#greg hancock

[arotheosis]

It’s all Whirred Up (NSBU Swap AU concept)

Essentially I started thinking about what it might be like if the action heroes were the ones in the real world, and the video world characters were the action heroes. I tried my best to switch things up so it feels different enough, although I’m still a little unsure about some character roles.

Will I ever actually sit down and write this properly? Who knows

In an old strip mall in Lake Elsinore sits one of the last remaining video rental stores in the country: Slater’s Video Superstore.

With the rise of streaming and digital media, however, the store is on its last legs. Its last week in fact, and its employees prepare to close down and find a new road to take in life.

Steven “King” Skin is a Princeton student with a bright future in politics. He’s nearing the end of his gap year, and wondering whether he really wants to go back to school after all. He works on the finances of the video store.

As he almost mindlessly balances the the store’s financial spreadsheets, he watches on one of the video store screens: Liv Skyler, master thief. Her name is whispered amongst criminal circles like a legend, because she can steal without even leaving a single trace behind.

Victor Ethanol is a young man with a dream of pursuing Formula 1 racing, but working several odd jobs to provide for his family. He does occasional maintanance/ plumbing work for the businesses in the strip mall, including the video store, which he visits frequently.

Trying to get him to take a break from working so hard, his brother Shaun asks if he wants to watch a movie. The movie’s protagonist? One Wendell Morris, former biker gang member who has become an informant for several underground organizations. He’s the black sheep of the Morris family, and their falling out is shrouded in mystery.

G13 is a young hacker who got caught attempting to access classified files, and was sentenced to community service. He’s supposed to be cleaning trash around the strip mall, but he mostly stays inside the video store using the crusty old public computer they have, since he’s no longer allowed to use any at home.

While attempting to bypass the many blocks on that ancient desktop computer, he sees a trailer for an old movie. It depicts Usha Rao, more commonly known by both her allies and enemies as Grandmother. She’s the head of a widespread criminal organization, and despite her sweet seeming appearance is someone to be feared. She’s been alive longer than anyone knows, she’s seen everything and knows everything, so if you mess with her family you cannot escape her wrath.

Working over by the more adult section of the store, is Jack Manhattan. After suffering through a grueling divorce with his wife and losing custody of his two children, his life is essentially at a standstill. He is very vocal about how much he prefers not being tied down, and talks about having many partners, but it’s clear that in reality he is not dealing with the separation well and is very lonely.

Unable to even look at the more unsavory content in front of him without thinking about the love he lost, he switches the channel only to see a movie starring crime investigator Paula Donvalson. While many overlook her based on her wild and sporadic personality, the crazy deductions she makes are more often than not entirely on the money, and the FBI begrudgingly hires her for many of their cases.

Jennifer Drips is a woman who does not stay in one place for far too long. Drifting quickly from town to town, she never sets up roots, but leaves a trail of lovers behind her. She is currently staying in a crappy apartment near Lake Elsinore, and working at the video store for some extra cash before she moves on.

On a screen behind her as she’s packing up the store’s inventory, plays a movie led by Russel Feelds, a mechanic developing gadgets for every organization under the sun. A self described lone wolf, he has no loyalty to any side, as long as you can pay his prices.

Greg Stocks is a wealthy man who owns nearly every storefront in the strip mall, except for the video store. He heads in every day attempting to make an offer that Slater will accept, but even as the store is close to shutting down, the video store owner remains stubborn.

Walking by the front of the store he sees, on one of the display TVs, a film about a man known only as Dang. Dang is the world’s deadliest assassin, and his methods are all just as strange as the man himself. After every kill he leaves behind his calling card, the word “rashab”. No one has deciphered its meaning yet.

[musicmags]

[jazzdailyblog]

Greg Osby: An Innovative Jazz Visionary

Introduction: Few jazz musicians can claim to have pushed the genre’s limits as far as Greg Osby has throughout its broad history. Osby has distinguished himself as a visionary and forerunner in the field of modern jazz with his distinctive approach to composition, improvisation, and sound. Greg Osby’s life, career, and musical accomplishments are explored in depth in this blog article,…

[mitjalovse]

Carlos Santana has a career that moves within a variety of idioms, though he remains a rock musician at heart. Sure, he appears on many jazz fusion records, yet he always puts some of his rock stylings in these proceedings. That makes his collaboration with Herbie Hancock on Monster weird, since you can't really locate much of the rock idiom there. To be honest, you can't find jazz there either. Actually, I am quite happy to hear Herbie Hancock did some LPs, where he discarded his genre and which probably pissed off most of his audience. Nonetheless, there's something admirable about someone like him doing something like this, more musicians should do this more often. And the fact that he convinced Santana for this? Even better.

[taskmastercaps]

[ID: Three screencaps from Taskmaster. Alex Horne says to Greg Davies, "Julian actually said afterwards that I've got 'the charisma of Matt Hancock'." Julian Clary explains, "Well, I was- I was roused by then." End ID.]

[thisisnotthenerd]

active stat tracking for never stop blowing up: episode 8

one spreadsheet to rule them all

hoo boy. a fun one. we're getting into the late season and thus we're seeing less leveling overall.

jack and jennifer did not see any change this episode, but they also just rolled less. kingskin, vic, and greg each exploded two skills, including d20s for greg and vic (wits, hot), while g13 got a d8 in hot.

we did see the d20 suite pay off immediately with ify's gm moment, which was insane. i hope we get to see the other uses because that would level them pretty significantly.

we also figured out the hidden factor--that dave was in president hancock and was maneuvering the shadow falcon protocol from behind the scenes. they now have a target for the finale, presumably being to stop him, get him and his macguffin, and get back to reality.

paula donvalson / jack manhattan

abilities: duelist, relentless, studied (brawl), quick healing, protector

stunts: d8

brawl: d4

tough: d10

tech: d4

weapons: d20

drive: d8

sneak: d6

wits: d10

hot: d8

liv skyler / kingskin

abilities: wealthy, trouble maker, demolitions, quick healing

stunts: d6

brawl: d20

tough: d12

tech: d10

weapons: d10

drive: d10

sneak: d4

wits: d12

hot: d10

andy 'dang' litefoot / greg stocks

abilities: trained (brawl), mastery (weapons), smokin', quick healing

stunts: d12

brawl: d0

tough: d20

tech: d8

weapons: d10

drive: d12

sneak: d4

wits: d20

hot: d20

wendell morris / vic ethanol

abilities: transporter, protector, trouble maker, quick healing, resilient

stunts: d10

brawl: d12

tough: d12

tech: d6

weapons: d6

drive: d20

sneak: d4

wits: d10

hot: d20

russell feeld / jennifer drips

abilities: trained (hot), neck snapper, quick healing, inspiring

stunts: d20

brawl: d20

tough: d12

tech: d4

weapons: d6

drive: d4

sneak: d12

wits: d20

hot: d8

usha rao / g13

abilities: wildcard, hacker, stealth, quick healing

stunts: d20

brawl: d4

tough: d10

tech: d20

weapons: d4

drive: d20

sneak: d6

wits: d20

hot: d8

group abilities:

la familia (stepping in for a tough roll, lending tokens at a 1:1, sharing skill dice for optimization)

diesel circus (doubling number of tokens on a double explosion, roll 2x on first roll after injury, successful drive check allows a second skill check on top)

alpha squad (gaining 2 tokens when the group suits up, reduce explosion range by 1, two characters roll and add the result)

the ones (reroll a nat one with a different skill, take a nat one as a max roll and blow up, accept a nat one and get 1/2 the tokens of the die value)

bustin' makes me feel good (on a nat 20 they can: a) graduate everyone's lowest die type, b) restart a skill track with advantage the second time, or c) become the gm for 60 seconds.

[the-perverse-library]

Massive Muse List

The following are just all the characters/series I would be happy to RP/answer asks about.

DC + Marvel Comics/Cartoons/Movies Just... all of them, because even if it's a deep cut I don't know, I can still research them on Google.

