Date: Thu, 13 Nov 1997 16:39:16 -0500 From: Bob Haas Subject: Re: "it's all good" Sorry for entering into the thread so late, but I just had to add my two cents. I've heard both "it's all good," and "git-go," as in "from the git-go," all of my 38 years. They may be based in AAVE; they may be based in Southern English, but whatever the case, the uses of both most decidedly run back further than four years. It seems to me very possible that rap, hip-hop, or other movements in popular culture--film, TV, theatre--borrow from what came before. The trick is taking the phrase, word, usage, back to its original context, which this thread never did. Boy, we do need Popik back on-list. Later. On Mon, 3 Nov 1997, Margaret G. Lee -English wrote: > As with much slang that eventually enters mainstream usage, "It's all > good" originated in the African American community about four years ago, > essentially a product of hip-hop/rap culture. That and "my bad," > "dis," hood," "git-go," "squat," and many other expressions underscore the > long rich tradition of the linguistic creativity of African Americans. > > Margaret Lee > Hampton University > > On Sat, 1 Nov 1997, Tom Head > wrote: > > > Date: Sat, 1 Nov 1997 22:21:01 -0600 > > From: Tom Head > > To: ADS-L[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]UGA.CC.UGA.EDU > > Subject: "it's all good" > > > > Does anyone know where the phrase "it's all good" came from? I've heard > > it used a lot in grunge culture and have seen it gradually make its way to > > mainstream youth slang (almost exclusively in males, in my experience). > > I'd be just about ready to bet that this phrase actually originated in the > > jazz era, but I have no proof. > > > > The phrase is used to shrug off an apology for a minor inconvenience (ex: > > "Sorry I spilled your drink." "Hey, don't worry, man, it's all good."). > > > > Tom Head > > tlh[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]netdoor.com > > http://www2.netdoor.com/~tlh > > > > "The first duty in life is to be as artificial as possible. > > What the second duty is, no one has yet discovered." > > -- Oscar Wilde > > > Bob Haas UNCG Department of English rahaas[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]hamlet.uncg.edu "No matter where you go, there you are."