like to clear up why i’m in the hole in the first place this time around. Peep this: the cells are full... That's it: the cells are full... Fuckin Bullshit... How the hell is it okay to put me in the hole because the cells are full. They should let me go to the dorms but apparently they can’t, its fuckin overcrowded. Aint that some shit?)

But anyways, as I was saying, the hole sucks. I have no idea how long i’m going to be in here and i’m almost out of paper. They give you 2 stamped envelopes and 6 sheets of paper when you go in the first day. So after you finish with the paper in the first 30 minutes, you just sit there all day staring at the walls. They give you a book to read but they might as well not. You have to choose out of an old ass bag with about 6 of the most shot-out, booty ass books on planet Earth, and 2 aren’t even in English! The funny thing is, the selection never changes either. I’ve been in the hole 4 times since 2000 and I can swear that they are the same 6 books I saw the first, second, third, and fourth time. Like I said, "FUCKIN BULLSHIT!" So after reading this "book", which might as well be "the Cat in the Hat," I’m writing this blog but also trying to conserve as much paper as possible.

Another thing that drives you crazy in the hole is hunger. In the hole, you’re not allowed to spend any of the money on your account to order anything from jail commissary, (in prison you can, but not in the county,) you can only eat what they give you, which is basically one meal, split up into 3. A grown man cannot be expected to live off what they feed you. I lose an average 10lbs in the first week I spend in the hole. What makes things worse and compounds your turmoil is the fact that working out, which is the only thing you can do in the hole, makes you extremely hungry. So either way, you’re completely assed-out. I’m actually eating a mustard pack as a snack while writing this.

Your biggest enemy in the hole, however, is always boredom. 24 hours a day doing nothing. You can’t even really sleep because the fuckin police bang on your door every 15 minutes to check if you’re alive, and I’m not exaggerating. They bang on your door every 15 minutes until you respond. That type of environment is not conducive to sleep at ALL! It seems like some of them get a kick out of it too. (If only they did the rest of their job with as much fervor and enthusiasm... fuckin fags)

Anyways...boredom can make you lose your mind. Your brain doesn’t work right after about 20 days in the hole. 20 minutes after breakfast, it’s hard to remember what you just ate. Hopefully I won’t be in here that long.

The really ironic thing about it is that after all of this, the next time I’m about to do something that might get me sent to the hole, I probably won’t even think about it or be able to remember just how bad it is in here...I guess that’s why people always go in and out of jail~ fuckin stupid...

IZ's 2008 prison blog Entry 4: The First of Many, Many Days

My first of many, many days behind bars...

The first day in jail is always a mystery...Where will I go? Who’s gonna be there? Are we chillin’ or is it drama? These are all good questions...
There are a lot of different types of housing: dorms, cells, barracks~ all of these have pros and cons....The dorms and barracks are all the same, busy and loud...About 60 to 200 people pretty much walking around freely, but there’s no privacy...On the flip side, the cells are quiet, most of the time too quiet...The good thing is you don’t have to worry about getting killed in your sleep, unless of course your celly does it...it happens...

The dorms are filled with mostly petty crimes, drug offenders etc...But that doesn’t mean it’s any less dangerous. When it goes down, it goes down hard, but I’ve done 90%of my time in cells because of violent crime history and gang affiliation...

In Orange County, the cell facility is divided into sectors, each sector has 16 cells, with 2 inmates in each cell...The 16 cells are divided into 4 groups...the 4 groups are let out seperately once a day for "program." "Program" is the dayroom which has phones, a shower, and a TV...The collect calls cost an arm and both legs, the TV is old and shitty, and the showers are worm infested. Take your pick. You’re supposed to get 2 hours a day minimum by law, but you’re lucky to see an hour...Furthermore, the program can get shut off for the stupidest reasons. Fights, breathing the wrong way, or because the Correctional Officer’s (C.O.’s), or "sir", as they like to be called, are busy scratching their asses and they forget to let you out...."STOP SCRATCHING YOUR ASS AND TURN ON THE FUCKING TV" is a popular request in the cell facility...

The system works to keep the violence to a minimum. You can live 5 feet from your worst enemy, looking at him every day, and it wouldn’t matter if he’s not in your group. You will never have physical contact with him. You can look at him and talk shit, but that’s about it. You can have two morons talking shit for months straight in the cells sometimes. If you ask me, it’s a waste of breath, but that’s just me. It’s a strange world...

This time around, however, none of this shit is going to matter, because I’m going to ’the hole’...

-IZ
www.real66.com

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