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"title": "In ‘Someone Who Isn’t Me,’ Geoff Rickly Recounts the Struggles of Some Other Singer",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13932005\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13932005\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-800x1240.jpe\" alt=\"On the front of a book, segmented black and white images of faces overlapping.\" width=\"800\" height=\"1240\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-800x1240.jpe 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-1020x1581.jpe 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-160x248.jpe 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-768x1191.jpe 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-991x1536.jpe 991w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-1321x2048.jpe 1321w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748.jpe 1645w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">‘Someone Who Isn’t Me’ by Geoff Rickly. \u003ccite>(Rose Books)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>While grappling with the massive ambition of \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em>, the debut novel by Geoff Rickly, it’s helpful to look back at the debut album by Rickly’s legendary \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2013/11/18/245954581/a-rational-conversation-is-emo-back\">emo\u003c/a>/post-hardcore band, Thursday. That album, \u003cem>Waiting\u003c/em>, came out in 1999, when Rickly was just 20 years old. His inexperience showed: Although \u003cem>Waiting \u003c/em>is an electrifying record, it’s overly beholden to its obvious influences (mainly Fugazi and Sunny Day Real Estate, two of the most popular bands of those genres). \u003cem>Waiting \u003c/em>also fails to fully showcase the staggering potential of Rickly as both a vocalist and a lyricist. It wasn’t until Thursday’s second album in 2001, \u003cem>Full Collapse\u003c/em>, when it all came together. It’s rightly considered a classic of its era, and it crystallized Rickly as — no hyperbole, just fact — one of the most poetic, impactful and inspirational voices of his generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postid='arts_13931389']Does that mean \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em> is the literary equivalent of \u003cem>Waiting\u003c/em>, a debut work that shows more promise than power? Not exactly. After all, Rickly is now in his 40s. Between Thursday and all the other bands he’s fronted over the past quarter-decade, he’s written the equivalent of many books, only in song form. Of course, a novel is very different from an album, and many musicians have dashed themselves against the rocks in an attempt to transfer their lyrical ability to prose. As it turns out, Rickly is solidly in the camp of successful songwriters-turned-authors such as John Darnielle and Nick Cave. When it comes to making the shift to the written word, he’s a natural, albeit a germinal one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em> is a semifictional account of Rickly’s own ups and downs as a tormented creative, a sensual being, and a heroin addict. If that sounds less than original, that’s because writers such as William Burroughs and Jim Carroll perfected this type of book decades ago. (It takes all of three pages into \u003cem>Someone \u003c/em>before Rickly actually name checks Burroughs.) That doesn’t, however, make Rickly’s addition to the canon any less vital. A saga of innerspace, the story pingpongs across years and coasts as Rickly alternately tiptoes and bulldozes through band tours, romantic relationships, and a chronicle of his real-life drug battles. He uses his own name for his protagonist, but he’s wise to detach much of his narrative from hard reality. Elevating his story above the bounds of believability, he injects speculative elements such as the imagined, psychedelic, anti-heroin drug called ibogaine, which evokes science-fictional pharmaceuticals of literature past like Kurt Vonnegut’s anti-gerasone and Philip K. Dick’s silenizine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Again, there’s nothing really new here, except for Rickly’s singular language and force. His lyrics and vocals have always experimented with form, texture, emotion, and modes of address, so it’s no surprise that \u003cem>Someone \u003c/em>does the same. Passages of cut-glass sharpness dissolve into flow-state streams of consciousness. He navigates “whole city blocks compressing in accordion bellows”; he recounts how he “started a band and screamed into rusty microphones, jumping around the stage until my shoes filled with blood.” Hallucinatory prose is rarely this vivid — nor does it usually bristle with the visceral punk energy that Rickly has honed throughout his career as an explosive onstage presence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postid='arts_13931586']Rickly does not skimp. He writes each sentence as if it might be the last he’ll ever get to pen. It’s the same punch of urgency that propels every line of his lyrics in Thursday. Most often that urgency works to his advantage; occasionally it hamstrings him. He doesn’t write as if his life depends on it — he writes as if his minutes are numbered and nothing can save him from death. His passages of run-on automatic writing almost always overstay their welcome, and at times so do his labored metaphors. But these are cosmetic issues; even at its most awkwardly inward, the book barrels along at the velocity of, well, a really great Thursday song.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one point in the story, a medic at a music festival rushes onto the stage after a catharsis-chasing, self-destructive Rickly accidentally cracks his nose open with his microphone. “I’m not a doctor so I wouldn’t want to rush a diagnosis,” the medic tells Rickly’s bandmates. “But I’d say he almost certainly shows signs of being a lead singer. It’s a real shame, but there’s nothing else I can do for him.” Yes, there’s also dark humor in \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em>, and it’s one of the many dimensions that helps push the novel in a daringly different direction from so many of its influences. Taken alone, Rickly’s book is a solid and promising literary debut. Placed in the context of his entire body of creative work, \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me \u003c/em>is likely to be the raw, opening salvo of an impressive new career.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">\u003cem>Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org\">visit NPR\u003c/a>.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=In+%27Someone+Who+Isn%27t+Me%2C%27+Geoff+Rickly+recounts+the+struggles+of+some+other+singer&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/em>\u003c/div>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13932005\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13932005\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-800x1240.jpe\" alt=\"On the front of a book, segmented black and white images of faces overlapping.\" width=\"800\" height=\"1240\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-800x1240.jpe 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-1020x1581.jpe 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-160x248.jpe 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-768x1191.jpe 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-991x1536.jpe 991w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748-1321x2048.jpe 1321w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/rickly-cover_custom-79e4308fbfb7293e55cd179a5505ba0950a33748.jpe 1645w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">‘Someone Who Isn’t Me’ by Geoff Rickly. \u003ccite>(Rose Books)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>While grappling with the massive ambition of \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em>, the debut novel by Geoff Rickly, it’s helpful to look back at the debut album by Rickly’s legendary \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2013/11/18/245954581/a-rational-conversation-is-emo-back\">emo\u003c/a>/post-hardcore band, Thursday. That album, \u003cem>Waiting\u003c/em>, came out in 1999, when Rickly was just 20 years old. His inexperience showed: Although \u003cem>Waiting \u003c/em>is an electrifying record, it’s overly beholden to its obvious influences (mainly Fugazi and Sunny Day Real Estate, two of the most popular bands of those genres). \u003cem>Waiting \u003c/em>also fails to fully showcase the staggering potential of Rickly as both a vocalist and a lyricist. It wasn’t until Thursday’s second album in 2001, \u003cem>Full Collapse\u003c/em>, when it all came together. It’s rightly considered a classic of its era, and it crystallized Rickly as — no hyperbole, just fact — one of the most poetic, impactful and inspirational voices of his generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Does that mean \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em> is the literary equivalent of \u003cem>Waiting\u003c/em>, a debut work that shows more promise than power? Not exactly. After all, Rickly is now in his 40s. Between Thursday and all the other bands he’s fronted over the past quarter-decade, he’s written the equivalent of many books, only in song form. Of course, a novel is very different from an album, and many musicians have dashed themselves against the rocks in an attempt to transfer their lyrical ability to prose. As it turns out, Rickly is solidly in the camp of successful songwriters-turned-authors such as John Darnielle and Nick Cave. When it comes to making the shift to the written word, he’s a natural, albeit a germinal one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em> is a semifictional account of Rickly’s own ups and downs as a tormented creative, a sensual being, and a heroin addict. If that sounds less than original, that’s because writers such as William Burroughs and Jim Carroll perfected this type of book decades ago. (It takes all of three pages into \u003cem>Someone \u003c/em>before Rickly actually name checks Burroughs.) That doesn’t, however, make Rickly’s addition to the canon any less vital. A saga of innerspace, the story pingpongs across years and coasts as Rickly alternately tiptoes and bulldozes through band tours, romantic relationships, and a chronicle of his real-life drug battles. He uses his own name for his protagonist, but he’s wise to detach much of his narrative from hard reality. Elevating his story above the bounds of believability, he injects speculative elements such as the imagined, psychedelic, anti-heroin drug called ibogaine, which evokes science-fictional pharmaceuticals of literature past like Kurt Vonnegut’s anti-gerasone and Philip K. Dick’s silenizine.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Again, there’s nothing really new here, except for Rickly’s singular language and force. His lyrics and vocals have always experimented with form, texture, emotion, and modes of address, so it’s no surprise that \u003cem>Someone \u003c/em>does the same. Passages of cut-glass sharpness dissolve into flow-state streams of consciousness. He navigates “whole city blocks compressing in accordion bellows”; he recounts how he “started a band and screamed into rusty microphones, jumping around the stage until my shoes filled with blood.” Hallucinatory prose is rarely this vivid — nor does it usually bristle with the visceral punk energy that Rickly has honed throughout his career as an explosive onstage presence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Rickly does not skimp. He writes each sentence as if it might be the last he’ll ever get to pen. It’s the same punch of urgency that propels every line of his lyrics in Thursday. Most often that urgency works to his advantage; occasionally it hamstrings him. He doesn’t write as if his life depends on it — he writes as if his minutes are numbered and nothing can save him from death. His passages of run-on automatic writing almost always overstay their welcome, and at times so do his labored metaphors. But these are cosmetic issues; even at its most awkwardly inward, the book barrels along at the velocity of, well, a really great Thursday song.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one point in the story, a medic at a music festival rushes onto the stage after a catharsis-chasing, self-destructive Rickly accidentally cracks his nose open with his microphone. “I’m not a doctor so I wouldn’t want to rush a diagnosis,” the medic tells Rickly’s bandmates. “But I’d say he almost certainly shows signs of being a lead singer. It’s a real shame, but there’s nothing else I can do for him.” Yes, there’s also dark humor in \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me\u003c/em>, and it’s one of the many dimensions that helps push the novel in a daringly different direction from so many of its influences. Taken alone, Rickly’s book is a solid and promising literary debut. Placed in the context of his entire body of creative work, \u003cem>Someone Who Isn’t Me \u003c/em>is likely to be the raw, opening salvo of an impressive new career.\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">\u003cem>Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org\">visit NPR\u003c/a>.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=In+%27Someone+Who+Isn%27t+Me%2C%27+Geoff+Rickly+recounts+the+struggles+of+some+other+singer&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/em>\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "San Francisco Loved Tony Bennett Right Back",
"headTitle": "San Francisco Loved Tony Bennett Right Back | KQED",