Brand New Animal Pink Flamingos, Michuru Kagemori

Monster Hunter Tsukino

Lilo and Stitch Experiment 624 (Angel), Nani, Lilo, Grand Councilwoman, Mertle, Experiment 123 (Carmen), Experiment 610 (Witch), Gantu

Dragon Ball Z Gohan, Chi-Chi, Videl, Krillen, Android 18, Bulma, Pan, Trunks, Fem!Trunks, Caulifla, Kale, Android 21, Cheelai, Broly, Dr. Arinsu, Erasa, Mai, Galena, Lagss, Maron, Piccolo, Fem! Android 17, Chronoa

Naruto/Boruto Sakura Haruno, Hinata Hyuuga, Naruto Uzumaki, Chouji Akemichi, Rock Lee, Kiba Inazuka, Fem! Orochimaru, Tsunade, Fem! Naruto, Sarada Uchiha, Chou-Chou Akemichi, Boruto Uzumaki, Neji Hyuuga, Ten-Ten, Young! Chiyo, Konan, Anko, Kurenai, Tayuya, Karin, Ino Yamanaka, Mei Terumi, Karui, Yugao Uzuki, Hanabi Hyuuga, Tsume Inazuka, Samui, Might Guy, Moegi Kazamatsuri, Mirai Sarutobi, Jiraiya

The World Ends with You [TWEWY] Sho Minamimoto, Uzuki Yashiro, Mitsuki Konshi, Beat, Neku, Coco Atarashi, Koki Kariya, Fem! Yodai Higashizawa, Shiki Misaki, Nagi Usui, Shoka Sakurane

Bleach Ichigo Kurosaki, Orihime, Rangiku Matsumoto, Chad, Soi Fon, Uryuu Ishida, Rukia Kuchiki, Yoruichi Shihouin, Retsu Unohana, Nemu Kurotsuchi, Tier Harribel, Nel Tu, Grimmjow, Isane Kotestu, Kukaku Shiba, Tatsuki Arisawa, Cyan Sung-sun, Emilou Apacci, Kirio Hikifune, Franceska Mila Rose

One Piece Nami, Nico Robin, Nefertari Vivi, Jewelry Bonney, Boa Hancock, Sanji, Perona, Usopp, Monkey D Luffy, Stussy, Alvida, Fem! Buggy/Buggy, Boa Marigold, Boa Sandersonia, Gerd, Hina, Koby, Jango, Carrot,

Totally Spies! Sam, Alex, Clover

Nintendo All of their games... just all of them

Star vs The Forces of Evil Star Butterfly, Jackie Lyn Thomas, Moon Butterfly, Eclipsa, Toffee, Marco Diaz, Hekapoo, Ingrid Bloomgren, Mrs Liao, Mime Girl

Steven Universe Steven Universe, Greg Universe, Connie Maheswaran, Priyanka Maheswaran, Amethyst, Garnet, Pearl, Jasper, Aquamarine, Lapis Lazuli, Peridot, Sadie, Lars

TMNT Leonardo, Donatello, Michelangelo, Raphael, April, Casey Jones, Kirai, Beebop, Rocksteady

Ben 10 Ben Tennyson, Kevin Levin, Gwen Tennyson, Aliens, Julie Yamamoto, Eunice, Future Gwen, Kai Green, Charmcaster, Frightwig, Myaxx,

Yu-Gi-Oh [OG, GX, 5Ds] Yugi Moto, Yami, Joey Wheeler, Seto Kaiba, Tea Gardner, Mai Valentine, Syrus Truesdale, Jaiden Yuki, Chumley Huffington, Alexis Rhodes, Blair Flannigan, Fonda Fontaine, Camula, Missy, Bastion Misawa, Chazz Princeton, Seiko, Miss Dorothy, Tania, Carly Carmine, Akiza Izinski, Jack Atlas, Angela Raines, Misty Tredwell, Duel Spirits

Mortal Kombat Kitana, Mileena, Casssie Cage, Sonya Blade, Scorpion, D'Vorah, Jade, Khameleon, Frost, Nitara, Skarlet,

My Hero Academia Izuku Midoriya, Ochako Uraraka, Tsuyu Asui, Momo Yaoyorozu, Denki Kaminari, Fem! Minoru Mineta [Minerva Mineta], Mina Ashido, Kyoka Jirou, Nemuri Kayama, Thirteen, Manami Aiba, Danjuro Tobita, Itsuka Kendo, Ibara Shiozaki, Kinoko Komori, Pony Tsunotori, Jurota Shishida, Mei Hatsume, Himiko Toga, Rumi Usagiyama, Inko Midoriya

Hazbin Hotel/Helluvaboss Charlie Morningstar, Lute, Millie, Moxxie, Loona, Imps

RWBY Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, Yang Xiao Long, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie, Fem! Lie Ren, Jaune Arc, Cinder, Salem, Winter Schnee, Raven Branwen, Willow Schnee, Neopolitan, Fem! Roman Torchwick, Emerald Sustrai, Glynda Goodwitch, Fem! Professor Port, Lil Miss Malachite, Grimmified characters

Sonic Sonic, Shadow, Amy Rose, Tails, Maria, Rouge the Bat, Blaze the Cat, Silver, Sally Acorn, Tangle, Whisper, Surge, Kitsunami

Jujutsu Kaisen Yuji Itadori, Nobara Kugisaki, Mei Mei, Yuki Tsukumo, Shoko Iierri, Maki Zenin, Aoi Todo

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Frieren, Fern, Stark, Himmel, Flamme, Aura, Lawine, Kanne, Ubel, Laufen, Qual

Dungeon Meshi Marcille, Chilchuc, Laios, Izutsumi, Namari, Fem!Kabru, Leed, Tade, Thistle, Canaries, Monsters

Avatar ATLA/LOK Aang, Sokka, Katara, Mai, Ty Lee, Zuko, Azula, Toph, Suki, June, Yue, Smellerbee, Jin, Asami Sato, Korra, Bolin, Izumi, Suyin, Lin, Kya

The Incredibles Bob Parr, Helen Parr, Dash Parr, Violet Parr, Mirage

Hi-Fi Rush Chai, Peppermint, Korsica, Rekka, Kale

Power Rangers Any of them

Fairly Odd Parents Trixie, Vicki, Wanda, Mrs Turner, Britney Britney, Carly, Mrs Claus, Blonda, Dr Phyllis Fancyfree, Golden Locks/Hair Razor, Crimson Chin, Veronica, Tootie, Spatula Woman, Star and Twinkle, AJ, Chester, Mrs James

Dexter's Laboratory Dexter, Dee Dee, Dexter's Mum, Agent Honeydew, The Justice Friends, Candi, Katka, Neighbour Lady, Mom-Droid, Miss Babcock, Mom's Rival

Star Wars Ahsoka Tano, Luke Skywalker, Anakin Skywalker, Padme Amidala, Asajj Ventress, Princess Leia, Barriss Offee, Captain Phasma, Rey

Sym-bionic Titan Lance, Ilana, Octus, Kimmy Mysner, Kristin, Driving Instructor, Barbara, Maribel

Generator Rex Rex Salazar, Squid, Circe, Rebecca Holiday, Breach, Noah Nixon, Claire Bowman, Cricket, Biowulf, Valentina

Samurai Jack Jack, Ashi, Scotsman's daughters, Princess Mira, Queen Krystle

OnePunch Man Saitama, Genos, Tatsumaki, Fubuki, Mosquito Girl, Do-S, Psykos, Mizuki, Asami, Natalie Ver 9, Raptora, Reptora, Shadow Ring, Tanktop Girl, Mumen Rider, Twin Tail, Wavygyaza, Lin-Lin, Lily, Maiko Plasma, Pink Hornet, Monsters

Goddess of Victory: Nikke Elegg

My Little Pony Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Spike, Fluttershy, Rarity, Chrysalis, Discord, Princess Luna, Zecora

Shantae Shantae, Rotty-Tops, Monsters, Sky, Risky Boots, Empress Siren, Seven Sirens

Tomo-Chan is a Girl Tomo Aizawa, Carol Olsten, Misuzu Goudou, Junichirou Kubota, Akemi Aizawa, Ferris Olsten, Misaki Goundou, Kousuke Misaki

Monster Musume Miia, Rachnera, Lala, Centorea, Papi, Suu, Kuruko Smith, Cathyl, Abul, Sekmeti, Zombina, Doppel, Tionishia, Polt, Curie Drakulya, Leechi, Moskii, Kii, Kino

