Un jour c’est toi qu’on laissera

I think I prefer the latest Weeknd mixtape “Echoes of Silence” over “Thursday.” Love all the songs on here (even the MJ cover), but track #2 – Montreal – really jumps out (for totally obvious mysterious reasons). The chorus is actually a cover, but when are they not? Replay, replay!

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Jigga What?

I’ve been flying through my Netflix queue lately, thanks to my refusal to support any of the garbage being dumped into movie theaters this year. And, since Hollywood has such a vendetta against Netflix these days, I’m even happier to get my ‘flix on. Last nights entertainment was the 2004 documentary FADE TO BLACK, chronicling Jay-Z’s “last big show” at Madison Square Garden and the events leading up to the release of his (amazing) Black Album. (Did anyone really think he was retiring? No? Me neither)

One of my favorite moments in the whole doc is contained within the clip above at the 1:50 minute mark. In the studio with Timbaland, Jay listens to a bunch of mixed beats for inspiration. Literally 10 notes of what will become “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” pulse through the speakers, and Jigga leaps out of his chair. Check out the expression on his face. Hate on Jay-Z, but homeboy knows a hit when he hears it. He proceeds to free-style what will actually become the verse (though the cynic in me wonders just how free that freestyle REALLY is).

His music is brilliant (haters gonna hate), and nobody can knock the Jay-Z hustle – this guy literally built an empire by surrounding himself with incredibly smart, talented people who have endless verses and beats to lay down on any track. I love that he’s still one of the most relevant artists out there – be it music, fashion, digital or whatever. His records are rap-radio friendly, and invited someone like me into the culture with an open hand. I feel like the Beastie Boys kicked it off – and Jay, Eminem, Dr. Dre (2001 Dre, that is), Snoop Dogg and a slew of others picked up the pieces of the glass ceiling shattered by the Beasties – and RAN with it.

I’ve never been one to mind barriers or people telling me that I shouldn’t  like something just because it doesn’t fit my profile. Watching the sold out crowd at the Garden – black, white, latino, asian, and every culture in between – vibing to Sean Carter (I love how many aliases he has), and connecting in ways that step over every color line is truly a sight to behold. Isn’t that what being an artist is all about, creating a piece of work that allows people to connect, regardless of difference?

The concert footage is pretty great, and I apologize to my neighbors for last night. HOV is super serious about his craft, but also seems like a genuinely awesome person (which I base off his behind the scenes interviews).

Hey, remember R.Kelly? Those two released an album back in 2002, which I’d completely forgotten about. They came out together on the song below, and I think I have a new favorite jam.

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Lights or no lights

Two cool songs to pass along this evening.

First up is a song by an artist I’d never heard of before. This is “Don’t Turn The Lights On,” by Chromeo. It’s the lead single from Chromeo’s third LP, ‘Business Casual’ This is the kind of song I’d expect to hear while time traveling to a Hollywood Blvd club at 3am on a Wednesday night in 1984. In other words – I really dig it, and hope you do too.

Next up is “Lights (Bassnectar Remix).” Now we’re time traveling forward to that same Hollywood club in 2011.

Enjoy.

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You’re Better Looking In Person

When @ConanOBrien tweets, Los Angeles listens. Last night at The Troubadour here in LA, a gigantic barrel of Team Coco awesomeness was poured all over a captive audience (literally captive – the Troubadour is TINY!). If you were lucky enough to snag a ticket to last year’s Legally Prohibited From Being Funny On Television Tour, this was sort of like that, but with just 300 of your friends instead of 10,000. The now dubbed Basic Cable Band came out and rocked a nonstop set of FUCKING AWESOME music. Those guys are supremely talented, and honestly I would have been happy to hear them keep playing. But oh no, the universe had some serious karma-repair to send my way…

How'd this guy get in here? He doesn't look like us!