"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931947\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1480px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931947\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1480\" height=\"973\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_.jpg 1480w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-800x526.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-1020x671.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-160x105.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-768x505.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1480px) 100vw, 1480px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tony Bennett performs at the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco in February, 2000. \u003ccite>(Lea Suzuki / San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he first time I ever saw Tony Bennett was in 1995, for a free noontime show in Union Square. In San Francisco. Naturally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After proclamations by various city figures — I distinctly remember Angela Alioto got booed — Bennett took the stage with his trio of piano, bass and drums, and went right into what he did so well, over and over. What he was unquestionably born to do, really, until his \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13931917/tony-bennett-dies-at-96\">death this week at age 96\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My friend Kim and I stood in the large crowd with a sense of awe. There we were, seeing a legend, Tony Bennett, for free, singing timeless numbers like “Fascinatin’ Rhythm” and “Fly Me to the Moon” with elegant grace. All around the square, the city seemed to grind to a halt. Cabbies on Geary Street leaned their heads out to listen. Hotel guests in the upper floors of the St. Francis watched out of their windows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then, in the heart of the city with which he’d be forever associated, Tony Bennett started singing “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” The crowd collectively sighed — a good sigh — as Bennett settled into the familiar verse about going home to his city by the Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Right then and there, in the middle of Tony Bennett singing “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” a cable car rattled up Powell Street behind the stage, piercing the hushed city quiet. In a moment I’ll never forget, right on time with the song, it rang its bell.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931943\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931943\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1963\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-800x614.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-1020x782.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-160x123.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-768x589.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-1536x1178.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-2048x1571.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-1920x1473.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein rides a cable car with Tony Bennett. June 22, 1984. \u003ccite>(Frederic Larson/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>There was no singer in the world like Tony Bennett. Or, I should say, there were many singers \u003cem>like\u003c/em> Bennett, tons of Steve Lawrences and Vic Damones and Al Martinos. But none on his level of seemingly effortless technique, nor his gift of interpretation. As Frank Sinatra once said, in his famous quote to \u003cem>Life\u003c/em> magazine about Bennett being “the best singer in the business”: “He’s the singer who gets across what the composer has in mind, and probably a little more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How Bennett came to record the defining song about San Francisco is a story \u003ca href=\"https://web.archive.org/web/20160807090410/http://www.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/where-the-heart-is-the-story-behind-san-franciscos-official-ballad-tony-bennett-george-cory-the-fairmont-hotel-i-left-my-heart-in-san-fra/Content?oid=4814656&showFullText=true\">full of improbable twists and turns\u003c/a>, ending with the city adopting it as \u003ca href=\"https://sfmuseum.org/hist1/song.html\">one of two official songs\u003c/a>, artist-painted \u003ca href=\"https://sfghf.org/hearts-in-san-francisco/\">hearts all over the city\u003c/a>, a \u003ca href=\"https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/tony-bennett-honored-with-statue-for-90th-birthday-in-san-francisco-7480167/\">statue in front of the Fairmont Hotel\u003c/a>, and the ceremonial \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YC-vb76c30g\">playing of the song at the ballpark after Giants games\u003c/a>. (Or, occasionally, Bennett \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB5WJsaOM7Q\">waltzing onto the field and singing it live\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931964\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1728\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931964\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-800x540.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-1020x689.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-768x518.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-1536x1037.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-2048x1382.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-1920x1296.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Former San Francisco Giants Willie Mays (L) stands with singer Tony Bennett (R) as the San Francisco Giants honor Bennett for his 90th birthday prior to the start of the game against the New York Mets at AT&T Park on August 19, 2016 in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Written by George Cory and Douglass Cross, a gay couple then living in Lake County, “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” was recorded almost on a fluke. In 1959, Cory and Cross had run into Bennett’s pianist Ralph Sharon on the street in New York and handed him the sheet music. Two whole years later, before going on the road out West, Sharon tossed it into his suitcase on a whim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After trying the song out in after-hours sessions, Bennett premiered it at the Venetian Room of the Fairmont Hotel in 1961; the applause was so great he was forced to turn right around and sing it again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not everyone liked “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” Herb Caen once called it “a travel poster, and just as two-dimensional.” Bob Grimes, a San Francisco store proprietor who built one of the largest private collections of sheet music in the country, said to the \u003cem>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em> that it was “saccharine, soporific and focuses on people who are out of the city rather than its residents.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Plus, Bennett had \u003cem>so many other songs\u003c/em>. Hundreds. “Just In Time.” “Boulevard of Broken Dreams.” “The Good Life.” “Because of You.” “For Once in My Life.” The list goes \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/gmeline/status/1072910960245977089\">on and on\u003c/a>. All indelible reminders that love and sincerity are more valuable than jadedness and irony. All sung in thousands of concerts all over the globe, and punctuated on the final downbeat by Bennett’s signature pose: outstretching his arms to the audience and smiling wide.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931932\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931932\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1704\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-2048x1363.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-1920x1278.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tony Bennett performs on stage during a concert in Everett, Massachusetts in 2019. \u003ccite>(JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I was lucky to have seen Bennett six or seven times over the years. One time I paid $125 for a ticket; another time, I snuck in for free. Yet another time I hung around the backstage door afterward to watch him emerge, flanked by two large Italian bodyguards, and got to shake his hand.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The last time he came around was in 2018, two years into his Alzheimer’s diagnosis. I had made an unusual habit of bringing tattooed friends from the punk scene to see Tony Bennett with me, but this time was special: I went with my 9-year-old daughter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At an incredible 92 years old, he sang 24 songs. And then, at the end of the night, came another Tony Bennett moment I’ll never forget: he set the microphone down, walked to the front of the stage, and, unamplified, sang “Fly Me to the Moon” to the rafters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sP9skLqKQ2c\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It brought the house down.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s true that Tony Bennett genuinely loved San Francisco. But San Francisco loved him right back, tenfold. Wherever he is now, he’s left much more than his heart here. Indeed, a giant piece of him is woven into this city — and me — forever.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931947\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1480px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931947\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1480\" height=\"973\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_.jpg 1480w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-800x526.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-1020x671.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-160x105.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.MAIN_-768x505.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1480px) 100vw, 1480px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tony Bennett performs at the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco in February, 2000. \u003ccite>(Lea Suzuki / San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">T\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>he first time I ever saw Tony Bennett was in 1995, for a free noontime show in Union Square. In San Francisco. Naturally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After proclamations by various city figures — I distinctly remember Angela Alioto got booed — Bennett took the stage with his trio of piano, bass and drums, and went right into what he did so well, over and over. What he was unquestionably born to do, really, until his \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13931917/tony-bennett-dies-at-96\">death this week at age 96\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My friend Kim and I stood in the large crowd with a sense of awe. There we were, seeing a legend, Tony Bennett, for free, singing timeless numbers like “Fascinatin’ Rhythm” and “Fly Me to the Moon” with elegant grace. All around the square, the city seemed to grind to a halt. Cabbies on Geary Street leaned their heads out to listen. Hotel guests in the upper floors of the St. Francis watched out of their windows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then, in the heart of the city with which he’d be forever associated, Tony Bennett started singing “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” The crowd collectively sighed — a good sigh — as Bennett settled into the familiar verse about going home to his city by the Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Right then and there, in the middle of Tony Bennett singing “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” a cable car rattled up Powell Street behind the stage, piercing the hushed city quiet. In a moment I’ll never forget, right on time with the song, it rang its bell.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931943\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931943\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1963\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-800x614.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-1020x782.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-160x123.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-768x589.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-1536x1178.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-2048x1571.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1298825223-1920x1473.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein rides a cable car with Tony Bennett. June 22, 1984. \u003ccite>(Frederic Larson/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>There was no singer in the world like Tony Bennett. Or, I should say, there were many singers \u003cem>like\u003c/em> Bennett, tons of Steve Lawrences and Vic Damones and Al Martinos. But none on his level of seemingly effortless technique, nor his gift of interpretation. As Frank Sinatra once said, in his famous quote to \u003cem>Life\u003c/em> magazine about Bennett being “the best singer in the business”: “He’s the singer who gets across what the composer has in mind, and probably a little more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>How Bennett came to record the defining song about San Francisco is a story \u003ca href=\"https://web.archive.org/web/20160807090410/http://www.sfweekly.com/sanfrancisco/where-the-heart-is-the-story-behind-san-franciscos-official-ballad-tony-bennett-george-cory-the-fairmont-hotel-i-left-my-heart-in-san-fra/Content?oid=4814656&showFullText=true\">full of improbable twists and turns\u003c/a>, ending with the city adopting it as \u003ca href=\"https://sfmuseum.org/hist1/song.html\">one of two official songs\u003c/a>, artist-painted \u003ca href=\"https://sfghf.org/hearts-in-san-francisco/\">hearts all over the city\u003c/a>, a \u003ca href=\"https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/tony-bennett-honored-with-statue-for-90th-birthday-in-san-francisco-7480167/\">statue in front of the Fairmont Hotel\u003c/a>, and the ceremonial \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YC-vb76c30g\">playing of the song at the ballpark after Giants games\u003c/a>. (Or, occasionally, Bennett \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fB5WJsaOM7Q\">waltzing onto the field and singing it live\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931964\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1728\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931964\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-800x540.