Doki Doki Literature Club Monika, Sayori, Yuri, Natsuki

Plus sized elf Elfuda, Ino Akiho, Mero, Medesa, Satero, Kusahanada, Kuroeda, Raika, Oeda, Oga, Oku, Gonda, Naoe Tomoatsu

Fairy Tail Natsu Dragneel, Lucy Heartfilia, Erza Scarlet, Gajeel Redfox, Brandish μ, Mirajane Strauss, Levy McGarden,

[moonandinternet]

Best Albums of 2023＋よく聴いた旧譜とか

Anagrams - Blue Voices [Balmat] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Avalon Emerson - & The Charm [Another Dove] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Baba Stiltz - Paid Testimony [Public Possession] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Beat Happening - We Are Beat Happening [Domino] (2019)

Apple / Spotify / Bamdcamp / Domino

DJ Trystero - Castillo [Incienso] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Doc Sleep - Birds (In My Mind Anyway) [Tartelet Records] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Earth Trax - Closer Now [Lapsus] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Greg Foat & Gigi Masin - Dolphin [Strut] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Herbie Hancock - Maiden Voyage [Blue Note] (1965)

Apple / Spotify

吉村弘 - Soundscape 1: Surround [Misawa Home] (1986)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Huerta - TV Slang [R&R] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Joe Zawinul - Zawinul [Atlantic] (1971)

Apple / Spotify

Khotin - Release Spirit [Ghostly International] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Other Lands – Archipelagos [Athens Of The North] (2022)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Pharoah Sanders – Pharoah [India Navigation] (1977)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Sensorama - Where The Rabbit Sleeps [Bureau B] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

SG - For Lovers Only / Rain Suite [Faitiche] (2023)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

本多信介 - サイレンス（夕映え） [ALTY] (1983)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

Solitaire - S.T. [Fax +49-69/450464] (1995)

Bandcamp

Touch Of Noise - Percussionproject [Mikado Records] (1995)

Apple / Spotify / Bandcamp

吉村弘（未発送）のほかは、すべてレコードで手に入れた。特にお気に入りがSensoramaとBaba Stiltzなのでぜひ聴いていただきたい。

Roman FlügelとJörn Elling WuttkeによるSensoramaは、90年代後半〜00年代はじめにハンブルクのレーベルLadomat 2000からリリースしていた。Roman Flügelが複数の名義で多様な作品を産んできたのと同じく、SensoramaもAlter Ego、Acid Jesus、The Primitive Painterなどの変名を持っている。なかでもSensoramaはテンポはゆったり、音は少なめに手づくり感にあふれていて、優しい温もりがある、でもちょっと風変わり、ときどきとんがり。初めて聴いてすぐに魅せられリピートしまくった。

ふたりともハンブルク出身でも拠点でもないのだが、ライナーノーツを読むとこのアルバムはハンブルク人脈に愛されていたからこそ作られたようだ。Golden Pudel Club（いつか行きたい）のブッキング担当／DJであるRalf Kösterによってコンパイル、Bureau Bからリリースされた。リリース・パーティは当然Pudelで行われ、JörnのSoundcloudでは当日の楽しそうなmix（Part 1とPart 2）を聴くことができる。

待ちに待ったBaba Stiltzのセカンド・アルバムは、その名で人気を獲得したハウスから離れ、近年のシングルの延長で、The Folk ImplosionやBeckの地味目の曲を思い出させるローファイ・フォークという趣。それがほんっっと好み。彼はグランジ風の服装をしていて、Our Legacyのランウェイではモデルとして歩き、VOGUEにスナップされ、DAZEDで特集を組まれるおしゃれさんだ。2018年にInstagramでDinosaur Jr.（私がいちばん好きなバンドのひとつ！）のTシャツを着ているのを目撃して勝手に喜び、それはジョークでもハズしでもなく本当に好きらしく、レジデントを務めるNTS RadioではSonic YouthやPJ Harveyなどオルタナをたくさんかけていたのでずっと共感していたのだった。レーベルのPublic Possessionは、ハウスを通過しつつインディ～オルタナ的表現をするアーティストを紹介してくれるのでよくチェックしている。

このTumblrにお気に入りの音楽リストを投稿し始めたのは2014年だから、もう10年目になる。よく聴いていたアルバムにRoman Flügelの『Fatty Folders』（2011年）や『Happiness Is Happening』（2014年）、ベスト・トラックのひとつにBaba Stiltz“Palats”を挙げていた。それまで好んでいた王道のロックやインディ・ロック、ポップスにプラスして、同世代の友達が聴いてなさそうなエレクトロニック・ミュージックこそが、ひとり暮らしの日常の気分を整えてくれる居心地のよいものとなっていった時期だった。居心地のよさを知ったとして、たいていは自分もアーティストも年月を経て変わっていくことが多いだろう。変わっても認められる、ずっと好きで自分の核というか心の支えになる――大切な存在の音楽を作ってくれるアーティストがいるのはありがたいことだ。

旧譜では、そのうち聴くでしょとスルーしていたが世間的には名盤扱いの、ハービー・ハンコック、ファラオ・サンダース、ジョー・ザヴィヌルの上記のアルバムに今さらハマった。たまたま聴いたら、まるで私のための作品かと感じるほどスッと入ってくる不思議な体験だった。そのとき他に何を聴いていたとか、年齢、気候、体調などにもよるのかもしれない。

昨年書いた「レコードを手に入れたらじっくりリスニング」を心がけたおかげか、他にもお気に入りのレコードがたくさんできてしまったので、そのうちmixにできたらという感じです。

毎年恒例、FRENCH BLOOM NETのベスト音楽に寄稿しました。プレイリスト2023 Best 100+ Tracks（Apple / Spotify）を作ったので聴いてみてください。ライヴとDJ mix音源を詰め込んだプレイリスト2023 Fav Mix & Live（Soundcloud）もどうぞ。

※タイトル、レーベル、リリース年はオリジナルを表記。ジャケ画像はリイシューも使用。Beat Happeningは全部入り的BOXのため、サブスクのリンクはアーティストページにしています。

（いりー）

[c-40]

A-T-3 069 Herbie Hancock - Rockit

In a chat with Greg Wilson he was saying electro-funk split UK jazz-funk scene. There were purists who didn't like the new synth records or hip hop (although synths and the rhythm-box had made appearances in jazz-funk fusion for over a decade, and Last Poets, Gil Scott Heron etc) but when a leading light like Herbie Hancock made Rockit they paid attention (a few years later there would be a similar split on the northern soul scene when some djs introduced early house records into their sets, that one didn't get resolved). Other folk who are watching closely are Jan Hammer and Harold Faltermeyer

I loved this record from the get go, I must have been 9-years-old and this was my music. In 1984 Kelloggs' Rice Krispies gave Rockit away as a free 7" single (with Wham on the other side) and that's how I got to own this record

This is another record that there's been a lot written about. Rockit came out of a session at Herbie Hancock's studio with Material, this session came about after the records Material had worked on with Celluloid released in 1982 and are posted here A-T-2 388, A-T-2 164, A-T-2 103

That last link above is to Grandmaster D.St http://www.oldschoolhiphop.com/artists/deejays/grandmixerdst.htm who is prominent on Rockit. Herbie Hancock performs Rockit at the 1984 Grammys where he is awarded Best R&B Instrumental or something like that, the US's racial separation in music is depressing. For many people this is the first time that are seeing someone scratching on TV and it's D.St and he's scratching "Fresh" from the first of the links in the above paragraph. This is supposedly the first time the "Fresh" scratch is heard by a large audience and the rest its history. Contrary to some histories Rockit isn't the first hit record to feature scratching, that'd be The World Famous Supreme Team on Malcom McLaren's (Trevor Horn and Anne Dudley's) Buffalo Gals the year before (A-T-2 102) which was a worldwide hit, going top 10 in many countries. Anyway, check out Herbie and D.St (and Jim Whiting) in their Grammys performance here, do you think the dancers look like Leatherface with those make on?

Who is Jim Whiting?

