Ozone Mag #49 by Ozone Magazine Inc

feedback think you ain’t gettin’ no love here, but trust, the streets got ya cause we see you grinding hard. It seems like every event I go to in the O, I see the OZONE crew there with their cameras, and I see that CRUNK!!!/OZONE SUV flying down 50 all the time. I’m proud of your accomplishments and I hope you grow to the top. Scratch that – you already there. And as for the OZONE Awards, I already got my ticket. Keep doing your fuckin’ thing. You got love from the O. – ladilynn407@yahoo.com (Orlando, FL) This is Joi - I just wanted to drop a quick thank you to those of you at OZONE that saw fit to nominate me for the Best Female R&B Award. I’ve been in this game a long time and haven’t seen much mainstream acknowledgement. The recognition is appreciated. I plan on being in attendance at the Awards ceremony. – Joi (Atlanta, GA) I read your 2 Cents in the June edition – damn! Shit has just been hitting you from all angles. There’s a lot of cursing, but print this: You haters disgust me! Over the past two years I’ve had the pleasure of receiving OZONE Magazine, and I just wanna say to all the haters, doubters, thieves and vandals: Get on JB’s team! Quit hating, quit talking down, and quit tryin’ to slow down the train and figure out a way to jump on it instead. I don’t mean dick-ridin’ and tryin’ to get shit for free (if you ain’t payin’ for your ads you’re a fuckin’ loser – at least try to barter some of that shit off). I’m talking about building a working business relationship with one of the realest, if not the realest, editor and publisher in the game right now. Do you read other magazines? Do you see the bullshit and “fun facts” they put in other magazines? OZONE has real questions. Whether or not the artist answers truthfully is up to them. OZONE is the hustler’s handbook. How else would I know about people like TJ’s DJ’s, Young Cash, and B.H.I., and have contact info to over a hundred DJs without having to put in my own legwork and phone time? JB, keep grinding. Get more SUVs, add more pages, and if you ever run out of stuff to write about just remember that the Midwest got next! – Chris Moss, cmoss412@tmail.com JB, I just wanted to tell you thanks and let you know that I’ve always had respect for you and in so many ways admire your swagger and tenacity. I remember when you first started up until now. I’ve watched you shake off and dodge the haters, even when they rolled in packs and you were solo. When C Wakeley first got in the game, you were one of the people that I told him about. I knew you were good for the game and would bring the respect back our way. I’m 100% for the Florida movement as well as the whole South. I hope and pray that you go as far as Oprah or past that. If it’s true that you get out of it what you put into it, then the game owes you a lot. I wish some of the younger artists could see that, because during the booty days we had no outlet. Much respect! – Big Amp, ioubigamp@aol.com (Gainesville, FL) I just received the new issue with Rick Ross on the cover and I want to applaud you for consistently bringing heat to the streets. Good lookin’ out on the 9th Ward issue – that’s where I grew up. With mainstream appeal, somehow you still narrow it down to the issues that I actually care about. – Derrick tha Franchise, derrick_francis03@hotmail.com (Virginia Beach, VA) JB, I read your editorial this month - bravo! Weird maybe, but I am so proud of you (yeah, lame line). I really admire your tenacity and my sense is that you are so much smarter than you let these industry cats know. I’m proud because you represent the destruction of so many stereotypes. It takes great courage to be yourself. I live through you because I let the semantics of this fucked-up business turn me off so thoroughly that I wish I had just studied nursing like I wanted to ten years ago. Watching you shine does so much for me, for US. I’ve always been silently cheering for your success. Your life has so much purpose and I know that who you are is so much greater than any hater bullshit. You are the Queen Bee in this publishing game. Fuck them other niggas! - Linda Day, lindaday@tmail.com (Atlanta, GA) JB, I am 19 years old and to me you are one of the most influential people in my life to date. I do love your columns, and not tryin’ to kiss your ass, but I do think you’re the shit because you’ve made it possible for Southern rappers to get noticed to the world. – Tiana Minors, minorsh@bellsouth.net (Jacksonville, FL) Hate it? Love it? Send your comments to feedback@ozonemag.com OZONE reserves the right to edit comments for clarity or length. 16