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-1020x689.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-768x518.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-1536x1037.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-2048x1382.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-595239568-1920x1296.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Former San Francisco Giants Willie Mays (L) stands with singer Tony Bennett (R) as the San Francisco Giants honor Bennett for his 90th birthday prior to the start of the game against the New York Mets at AT&T Park on August 19, 2016 in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Written by George Cory and Douglass Cross, a gay couple then living in Lake County, “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” was recorded almost on a fluke. In 1959, Cory and Cross had run into Bennett’s pianist Ralph Sharon on the street in New York and handed him the sheet music. Two whole years later, before going on the road out West, Sharon tossed it into his suitcase on a whim.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After trying the song out in after-hours sessions, Bennett premiered it at the Venetian Room of the Fairmont Hotel in 1961; the applause was so great he was forced to turn right around and sing it again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not everyone liked “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” Herb Caen once called it “a travel poster, and just as two-dimensional.” Bob Grimes, a San Francisco store proprietor who built one of the largest private collections of sheet music in the country, said to the \u003cem>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em> that it was “saccharine, soporific and focuses on people who are out of the city rather than its residents.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Plus, Bennett had \u003cem>so many other songs\u003c/em>. Hundreds. “Just In Time.” “Boulevard of Broken Dreams.” “The Good Life.” “Because of You.” “For Once in My Life.” The list goes \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/gmeline/status/1072910960245977089\">on and on\u003c/a>. All indelible reminders that love and sincerity are more valuable than jadedness and irony. All sung in thousands of concerts all over the globe, and punctuated on the final downbeat by Bennett’s signature pose: outstretching his arms to the audience and smiling wide.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931932\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931932\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1704\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-2048x1363.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/GettyImages-1160447812-1920x1278.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tony Bennett performs on stage during a concert in Everett, Massachusetts in 2019. \u003ccite>(JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I was lucky to have seen Bennett six or seven times over the years. One time I paid $125 for a ticket; another time, I snuck in for free. Yet another time I hung around the backstage door afterward to watch him emerge, flanked by two large Italian bodyguards, and got to shake his hand.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The last time he came around was in 2018, two years into his Alzheimer’s diagnosis. I had made an unusual habit of bringing tattooed friends from the punk scene to see Tony Bennett with me, but this time was special: I went with my 9-year-old daughter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At an incredible 92 years old, he sang 24 songs. And then, at the end of the night, came another Tony Bennett moment I’ll never forget: he set the microphone down, walked to the front of the stage, and, unamplified, sang “Fly Me to the Moon” to the rafters.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/sP9skLqKQ2c'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/sP9skLqKQ2c'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It brought the house down.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s true that Tony Bennett genuinely loved San Francisco. But San Francisco loved him right back, tenfold. Wherever he is now, he’s left much more than his heart here. Indeed, a giant piece of him is woven into this city — and me — forever.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Tony Bennett, Masterful Stylist of American Song, Dies at 96",
"headTitle": "Tony Bennett, Masterful Stylist of American Song, Dies at 96 | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Tony Bennett, the eminent and timeless stylist whose devotion to classic American songs and knack for creating new standards such as “I Left My Heart In San Francisco” graced a decadeslong career that brought him admirers from Frank Sinatra to Lady Gaga, died Friday. He was 96, just two weeks short of his birthday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Publicist Sylvia Weiner confirmed Bennett’s death to The Associated Press, saying he died in his hometown of New York. There was no specific cause, but Bennett had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The last of the great saloon singers of the mid-20th century, Bennett often said his lifelong ambition was to create “a hit catalog rather than hit records.” He released more than 70 albums, bringing him 19 competitive Grammys — all but two after he reached his 60s — and enjoyed deep and lasting affection from fans and fellow artists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13879120\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/GettyImages-106373428-e1587583661461.jpg\" alt=\"Tony Bennett performing in 2010.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1217\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13879120\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tony Bennett performing in 2010. \u003ccite>(BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Bennett didn’t tell his own story when performing; he let the music speak instead — the Gershwins and Cole Porter, Irving Berlin and Jerome Kern. Unlike his friend and mentor Sinatra, he would interpret a song rather than embody it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If his singing and public life lacked the high drama of Sinatra’s, Bennett appealed with an easy, courtly manner and an uncommonly rich and durable voice — “A tenor who sings like a baritone,” he called himself — that made him a master of caressing a ballad or brightening an up-tempo number.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I enjoy entertaining the audience, making them forget their problems,” he told The Associated Press in 2006. “I think people … are touched if they hear something that’s sincere and honest and maybe has a little sense of humor. … I just like to make people feel good when I perform.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett was praised often by his peers, but never more meaningfully than by what Sinatra said in a 1965 Life magazine interview: “For my money, Tony Bennett is the best singer in the business. He excites me when I watch him. He moves me. He’s the singer who gets across what the composer has in mind, and probably a little more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11936142\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-800x486.jpg\" alt=\"Sculptor Bruce Wolfe and his model, singer Tony Bennett in Wolfe's Piedmont studio\" width=\"800\" height=\"486\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11936142\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-800x486.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-400x243.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-768x466.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-1180x717.jpg 1180w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-1920x1166.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-960x583.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sculptor Bruce Wolfe and his model, singer Tony Bennett, in Wolfe’s Piedmont studio. Wolfe created a statue to honor Tony Bennett in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Bruce Wolfe)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He not only survived the rise of rock music but endured so long and so well that he gained new fans and collaborators, some young enough to be his grandchildren. In 2014, at age 88, Bennett broke his own record as the oldest living performer with a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart for “Cheek to Cheek,” his duets project with Lady Gaga. Three years earlier, he topped the charts with “Duets II,” featuring such contemporary stars as Gaga, Carrie Underwood and Amy Winehouse, in her last studio recording. His rapport with Winehouse was captured in the Oscar-nominated documentary “Amy,” which showed Bennett patiently encouraging the insecure young singer through a performance of “Body and Soul.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His final album, the 2021 release “Love for Sale,” featured duets with Lady Gaga on the title track, “Night and Day” and other Porter songs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Bennett, one of the few performers to move easily between pop and jazz, such collaborations were part of his crusade to expose new audiences to what he called the Great American Songbook.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No country has given the world such great music,” Bennett said in a 2015 interview with Downbeat Magazine. “Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Jerome Kern. Those songs will never die.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_11928855']Ironically, his most famous contribution came through two unknowns, George Cory and Douglass Cross, who in the early ’60s provided Bennett with his signature song at a time his career was in a lull. They gave Bennett’s musical director, pianist Ralph Sharon, some sheet music that he stuck in a dresser drawer and forgot about until he was packing for a tour that included a stop in San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ralph saw some sheet music in his shirt drawer … and on top of the pile was a song called ‘I Left My Heart In San Francisco.’ Ralph thought it would be good material for San Francisco,” Bennett said. “We were rehearsing and the bartender in the club in Little Rock, Arkansas, said, ‘If you record that song, I’m going to be the first to buy it.'”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Released in 1962 as the B-side of the single “Once Upon a Time,” the reflective ballad became a grassroots phenomenon staying on the charts for more than two years and earning Bennett his first two Grammys, including record of the year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSIF3KtwGUA\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By his early 40s, he was seemingly out of fashion. But after turning 60, an age when even the most popular artists often settle for just pleasing their older fans, Bennett and his son and manager, Danny, found creative ways to market the singer to the MTV Generation. He made guest appearances on “Late Night with David Letterman” and became a celebrity guest artist on “The Simpsons.” He wore a black T-shirt and sunglasses as a presenter with the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the 1993 MTV Music Video Awards, and his own video of “Steppin’ Out With My Baby” from his Grammy-winning Fred Astaire tribute album ended up on MTV’s hip “Buzz Bin.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That led to an offer in 1994 to do an episode of “MTV Unplugged” with special guests Elvis Costello and k.d. lang. The evening’s performance resulted in the album, “Tony Bennett: MTV Unplugged,” which won two Grammys, including album of the year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett would win Grammys for his tributes to female vocalists (“Here’s to the Ladies”), Billie Holiday (“Tony Bennett on Holiday”), and Duke Ellington (“Bennett Sings Ellington — Hot & Cool”). He also won Grammys for his collaborations with other singers: “Playin’ With My Friends — Bennett Sings the Blues,” and his Louis Armstrong tribute, “A Wonderful World” with lang, the first full album he had ever recorded with another singer. He celebrated his 80th birthday with “Duets: An American Classic,” featuring Barbra Streisand, Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder among others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re all giants in the industry, and all of a sudden they’re saying to me ‘You’re the master,'” Bennett told the AP in 2006.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VLjXbkSm8B4\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Long associated with San Francisco, Bennett would note that his true home was Astoria, the working-class community in the New York City borough of Queens, where he grew up during the Great Depression. The singer chose his old neighborhood as the site for the “Fame”-style public high school, the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, that he and his third wife, Susan Crow Benedetto, a former teacher, helped found in 2001.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school is not far from the birthplace of the man who was once Anthony Dominick Benedetto. His father was an Italian immigrant who inspired his love of singing, but he died when Anthony was 10. Bennett credited his mother, Anna, with teaching him a valuable lesson as he watched her working at home, supporting her three children as a seamstress doing piecework after his father died.