Jim Whiting is a British artist who makes animatronic objects. The ones you see in the Grammys performance are the work of Jim Whiting

Whiting's animatronic creations are also prominently featured in the video for Rockit which was made by Godley & Creme (former members of the rock band 10cc who did a ton of videos around this time and also the hit singles Cry and Under Your Thumb which I used to sing as "under you bum"). What makes me smile is the video begins with a very normal English street and set is made of second hand furniture, a far cry from California in the USA and the glamorous life. Godley & Creme have said a requirement of the job was to "keep Herbie Hancock's appearances in it to a minimum because MTV didn't like to show black artists" they did this by putting the focus on Whiting's creations

The video wins 5 MTV awards at the first MTV Awards show and is notable for getting the music of a third black artist on MTV rotation, after MJ and Prince

"In America, most people heard this song on MTV, since it wasn't a big radio hit. Herbie Hancock wasn't on the radar of program directors outside of jazz formats, and the song was too unusual for most Top 40 stations"

The Tube from The Hacienda, perhaps in preparation for the Grammys performance

[deathcar]

コロナ禍で延期や中止になった公演、来れなかった方々

[2020]

2/21(金) Bill Pritchard @ 七針 2/22(土) Bill Pritchard @ 七針 2/23(日) Cicada @ TOT 2/24(月/祝) Pixies @ BAY HALL 2/25(火) Pixies @ EX THEATER 2/25(火) Angel baby @ 月見ル 2/26(水) Kevin Morby @ duo 2/28(金) Ezra Collective @ Billboard 2/28(金) Goldie @ Contact 2/29(土) Neon Bunny @ TRUNK 2/29(土) Rejoicer @ CIRCUS

3/2(月) MIKA @ COAST 3/3(火) Ari Lennox @ WWW X 3/3(火) New Order @ COAST 3⁄4(水) New Order @ COAST 3⁄5(木) Foals @ COAST 3⁄5(木) Raveena @ WWW X 3⁄5(木) Sandro Perri @ WWW 3⁄6(金) Brooke Candy @ UNIT 3⁄6(金) Kim Sawol @ Roji 3⁄7(土) Kim Sawol @ Time Out Cafe & Diner 3⁄7(土) FaltyDL @ VENT 3/8(日) Henning Schmiedt @ 明日館 3/9(月) Becca Stevens @ Blue Note 3/10(火) Becca Stevens @ Blue Note 3/10(火) Jonas Blue @ COAST 3/11(水) Jonas Blue @ Zepp DiverCity 3/12(木) Bruno Major / Georgie Clifford @ WWW 3/12(木) Fat White Family @ MARZ 3/12(木) Lightfoils @ Zher the ZOO 3/13(金) Lightfoils / Fauvely @ HIGH 3/13(金) Homeshake @ duo 3/14(土) Emily A. Sprague @ 七針 3/16(月) Ruel @ duo 3/16(月) Stereolab @ LIQUIDROOM 3/17(火) The National / Phoebe Bridgers @ Zepp DiverCity 3/18(水) The National / Phoebe Bridgers @ Zepp DiverCity 3/18(水) LAKE @ 7th floor 3/20(金/祝) Slipknot @ メッセ 3/20(金/祝) Merope @ OTOOTO 3/21(土) Slipknot @ メッセ 3/21(土) Jad Fair with Lumberob / CUSHIONS @ 7th floor 3/21(土) Emily A. Sprague @ soup 3/23(月) Bright Eyes @ LIQUIDROOM 3/24(火) Stormzy @ BLITZ 3/24(火) Jad Fair with Lumberob / CUSHIONS @ FEVER 3/25(水) LAKE @ 7th floor 3/25(水) イ・ラン @ 試聴室 3/26(木) Merope @ エアジン 3/27(金) イ・ラン @ BUSHBASH 3/27(金) Leonardo Marques @ 晴れ豆 3/27(金) Knxwledge / Mndsgn @ WOMB 3/27(金) Zed Bias @ Asia 3/27(金) Green Day @ メッセ 3/28(土) Green Day @ メッセ 3/28(土) イ・ラン @ 試聴室 3/29(日) イ・ラン @ 山谷 3/29(日) Eleventyseven @ HOME 3/29(日) Warm Bodies @ THREE 3/30(月) Julia Jacklin @ Billboard

4/1(水) Sheer Mag / Warm Bodies @ BUSHBASH 4/2(木) Glows / PVA @ o-nest 4/2(木) Tom Walker @ WWW X 4/3(金) Squarepusher @ COAST 4/3(金) Whitney @ Veats 4/3(金) Knxwledge / Mndsgn @ VISION 4/4(土) Helms Alee @ BUSHBASH 4/5(日) Helms Alee @ FEVER 4/7(火) Khalid @ PIT 4/8(水) Temples @ LIQUIDROOM 4/11(土) Sheer Mag @ HEAVY SICK 4/13(月) Sheer Mag @ FEVER 4/14(火) Ludovico Einaudi @ 国際フォーラム 4/14(火) DIIV @ LIQUIDROOM 4/15(水) TOY @ MARZ 4/16(木) TOY @ MARZ 4/16(木) Kindness @ WWW X 4/17(金)-19(日) [Rainbow Disco Club] * Antal x Huntee / Anthony Naples / Chaos In The CBD / Daniel Avery / ESA / GE-OLOGY & Red Greg / Moodymann / Motor City Drum Ensemble / Moxie / rRoxymore / Special Request 4/17(金) Mac DeMarco @ O-EAST 4/17(金) Daniel Avery @ VENT 4/18(土)-19(日) [CRAFTROCK CIRCUIT] * Pet Symmetry / UMT 4/18(土) Mac DeMarco @ O-EAST 4/18(土) Bonobo (DJ set) / Jon Hopkins (DJ set) @ O-EAST 4/19(日) [LifeSign] * Godspeed You! Black Emperor / Itasca 4/21(火) Larkin Poe @ duo 4/21(火) G. Love and Special Sauce @ QUATTRO 4/23(木) Pet Symmetry @ FEVER 4/23(木) Thundercat @ ガーデンホール 4/23(木) Pohjonen Alanko @ WWW 4/27(月) Crack Cloud @ FEVER

5/1(金) Samm Henshaw @ LIQUIDROOM 5/3(日) The TOYS @ EX-THEATER 5/4(月) Alcest @ UNIT 5/7(木) Big Thief @ WWW X 5/7(木) Halsey @ ガーデンシアター 5/9(土)-10(日) [LOVE SUPREME JAZZ FESTIVAL] * Musiq Soulchild / Robert Glasper / Sergio Mendes 5/10(日) Saves The Day @ LOFT 5/11(月) Saves The Day @ FEVER 5/12(火) Lauryn Hill @ ガーデンシアター 5/14(木) The Bluetones @ ODD 5/16(土)-17(日) [STAR FESTIVAL] * Gloo (Iglooghost/Kai Whiston/BABii) / Jayda G / Metrik + Dynamite MC / Mount Kimbie (DJ set) / Nite Fleit / SHERELLE / Zip 5/18(月) Rex Orange County @ BLITZ 5/18(月) Ásgeir @ Zepp DiverCity 5/18(月) Aiming For Enrike @ FEVER 5/19(火) Aiming For Enrike @ FEVER 5/20(水) New Hope Club @ ガーデンホール 5/21(木) MGMT @ PIT 5/21(木) ANOHNI @ 草月ホール 5/22(金) ANOHNI @ 草月ホール 5/22(金)-24(日) [TOKYO JAZZ FESTIVAL] * Herbie Hancock / Joshua Redman 5/23(土)-24(日) [GREENROOM FESTIVAL] * !!! / MGMT / Oscar Jerome / Sigrid / Tash Sultana 5/23(土)-24(日) [PARAMOUNT] * Alessandro Adriani / Giorgio Gigli / Mor Elian / Phuong-Dan / Planetary Assault Systems 5/25(月) Aiming For Enrike @ FEVER 5/26(火) Sigrid @ LIQUIDROOM 5/26(火) Moonchild @ QUATTRO 5/26(火) Tash Sultana @ BLITZ 5/27(水) The House of Love @ MARZ 5/28(木) The House of Love @ MARZ 5/28(木) Grégory Privat Trio @ COTTON CLUB 5/28(木) Further Seems Forever @ WOMB 5/29(金) Further Seems Forever @ WOMB 5/29(金) Ben Williams Band @ COTTON CLUB 5/30(土)-31(日) [FFKT] * Andy Stott / Caribou / Demdike Stare / DJ Python / Donna Leake / Gigi Masin / Hibiya Line / Luxixi / Maayan Nidam / MOCKY / Parris / Telefon Tel Aviv / Theo Parrish / Total Freedom / Zakia 5/30(土) Ben Williams Band @ COTTON CLUB 5/31(日) Ben Williams Band @ COTTON CLUB 5/31(日) MOCKY @ LIVE HAUS

