Vibe Magazine ends with a thud

Vibe had me at hello.
The sudden closure of the magazine yesterday struck me because it was never allowed to say 'goodbye.'
I remember when the magazine debuted in the early 1990s as a slick, long treasure trove of urban cultural hotness.
Vibe's claim to fame back in the day was its mixture of "hard" news journalism (courtesy of Jessie Washington, where is he?) and entertainment glam: photo shoots, music pieces and breaking new artists.
Its finest moment was also its most controversial. Kevin Powell's piece on who shot Tupac garnered the magazine praise outside of its circles. Of course Tupac Shakur was an interviewer's dream. He'd go off on tangents, name names, and didn't mind do-do-ing on the biggest names in hip-hop at the time: Puff Daddy and the Notorious B.I.G.
Alas, but Vibe lost its way shortly after that. Hip-hop became a bigger focus as a slew of rap magazines launched in the mid to late 1990s. Vibe became just another "rap rag" although it always thought of itself as more.
Hopefully we can see the "vibe" in another manifestation next time.

Vibe's Carnival Photos = Hotness

Vibe Magazine commissioned these photos from Carnival in Trinidad & Tobago.




For you and me, Mardi Gras may be the closest we come to one of these festivals, but in the Caribbean, it's nothing to don a wig, some glitter, get in line and start belly-rolling on 'em!

The return of "Honey Magazine"

With the Internet's unabated assault on all things printed, it comes as no surprise that the return of one of the more spunky if short-lived ventures in the 1990s comes back only in online-form: Honey Magazine.
Honey's best reportage came with the Mehki Phifer-Melinda Williams confessions, but quickly petered out as more deep-pocketed magazines eroded its fan base. Now, it's back again with a virtual twist. Check it out here.
Me, personally, I'd prefer my Honey a little more organic. Gon' guh.