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were very impoverished,” Bennett said in a 2016 AP interview. “I saw her working and every once in a while she’d take a dress and throw it over her shoulder and she’d say, ‘Don’t have me work on a bad dress. I’ll only work on good dresses.'”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931920\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931920\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The cover of Tony Bennett’s album ‘Astoria: Portrait of the Artist,’ picturing the singer as a young man in front of his childhood home. \u003ccite>(Columbia Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He studied commercial art in high school, but had to drop out to help support his family. The teenager got a job as a copy boy for the AP, performed as a singing waiter and competed in amateur shows. A combat infantryman during World War II, he served as a librarian for the Armed Forces Network after the war and sang with an army big band in occupied Germany. His earliest recording is a 1946 air check from Armed Forces Radio of the blues “St. James Infirmary.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett took advantage of the GI Bill to attend the American Theater Wing, which later became The Actors Studio. His acting lessons helped him develop his phrasing and learn how to tell a story. He learned the more intimate Bel Canto vocal technique which helped him sustain and extend the expressive range of his voice. And he took to heart the advice of his vocal coach, Miriam Spier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“She said please don’t imitate other singers because you’ll just be one of the chorus whoever you imitate whether it’s Bing Crosby or Frank Sinatra and won’t develop an original sound,” Bennett recalled in the 2006 AP interview. “She said imitate musicians that you like, find out how they phrase. I was particularly influenced by the jazz musicians like (pianist) Art Tatum and (saxophonists) Lester Young and Stan Getz.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5f-e3Wajq4\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1947, Bennett made his first recording, the Gershwins’ standard “Fascinatin’ Rhythm” for a small label under the stage name Joe Bari. The following year he gained notice when he finished behind Rosemary Clooney on the radio show “Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts.” Bennett’s big break came in 1949 when singer Pearl Bailey invited him to join her revue at a Greenwich Village club. Bob Hope dropped by one night and was so impressed that he offered the young singer a spot opening his shows at the famed Paramount Theater, where teens had swooned for Sinatra. But the comedian didn’t care for his stage name and thought his real name was too long for the marquee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He thought for a moment, then he said, ‘We’ll call you Tony Bennett,'” the singer wrote in his autobiography, “The Good Life,” published in 1998.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1950, Mitch Miller, the head of Columbia Records’ pop singles division, signed Bennett and released the single, “The Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” a semi-hit. Bennett was on the verge of being dropped from the label in 1951 when he had his first No. 1 on the pop charts with “Because of You.” More hits followed, including “Rags to Riches,” “Blue Velvet,” and Hank Williams’ “Cold, Cold Heart,” the first country song to become an international pop hit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett found himself frequently clashing with Miller, who pushed him to sing Sinatra-style ballads and gimmicky novelty songs. But Bennett took advantage of the young LP album format, starting in 1955 with “Cloud 7,” featuring a small jazz combo led by guitarist Chuck Wayne. Bennett reached out to the jazz audience with such innovative albums as the 1957 “The Beat of My Heart,” an album of standards that paired him with such jazz percussion masters as Chico Hamilton, and Art Blakey. He also became the first white male singer to record with the Count Basie Orchestra, releasing two albums in 1958. Sinatra would later do the same.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ll1cmbBrvlM\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett’s friendship with Black musicians and his disgust at the racial prejudice he encountered in the Army led him to become an active supporter of the Civil Rights Movement. He answered Harry Belafonte’s call to join Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery voting rights march and perform for the protesters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett’s early career peaked in the 1960s as he topped the charts with “San Francisco” and became the first male pop solo performer to headline at Carnegie Hall, releasing a live album of the 1962 concert.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1966, he released “The Movie Song Album,” a personal favorite which featured Johnny Mandel’s Oscar-winning song “The Shadow of Your Smile” and “Maybe September,” the theme from the epic flop “The Oscar,” noteworthy because it marked Bennett’s first and only big-screen acting role.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as rock continued to overtake traditional pop, he clashed with Columbia label head Clive Davis, who insisted that the singer do the 1970 album “Tony Sings the Great Hits of Today,” with such songs as “MacArthur Park” and “Little Green Apples.” Bennett left Columbia in 1972, and went on to form his own record label, Improv, which in 1975-76 produced two duet albums with the impressionistic pianist Bill Evans now considered jazz classics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LIW7q_cFeA\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite artistic successes, Improv proved a financial disaster for Bennett, who also faced difficulties in his personal life. His marriage to artist Patricia Beech collapsed in 1971. He wed actress Sandra Grant the same year, but that marriage ended in 1984. With no recording deals, his debts brought him close to bankruptcy and the IRS was trying to seize his house in Los Angeles. After a near-fatal drug overdose in 1979, he turned to his son, Danny, who eventually signed on as his manager. Bennett kicked his drug habit and got his finances in order, moved back to New York and resumed doing more than 200 shows a year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He is survived by his wife Susan, daughters Johanna and Antonia, sons Danny and Dae and nine grandchildren.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett was named a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2005 and a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master in 2006. He also won two Emmy Awards — for “Tony Bennett Live By Request: A Valentine Special” (1996) and “Tony Bennett: An American Classic” (2007).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides singing, Bennett pursued his lifelong passion for painting by taking art lessons and bringing his sketchbook on the road. His paintings, signed with his family name Benedetto — including portraits of his musician friends and Central Park landscapes — were displayed in public and private collections, including the Smithsonian Museum of American Art.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I love to paint as much as I love to sing,” Bennett told the AP in 2006. “It worked out to be such a blessing in my life because if I started getting burnt-out singing … I would go to my painting and that’s a big lift. … So I stay in this creative zone all the time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>AP National Writer Hillel Italie contributed to this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "The matchless interpreter of jazz standards that Frank Sinatra called 'the best singer in the business' died in New York.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Tony Bennett, the eminent and timeless stylist whose devotion to classic American songs and knack for creating new standards such as “I Left My Heart In San Francisco” graced a decadeslong career that brought him admirers from Frank Sinatra to Lady Gaga, died Friday. He was 96, just two weeks short of his birthday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Publicist Sylvia Weiner confirmed Bennett’s death to The Associated Press, saying he died in his hometown of New York. There was no specific cause, but Bennett had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2016.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The last of the great saloon singers of the mid-20th century, Bennett often said his lifelong ambition was to create “a hit catalog rather than hit records.” He released more than 70 albums, bringing him 19 competitive Grammys — all but two after he reached his 60s — and enjoyed deep and lasting affection from fans and fellow artists.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13879120\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/GettyImages-106373428-e1587583661461.jpg\" alt=\"Tony Bennett performing in 2010.\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1217\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13879120\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tony Bennett performing in 2010. \u003ccite>(BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Bennett didn’t tell his own story when performing; he let the music speak instead — the Gershwins and Cole Porter, Irving Berlin and Jerome Kern. Unlike his friend and mentor Sinatra, he would interpret a song rather than embody it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If his singing and public life lacked the high drama of Sinatra’s, Bennett appealed with an easy, courtly manner and an uncommonly rich and durable voice — “A tenor who sings like a baritone,” he called himself — that made him a master of caressing a ballad or brightening an up-tempo number.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I enjoy entertaining the audience, making them forget their problems,” he told The Associated Press in 2006. “I think people … are touched if they hear something that’s sincere and honest and maybe has a little sense of humor. … I just like to make people feel good when I perform.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett was praised often by his peers, but never more meaningfully than by what Sinatra said in a 1965 Life magazine interview: “For my money, Tony Bennett is the best singer in the business. He excites me when I watch him. He moves me. He’s the singer who gets across what the composer has in mind, and probably a little more.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11936142\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-800x486.jpg\" alt=\"Sculptor Bruce Wolfe and his model, singer Tony Bennett in Wolfe's Piedmont studio\" width=\"800\" height=\"486\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-11936142\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-800x486.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-400x243.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-768x466.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-1180x717.jpg 1180w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-1920x1166.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/08/Bennett-Statue-IMG_3350-e1471283958629-960x583.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sculptor Bruce Wolfe and his model, singer Tony Bennett, in Wolfe’s Piedmont studio. Wolfe created a statue to honor Tony Bennett in San Francisco. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Bruce Wolfe)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He not only survived the rise of rock music but endured so long and so well that he gained new fans and collaborators, some young enough to be his grandchildren. In 2014, at age 88, Bennett broke his own record as the oldest living performer with a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart for “Cheek to Cheek,” his duets project with Lady Gaga. Three years earlier, he topped the charts with “Duets II,” featuring such contemporary stars as Gaga, Carrie Underwood and Amy Winehouse, in her last studio recording. His rapport with Winehouse was captured in the Oscar-nominated documentary “Amy,” which showed Bennett patiently encouraging the insecure young singer through a performance of “Body and Soul.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His final album, the 2021 release “Love for Sale,” featured duets with Lady Gaga on the title track, “Night and Day” and other Porter songs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For Bennett, one of the few performers to move easily between pop and jazz, such collaborations were part of his crusade to expose new audiences to what he called the Great American Songbook.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“No country has given the world such great music,” Bennett said in a 2015 interview with Downbeat Magazine. “Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Jerome Kern. Those songs will never die.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Ironically, his most famous contribution came through two unknowns, George Cory and Douglass Cross, who in the early ’60s provided Bennett with his signature song at a time his career was in a lull. They gave Bennett’s musical director, pianist Ralph Sharon, some sheet music that he stuck in a dresser drawer and forgot about until he was packing for a tour that included a stop in San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Ralph saw some sheet music in his shirt drawer … and on top of the pile was a song called ‘I Left My Heart In San Francisco.’ Ralph thought it would be good material for San Francisco,” Bennett said. “We were rehearsing and the bartender in the club in Little Rock, Arkansas, said, ‘If you record that song, I’m going to be the first to buy it.'”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Released in 1962 as the B-side of the single “Once Upon a Time,” the reflective ballad became a grassroots phenomenon staying on the charts for more than two years and earning Bennett his first two Grammys, including record of the year.