6/1(月) epic45 @ FEVER 6/1(月) MOCKY @ LIVE HAUS 6/2(火) MOCKY @ LIVE HAUS 6/2(火) (Sandy) Alex G @ LIQUIDROOM 6/3(水) J.I.D @ WWW X 6/10(水) American Football @ COAST 6/11(木) Mew @ BLITZ 6/17(水) Slingshot Dakota @ Nine Spices 6/18(木) Parsnip @ LIVE HAUS 6/21(日) Slingshot Dakota @ RIPS 6/22(月) Slingshot Dakota @ FEVER 6/27(土) Parsnip @ Green Apple 6/27(土) Tangerine Dream @ CITTA' 6/28(日) Tangerine Dream @ CITTA'

7/22(水) Origami Angel / Short Fictions @ o-nest 7/23(木/祝) Origami Angel / Short Fictions @ OPPA-LA 7/26(日) Origami Angel / Short Fictions @ FEVER

8/21(金)-23(日) [FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL] * [8/21] Black Pumas / Clairo / Cory Wong / Derrick May / Disclosure / Donavon Frankenreiter / Elephant Gym / Future Islands / Georgia / Hinds / Jackson Browne / Lindstrøm / Men I Trust / Metronomy / Mura Masa / Neal Francis / Romy / Tame Impala / Tom Misch * [8/22] Celeste / Fantastic Negrito / Fontaines D.C. / Four Tet / Frente Cumbiero / Gryffin / Major Lazer / The Strokes / Yumi Zouma * [8/23] Altin Gun / Blackbear / Bruno Major / Colin Benders / Emotional Oranges / FKA twigs / Floating Points / GoGo Penguin / Muscle Shoals Soul Revue featuring Willie Hightower, Charles Hodges & Scott Sharrard / Rufus Wainwright / Voodoo Dead

9/2(水) Billie Eilish @ 横浜アリーナ 9/5(土)-6(日) [GREENROOM FESTIVAL] * !!! / José James / Oscar Jerome 9/8(火) Oh Wonder @ ??? 9/19(土)-21(月/祝) [SUPERSONIC] * [9/19] The 1975 / AURORA / beabadoobee / Blossoms / Fatboy Slim / Ian Brown / Liam Gallagher / Squid / Tones and I / Waterparks * [9/20] Conan Gray / DIGITALISM / Don Diablo / Jax Jones / Kygo / Skrillex / Steve Aoki / WarNymph (Grimes DJ Set) * [9/21] Alec Benjamin / Black Eyed Peas / Dominic Fike / Easy Life / Ghostemane / iDKHOW / Post Malone / Wu-Tang Clan

10/8(木) Massive Attack @ 国際フォーラム 10/9(金) Massive Attack @ 国際フォーラム 10/9(金) Red Hot Chilli Pipers @ LIQUIDROOM 10/20(火) The Chemical Brothers @ ガーデンシアター 10/21(水) The Chemical Brothers @ ガーデンシアター 10/21(水) Low Roar @ WWW X 10/31(土)-11/1(日) [FESTIVAL de FRUE] * The Master Musicians of Joujouka & The Orb / Fabiano do Nascimento

11/3(火/祝) The Master Musicians of Joujouka & The Orb @ WWW X 11/5(木) Stormzy @ COAST

12/3(木) Homeshake @ duo 12/7(月) Lauryn Hill @ ガーデンシアター 12/7(月) TOY @ MARZ 12/8(火) TOY @ MARZ 12/18(金) 박혜진 Park Hye Jin @ Contact

[2021]

1/10(日) Slipknot @ メッセ 1/11(月/祝) Slipknot @ メッセ 1/16(土) Mew @ ガーデンホール 1/22(金) Samm Henshaw @ LIQUIDROOM 1/27(水) Thundercat @ ガーデンホール

2/18(木) Squarepusher @ COAST

3/22(月) New Hope Club @ ガーデンホール 3/24(水) Big Thief @ WWW X 3/26(金) Green Day @ メッセ 3/27(土) Green Day @ メッセ

4/9(金) G. Love & Special Sauce @ QUATTRO 4/22(木) Jonas Blue @ Zepp Yokohama 4/28(水) Jonas Blue @ COAST 4/30(金) Jonas Blue @ Zepp DiverCity

5/28(金) American Football @ COAST

6/30(水) Thundercat @ ガーデンホール

9/9(木) Stereolab @ O-EAST 9/9(木) Lauryn Hill @ ガーデンシアター 9/10(金) Samm Henshaw @ LIQUIDROOM 9/17(金) black midi @ O-EAST 9/18(土)-19(日) [SUPERSONIC] * Frank Walker / Kygo / Nicky Romero

11/6(土)-7(日) [FESTIVAL de FRUE] * Fabiano do Nascimento / Sam Gendel Concert Group

12/3(金) 박혜진 Park Hye Jin @ Contact 12/25(土) Solar / Black Merlin @ Contact 12/29(水) Agnes Aves / Black Merlin @ CIRCUS

[2022]

1/26(水) New Order @ Zepp Haneda 1/28(金) New Order @ Zepp Haneda

2/22(火) Jonas Blue @ PIT 2/24(木) Jonas Blue @ KT ZEPP YOKOHAMA 2/25(金) Jonas Blue @ ZEPP DiverCity

3/3(木) Samm Henshaw @ LIQUIDROOM

4/9(土) Slipknot @ メッセ 4/10(日) Slipknot @ メッセ 4/10(日) G. Love & Special Sauce @ QUATTRO 4/23(土) DJ Harvey @ Contact 4/25(月) DJ Harvey @ OPPA-LA 4/26(火) Lauryn Hill @ ガーデンシアター

5/26(木) Telefon Tel Aviv @ Contact

7/29(金)-31(日) [FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL] * Black Pumas / Say Sue Me / Fontaines D.C.

[theloniousbach]

LIVESTREAM: ORRIN EVANS with Ralph Bowen, Kenny Davis, and Maria Marmarou, SMALLS JAZZ CLUB, 23 NOVEMBER 2024, 9 pm set

I got to know ORRIN EVANS when he replaced Ethan Iverson in The Bad Plus and TBP 2.0 was the version I knew and liked better, though Iverson’s semi-curatorial projects are my favorites. But that band is Reid Anderson/Dave King and both Evans and Iverson found other outlets for their immese creativities.

Witness this curious gig with an interesting selection from his roster of collaborators. Indeed, SMALLS advertised as ORRIN EVANS AND FRIENDS. Ralph Bowen has played tenor sax in Captain Black and other projects. He was part of Blue Note’s young all stars, Out of the Blue, in the 1980s with bassist Kenny Davis and the likes of familiars Billy Drummond, Renee Rosnes, Ralph Peterson, Kenny, Garrett, and Greg Osby. Maria Marmarou is younger and a very capable but not flashy drummer who has intersected with Evans.

Bowen played flute and that instrument has conventions to get used to like the vibraphone (witness Steve Nelson with Renee Rosnes this weekend) and the soprano sax. I was better separating Nelson’s music from his instrument than I was with Bowen. The even better exercise is to hear Scott Robinson’s trumpet illuminate his saxophone work. All this to say is that Bowen’s flute was, well, flute-y—ethereal, wispy, lacking bite, particularly without another horn for an ensemble effect to lead to solos as in some of those just pre-Mwandishi Herbie Hancock albums or in Amina Figarova’s band.