Jimmy Pardo, the CONAN warm-up comic, stoked the initial giggle embers (that sounds so dirty, I love it). I’ve seen him at UCB a couple of times, and I’m a big fan. His Never Not Funny Podcast is epic. Some of the CONAN writers did sets, Deon Cole and the like. Love Deon Cole – I think that guy could be somebody someday. Or something. Cue the band again, who sat patiently and laughed patiently throughout the writers’ standup sets. Then cue “the kid” as Jimmy Vivino called him – a clean-shaven, Pabst Blue Ribbon tee-shirt wearing Conan O’Brien, who burst through the side door ready for action,  to the surprise and delight of the crowd. (I kinda thought something was up when the tech guy came out and raised the lead mic stand up over his head. Who else is THAT tall?)

Conebone, indeed.

I know I mentioned Team Coco’s social media savvy in an earlier post. AKA, my best attempt to sound informed about the digital world I live in. None of that here. Full disclosure: I love Conan O’Brien, loved him since I was in high school. Once I got out of college, I didn’t get to watch Late Night as much as I wanted to, but there was always Hulu or YouTube to catch the best bits. When he started on The Tonight Show (boo hiss), I was out of the country for work, and rigged my computer to block my ISP so I could stream the first week of shows from across the pond. Then disaster (or so we thought) struck, and everything changed from NBC to nothing.

When I look at Conan, I see someone for who (in the words of TonyStarkRobertDowneyJr) never in human history has a better phoenix metaphor been personified. Sure he’s funny, but he also told the system to go fuck itself when he didn’t think something was right – and came out the other side better off for it. Nowadays, I feel like settling is a common theme – which bums me out tremendously. Take a stand, make yourself known if you don’t like what’s happening around you! Sure, Conan got paid a lot of money to walk away, but that doesn’t make it easier to leave something behind that you’ve waited your whole life for. The world, and Hollywood in PARTICULAR, is sorely lacking people like this. Don’t be a sheep!! And definitely don’t work at NBC.

Thank you Conan for always bringing the funk. In our 10+ year, one sided friendship (stop calling, you weirdo), you never fail to put a smile on my face – even in my worst moments. And last night I needed it more than I could ever say. THANKS! 40 Days! (40 Days!)

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But I Want It!

My iTunes is the most ridiculous hodgepodge of music. Mostly because I was never into it until recently, and now I can’t seem to stop collecting random tracks of every possible sound. I love hearing new music, seeing live music, and getting recommendations from those much more knowledgable than I on the subject. I’m pretty much a blank slate when it comes to tunage, as I have not one music snob bone in my body. I just like what I like.

For some reason, this song has been stuck in my head a lot lately. (Some. Vague. Reason) Nine Inch Nails is one of those bands that I knew of in high school, but was scared of because I thought they were going to jump out through the speakers and douse me in black nail polish. Ironically, I was a weird kid. I think this song is brilliant and heart wrenching – my FAVORITE combination! If anyone out there can give me some guidance on what other NIN tracks I should know, I’d be down.

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Music – The Weeknd

So, here’s the thing about me. My interests are incredibly varied. This blog will run the gauntlet between film (which I know a lot about), art (which I think I know a lot about), music (which I’m still learning about), and everything in between. I’ve spent the past couple of years not so engaged with the world around me, and now I’m sprinting to catch up on everything I missed. Numbers and structure don’t do much for me, but creativity lights a fire. Just being around people who are genuinely creative (as opposed to the majority of people in this city I live in who just THINK they’re creative) is a magical thing. Being creative can mean a lot of different things, and it’s expressed in a gagillion different ways – so just go with it, ‘aight?

First up on the block is a musician. He calls himself The Weeknd (screw you, spell check) – and this guy is DOPE. The beats are ill, and I find myself connecting to his lyrics a little TOO well, if you catch my drift. His sound is R&B/soul with a little electronica thrown in. He sounds sort of Neo-ish to me, but that comparison is probably a disservice to Weeknd…(do people call this guy ‘Saturday’ as a nickname?)

Anyway, here’s a track called “Wicked Games,” that is one of my favorites off his TOTALLY FREE ALBUM THAT YOU CAN DOWNLOAD FOR FREE here

Find him on twitter, too: @theweekndxo. My favorite tweet thus far: “i can’t wait till you find out how much i don’t give a fuck …”

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