Video: Lupe Fiasco Debuts Lyrics From Food & Liquor 2 At Cornel West's Retirement

Mr. West is in the building. Cornel West, that is. Sorry, couldn't help it...the world renowned Princeton professor who has become arguably America's leading black intellectual voice and--without argument--the foremost moral philosopher carrying on in the tradition of MLK, Jr. Not surprisingly, his retirement celebration yesterday was a stellar affair attended by Harry Belafonte and P-funk pioneer George Clinton, and our own Lupe Fiasco, among others. For his part, Lupe spoke at length about West's influence on his creative practice--in particular his choice of The Cool and Lasers as album titles. He also recited some lyrics from a song called "It's Hood Now" which will be included on his forthcoming LP the full title of which will apparently be: Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor 2: The Great American Rap Album. One line in particular stands out:

“The Ivy League was running really well; then they slipped up and let Cornel in. It’s hood now.”

But to see more, watch the video above (and see artwork for the LP's first single "Around My Way, Freedom Ain't Free" after the jump).

spotted at LE