Presumably that’s what Evans was going for and his own playing was atmospheric while still having his typical drive and still some spikiness. There were just four tunes in the hour so things stretched out, including them backing into All The Things You Are. The closer was Boffadem which Evans has recorded on his own and with TBP. The backstory, which maybe I didn’t need to hear, is that he and a pal ogled one woman and then another and decided they liked boffadem.

Fine stuff if not sublime as Emmet Cohen was to start off this weekend’s run.

[csajokamotoron]

Már lehet jelentkezni a 2025-ös FIM Women's Speedway Academy (WSA) és a FIM Women's Speedway Gold Trophy (WSGT) versenyekre, amelyeket 2025 július 10-12. között rendeznek meg a horvátországi Donji Kraljevecben, a Stadion Mileniumban. A sportágban a nemek közötti integráció előmozdítása érdekében létrehozott jövő évi WSA 2025 július 10-11. között kerül megrendezésre, és az előző három kiadás sikerére épít. Az idei úttörő nyitóversenyt követően, amelyet a német sztár, Celina Liebmann nyert meg, a WSGT július 12-én kerül megrendezésre. A WSA-t először 2022-ben rendezték meg a németországi Diedenbergenben, majd 2023-ban a nagy-britanniai National Speedway Stadiumban, idén pedig a németországi Teterowban. A résztvevők a sportág minden aspektusáról kaptak mesterkurzusokat a legjobb versenyzőktől, köztük a korábbi FIM Speedway Grand Prix világbajnokoktól, Jason Crump-tól és Greg Hancock-tól, a FIM Speedway Grand Prix versenyigazgatójától, Phil Morris-tól és a FIM Long Track versenyigazgatójától, Glen Phillips-től. Az Akadémiára minden motoros szakágból várják a versenyzők jelentkezését, így nem szükséges előzetes Speedway tapasztalat, és már most érkeznek a regisztrációk a világ minden tájáról. A tizenhárom éves és idősebb versenyzők 250 köbcentis gépekkel, a tizenhat éves és idősebb versenyzők pedig 500 köbcentis gépekkel fognak versenyezni. Janika Judeika, a FIM Női Bizottságának igazgatója elmondta: "Az első három kiadást követően a FIM Női Speedway Akadémia tovább növekszik és gyarapszik, és jövőre Donji Kraljevecben ezekre a sikerekre kívánunk építeni. Ez egy olyan kezdeményezés, amelyet hihetetlenül izgalmasnak találok, és már most nagyon pozitív eredményeket látunk, hiszen a nők egyre nagyobb figyelmet kapnak, miközben a Speedway egyre inkább befogadóvá válik." Armando Castagna, a FIM versenypálya igazgatója kijelentette: "A FIM Női Speedway Akadémia a 2022-es németországi bemutatkozása óta nagyon hatékony eszköznek bizonyult a befogadás és a sokszínűség előmozdítására a speedwayben, és a FIM Pályaversenyzési Bizottsága büszke arra, hogy együtt dolgozhat a FIM Női Bizottságával a fejlődés előmozdítása érdekében. Biztos vagyok benne, hogy továbbra is virágozni fog, és hogy a jövő évi horvátországi rendezvény a korábbi három kiadás sikerére fog építeni." További információ a Sportity App-on keresztül érhető el a FIMWO jelszóval, vagy a wsa@fim.ch e-mail címen. A FIM Női Bizottsága (CFM), a FIM Pályaverseny Bizottság (CCP) és a helyszínen megrendezésre kerülő FIM Speedway Nagydíj futamok mögött álló csapat szervezésében mindkét eseményt a német HKC Koopmann energia- és elektrotechnikai specialista, az olasz Kineo kerékgyártó és a török Anlas gumiabroncsgyártó támogatja. Read the full article

[kickmag]

Throwback: Quincy Jones: Turn On The Action Feat. Patti Austin

Patti Austin is the vocalist on Rod Temperton's  "Turn On The Action," which appears on Quincy Jones' 1981 album The Dude. Austin's smooth delivery had years of preparation, as she had been working with Jones since she was nine years old. Jones, who referred to Austin as his goddaughter, had nurtured her jazz roots, which gave her impeccable vocal control and a depth of interpretation in the lyrics. "Turn On The Action" was about the process of love and Austin's voice was coy and bold at the same time as she captured the complex feelings of a romantic invitation. She was in good company, as Jones had assembled Herbie Hancock, Paulinho da Costa, Greg Phillinganes, and Louis Johnson amongst the song's players. Michael Jackson, who Austin duetted with on "It's The Falling In Love" from his 1979 Off The Wall album, did not sing backing vocals on "Turn On The Action," but he did appear on the album's title track.

Austin's contributions to The Dude were some of her most successful moments, as she was also featured on the popular "Razzamatazz" and "Betcha Wouldn't Hurt Me."  "Turn On The Action" was the simmering dance floor closing song on the album that was heard a bit on Black radio. The song was the pure definition of the lesser-known but excellent album cut, reserved for true fans willing to hear The Dude in its entirety. Austin's For Ella, Vol. 2, was released in 2023. In 2024, Austin was honored with a lifetime achievement award from SFJazz. 

[wankerwatch]

Commons Vote

On: Finance (No. 2) Bill: Third Reading

Ayes: 215 (98.6% Con, 0.9% Ind, 0.5% DUP) Noes: 19 (94.7% SNP, 5.3% PC) Absent: ~416

Likely Referenced Bill: Finance (No. 2) Act 2010

Description: A Bill to grant certain duties, to alter other duties, and to amend the law relating to the National Debt and the Public Revenue, and to make further provision in connection with finance.

Originating house: Commons Current house: Unassigned Bill Stage: Royal Assent

Individual Votes:

Ayes

Conservative (211 votes)

Aaron Bell Alan Mak Alberto Costa Alec Shelbrooke Alex Burghart Alex Chalk Alicia Kearns Alok Sharma Amanda Milling Andrew Griffith Andrew Jones Andrew Lewer Andrew Murrison Andrew Percy Andrew Selous Andy Carter Angela Richardson Anna Firth Anne Marie Morris Anne-Marie Trevelyan Anthony Browne Antony Higginbotham Ben Everitt Ben Spencer Ben Wallace Bernard Jenkin Bill Wiggin Bim Afolami Bob Blackman Bob Seely Brandon Lewis Caroline Ansell Caroline Nokes Charles Walker Cherilyn Mackrory Chris Clarkson Chris Grayling Chris Green Chris Philp Conor Burns Craig Tracey Craig Williams Damian Hinds Daniel Kawczynski Danny Kruger David Davis David Duguid David Jones David Rutley David Simmonds Dean Russell Dehenna Davison Derek Thomas Desmond Swayne Duncan Baker Edward Argar Edward Leigh Elizabeth Truss Elliot Colburn Esther McVey Felicity Buchan Fiona Bruce Gagan Mohindra Gareth Bacon Gareth Davies Gareth Johnson Gary Sambrook Gavin Williamson Geoffrey Clifton-Brown Gillian Keegan Graham Brady Graham Stuart Greg Hands Greg Smith Guy Opperman Harriett Baldwin Heather Wheeler Helen Whately Holly Mumby-Croft Huw Merriman Iain Duncan Smith Iain Stewart Jack Brereton Jack Lopresti Jackie Doyle-Price Jacob Rees-Mogg Jacob Young James Cartlidge James Cleverly James Davies James Duddridge James Sunderland James Wild Jane Hunt Jane Stevenson Jeremy Quin Jerome Mayhew Jo Churchill John Glen John Howell John Lamont Jonathan Djanogly Jonathan Gullis Julia Lopez Julian Lewis Julian Smith Julian Sturdy Justin Tomlinson Katherine Fletcher Kelly Tolhurst Kemi Badenoch Kevin Hollinrake Kieran Mullan Kit Malthouse Laura Farris Laura Trott Lee Rowley Leo Docherty Lia Nici Liam Fox Lisa Cameron Louie French Lucy Frazer Luke Hall Marcus Jones Mark Fletcher Mark Francois Mark Garnier Mark Logan Martin Vickers Matt Hancock Matt Warman Matthew Offord Mel Stride Michael Ellis Michael Fabricant Michael Gove Michael Tomlinson Mike Freer Mike Wood Mims Davies Neil O'Brien Nick Fletcher Nick Gibb Nicola Richards Nigel Huddleston Paul Beresford Paul Holmes Paul Howell Pauline Latham Penny Mordaunt Peter Aldous Peter Bottomley Philip Dunne Philip Hollobone Priti Patel Ranil Jayawardena Rebecca Harris Rebecca Pow Rehman Chishti Richard Bacon Richard Drax Richard Fuller Rob Butler Robbie Moore Robert Buckland Robert Courts Robert Goodwill Robert Halfon Robert Largan Robert Syms Robin Millar Robin Walker Royston Smith Sajid Javid Sally-Ann Hart Saqib Bhatti Sara Britcliffe Sarah Dines Scott Mann Selaine Saxby Shailesh Vara Sheryll Murray Simon Baynes Simon Clarke Simon Fell Simon Hart Simon Hoare Simon Jupp Stephen Metcalfe Steve Baker Steve Brine Steve Tuckwell Stuart Andrew Suzanne Webb Theo Clarke Theresa May Theresa Villiers Thérèse Coffey Tobias Ellwood Tom Hunt Tom Pursglove Tom Randall Tom Tugendhat Tracey Crouch Vicky Ford Victoria Atkins Victoria Prentis Wendy Morton Will Quince William Cash

