Tell me something I don't know, Dean!

Let the madness begin.

What is the appeal about the "DL brothers"? And why are we still talking about them? We know there are men who are in the closet while partaking in the gay culture, or gay sex. And we already know why some Black people are lost when it comes to sexuality and LBGT issues. However, the Black Gay guru, Terrance Dean is coming at us with more rehashed info, that if you read a book or a few articles, you already know the answers and reasons. Today, as I was surfing the net, I found this piece in Gawker.com.

Terrance Dean has a follow-up documentary to his Hip Hop-Gay megadrama novel. It's called X'pos'D meaning "exposed" for all you non-hipsters. According to Gawker.com and Dean, it will explore "why the black community is afraid to address the taboo of homosexuality."

Really, Dean? Are you sure this documentary will focus on this, or something else like Dean's secret musical talent or artistic views? Since the book was misleading, I feel the documentary may follow suit.

Plus, we already know why! We've heard this crap already! We've been talking about this within the past 5 years!

But to save time and brain cells, I'm going to tell everyone the reasons why Black people have problems about homosexuality.

• religion
• ignorance
• lack of social experiences
• lack of global education
• stern beliefs in gender roles
• religion...oh did I say that already? Oh, I did, but it's so strong in our community, it's almost scary (I'm agnostic, btw)

To be honest, these reasons are almost the same reasons as other groups. In the youtube clip, you will see some of those points expressed. However, I can hope there's more info in this mess Dean's shooting at us. But if you want other views or perspectives, here are some credible sources to check out.

• Any book written by Keith Boykin
• Hip Hop Homos, Jumpin' the Broom: The New Covenant, and Pic Up the Mic, documentaries from LOGO
• Why I hate Abercrombie & Fitch: Essays on Race and Sexualty by Dwight McBride.

I hope these sources are helpful and inspiring. We need something to clear the air of this pollution.

More from Terrance Dean's Secret Invasion of the gay hip hoppers

So in Time.com, Terrance Dean, the author of Hiding in Hip Hop On the Down Low in the Entertainment Industry — from Music to Hollywood was interviewed about his book. Here are some highlights.
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Where do you keep your list of names and corresponding fake names?

[Laughs] Writing the book of course I had to keep my notes. I am a journalist, first and foremost. I used to write for the New York Sun and the Tennessean. I keep notes and I have those in a very safe place. [Laughs] To make sure I don't forget who's who because I knew I had to change everyone's name. Yes.

Do you think at any point you would reveal any of those names? Why or why not? No. I didn't write this book as a way to demean or out anyone or to do damage to anyone's careers. I think or I hope first and foremost that [people] can understand and recognize that this is my memoir. It is a memoir of my life as a down-low man in the entertainment industry. I wrote it with the intention of hoping to provide a voice for not only myself but a lot of people who are in the industry or are struggling with their sexuality but also those people who are down-low men or gay men who are looking to get into the business and they can't. It's been really empowering — the experience of writing this book and knowing that I didn't have to out anyone to do that or to tell that type of story.

How do you respond to people who question how true or accurate your accounts in this book are in light of recent news that several high-profile memoirs have been found to be mostly or partly untrue?

Two things. One, is that I have over 10-plus years working in the industry, which anyone can verify — both my name, and call any of the companies I've worked for. I've worked for major companies and corporations in the production field such as MTV, BET, Warner Brothers. I name all of the films and the projects in the book. Anyone who is resourceful can verify that information. There are some things you definitely can't [fake] in the entertainment industry because there are production records. The great thing, as you said, in light of the memoirs that have been proven to be false or fabricated, Simon and Schuster, the legal team got involved and verified a lot of the information in my book, to protect themselves but also to protect myself.

My view: Mess. How is this helping people come out, when he has list of gay stars hidden under his bed. And again, selling it as "I'm gonna tell you who's gay in Hip Hop whether you like it or not" as a memoir is an old and shoddy tactic. If he wanted people to take his story seriously, he should take his story seriously.

And the part about the fabricated pieces is a weak response. I can work at Macy's, in fact I have. But I could lie about my affairs with managers. If they are closeted how would they confirm the truth?

The funny part is he writes empowering books for black men. It's almost saying that Rhoda Penmark (The girl from, The Bad Seed) writes books about being a good child. I hope this doesn't take off, this book should be in the dollar stores or burned. Where is Captain Beatty and the firemen when you need them.

Gay in Hip Hop? So what?

So, I wrote about this book/mess before.
Hiding in Hip Hop:On the Down Low in the Entertainment Industry--from Music to Hollywood is coming out tomorrow (I think) and all the Black secretly gay men should hide under their beds. But guess what, they may not have to.

I was informed that it's not completely a tell-all book. It starts off with Dean's life story—poverty, molestation, a heroin-addicted prostitute mother. He goes to college and moves to Los Angeles to break into the entertainment business. He mixes with a wide range of people from movies, television, and the random parts of the LA celebrity-industrial complex, as well as people from the music industry. And his sexual experiences are noted in the book, but the catch is: There are no names mentioned!

Yep, I knew it. This is a tabloid book of sorts. Just a bio with true or false experiences with DL men. Now, I knew it would be something like this. As a writer, I would want to get my book published too. However, I would not sell out others for my claim to stardom. This book was marketed to out the stars in Hip Hop and movie fame. Terrance Dean was suppose to...well, I don't know what he was planning to do with this book. What are his intentions? Does he think he's helping anyone?

Child Cheese, he selling us out! He's willing to hurt others for his gain. As a black gay man, I find this book to be destructive to everything we have done to leave the DL curse behind. What is the point of this book? If it was a fictional story, then I could understand. But it's not.

I feel that this book is counterproductive to SGL, gay men of color, and the overall gay community. Maybe I'm taking it too far, but I'm bothered by this. I feel this book could send a horrible message to men who are struggling with their sexuality. If anything we should help them, not put them out there on front street. Most of us know the pain of being closeted, if a guy decided to out me when I wasn't ready, for no apparent reason, I would be mortified. If I was writing a bio, I would try to help someone, or reach out to say that, I've been there and if you like, I can help. I feel that's the a good way to strengthen the LGBT community.