Somali rapper K'Naan explains Somali pirates

If you follow world news (or even if you don't) you may have heard about pirates in Somalia hijacking ships at sea. Normally they rob the ships and hold the crew for ransom. I must admit, I was kinda wondering what that was all about. You don't really hear about too many real-life pirates in this day and age. Somali rapper K'Naan explains why this long stretch of east African coastline got so gully.

Quote Of The Day

"The truth is that there is nothing noble in being superior to somebody else. The only real nobility is in being superior to your former self."

Whitney Young
US civil rights leader (1921 - 1971)

Number (N)ine-New Era Fitted

These have to be the dopest hats I've seen all year. Hi-end Japanese brand Number (N)ine decided to do a collaboration with New Era and it came out incredible. Featuring a checkered flag print pattern, the caps will retail for ¥13,650 (Approx. $151 USD), available at both Number (N)ine Tokyo locations.

Hollywood Nights

Me, J.P. (on the far left), and some Dj we met at some party in the Hollywood hills. I don't know who took this but I found it in my email today. It looks like I hadn't got much sleep. I guess that's supposed to be my cool look. LoL

Nike Shoe Ad feat. Mike Epps, Kobe & DJ A.M.

Dj A.M. got those Air Yeezy's on. The Air Yeezy is Kanye West's collaborative shoe with Nike. They're slated to drop in March 2009. There's a picture of 3 of the colors below.

Pic Of The Day

They must've really been getting seriously ignored to even have the time to write out all that shit. They even underlined it in mustard. It's actually pretty neat to be written from a ketchup bottle. They get an "A" for penmanship AND creativity.

Adidas-Vespa Collaboration: Spring '09

Adidas is my favorite shoe brand....Burgundy is my favorite color. I kinda felt obligated to post these.

Timberland Boot: Holiday Collection

I know they may be a bit out there, but these muthafuckas are dope! I'm thinking on some log cabin trip to the snow... or on some trip to the mountains camping type shit. Rock 'em with a flannel and you got instant outdoor swagger. They'll hit you for $375 but you'll have them forever. Boots like these have been around since the Mid 1800's...trust me, they're never going out of style. Available at oakny.com

Kid Cudi Interview

NAS: Queens Get The Money

This is the "unofficial" video to the intro to Nas' most recent album. This is the second "unofficial" video he's dropped from this project. In a country with a so-called right to free speech, its crazy that he had to change his album title from "Nigger" to "Untitled", and to express the imagery he wanted to display, he couldn't even be in two of the four videos from his own project. In case you haven't seen it, below is the other unofficial video my nig Tag did.

Mr. Chi-City: Ghetto Santa Clause

The homie Mr. Chi-City spreading some holiday cheer through the hood with the Chi-City christmas giveaway. The prostitute trying to run game for her sister was kinda amusing. Check it out.

Martin: Classic T.V.

These are two clips from two of my favorite Martin episodes. This has to be one of the greatest t.v. shows ever. Jerome was the shit..."look at the white shoes, look at the white shoes" LOL

Quote Of The Day

"It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf."

Walter Lippmann
(1889-1974)

CurT@In$: Night Of The Living Dope

I kinda like this. What u think?

Rachel Ray: 2003 FHM Magazine? WTF

I was surfing the internet and couldn't believe it when I ran across these pictures. It's Food Network star Rachel Ray posing for FHM magazine in 2003. I didn't know Rachel had it in her. LoL

Jamie Foxx Clowning On Terrence Howard.

Jamie Foxx is hella funny. Straight comedy.

Bush Gets Shoe Thrown At Him By Reporter!

If you haven't seen this, it's pretty funny. Bush has to be the world's most hated man, I mean damn...he's the President of the world's strongest country and reporters are throwing shoes at him.

I Love Ladybug.

I grabbed these yesterday when I was out in San Francisco. They're the limited edition Ladybug Forum's. What u think? Dope or Wack? Be honest.

Gucci!