Independent (2 votes)

Mark Menzies William Wragg

Democratic Unionist Party (1 vote)

Jim Shannon

Noes

Scottish National Party (18 votes)

Allan Dorans Amy Callaghan Angela Crawley Anne McLaughlin Brendan O'Hara Chris Law Chris Stephens David Linden Deidre Brock Joanna Cherry John Nicolson Kirsty Blackman Marion Fellows Owen Thompson Peter Grant Philippa Whitford Richard Thomson Stewart Malcolm McDonald

Plaid Cymru (1 vote)

Hywel Williams

[jcmarchi]

The Past, Present, And Future Of Hip-Hop In Video Games

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/the-past-present-and-future-of-hip-hop-in-video-games/

The Past, Present, And Future Of Hip-Hop In Video Games

In December 2023, Epic Games launched the next chapter of Fortnite, one of the most popular games of all time, with a huge virtual performance featuring Eminem, his avatar landing on a stage in front of fans in a far-off world. Who thought hip-hop would take it this far?

Eminem in Fortnite (2023)

As we celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip-hop last year, it’s now a good time to look back at how ingrained hip-hop music is in gaming, from NBA2K (remember that 2K13 soundtrack curated by Jay-Z?), Mortal Kombat, and Need for Speed, to Cyberpunk 2077 and, of course, Fortnite.

Mortal Kombat 11 came out of the gates in 2018 with a fiery trailer featuring music by 21 Savage, and later Megan Thee Stallion live-streamed an MK11 match on Twitch. The lore of Grand Theft Auto continues to grow, powered by recent GTA Online updates featuring Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. Time will tell how hip-hop will be used in Grand Theft Auto VI, which at long last stopped playing hard to get and finally gave us a trailer to chew on in December.

ToeJam & Earl (1991)

But while rappers might have quickly penetrated into the suburbs with their music in the early 1990s, that wasn’t going to happen as easily with a Genesis cartridge. One of the earliest hip-hop-infused games, ToeJam & Earl (1991), centers on two alien rappers who have crash-landed on Earth, desperate to return to their home planet. Other games followed, with varied success, including 1996’s PaRappa the Rapper. By the early aughts, Def Jam Vendetta, NBA Street, and GTA San Andreas signaled hip hop was here to stay in gaming. Today, while hip-hop is regularly featured in games, we still haven’t seen the genre make its way on a large scale to the RPG, strategy, or sci-fi genres.

Game Informer recently spoke with some of the architects and rappers involved with the hip-hop games of the past few decades, including Josh Holmes, co-creator of NBA Street & Def Jam Fight for NY, ToeJam and Earl creator Greg Johnson, rapper Saigon, and former Rockstar leads. How did these game designers go about fashioning games that incorporated hip-hop at a time when the genre was coming of age? How did they get rappers – sometimes legendary ones – to lend their voices, their likenesses, and their stories? Why did some games fall short? We then asked these hip-hop stars and game developers about the future. What role do they see hip-hop playing in gaming in the coming years? What will it take for hip-hop to be the soundtrack for a sci-fi game as much as it is for an NBA2K game? And how do video game developers make sure the culture remains authentic? This is the story of the past, present, and future of hip-hop in games.

ToeJam & Earl (1991)

The Early Days

Greg Johnson’s sleeper hit ToeJam and Earl came out the same year the whiny synths of N.W.A.’s opus Alwayz Into Somethin’ were unleashed on the world. Born to a white mother and a Black father, Johnson describes going to an ethnically diverse Los Angeles high school in the mid-1970s and listening to the kind of music that served as a forebear to rap – funk, R&B, and jazz. Specifically, Johnson recalls listening to artists like Stevie Wonder, Parliament, and Herbie Hancock. Johnson initially wanted to get into biolinguistics (“I was going to be the one to talk to the dolphins and the whales”), but in the early 1980s, he tried his hands at games during a time when Tandy, an early computer that could play games, and Space Invaders in bowling alleys were king. “I got really intrigued at the idea of what a game might be. It was wide open. You could do magic,” Johnson says.

Johnson says gaming machines couldn’t really handle complex music in those days, so putting in great music, including hip-hop, wasn’t yet in the cards. But with the Sega Genesis arriving in North America in 1989 and Johnson now consuming the music of rappers like Young MC and Heavy D, he linked up with programmer Mark Voorsanger to start work on ToeJam and Earl. As the story goes, while still working on his first game, Starflight, Johnson, long obsessed with alien life, had a dream about two aliens with hip-hop inclinations.

ToeJam & Earl (1991)

The offbeat Sega Genesis game definitely leaves an impression. Titular characters ToeJam and Earl, alien teenage rappers from a musical planet dubbed Funkotron, crash land on Earth. In each island world, our two red and orange heroes amble about, avoiding hostile humans while picking up pieces of their ship in the hopes of ditching Earth and getting back to their homeland. “I thought it would be really fun to flip things on its head and do some satire. [ToeJam and Earl are] the sane ones. They’re cool and funky. It’s the Earthlings who are the crazy ones in this insane world,” Johnson says.

Other Early Creators

The early days of hip-hop games were a wild west with no enduring franchises and many one-offs. Not all games are remembered as fondly as others, either. 1995’s Rap Jam: Volume One for SNES features character models of rappers like Coolio, Yo-Yo, and Warren G facing off in games of street basketball. NBA Street it was not. Besides a barebones hip-hop beat in the menu, the actual in-game action is devoid of music entirely, hip-hop or otherwise. Not even a DJ scratch. Then there’s the graphics and perplexing controls.

Rap Jam: Volume One (1995)

Pascal Jarry, calling in from Bordeaux, France, is well aware of how his game turned out. But the 20-year industry veteran, who has designed games in three languages and on three continents, was just a young game developer back then.

Jarry and his business partner already had a finished game, which focused on street culture, having come up with friends who were into graffiti and skateboarding in France. But the game needed a distributor. One day in the early 1990s, Jarry says he received a call from someone representing “Motown,” offering up the licenses for well-known rappers. Motown Games was a spin-off of the storied Motown Records and had just come off of Bebe’s Kids, an ill-fated video game version of the 1992 film by the same name.

PaRappa the Rapper (1996)

Soon, Jarry and his partner landed in the United States to promote the game. During a video game show on the west coast, Jarry recalls running into Coolio and inadvertently leaving him hanging after the rapper gave him a high five. “My friend Marco, the guy doing the art, said, ‘Man, you left him hanging!’” Jarry recalls with a laugh. He had half a mind to go back and complete the handshake, but Marco advised him that would be even worse.

Regarding the many critiques of the game, Jarry emphasizes that he definitely wanted to record music and sound from the featured rappers but describes his hands being tied. “At the time, I was just a subcontractor in the corner,” Jarry says. “The game was not the best game we have ever made. I like the journey of finishing that game much more than the game itself.”

