About 12 months ago I did this: "Seven things I’m grateful for in 2004". This time around I’m doing "Outro 2005"; it’s my personal wrap up for the year. We still gots 11 days to go, but what the heck it's never too early to open up your Christmas presents. :D

For Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie it's a high to write about her beloved Nsukka. But for me, being in Nsukka for long periods throughout the year is 'cos a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. Anyway I’ve been the better off for it personality wise cos a lot of sensibility has been pumped into my head along with a double dose of meekness. I guess I’m now good to go.

Like drug addicts and alcoholics, cyber space has been my own solution (this year) to getting away from life's boredom and troubles. Getting my own website: "traedays.com" has definitely been the high of it all. Nigeria being Nigeria getting online constantly hasn't been easy, but like Alamieyeseigha who said his escape from London to Bayelsa was a miracle and that he didn't know how it happened, I’m saying my coming online almost every other day has been a miracle. It just happens. :D

In the Time magazine edition of Dec 17th, 2001 Bono said:

"Rock music can change things. I know that it changes our lives" says Bono. "Rock is really about the transcendent feeling. There’s life in the form. I still think that rock music is the only music that can still get you to that eternal place where you want to start a revolution, call your mother, change your job or change your mind. I think that’s what rock music can do".

Well for me I’ve gotten to that eternal place many a time this year via Hip hop. And recording “from ABJ to UNN” in July was defiantly one of them times.

For the outro in this outro I say rest in peace to the souls we lost 10 days ago in the Sosoliso plane crash. There goes a bunch of promising Nigerians. It’s painful but as they say “Nigeria go survive”. Let’s pray we survive the preliminary round in next year’s African Cup of Nations. I can’t wait man!

It’s been a year of ups and down in the world. Here’s one of my favourite pictures for the year 2-double-O-5. Ha-ha, I love my black people!

Our father, give us this day our daily bread/
...give us these days and take our daily bread/
see I done did all this whole bullshit/
and to atone I throw a little something, something on the pulpit/
we took that shit, measured it and then cooked that shit/
and what we gave back was crack music/
and now we ooze it through they nooks and crannies/
so our mammas ain’t got to be they cooks and nannies/
and we gonna repo everything they ever took from granny/
now the former slaves trade hooks for Grammies/
this dark diction has become America's addiction, those who ain't even black use it/
we gon' keep bagging up this here crack music/

Kanye’s closing words (spoken poetry) on “crack music”.

See you in 2006, peace out!