This is the Gucci extra large rubber band digital watch. I love rubber watches, but this one is a bit more expensive than my usual Adidas or G-Shock joints. It retails at $1,345, which is actually reasonable for a Gucci watch. Don't hesitate to grab this for me as a gift if you feel inclined.LoL

SNL Digital Short: Jizz In My Pants

They must have a real songwriter on staff, because this song was too well written for a comedy skit. The shit had a bridge and everything. I could see them playin this at the club.LoL

Nyjah Huston: Skate Or Die

Nyjah Huston - Elements TV #82

Nyjah Huston is the world's youngest professional skateboarder at 14 years old. He's sick on that skateboard. The clip is worth watching.

GRAVITY balans recliner

Strange enough, I've noticed lately that I have a thing for fresh chairs. These special edition black leather Gravity chairs have been designed and signed by Scandinavian designer Peter Opsvik himself. The chair bears a special metal name plate and it comes with Opsviks’s latest book “Rethinking Sitting.” The GRAVITY balans recliner is the next best thing to zero gravity. Since the GRAVITY balans sells for about $1200, we can expect the limited edition run to cost a bit higher than that.

New Casio Databank

I wear a lot of plastic watches so I'm glad I saw these. The classic Casio Databank got remixed and was given a new up to date look. Coming in four new colorways, the watch comes in black, green, orange and white and features a check keyboard. The watches are hitting stores this week. The Casio Databank was actually a big deal, having a built-in calculator. Today, you can consider it a vintage watch.

Supra Cruiser

These look like a Jordan IV meet a SB Dunk. Either way, they're a pretty dope shoe. Supra always comes with it. When they drop these will retail for around $70

Jay-Z: December 4th (from the Black Album)

Me being a big Jay-Z fan, I was suprised when I came across this. Somehow they snuck this one past me when The Black Album came out. He does a good job of keeping his family out of the limelight because this was the first time I've ever seen his mother. Beyonce's impersonation of Jay-Z in the video is pretty good, too

Jazmine Sullivan: Apollo Kids

I ran across this on youtube. It's new R&B sensation Jazmine Sullivan on Apollo Kids. She was only 11, but she still had that killer voice. Below is my personal favorite of hers.

Salad Wrap (Shake That Salad) - The Sniper Twins

Ran across this the other day. The funniest part was that they can actually rap. "Salad help me get my grind on" LoL

Asics Gel Lyte 3

Limited to 100 pairs worldwide, the Asics Gel Lyte 3’s will be released exclusively at Colette for France on December 13th. They will also be available at Patta (Amsterdam) and Solebox (Berlin), with each boutique getting 12 pairs. As a nice added feature, each shoe will be coming in a matching leather bag.
I love the colors on these, too bad they're not dropping in America. Right now I wish I was still in Europe.

Did Kanye Go Too Far?

Thoughts?

(Somehow I got my own blogsite address wrong in the video. I said internationalivan.blogspot.com, when its actually everythingivan.blogspot.com)

Diddy "I Am King" Mini-Movie

I like this. The aesthetics are inspiring. VERY inspiring.

Random I.V.A.N.

Here's a few random pictures from my Rome trip. I normally don't really like pictures of myself, but for some reason I kinda like the one on the bottom. I had a bad case of food poisoning when I was there, but I played it off for the pictures and the video blog. I definitely deserve an Oscar.

Pic Of The Day

This is a picture I took last week in Rome. I believe the sign translates to "Rome For Obama". It was for a conference being thrown in support of his election campaign. The energy that Obama created across the world was incredible. He may be the first 'World President'.

Lebron James "Chalk" commercial w/ Wayne cameo

Surprisingly the kicks aren't that bad. The fact that they're my favorite color may have something to do with me liking them though.

The Daily Loop

Antique Watches: The New 401k?

With the roller coaster like stock market these days, one of the surest places to put your money is in antique watches. Looking at the results of the first Fall Antiquorum watch auction held on Oct. 16, things don't seem to be affected by the falling Dow at all.
One of the most interesting pieces to sell at the auction was a watch by Longines given to world famous physicist Albert Einstein by the Jewish community of Los Angeles in 1931. The 14k tonneau shaped watch was engraved with Einstein's name and date on the back of the watch. The estimate for the piece was $25,000-35,000 and it ending up selling for an incredible $596,000 -- over 2000% of its estimate. Below is a picture of Einstein rocking his prized watch in 1933.

