Welcome to Jamrock

Viacom sucks. For any number of reasons. But most recently for something I've noticed on VH1 Soul. See unlike typical music stations. VH1 Soul plays nothing but videos 24/7. Which is generally a good thing. The problem I have is when they censor certain videos for no particular reason on this channel. Whereas the same video goes unchanged on BET. Not that I want BET to censor it too but it just seems odd that 2 channels owned by the same company would be so drastic in there playlist policies. For example I first noticed this with Jay-Z's song "Girls, Girls, Girls." There is apart in that song where he asks a non de-script indian woman what tribe she was with "red dot or feather." An honest enough question if not alittle brash (or maybe crass is more appropriate). But this part of the song gets blank out. So he literally says, "Asked her what tribe she wit? ____________?" Though this video is a little old it still plays in the rotation on VH1 Soul. I seem to see it at least once a week these days. Needless to say this elicited a WTF moment that got confirmed the next time the video was played. I had recalled seeing the video unedited on BET. Hell, I probably should pull out some old VHSs to verify. But considering the next example I probably don't have to.

So flash forward a few months and Damion "Jr Gong" Marley releases, Welcome to Jamrock. Where part of the chorus goes, "out in the streets they call it murder." Considering that the topic of the song is about the sufferation (Jamaican slang if my understanding is correct) of the Jamaican people and the tribulations of growing up poor in such a depressed/opressed environment I would think that such a lyric would be acceptable. Considering it is not glorifying murder just expressing some of the problems faced by the inhabitants of the island you would think it would be okay to have such a lyric go unedited. And it does on BET. On VH1 Soul it plays as, "out in the streets they call it __________." I thought I was losing it when I heard the edited version. Because I felt like I had just heard it played out completely, with no edits. In fact I had, just on another channel. Consistently VH1 Soul edits out that particularly offending (apparently it must be right? otherwise why cut it out). Too me it seems silly. But, hell, what do I know I live in LA LA Land.