Kennedy Center Honors... Herbie Hancock: Snoop Dogg - "Gin & Juice" (Cantaloupe Island)

Jazz-Funk pianist Herbie Hancock is quite arguably the Godfather of Hip-Hop; his 1983 Electro-Funk composition "Rockit" is oftentimes cited as an early sonic blueprint for the then budding genre. I can still vividly remember the first time I heard Hancock's music, on an RS 500 [Greatest Songs of All Time] sampler CD around the age of 12-15. It was "Watermelon Man" from his sprawling four-track Head Hunters album (1973) assisted by back-up The Headhunters; more or less a progressive and slowly deconstructing re-make of Herbie Hancock's own 1962 composition, which was originally inspired by "the cry of the watermelon man making the rounds through the back streets and alleys of Chicago. The wheels of his wagon beat out the rhythm on the cobble stones." President Obama & The First Lady amongst DC's finest inducted Herbie Hancock, Martina Arroyo, Billy Joel, Shirley MacLaine, and Carlos Santana at the 36th annual Kennedy Center Honors back on December 8th (my birthday!) World-renowned rapper, honorary pimp, and common house-hold entrepreneur Snoop Dogg aka Snoop Lion aka Snoopzilla donned a classic suit & tie ensemble to further honor Hancock in front of a bunch of awkwardly excited political delegates. Snoop Dogg and a four-piece Smooth Jazz-Fusion band proceeded to perform a live Hancock-indebted mash-up: "Gin & Juice" inter-woven with US3's 1993 Jazz-Rap mega-hit "Cantaloop," which famously sampled Herbie Hancock's own "Cantaloupe Island" (1964). The entire genre-blending performance can more or less be summed up by Snoop Dogg's closing remark, "Thank you for creating Hip-Hop. Hancock is supposedly working on some sort of mysterious new project along with Brain Feeder label-head Flying Lotus and modern day Jazz-Fusion bassist Thundercat, while further release details are currently unknown.

Comments

[W]reckless, Topless American Youth: Lana del Rey - "Born 2 Die" (Britney Spears Birthday 30)

Lana del Rey [Lizzy Grant] effectively became 2011's "It Girl" with the release of her phenomenal debut single, "Video Games" (Stranger) . Like many struggling singer-songwriters, Grant has been signed, dropped, and significantly changed her public image since bursting onto the scene (2009). With that said, it can be assumed that Lana del Rey has collected just as many "haters" as she has avid supporters. To be perfectly honest, the only other artist I can think of that made this much commotion... garnered so much wide-spread buzz/hate and critical acclaim -- right out of the gates -- with just one track is Britney Spears . And maybe in this post- Mike musical era, that's the true synthesis of Pop Culture: Britney Lynn Spears . After months of repeated teasing and speculation, Lana del Rey 's major label debut, Born 2 Die will [finally] be released this coming Jan. 30-31, 2012. Pitchfork reports that it will feature "Off to The Ra

"Let Me Shine for You:" Lindsay Lohan for Playboy (Winter 2011-12 Leak)

Lindsay Lohan essentially embodies exactly "What NOT to Do In Hollywood :" Fame, fortune, success... sex, drugs & Rock "N" Roll . Within a fairly short period of time, Lohan somehow managed to obtain a plentiful helping of POWER @ a very young age. This gradual rise-downfall was captured on film; Between 1998-2010, she portrayed a wide array of roles across the silver screen in movies including: Mean Girls, Bobby , Herbie Fully Loaded , Georgia Rule, Machete , and Freaky Friday . Between rapid-paced film shoots, Lindsay Lohan also found time to record 2 Pop Rock albums for Casablanca , Speak (2004) and A Litter More Personal-Raw (2005). Needless to say, Lindsay Lohan has gotten roped up in a lot of troubles and woes with the law over the last 3-5 years... a vicious cycle of drugs, arrest, court, rehab, "daddy issues," jail time [Repeat]. That's the pure basics of it - But Google that shit for additional info, if necessary. Towards the end of

All-around Breakdown: Sean Martin Discusses Debut Instrumental EP Introducing The Magician As No More Magic (Residual Effects)

Sean Martin is a multi-versed musician, producer, and tattooer hailing from Connecticut. As a guitarist, song-writer, and/or producer he has worked with a variety of well-known artists including Hatebreed, Cold Cave, Wear Your Wounds, Umbra Vitae, Twitching Tongues, Cage, Kid Cudi, House of Blow, Head Automatica, XO Skeletons, Jet Fueled Horses, Handsome Boy Modeling School, and more. His versatility and flexibility within music allows him to blur the lines in-between the confines of Hardcore, Electronic, Metal, and Hip-Hop. Martin is, also, a skilled tattooer at Brass City Tattoo located in Oakville, Connecticut promoting the traditional approach to the craft. Founded by Martin himself between 2020-22, No More Magic combines ominous melodies with downtempo beats to create a dizzying dream-like atmosphere. Paying homage to the golden era of Hip-Hop while forging ahead down its own dark road. For fans of Portishead, Massive Attack, and DJ Shadow. No More Magic's Introducing The

The Witzard

Search This Blog