Radiohead: 15 Step

Radiohead had an animation contest for they're latest album. This video, created by Kota Totori is one of the winners.

Quote Of The Day

"The problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts"

Bertrand Russell- British Philosopher and Nobel prize winner (1872-1970)

GQ Man Of The Year

Well since I wasn't chosen, I guess Barack Obama is the next best option for GQ man of the year. This is the december issue. It's sure to be a collectors item. Even though I think I was robbed, hopefully I'll win next year.

Beyonce on SNL

Here's Beyonce's skit from Saturday Night Live. Justin Timberlake popped up in this one also.
On another note, when I watched this, it forced me to think about the different standards of Black male masculinity. How many male African-American singers/rappers would agree to do a SNL skit in a woman's leotard and heels. And if they did, what would the backlash be like? Why is it different? Just some food for though.

Ivan In Rome

Here I am on the balcony of my hotel room in Rome doing a quick video for my myspace page. I was at the Parco dei Principi hotel. Excuse my hollywood-ness, but I WAS in Rome, so I had the right to be feeling myself a little bit.

Quick Note

I just realized I had a bunch of comments that hadn't been accepted. They were hiding on my blog moderators page. They're up now. So, if you left a coment and didn't see it until now, I apologize. This blog thing is fairly new to me, blame it on my inexperience :)

Intellectual I.V.A.N.'s Fact Of The Day

Ever wonder why we always vote in November, and why it's always on Tuesday? Well luckily I.V.A.N. will tell you (yes, I just spoke in third person). The short answer is because we used to be a nation of farmers. The long answer is that Congress chose November because the harvest was over and the weather wouldn't be bad enough to prevent people from traveling.

As for Tuesday, people used to have to travel overnight to their polling location. In 1845, most people traveled by horse. Trying to avoid religious days of rest, Congress chose Tuesday, leaving Monday and Wednesday as travel days.

Now you can share this bit of info with friends as you lie and say you read it in a book somewhere.

The Yeezy Tuxedo Fitted Cap!

The Bay Area’s "HELLA TIGHT" company presents the ‘Yeezy Tuxedo‘ Fitted Cap. Inspired by the music of Kanye West, the cap company flipped an homage to the double threat producer/emcee into fitted baseball cap packed with many fine details.

The crown is a Black 100% Wool, stitched with Black Pinstripes. Kanye’s Bear Head Logo, complete with those trademark shutter shades is embroidered on the front panels. Both the shades and the White outline are in Glo-In-The-Dark thread. The top and bottom of the visor is black perforated leather. Adding that finishing touch the button is perforated leather as well. The interior is finished off with a white satin lining.

This shit is dope as fuck. As soon as Im done typing this, I'm about to go try to buy one on the internet. Real talk though.

Football...or Soccer to us Americans

In honor of my trip to London later this week figured I'd post the new limited edition Louis Vuitton soccer ball. It comes with a lamb-hide carrying strap. I always thought it odd how the worlds most popular sport gets no recognition in the U.S. We even had the nerve to change the name. Guess we figured we already had a sport named football. true, true.

Lebron James & Nicole Scherzinger Nike Ad

Lebron is a fool.

T.I. vs Mysonne

Does Mysonne have a good point? You be the judge.

New Jap City: Niggas Wit Purses

These are some cats outta Chicago. I kinda feel them though, some of these cats are going to far with these "man bags".LoL

How Globes Are Made

My dad told me when I was little that you should learn something new every day.

Maino- What's Poppin My G (feat Push Montana & Mouse)

I fucks with Maino. Besides 50, I haven't heard too much quality street music come out of New York in a while. He's a good look for the east coast.

Barack vs 50 Cent: Examining Black Masculinity

I ran across this the other day. It was interesting to say the least. Check it out.

Kanye West: ROBOCOP

Who's the first cat with the new Kanye? Ya boy I.V.A.N. of course.

Soulja Boy: Turn My Swag On

I fucks with Souljah Boy. I like this song. I think I might play this in the morning while I'm getting dressed.

Bun B & Greedy Genius Collaboration

The mash-up between hip-hip artist Bun B of UGK and Greedy Genius previewed back in August has now hit select stores. The special tag honoring his fallen comrade, Pimp C, is not seen on this version although chances are it maybe be included. You can buy them at the David Z online shop. These shits are hot.