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/YSIF3KtwGUA'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/YSIF3KtwGUA'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>By his early 40s, he was seemingly out of fashion. But after turning 60, an age when even the most popular artists often settle for just pleasing their older fans, Bennett and his son and manager, Danny, found creative ways to market the singer to the MTV Generation. He made guest appearances on “Late Night with David Letterman” and became a celebrity guest artist on “The Simpsons.” He wore a black T-shirt and sunglasses as a presenter with the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the 1993 MTV Music Video Awards, and his own video of “Steppin’ Out With My Baby” from his Grammy-winning Fred Astaire tribute album ended up on MTV’s hip “Buzz Bin.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That led to an offer in 1994 to do an episode of “MTV Unplugged” with special guests Elvis Costello and k.d. lang. The evening’s performance resulted in the album, “Tony Bennett: MTV Unplugged,” which won two Grammys, including album of the year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett would win Grammys for his tributes to female vocalists (“Here’s to the Ladies”), Billie Holiday (“Tony Bennett on Holiday”), and Duke Ellington (“Bennett Sings Ellington — Hot & Cool”). He also won Grammys for his collaborations with other singers: “Playin’ With My Friends — Bennett Sings the Blues,” and his Louis Armstrong tribute, “A Wonderful World” with lang, the first full album he had ever recorded with another singer. He celebrated his 80th birthday with “Duets: An American Classic,” featuring Barbra Streisand, Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder among others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re all giants in the industry, and all of a sudden they’re saying to me ‘You’re the master,'” Bennett told the AP in 2006.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/VLjXbkSm8B4'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/VLjXbkSm8B4'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Long associated with San Francisco, Bennett would note that his true home was Astoria, the working-class community in the New York City borough of Queens, where he grew up during the Great Depression. The singer chose his old neighborhood as the site for the “Fame”-style public high school, the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, that he and his third wife, Susan Crow Benedetto, a former teacher, helped found in 2001.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school is not far from the birthplace of the man who was once Anthony Dominick Benedetto. His father was an Italian immigrant who inspired his love of singing, but he died when Anthony was 10. Bennett credited his mother, Anna, with teaching him a valuable lesson as he watched her working at home, supporting her three children as a seamstress doing piecework after his father died.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were very impoverished,” Bennett said in a 2016 AP interview. “I saw her working and every once in a while she’d take a dress and throw it over her shoulder and she’d say, ‘Don’t have me work on a bad dress. I’ll only work on good dresses.'”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931920\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931920\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/TonyBennett.astoria.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The cover of Tony Bennett’s album ‘Astoria: Portrait of the Artist,’ picturing the singer as a young man in front of his childhood home. \u003ccite>(Columbia Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He studied commercial art in high school, but had to drop out to help support his family. The teenager got a job as a copy boy for the AP, performed as a singing waiter and competed in amateur shows. A combat infantryman during World War II, he served as a librarian for the Armed Forces Network after the war and sang with an army big band in occupied Germany. His earliest recording is a 1946 air check from Armed Forces Radio of the blues “St. James Infirmary.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett took advantage of the GI Bill to attend the American Theater Wing, which later became The Actors Studio. His acting lessons helped him develop his phrasing and learn how to tell a story. He learned the more intimate Bel Canto vocal technique which helped him sustain and extend the expressive range of his voice. And he took to heart the advice of his vocal coach, Miriam Spier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“She said please don’t imitate other singers because you’ll just be one of the chorus whoever you imitate whether it’s Bing Crosby or Frank Sinatra and won’t develop an original sound,” Bennett recalled in the 2006 AP interview. “She said imitate musicians that you like, find out how they phrase. I was particularly influenced by the jazz musicians like (pianist) Art Tatum and (saxophonists) Lester Young and Stan Getz.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/I5f-e3Wajq4'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/I5f-e3Wajq4'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>In 1947, Bennett made his first recording, the Gershwins’ standard “Fascinatin’ Rhythm” for a small label under the stage name Joe Bari. The following year he gained notice when he finished behind Rosemary Clooney on the radio show “Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts.” Bennett’s big break came in 1949 when singer Pearl Bailey invited him to join her revue at a Greenwich Village club. Bob Hope dropped by one night and was so impressed that he offered the young singer a spot opening his shows at the famed Paramount Theater, where teens had swooned for Sinatra. But the comedian didn’t care for his stage name and thought his real name was too long for the marquee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He thought for a moment, then he said, ‘We’ll call you Tony Bennett,'” the singer wrote in his autobiography, “The Good Life,” published in 1998.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1950, Mitch Miller, the head of Columbia Records’ pop singles division, signed Bennett and released the single, “The Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” a semi-hit. Bennett was on the verge of being dropped from the label in 1951 when he had his first No. 1 on the pop charts with “Because of You.” More hits followed, including “Rags to Riches,” “Blue Velvet,” and Hank Williams’ “Cold, Cold Heart,” the first country song to become an international pop hit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett found himself frequently clashing with Miller, who pushed him to sing Sinatra-style ballads and gimmicky novelty songs. But Bennett took advantage of the young LP album format, starting in 1955 with “Cloud 7,” featuring a small jazz combo led by guitarist Chuck Wayne. Bennett reached out to the jazz audience with such innovative albums as the 1957 “The Beat of My Heart,” an album of standards that paired him with such jazz percussion masters as Chico Hamilton, and Art Blakey. He also became the first white male singer to record with the Count Basie Orchestra, releasing two albums in 1958. Sinatra would later do the same.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/Ll1cmbBrvlM'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/Ll1cmbBrvlM'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Bennett’s friendship with Black musicians and his disgust at the racial prejudice he encountered in the Army led him to become an active supporter of the Civil Rights Movement. He answered Harry Belafonte’s call to join Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery voting rights march and perform for the protesters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett’s early career peaked in the 1960s as he topped the charts with “San Francisco” and became the first male pop solo performer to headline at Carnegie Hall, releasing a live album of the 1962 concert.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1966, he released “The Movie Song Album,” a personal favorite which featured Johnny Mandel’s Oscar-winning song “The Shadow of Your Smile” and “Maybe September,” the theme from the epic flop “The Oscar,” noteworthy because it marked Bennett’s first and only big-screen acting role.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But as rock continued to overtake traditional pop, he clashed with Columbia label head Clive Davis, who insisted that the singer do the 1970 album “Tony Sings the Great Hits of Today,” with such songs as “MacArthur Park” and “Little Green Apples.” Bennett left Columbia in 1972, and went on to form his own record label, Improv, which in 1975-76 produced two duet albums with the impressionistic pianist Bill Evans now considered jazz classics.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/7LIW7q_cFeA'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/7LIW7q_cFeA'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Despite artistic successes, Improv proved a financial disaster for Bennett, who also faced difficulties in his personal life. His marriage to artist Patricia Beech collapsed in 1971. He wed actress Sandra Grant the same year, but that marriage ended in 1984. With no recording deals, his debts brought him close to bankruptcy and the IRS was trying to seize his house in Los Angeles. After a near-fatal drug overdose in 1979, he turned to his son, Danny, who eventually signed on as his manager. Bennett kicked his drug habit and got his finances in order, moved back to New York and resumed doing more than 200 shows a year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He is survived by his wife Susan, daughters Johanna and Antonia, sons Danny and Dae and nine grandchildren.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bennett was named a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2005 and a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master in 2006. He also won two Emmy Awards — for “Tony Bennett Live By Request: A Valentine Special” (1996) and “Tony Bennett: An American Classic” (2007).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides singing, Bennett pursued his lifelong passion for painting by taking art lessons and bringing his sketchbook on the road. His paintings, signed with his family name Benedetto — including portraits of his musician friends and Central Park landscapes — were displayed in public and private collections, including the Smithsonian Museum of American Art.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I love to paint as much as I love to sing,” Bennett told the AP in 2006. “It worked out to be such a blessing in my life because if I started getting burnt-out singing … I would go to my painting and that’s a big lift. … So I stay in this creative zone all the time.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "the-jacka-allah-muslim-bay-area-islam-hip-hop",
"title": "The Jacka: In Search of Allah on the Mic",
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"headTitle": "The Jacka: In Search of Allah on the Mic | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Editor’s note\u003c/strong>: This story is part of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">That’s My Word\u003c/a>\u003cem>, KQED’s year-long exploration of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop\u003c/a> history.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[dropcap]I[/dropcap]t was a characteristic East Oakland scene: On the night of Feb. 2, 2015, a group of friends sat in their car on 94th Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard in East Oakland, taking turns rapping. Another group, including Dominick Newton, stood on the sidewalk, watching the fun go down. As the vibes continued, all was good.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Suddenly, around 8:15 p.m, a car slid by spitting bullets at the parked car. Newton was hit in the head. A neighbor tried to slow the bleeding with a towel until medics arrived, but Newton, known in Islamic circles as Shaheed Akbar, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/10357773/the-jacka-killed-in-oakland-shooting\">died at Eden Medical Center\u003c/a> a few hours later.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13923938']If you really knew the gangsta rap scene well, you knew Newton as \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/jackamobfigaz/?hl=en\">The Jacka\u003c/a>. Hailing from Pittsburg, California, Jacka was respected around the world for his violently visual lyrics laced with positive Islamic undertones. The murder of the 37-year-old rapper \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13874024/five-years-after-his-death-the-jackas-collaborators-remember-his-complex-legacy\">shook the Bay Area rap world to its core\u003c/a>, and his killers have never been caught.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Very few murders of rappers are ever solved. The shootings of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13869588/slow-burn-season-3-is-taking-on-the-murders-of-biggie-and-tupac\">Tupac Shakur\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/105-remembering-mac-dre-the-jacka/id1459775067?i=1000464857465\">Mac Dre\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/105-remembering-mac-dre-the-jacka/id1459775067?i=1000464857465\">The Jacka\u003c/a>, along with the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13920198/zumbi-zion-i-improper-restraint-at-hospital\"> death of Zion I’s Zumbi\u003c/a> under suspicious circumstances at Alta Bates Medical Center, remain conspicuously unsolved or ignored by local police departments. For many, this can feel like deliberate psychological warfare on Black America; piles upon piles of cold cases leave grieving families and fans hollow from the pain inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931803\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931803\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1275\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-800x531.