Hip Hop Fridays: All Money Ain't Good Money by Pearl Jr.

We all know what a sensation Dreamgirls is. Even though the story doesn't have the ever-lacking promotion of long lasting Black love, it is still a well-delivered theatrical play that transitioned into a major motion picture just a mere 25 years after it's Broadway launch in 1981.

The proverbial "we" isn't the "we" that usually applies. Did "you" realize that the launching of this movie that features an Oscar winning Best Actor (Jamie Foxx), a veteran box office leading man (Eddie Murphy), a world renowned superstar that many consider the most beautiful woman in the world (Beyonce Knowles), a finalist in the number 1 rated TV show American Idol (Jennifer Hudson), and was a successful Broadway musical, winning over 13 major awards that tells the story of the number 1 successful independent record company in the history of music, doesn't have nationwide big screen saturation? Seems ridiculous and counter- productive, right?

Well Dreamgirls, the movie, first launched to a few screens on December 15, 2006 and then was again minimally released on Christmas Day to only 852 theaters. All movies of this caliber are released in no less than 3,700 theaters, but Dreamgirls can only been seen by 25 percent of the American public. Furthermore, why do the promotional posters display these fabulous women's backsides and not their beautiful faces along with their figures?

Now to add to this dysfunctional marketing campaign, the confusion continues. Since Dreamgirls has smashed the per audience average take of around $7,000 per screening with a whooping $20,000 average per screening revenue's bonanza, Paramount is now releasing it in less than 50 percent of the country on January 12, 2007, totaling around 1900 theaters nearly a full month after it's official launch date. Furthermore, due to it's limited release, Dreamgirls couldn't attain the coveted NUMBER 1 MOVIE IN AMERICA title even if it sold every seat in every theater, plus the soundtrack, too, was destined not to attain the other number 1 spot on soundscan (currently number 3) that it would have surely reached if the movie had full distribution.

I'm totally NOT understanding the thinking of the movie executives here. I guess, just like in the game of dominos, "all money ain't good money", if there is another strategy in play. Why else would they cut their own profits? Why are they holding back on saturating the entire U.S. of A with such a blockbuster film? Aren't "we" always hearing that racism is a thing of the past? If racism is really gone, then it couldn't possibly be due to this movie being a "BLACK" movie, because Pursuit of Happyness (featuring just one proven Black star, Will Smith) was released in nearly 3,000 theaters? It's because it's a "Black female" movie in which Black men are assisting Black women in a traditional sense.

Let's be frank here, Black women are under attack everywhere in the media to being unloved and single. The Black woman is a target to being completely devoid of any attribute that is redeeming or the Black woman is virtually missing, especially in the life of a Black man on the big screen or the little screen in our own homes. Then check out the trailers for Cedric the Entertainer's new movie, "The Cleaner" that features ALL non-Black women as his co-stars. I wonder how many theaters this movie will be in?

The media saturation of calling Black women bi- atches, hos, and the most ridiculous gold diggers (65 percent of Black men who earn over $100,000 per year marry non-Black women) has gotten to be just a fallacy that intends to destroy the value of Black females in general. It has even gotten so bad that Black men who don't have any gold are labeling so-called desirable Black women, who may suggest a measly paid for meal on a first date (for Christ's sake), gold diggers.

Ladies, the writing is on the wall and the process for our demise is truly underway. Just this morning, I read (TMZ.com) that Tyrese has allegedly punched his pregnant Black girlfriend (not wife, just like with Kim Porter, Diddy's long time girlfriend and mother of his son and twin daughters isn't good enough to marry either) TWICE. I guess baby's daddy is no longer a ghetto welfare momma thing—it's now widespread abuse (and abandonment) for a Black man to diss Black women, especially when she is in her weakest condition?

To put the writing on the wall in big-ass neon lights; the children of famed, fortuned, and deceased celebrities like Richard Pryor's, Lou Rawls', and James Brown's children are having to go to court against White women (not their mothers) for their own father's inheritance is screaming and signaling an all out assault on the Black race's prosperity in general.

Racism is growing fast and quick, picking up steam at every turn. If you just scratch the surface and look to see how filthy your nails are.

Coming soon, Eddie Murphy, Tyler Perry and Martin Lawrence will all be doubling as big fat loud angry Black women in their next films for everyone to laugh at. Damn, a real life hefty Black actress can't even get a job in today's world. It seems the mindset of the few that decide what movies get produced is really getting Black actors at a serious discount, making them play several characters for a similar fee.

We, Black Women, must unite and boycott every single media image that is NOT in our BEST INTEREST and that includes ALL celebrities who have lost any type of respect or eyesight for us or don't care about our upward mobility as a whole.

I mean, Jermaine Dupri hasn't married Janet Jackson.

Jay-Z apparently told Beyonce he needed more time before they wed. Reportedly, they were supposed to get married in November.

Kelly Rowlands got embarrassed when her fiancée, just out of the blue, stopped the wedding plans after she was scheduled to be on the cover of a bridal magazine.

I, also, was personally told by a Ciara insider that Bow Wow dawgged the beautiful and talented Ciara, and she didn't deserve it.

I could go on and on.

The reason why I bring up these high-profile celebrities is to prove that life is hard for Black women all around. If these successful, hard-working, rich, beautiful, great bodied Black women can't catch a break and have Black men love, honor, and cherish them, then we are all in a very challenging position. Oh yea, even Oprah can't get Stedman to marry her, and she is the richest Black person in the world and generous too!

We are the ONLY us who are obligated to stop these half-positive, half-evil, half- man, half-parented, and temporarily loved media images that promote our own half-satisfied lives that are present IN EVERY MAJOR BLACK MOVIE made in the past 7 years. . We must no longer look the other way, we must no longer pretend it doesn't exist, we must no longer suffer from the it doesn't matter syndrome, we must no longer make excuses for Black men's deplorable behavior, and we must no longer say, it's just entertainment.

We must rise up together and stop this form of mental and emotional racial cruelty.

I'm NOT suggesting that all Black men are deplorable. I'm rather asking for the men who always preach, "THERE ARE STILL GOOD BLACK MEN OUT THERE" to join in to help stop the complete destruction of the Black race family.

WE do not have another minute to waste thinking this problem will be fixed by others, or it will just magically one day disappear. Our children are failing (over a million of them are living in 12 x 9 feet cages). Black people are poorer than any other race. We are simply not doing well as a race and our degradation must not be allowed to grow any more widespread with the media leading the charge.

I'm doing my share to research valuable information for you. In return, all I'm asking is for you to circulate this information (and purchase my book), so that we can stop paying for our own demise and begin to appreciate those who take the risk to say the hard to expose realities of being Black American citizens.

WE, Black people, don't have to participate in a public march, confront the system, or put our jobs in jeopardy to make a difference. All we have to do is think about our BEST INTEREST before we spend our dollars, and then chose to support those of us who have dedicated their lives towards our upward mobility, SO WE CAN AFFORD TO DO THE HARD TO DO WORK.

It's called voting with our dollars, and today that's the ONLY vote that really counts.

God Save Us because "Black Women Need Love, too!" The book is available on amazon.com. Order your copy today, so that I can continue to deliver to you the information that many of us are too busy to find.

I'm going to love my people, even when a few people hate me for it!

Pearl Jr. is an activist, producer, radio commentator, speaker, and author of three books. Please send her feedback at pearljr@trutalk.us and visit http://www.BlackWomenNeedLoveToo.com

Pearl Jr.

Friday, January 5, 2007

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The views and opinions expressed herein by the author do not necessarily represent the opinions or position of BlackElectorate.com or Black Electorate Communications.