New Macbook & Macbook Pro

They unveiled these today. For more info check out www.apple.com

New Kicks

I grabbed these the other day. I don't buy too many Nike's but I needed something to wear that night and the mall was closing in 15 minutes. This is what I came out with. I thought the purple was dope. Just thought I'd share.

Quick Hova Interview

Chill Time.

The weather's been nice lately, so I've had a chance to do my favorite thing in the world, smoke and watch the sunset. That's me throwin' ya'll the deuces.

Beyonce: Single Ladies

The other day when I heard this song I thought she was crazy for dropping this as her single. But when I saw the video I realized I was wrong. When she's about to drop an album, Beyonce always does an excellent job of reminding you why she's in a class of her own. Her performance in this is amazing. She's still the baddest chick in the game. Below is the video of hers that almost turned me into her stalker. I still get goosebumps watching it.

Beyonce - Flaws and All

Pic Of The Day

I ran into this ill picture of a diver trailing a huge jellyfish. In my opinion, there's no faster way to shrink the swollen human ego than a trip out of civilization into the hands of nature. That's why I always take a gun when I go camping. Getting into a fist-fight with a grizzly bear is not a good look.

Inside The Mind Of Lil' Wayne

Here's a recent Weezy interview. Don't really see him do too many so I thought I'd share.

Reason Clothing Fall '08

Here's a few of my favorite pieces from Reason's fall line. I don't post as many clothes on this blog as I used to, but that flannel shirt was too dope to pass on.

David Chapelle!

I ran into this today, it's David Chapelle performing a 10 minute improv set at Kojo's in London. The footage looks old, but I've never seen this before.

Katy Perry

There's not really too much music out that I haven't posted already, its been a slow week. So here's Katy Perry. She's the California native who's hit "I kissed a girl" killed mainstream radio. Her next single "Hot n Cold" is currently #8 on itunes right now. Get the link while its hot. CLICK HERE to download the album.

Below is a dope video I found of Katy recording herself from her laptop when she hears her song "I Kissed A Girl" on the radio for the 1st time. I'll bet she had no idea how big it would be.


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I.V.A.N.'s Scotch Review

I'm a fan of Scotch Whisky, so when I was at BevMo the other day looking for a quality spirit, my final decision was no huge surprise. I decided to go out on a limb and experiment with something new and ended up with Buchanan's De Luxe (aged 12 years). The overall taste is peppery at first, then you begin to get the taste of smoke, with hints of vanilla and honey. The aftertaste coats the palate with toasted oak and tobacco flavors. I give it 3.75 stars out of 5. The 750 ml bottle (fifth) retails for around $47.00. Below I put a video on how to taste scotch for any future connoisseurs.

W.

These are 2 different trailers to the Oliver Stone directed movie "W." about our current president George W. Bush. I must admit, this movie looks great. I think people are gonna rush the theatres to check this out. It was genius to release it in the month before a presidential election, when folks who normally could care less about politics are following the issues. Brilliant.

Chris Rock: Kill The Messenger

Here goes Chris Rock's new special which just aired on HBO last night. Some of you may not have HBO, or maybe you just want to have it on the computer or the ipod. CLICK HERE to download. Enjoy...

The link died for a minute, but I found a fresh one.

Renaissance Man Of The Week: STEVE McQUEEN

Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen (March 24, 1930 – November 7, 1980) was an American movie actor, nicknamed "The King of Cool". After appearing in the 1974 film The Towering Inferno, he became the highest paid movie star in the world.

McQueen was offered the lead role in Breakfast at Tiffany's but was unable to accept due to another movie contract. McQueen served as one of the pallbearers at Bruce Lee's funeral in 1973. After Chuck Norris taught McQueen's son Taekwondo, he is the person credited with persuading a young Chuck Norris to take acting lessons. McQueen was also known for his prolific drug use and was an everyday marijuana smoker.

It's not just clothes that give a man style -- it's the body language, the attitude, and perhaps the affection of a beautiful woman that can often make a look complete. At home with his first wife, Neile Adams. Los Angeles, CA, 1963. Take notes, Steve McQueen was fly.