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-1020x677.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-768x510.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-1536x1020.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Jacka, in contemplation between takes, recording at 17 Hertz Studios in Hayward. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Often, a rapper’s murder becomes their identity, eclipsing their artistry. In death, most rappers’ music fades under the algorithms as new artists and sounds try to claw their way to the top. Many die with no legacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But The Jacka was different. His legacy in rap shines bright as the light from the East. Why is that so? The most common answer, for most who knew him well, is Islam.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A Black crescent over The Bay\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>To those outside of hip-hop, Islam’s influence on the art form might seem unlikely. But if you know that the seeds of hip-hop were sown in Black American ghettos, and understand their history, it makes perfect sense.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The religion of Islam arrived in America within the hearts of Muslims trapped in the hulls of ships during the transatlantic slave trade. Some of them were \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXVAE4eMFn8\">legitimate royalty\u003c/a>, and intellectually miles above those who kidnapped, tortured and sold their people. Centuries of this brutal treatment, along with Jim Crow, redlining and other racist policies, created the degraded living environment of the 1970s American ghetto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13924126']Rap music arose in these hoods like a divine phoenix from of the ashes of the civil rights era, during which the United States government demolished radical Black Power movements (and their \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/05/03/us-history-first-women-terrorist-group-191037\">white allies\u003c/a>). As rap music got its baby legs, the crack epidemic and an unprecedented \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWX562Q8t38\">wave of gang violence\u003c/a> spread across the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those in Black neighborhoods lucky enough to avoid being murdered usually did some time in jail. Poet Sonia Sanchez once remarked that, for Black men, prison was the first time they were able to be still and think. Copies of \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Autobiography_of_Malcolm_X\">The Autobiography of Malcolm X\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and Elijah Muhammad’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Message_to_the_Blackman_in_America\">Message to the Blackman in America\u003c/a>\u003c/em> circulated, and the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJZ6lxgQjiM\">5% Nation of Gods and Earths\u003c/a> grew in American prisons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the late 1980s and early 1990s, African American Sunni Muslims and followers of the Nation of Islam helped the hood thrive with new dignity, negotiating truces among warring gangs and creating entrepreneurial businesses. Among the gang violence and crack epidemic of the era, the Muslim message of self-reliance and living a clean lifestyle held an understandable appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925188\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 750px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13925188\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/tcd1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"750\" height=\"745\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/tcd1.jpg 750w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/tcd1-160x159.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Conscious Daughters with mentor and producer Paris in the 1990s. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of CMG)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Parallel with the rise of hip-hop, Islam gave young Black people an understanding of their history before slavery. It highlighted Black achievements in math, science, art and literature that weren’t taught in the racially bigoted American education system. While both Black and Islamic societies were often framed in America’s schools as savage, rap became the pathway by which many Black kids learned about Black and Muslim history and culture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The impact on hip-hop was immeasurable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the 1980s, the rising despair, unemployment rates, violence and cases of police brutality fomented conditions that made the Black nationalist message of self-determination, racial pride and self-defense more attractive,” says Dr. Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar, author of \u003cem>Hip-Hop Revolution: The Culture and Politics of Rap\u003c/em>. “Malcolm X, the former spokesman for the Nation of Islam, was sampled by everyone from Public Enemy to Ice Cube. Simultaneously, the current head of the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan, was ascending in popularity among the hip-hop generation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Zaheed, a.k.a. \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mobmanagement/?hl=en\">Big Za\u003c/a> from Richmond, was one of the early young Muslims to convert in that late-’80s, early-’90s era.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Rap had consciousness to it and it had substance to it,” Za recalls. He names \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1vKOchATXs\">Boogie Down Productions\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo83vZkS8Zc\">Public Enemy\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhEQ43gGTuU\">Brand Nubian\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ze0C08bkPJY\">Big Daddy Kane\u003c/a> as long-distance teachers to millions of Black youth. The influence of the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X and Oakland’s Black Panthers pulsed in their veins.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SatYcmmSWA\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Big Za swung on a deadly pendulum between the cocaine-powdered street corners and a love for the Qu’ran. He was not alone: In 1991, the West Coast success of Ice Cube’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hPEHrRWCYo&list=PLJaQqb1_vqOR61QOgVgb9femXfFW6BDZz\">Death Certificate\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and Da Lench Mob’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hPEHrRWCYo&list=PLJaQqb1_vqOR61QOgVgb9femXfFW6BDZz\">Guerillas in The Mist\u003c/a>\u003c/em> brought an intoxicating balance of Black Panther militance with Islamic spiritual conviction.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, albums arrived from Bay Area rappers like Paris with \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RSQqcvvmp4\">The Devil Made Me Do It\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, Askari X with \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SatYcmmSWA\">Ward of the State \u003c/a>\u003c/em>and the Ansārs with \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSnLtTdiG_s\">Righteous Black Guerillas\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, keeping the streets aflame with militant \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXiK47eSncw\">anti-war\u003c/a>, anti-police abuse lyrics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To government officials, church leaders and white America at large, these fearless, militant Black men in rap were cause for full-blown alarm. Black Islam-infused rap lyrics were feeding the minds and hearts of millions of young Black men and women.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Young aspiring rapper Dominick Newton was one of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931799\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931799\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-800x1200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1200\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Jacka. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Straight outta Pittsburg\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Newton was born in Phoenix, Arizona to young teenage parents before moving to Richmond. Family life was hard, and in the late ’80s, along with many other Black families, Newton moved to Pittsburg. Despite being new to town, he quickly got along with pretty much everyone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jacka’s former manager \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/goldenmeanpk/?hl=en\">PK\u003c/a> was just 15 when he met Newton through a mutual friend known as Tron, sometime around 1994. PK and Tron both went to De La Salle High School in Concord. Jacka cut hair on the side for cash, and PK and Tron would often be at Jacka’s place to get a fade or to just hang out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>PK can still recall his first impression of Newton. “He was a cool dude. You wanted to be around him. He made people feel good about themselves just being around him,” he says. After attending USC and moving back to the Bay Area, PK reconnected with Newton, who asked PK to be his manager. Their partnership would last until Jacka’s death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size='large' citation='Husalah']It was hard to find anybody who had knowledge of self at all. There were people that all they knew was crack cocaine.[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But before he was known as The Jacka, Newton recorded with his friend FedX at the Pittsburg home of then-undiscovered producer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/robloblahkop/?hl=en\">RobLo\u003c/a>. “They had a song out back then called ‘\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YX0Cv1oEnL8\">Million Dollar Dream\u003c/a>,’ under the group name Fatal Mentality,” PK says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through RobLo, Newton met Husalah, an aspiring rapper who played first-chair trumpet in high school. His grandfather had introduced him to the beauty of jazz, but he grew to love rap more. Huslah was raised in Pittsburg on “the project side of town,” and connected with Newton at RobLo’s house, which was central for many teen boys in the ‘hood at that time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931809\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931809\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Along with close friend the Jacka, Husalah (above) found a way out of dire circumstances through music. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Husalah says of meeting Jacka, “He was one of the coolest dudes. He didn’t have to act tough or act hard. He hung with all the tough guys and all the square guys. We were learning how to rhyme, and how to make intricate rhyme patterns. Our styles were all over the place.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Husalah recounts how drug dealing permeated their circle. The schools and the streets had them “indoctrinated with self-hate. It was hard to find anybody who had knowledge of self at all. There were people that all they knew was crack cocaine. Almost everyone you knew had a physical vice. Aunties, uncles, parents, neighbors. Crack cocaine was everywhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Music and searching for a higher power through Islam became pathways out for both of them.\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Thugs in the masjid\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Before long, Jacka, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/golasoaso/?hl=en\">Husalah\u003c/a>, his cousin \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/klydesta/?hl=en\">Rydah J. Clyde\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mobfigaz_ap9/?hl=en\">AP-9\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/fedx_mobfigaz/?hl=en\">FedX\u003c/a> came together to create the group \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/f5CfU2pSUqY\">Mob Figaz\u003c/a>. Their music quickly took over the streets with RobLo’s hypnotic mix of Bay Area basslines, hard drums and emotionally shifting samples. Sacramento gangsta rapper C-Bo was impressed by their lyricism and authenticity, and agreed to put out their debut album. \u003cem>C-Bo’s Mob Figaz\u003c/em> moved more than 100,000 units with almost zero support from local radio. The streets, however, validated their sound and their flow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931802\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931802\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-800x625.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-1020x797.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-160x125.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-768x600.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-1536x1200.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Mob Figaz. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Not long after, Jacka got caught for some robberies in the East Bay. At that point, he had already studied the Nation of Islam theology under Oakland’s Dr. Yusuf Bey. While locked up, though, Jacka was exposed to the Orthodox practice of Sunni Islam, and his mind and music began to expand.