I'm sure that people have probably had conversations about this before, but I had to blog about it after I saw the Jamie Foxx video for "Blame It". First, let me say that the video was dope and even though we all know that I am opposed to autotune unless its on T-Pain's voice (and I don't know why Jamie Foxx needed it since he actually can sing) I am still  feeling the song. Anyway, the thing that caught my eye was the fact that Samuel L. Jackson was in the video.

With all the stars in the video, I know people might be wondering why he was the onlly one that really caught my attention. This is because he has been the most vocal about rappers becoming actors, yet he didn't hesitate to be in Jamie Foxx's video (an actor turned singer). Please don't take this as disrespect because I am a huge fan of Samuel L. Jackson, but this is just something that crossed my mind, so I've gotta be as honest as I can. For anybody that watched the Jamie Foxx's show back in the day, everybody knows that he constantly showed off his singing skills, so there was no doubt from the beginning that he could sing. However, if Jackson feels that it is in some way intruding for rappers to act, wouldn't that be the same thing for actors becoming rappers/singers/etc.?

I can definitely understand where he's coming from in terms of the fact that it became somewhat of a trend, so it seemed like at one time (and it still does) that every rapper took on the second job as an actor. But if they have the talent, why not allow them to get roles. Some may say that rappers may get special privilege, which I think may be true in some situations, but everybody knows that in any form of entertainment, and really anywhere money is involved, things can be a little shady. Plus, I'm willing to be that some big name actors probably got roles that maybe somebody else could have fit a little better simply because of they're name when they auditioned. This is not to say that the the big named actor isn't a genuinely better actor, but certain roles just fit certain people better, however you have to get people interested, and you do that by recruiting big names.

Not only that, but there are plenty of rappers who have made an excellent transition and really do take their jobs as actors seriously. Ice Cube has shown that he can play in several different roles, has started his own production company, and has still managed to hold it down in the rap game. LL Cool J, outside of hip hop heads, is known more for his acting than raps. Will Smith is a better actor than he is rapper (once again no disrespect, but we all know that he holds it down in movies). Ludacris doesn't even want people calling him by his stage name while on set. He is simply Chris Bridges when acting, and we all know he gave a monster performance on Law and Order and in Crash. Queen Latifah also draws in large crowds at the box office. There are also a number of other names that could be mentioned. At this point, haven't rappers proved that they can make the transition?

I also have to wonder if making music videos at all help singers and rappers when it comes to acting. They always make diverse songs and there are often videos that have to cater to the type of song, meaning that the have to express different emotions and show different elements when they shoot them. While it is only for a 3-5 minute period, does that at least help them make a transition? There are many cases when videos are set-up to mimic a movie. It is simply a shorter version, but there is still a story being told. And for the sake of a quality video, the artists have to put on at least a mediocre performance. The better the acting, the better the video.

I know that Jamie Foxx's talent was already known before he actually started putting out albums, but just because rapper's acting talent isn't known before hand doesn't mean that they can't act. And a side note, Jamie I'm feeling the music, but can we continue to get some comedy, too? I love to see some stand up between albums. Even a few more comedy movies. But, that's far from the point.  Anyway, let me hear from you. Are you tired of all these rappers acting now? Does Samuel L. have a point? Was it a little hypocritical for him to be in the video? Post your thoughts either by comment or email at straightouttahiphop@gmail.com. And for all those that haven't yet seen the new video that I was talking about...