Hideyuki Tanaka, character designer and art director of Bust a Groove, a 1998 cult classic hip-hop rhythm game, continues to stay connected to his game today. He has two Instagram accounts full of artwork and merchandise and a website.

Tanaka said he began drawing at a young age, primarily influenced by manga. That work eventually landed him on a kid’s television show, where he designed characters using 3D computer graphics, which caught the attention of a Square Enix producer. “They considered this to be a rhythm game and incorporated elements of fighting games to enhance the entertainment value as a game,” Tanaka explained.

Bust a Groove is not just influenced by hip-hop music but also dance, with different characters drawing from different dancing styles. Piping hot character Heat moves around a subterranean stage with the swagger of Usher as his platform shoes skate across the floor. Tanaka explained that the game’s dance choreography draws inspiration from many sources including Saturday Night Fever (character Hiro), MC Hammer, and even Spike Lee. Bust a Groove was produced with the expectation of being released in Japan, but he is heartened that the game was embraced in the U.S. and Europe as well.

The Big Leagues

The early aughts were big years for hip-hop video games. The Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series, in addition to punk, also had artists like Nas. And finally, entire video game franchises were being built with hip-hop, including EA’s Def Jam Vendetta, which arrived in 2003 with a roster of fighters including Ludacris, Method Man, and DMX.

Co-creator Josh Holmes says building the roster of hip-hop legends was a collaborative effort, and his team had a quick turnaround – nine months – to pivot from an intergalactic wrestling game to what became Def Jam Vendetta. Holmes personally met with each rapper to pitch them on the game and outline their role.

NBA Street (2001)

The initial game did not have all the artists the team originally wanted. Some were on tour, while others weren’t sold on the project. But with sequels Def Jam: Fight for NY and Def Jam: Icon, Holmes says rappers really started to trust the franchise’s intentions. “To this day, I continue to receive messages from fans who express how much these games meant to them and how they wish for another sequel,” Holmes says.

Mark Jordan, a.k.a. DJ Pooh, in addition to being a legendary LA-area hip-hop beatmaker for songs like Ice Cube’s “Today Was a Good Day,” joined the Grand Theft Auto franchise as a writer for San Andreas and later provided the cosign that convinced Dr. Dre to feature in GTA Online. Pooh brought a lot of other hip-hop talent to Rockstar, including Julio G (née Julio Gonzalez), the veteran voice of 93.5 KDAY radio in Los Angeles, who has worked with the likes of Eazy-E and Snoop Dogg. Julio G ended up also being the voice of Radio Los Santos, the in-game radio station that plays the same West Coast ’90s hip-hop that Julio G helped beam across SoCal.

Def Jam Vendetta (2003)

“Myself and DJ Pooh, we’ve known each other since the ’80s,” Julio G tells Game Informer. He clarifies that he’s not even a gamer, but that one day in 2003, he received a call from Pooh asking him to come down to talk about this new video game he was putting together. Julio G agreed without a second thought – and without fully understanding that he was about to be in one of the biggest games ever.

At a Los Angeles studio, Pooh asked Julio G to read from a script. Some Rockstar staff were also present. It was in this setting that Julio G delivered hilarious lines like “We got a shout out from Denise in Ganton for her man. Give her a call, man!” a reference to one of CJ’s girlfriends. And later, when a riot erupts all across Los Santos, Julio G gets on the airwaves to urge calm. He recorded his segments in about two to three hours, with 90 to 95% of those coming on the first take, he says. “I’m just reading and flipping it my way.”

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004)

While every other DJ on the game goes by an alias, Julio G says Pooh insisted that Rockstar use the radio veteran’s real name because he wanted it to be authentic to LA and the legacy of West Coast rap.

As far as the range of tracks on Radio Los Santos, including Chicano rapper Frost’s “La Raza,” Julio G clarifies that that was “all DJ Pooh.” Julio G says he didn’t even hear the full recording of all of his work until someone showed him a compilation of his segments on YouTube last year.

He also had some surprising things to say about Eazy-E, who, in addition to being a gangsta rap pioneer, was also working on a video game concept before dying of HIV in 1995. The idea is something Julio G says Eazy would talk a lot about with him. “The whole concept of [his] game was getting your lowrider to a supershow, and in the process, you had to go rob somebody… go hydraulic hopping against this dude in a different neighborhood. It was like a Grand Theft Auto in its own way. He was working on it when he passed in ’95. He was working on it all through ’94,” Julio G says.

Kobe Bryant in NBA 2K24 (2023)

Rockstar’s Hip Hop Nerds

Several Rockstar brass also had a passion for hip-hop and took the task of weaving the genre into their games very seriously. One of Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser’s idols is Rick Rubin, the founder of Def Jam Recordings. Another is Greg Johnson, longtime Rockstar Games senior researcher, not to be confused with the ToeJam game developer. This Greg Johnson, now at Lightspeed LA, is a veteran hip-hop journalist for publications like Spin, Complex, and XXL. In the early 2000s, Johnson’s editor friend told him about a new opportunity at Rockstar Games, which wanted to build out a dedicated research team to gear up for the development of San Andreas. “Especially for that game, having a potential hip-hop journalist that could make the leap to game design was one thing that they were strongly considering,” Johnson says. Rockstar and Johnson quickly connected during a series of interviews, and he was soon reporting directly to Rockstar co-founder Dan Houser on the job.

Adam Tedman, former Rockstar vice president of new media and global head of digital marketing, who now works at Dan Houser’s new Absurd Ventures, was particularly keen to talk about Rockstar’s use of hip-hop in The Warriors, its 2005 beat ‘em up adapting the 1979 movie of the same name, and in Grand Theft Auto IV. Tedman helped bring producer Statik Selektah to GTA IV’s expansions, where Selektah produced tracks for Talib Kweli and Freeway. Selektah tells Game Informer he met Tedman in 2008 right after GTA IV dropped. “They asked me to come out and produce a couple of records and do the radio station and all that. It was like a dream come true,” Selektah says.

Grand Theft Auto IV (2008)

Sometimes when hip-hop comes together to create music for games, there are unintended consequences. Rapper Saigon, maybe best known for his recurring role in HBO’s Entourage Season 2, says that when he went over to record “Spit” at Selektah’s house specifically for GTA, the two ended up with an entire album, All in a Days’ Work. “If I didn’t go there to do that song, that album never gets made,” Saigon said.

As a rapper early to moving between television, music, and video games, Saigon is impressed with the current generation of rappers, who are taking things to a whole new level. “They’re making songs solely for Rockstar Games and NBA2K and all those big games,” Saigon says. “It feels good to know I had some kind of influence to the generation who went on to become the most successful generation of the culture ever.”

The Future of Hip-Hop and Gaming

Several of the hip-hop stars who spoke to Game Informer are serious gamers. Saigon has been playing games for decades (“I was the one who learned how to warp [on Mario]”). Selektah speaks about unwinding with Call of Duty and GTA as a single father after his daughter goes to bed.

These days, Johnson thinks the gaming industry is starting to recognize the sheer creative talent in the hip-hop world. “When you get to know them, you find a whole bunch of comic book fans, you find anime nerds, a whole bunch of dudes who used to compete to see who could draw comic book heroes better in the third grade, you know?” Johnson says.

Cyberpunk 2077 (2020)

For sports games, it’s almost inevitable that hip-hop found itself there because the music made a huge impact on several generations of NBA and NFL athletes. But now the question isn’t just about artists appearing in a game as a one-off but about actually having true equity from a business standpoint. He mentions musician Raphael Saddiq, a cofounder of independent game publisher IllFonic. Johnson expects more stars to think more about the business side of video games down the line.

He’s unsure exactly how hip-hop will be used next and if games will use hip-hop more heavily in sci-fi and other genres. But he calls rap “outlaw” music and thinks it can serve as the sound of many different stories and worlds. This is something game developers should keep in mind. “Whether you’re sampling or replaying, that’s a very hip-hop mentality and sensibility. If you’re interested in representing any outlaw vibe, any rebel culture, it could be rastas, it could be bikers, it could be smugglers, hip-hop is always a good soundtrack for that.”

This article originally appeared in Issue 363 of Game Informer.

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