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Big Za, after serving time in Santa Rita Jail, Newton took Shahada, the Islamic testimony that affirms one’s faith. Big Za and his friend Shak had taken Shahada in 1991; Shak was involved in a murder case in 1995 and met Newton in Santa Rita. Behind the cold steel and cement walls of the jail, Shak taught Jacka how to pray and gave him his Islamic foundation. Not long after, Jacka took on the Islamic name Shaheed Akbar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003cem>Listen to a playlist of songs by the Jacka influenced by Islam, curated by his former manager PK:\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/2JDsWmFPJDkccZa7WuKYlB?utm_source=generator\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Obviously there is a clash between how young men like Jacka know they should be living and the backdrop of soul-scorching poverty, addiction and miseducation. Unfortunately, few support systems exist for new converts stuck between the Detroit Red lifestyle of a young Malcolm X and the cultivation of a higher self. For converts like Big Za, Jacka and millions of others, the Shahada does not always mean an immediate 180-degree turn from the life they’ve been living.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13928550']Also, like Tupac, Jacka had respect from East Coast rappers with real street credibility. His relationships with Cormega, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AS670D0j7UQ\">Freeway\u003c/a>, Beanie Sigel and many others were truly unique.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As PK points out, it helped that Freeway and Beanie Sigel were also Sunni Muslim. “But I think it was because he was a real rapper, an MC with skills,” he adds. When they came out to California, they got firsthand proof that what Jacka rapped about was authentic. “Whether it’s the sideshows, the guns, the drugs — all that stuff is really happening out here. Then they were like ‘OK, this dude is real.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That magnitude of respect from the East Coast was rare for a Bay Area rapper. “Other than Pac, I never saw anybody get love like that,” PK recounts.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Deeper than rap\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As Jacka’s star rose, instead of staying in the streets or partying 24/7, he could often be seen in Richmond’s Masjid An-Noor on Cutting Boulevard. Filled with books and ruby-red rugs, the mosque provided Jacka with solace in searching for Allah.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931804\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931804\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">During the hyphy era, the Jacka remained close with others who weren’t necessarily on his same spiritual path. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He could just as easily be over at Masjid Al-Islam on 82nd and MacArthur in Oakland — or anywhere he could continue his search for knowledge and a higher understanding of Islamic philosophy. Kevin, a.k.a. K9, his former assistant manager, says that “Islam spoke to more of the realities that he was seeing. He got interested and read the Qu’ran in jail, and went back to it often.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>K9 recalls a day in 2008, when Jacka brought him to Rumi Bookstore in Fremont, owned by respected teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEfyDMkdlxI&t=20s\">Feraidoon Mojadedi\u003c/a>. Jacka bought up a series of lectures from Zaytuna College Founder Hamza Yusuf. One of the books recommended to him was called \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp9KifxHZy8&list=PLNVqarhUYzInkISPRcMVFnUjnqFMFdpu6\">Purification of the Heart\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, a Mauritanian sacred text from 1844 CE about the spiritual diseases of the heart (greed, anger, jealousy) and their cures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13874024']After studying the text deeply in 2009, Jacka released \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ss_z3d6sV2Q\">a song with the same title\u003c/a>. A rap song with Islamic themes — the streets went nuts for it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked how such an unlikely situation could unfold, Mojadedi says that Jacka “was with the right people, in the right place, with the right intention.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those intentions took The Jacka across the planet, something most kids from the Bay can only dream of.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Writing without a pen\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Philadelphia rapper \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/phillyfreeway/?hl=en\">Freeway\u003c/a> met Jacka in 2001 while on tour with Jay-Z in Oakland. Once they connected, they never stopped working together, be it in the studio or learning about their faith. They traveled across Africa together in 2012, and went on a lecture tour in the UK in 2014 on the topic of Islam and hip-hop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I realized that they [Bay Area rappers like Jacka] were just like me,” Freeway says today. “They were living just like me. They were Muslim, but they were on the West Coast.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931806\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931806\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1262\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-800x526.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-1020x670.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-160x105.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-768x505.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-1536x1010.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">(L–R) The Jacka, photographer D-Ray and Nipsey Hussle backstage at the New Parish nightclub in Oakland, 2013. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In the studio, Freeway says, Jacka was a force of nature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He mastered writing [songs] without a pen. He would write in his phone. But by the time he got to \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8I4QJ4F_mgg\">What Happened to the World\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, he said, ‘Yeah Free, I mastered writing [whole songs] without a pen.’” Jacka was keeping whole songs complete, in his head, with no paper and no phone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While on tour together, Freeway says he saw Jacka literally give people the shirt off his back: “He would get an outfit for the tour. Then when he got off stage he would give the hoodie away. When he died it affected me more than with some people I grew up with. That’s how much our hearts connected.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931801\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931801\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1767\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-800x736.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-1020x939.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-160x147.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-768x707.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-1536x1414.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A roadside memorial for The Jacka near the intersection of 94th and MacArthur in East Oakland, shortly after his murder in 2015. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Freeway was not alone in that feeling. Bay Area rap fans and Muslims across the planet are still mourning Dominick Newton, a.k.a. the Jacka, a.k.a. Shaheed Akbar. However, his impact on the streets — and in the hearts of young Muslims — will remain through his music for decades to come.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/real64blocks/?hl=en\">Adisa Banjoko\u003c/a> is an author and curator of hip-hop history. In 2015, he delivered a lecture on The Jacka and Malcolm X at the \u003ca href=\"https://vimeo.com/120733251\">Malcolm X 50 Conference at Lehigh University\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story has been updated to reflect that Newton was born in Phoenix, Ariz., and not Richmond, Calif. as originally stated. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Islam and Bay Area hip-hop have intertwined since the 1980s. For the Jacka, the overlap was deeply personal.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Editor’s note\u003c/strong>: This story is part of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">That’s My Word\u003c/a>\u003cem>, KQED’s year-long exploration of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop\u003c/a> history.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">I\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>t was a characteristic East Oakland scene: On the night of Feb. 2, 2015, a group of friends sat in their car on 94th Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard in East Oakland, taking turns rapping. Another group, including Dominick Newton, stood on the sidewalk, watching the fun go down. As the vibes continued, all was good.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Suddenly, around 8:15 p.m, a car slid by spitting bullets at the parked car. Newton was hit in the head. A neighbor tried to slow the bleeding with a towel until medics arrived, but Newton, known in Islamic circles as Shaheed Akbar, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/10357773/the-jacka-killed-in-oakland-shooting\">died at Eden Medical Center\u003c/a> a few hours later.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>If you really knew the gangsta rap scene well, you knew Newton as \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/jackamobfigaz/?hl=en\">The Jacka\u003c/a>. Hailing from Pittsburg, California, Jacka was respected around the world for his violently visual lyrics laced with positive Islamic undertones. The murder of the 37-year-old rapper \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13874024/five-years-after-his-death-the-jackas-collaborators-remember-his-complex-legacy\">shook the Bay Area rap world to its core\u003c/a>, and his killers have never been caught.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Very few murders of rappers are ever solved. The shootings of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13869588/slow-burn-season-3-is-taking-on-the-murders-of-biggie-and-tupac\">Tupac Shakur\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/105-remembering-mac-dre-the-jacka/id1459775067?i=1000464857465\">Mac Dre\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/105-remembering-mac-dre-the-jacka/id1459775067?i=1000464857465\">The Jacka\u003c/a>, along with the\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13920198/zumbi-zion-i-improper-restraint-at-hospital\"> death of Zion I’s Zumbi\u003c/a> under suspicious circumstances at Alta Bates Medical Center, remain conspicuously unsolved or ignored by local police departments. For many, this can feel like deliberate psychological warfare on Black America; piles upon piles of cold cases leave grieving families and fans hollow from the pain inside.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931803\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931803\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1275\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-800x531.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-1020x677.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-768x510.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/The-Jacka-Freeway-17Hertz-Studio-day-2-094-1536x1020.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Jacka, in contemplation between takes, recording at 17 Hertz Studios in Hayward. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Often, a rapper’s murder becomes their identity, eclipsing their artistry. In death, most rappers’ music fades under the algorithms as new artists and sounds try to claw their way to the top. Many die with no legacy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But The Jacka was different. His legacy in rap shines bright as the light from the East. Why is that so? The most common answer, for most who knew him well, is Islam.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A Black crescent over The Bay\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>To those outside of hip-hop, Islam’s influence on the art form might seem unlikely. But if you know that the seeds of hip-hop were sown in Black American ghettos, and understand their history, it makes perfect sense.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The religion of Islam arrived in America within the hearts of Muslims trapped in the hulls of ships during the transatlantic slave trade. Some of them were \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXVAE4eMFn8\">legitimate royalty\u003c/a>, and intellectually miles above those who kidnapped, tortured and sold their people. Centuries of this brutal treatment, along with Jim Crow, redlining and other racist policies, created the degraded living environment of the 1970s American ghetto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Rap music arose in these hoods like a divine phoenix from of the ashes of the civil rights era, during which the United States government demolished radical Black Power movements (and their \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/05/03/us-history-first-women-terrorist-group-191037\">white allies\u003c/a>). As rap music got its baby legs, the crack epidemic and an unprecedented \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWX562Q8t38\">wave of gang violence\u003c/a> spread across the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those in Black neighborhoods lucky enough to avoid being murdered usually did some time in jail. Poet Sonia Sanchez once remarked that, for Black men, prison was the first time they were able to be still and think. Copies of \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Autobiography_of_Malcolm_X\">The Autobiography of Malcolm X\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and Elijah Muhammad’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Message_to_the_Blackman_in_America\">Message to the Blackman in America\u003c/a>\u003c/em> circulated, and the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJZ6lxgQjiM\">5% Nation of Gods and Earths\u003c/a> grew in American prisons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the late 1980s and early 1990s, African American Sunni Muslims and followers of the Nation of Islam helped the hood thrive with new dignity, negotiating truces among warring gangs and creating entrepreneurial businesses. Among the gang violence and crack epidemic of the era, the Muslim message of self-reliance and living a clean lifestyle held an understandable appeal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925188\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 750px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13925188\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/tcd1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"750\" height=\"745\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/tcd1.jpg 750w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/tcd1-160x159.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Conscious Daughters with mentor and producer Paris in the 1990s. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of CMG)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Parallel with the rise of hip-hop, Islam gave young Black people an understanding of their history before slavery. It highlighted Black achievements in math, science, art and literature that weren’t taught in the racially bigoted American education system. While both Black and Islamic societies were often framed in America’s schools as savage, rap became the pathway by which many Black kids learned about Black and Muslim history and culture.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The impact on hip-hop was immeasurable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the 1980s, the rising despair, unemployment rates, violence and cases of police brutality fomented conditions that made the Black nationalist message of self-determination, racial pride and self-defense more attractive,” says Dr. Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar, author of \u003cem>Hip-Hop Revolution: The Culture and Politics of Rap\u003c/em>. “Malcolm X, the former spokesman for the Nation of Islam, was sampled by everyone from Public Enemy to Ice Cube. Simultaneously, the current head of the Nation of Islam, Louis Farrakhan, was ascending in popularity among the hip-hop generation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Zaheed, a.k.a. \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mobmanagement/?hl=en\">Big Za\u003c/a> from Richmond, was one of the early young Muslims to convert in that late-’80s, early-’90s era.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Rap had consciousness to it and it had substance to it,” Za recalls. He names \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1vKOchATXs\">Boogie Down Productions\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo83vZkS8Zc\">Public Enemy\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhEQ43gGTuU\">Brand Nubian\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ze0C08bkPJY\">Big Daddy Kane\u003c/a> as long-distance teachers to millions of Black youth. The influence of the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X and Oakland’s Black Panthers pulsed in their veins.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/9SatYcmmSWA'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/9SatYcmmSWA'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Big Za swung on a deadly pendulum between the cocaine-powdered street corners and a love for the Qu’ran. He was not alone: In 1991, the West Coast success of Ice Cube’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hPEHrRWCYo&list=PLJaQqb1_vqOR61QOgVgb9femXfFW6BDZz\">Death Certificate\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and Da Lench Mob’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hPEHrRWCYo&list=PLJaQqb1_vqOR61QOgVgb9femXfFW6BDZz\">Guerillas in The Mist\u003c/a>\u003c/em> brought an intoxicating balance of Black Panther militance with Islamic spiritual conviction.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, albums arrived from Bay Area rappers like Paris with \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RSQqcvvmp4\">The Devil Made Me Do It\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, Askari X with \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SatYcmmSWA\">Ward of the State \u003c/a>\u003c/em>and the Ansārs with \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSnLtTdiG_s\">Righteous Black Guerillas\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, keeping the streets aflame with militant \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXiK47eSncw\">anti-war\u003c/a>, anti-police abuse lyrics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To government officials, church leaders and white America at large, these fearless, militant Black men in rap were cause for full-blown alarm. Black Islam-infused rap lyrics were feeding the minds and hearts of millions of young Black men and women.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Young aspiring rapper Dominick Newton was one of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931799\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931799\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-800x1200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1200\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-800x1200.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-1020x1530.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-160x240.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DJQUESTJACK-015.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Jacka. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Straight outta Pittsburg\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Newton was born in Phoenix, Arizona to young teenage parents before moving to Richmond. Family life was hard, and in the late ’80s, along with many other Black families, Newton moved to Pittsburg. Despite being new to town, he quickly got along with pretty much everyone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jacka’s former manager \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/goldenmeanpk/?hl=en\">PK\u003c/a> was just 15 when he met Newton through a mutual friend known as Tron, sometime around 1994. PK and Tron both went to De La Salle High School in Concord. Jacka cut hair on the side for cash, and PK and Tron would often be at Jacka’s place to get a fade or to just hang out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>PK can still recall his first impression of Newton. “He was a cool dude. You wanted to be around him. He made people feel good about themselves just being around him,” he says. After attending USC and moving back to the Bay Area, PK reconnected with Newton, who asked PK to be his manager. Their partnership would last until Jacka’s death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But before he was known as The Jacka, Newton recorded with his friend FedX at the Pittsburg home of then-undiscovered producer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/robloblahkop/?hl=en\">RobLo\u003c/a>. “They had a song out back then called ‘\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YX0Cv1oEnL8\">Million Dollar Dream\u003c/a>,’ under the group name Fatal Mentality,” PK says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through RobLo, Newton met Husalah, an aspiring rapper who played first-chair trumpet in high school. His grandfather had introduced him to the beauty of jazz, but he grew to love rap more. Huslah was raised in Pittsburg on “the project side of town,” and connected with Newton at RobLo’s house, which was central for many teen boys in the ‘hood at that time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931809\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931809\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Photos-By-D-Ray-1-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Along with close friend the Jacka, Husalah (above) found a way out of dire circumstances through music. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Husalah says of meeting Jacka, “He was one of the coolest dudes. He didn’t have to act tough or act hard. He hung with all the tough guys and all the square guys. We were learning how to rhyme, and how to make intricate rhyme patterns. Our styles were all over the place.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Husalah recounts how drug dealing permeated their circle. The schools and the streets had them “indoctrinated with self-hate. It was hard to find anybody who had knowledge of self at all. There were people that all they knew was crack cocaine. Almost everyone you knew had a physical vice. Aunties, uncles, parents, neighbors. Crack cocaine was everywhere.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Music and searching for a higher power through Islam became pathways out for both of them.\u003cbr>\n\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Thugs in the masjid\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Before long, Jacka, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/golasoaso/?hl=en\">Husalah\u003c/a>, his cousin \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/klydesta/?hl=en\">Rydah J. Clyde\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mobfigaz_ap9/?hl=en\">AP-9\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/fedx_mobfigaz/?hl=en\">FedX\u003c/a> came together to create the group \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/shorts/f5CfU2pSUqY\">Mob Figaz\u003c/a>. Their music quickly took over the streets with RobLo’s hypnotic mix of Bay Area basslines, hard drums and emotionally shifting samples. Sacramento gangsta rapper C-Bo was impressed by their lyricism and authenticity, and agreed to put out their debut album. \u003cem>C-Bo’s Mob Figaz\u003c/em> moved more than 100,000 units with almost zero support from local radio. The streets, however, validated their sound and their flow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931802\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931802\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-800x625.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-1020x797.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-160x125.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-768x600.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/PHOTOS-BY-D-RAY-mob-figaz-15-Copy-1536x1200.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Mob Figaz. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Not long after, Jacka got caught for some robberies in the East Bay. At that point, he had already studied the Nation of Islam theology under Oakland’s Dr. Yusuf Bey. While locked up, though, Jacka was exposed to the Orthodox practice of Sunni Islam, and his mind and music began to expand.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Big Za, after serving time in Santa Rita Jail, Newton took Shahada, the Islamic testimony that affirms one’s faith. Big Za and his friend Shak had taken Shahada in 1991; Shak was involved in a murder case in 1995 and met Newton in Santa Rita. Behind the cold steel and cement walls of the jail, Shak taught Jacka how to pray and gave him his Islamic foundation. Not long after, Jacka took on the Islamic name Shaheed Akbar.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>\u003cem>Listen to a playlist of songs by the Jacka influenced by Islam, curated by his former manager PK:\u003c/em>\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/2JDsWmFPJDkccZa7WuKYlB?utm_source=generator\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Obviously there is a clash between how young men like Jacka know they should be living and the backdrop of soul-scorching poverty, addiction and miseducation. Unfortunately, few support systems exist for new converts stuck between the Detroit Red lifestyle of a young Malcolm X and the cultivation of a higher self. For converts like Big Za, Jacka and millions of others, the Shahada does not always mean an immediate 180-degree turn from the life they’ve been living.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Also, like Tupac, Jacka had respect from East Coast rappers with real street credibility. His relationships with Cormega, \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AS670D0j7UQ\">Freeway\u003c/a>, Beanie Sigel and many others were truly unique.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As PK points out, it helped that Freeway and Beanie Sigel were also Sunni Muslim. “But I think it was because he was a real rapper, an MC with skills,” he adds. When they came out to California, they got firsthand proof that what Jacka rapped about was authentic. “Whether it’s the sideshows, the guns, the drugs — all that stuff is really happening out here. Then they were like ‘OK, this dude is real.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That magnitude of respect from the East Coast was rare for a Bay Area rapper. “Other than Pac, I never saw anybody get love like that,” PK recounts.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Deeper than rap\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As Jacka’s star rose, instead of staying in the streets or partying 24/7, he could often be seen in Richmond’s Masjid An-Noor on Cutting Boulevard. Filled with books and ruby-red rugs, the mosque provided Jacka with solace in searching for Allah.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931804\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931804\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IR3725868-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">During the hyphy era, the Jacka remained close with others who weren’t necessarily on his same spiritual path. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>He could just as easily be over at Masjid Al-Islam on 82nd and MacArthur in Oakland — or anywhere he could continue his search for knowledge and a higher understanding of Islamic philosophy. Kevin, a.k.a. K9, his former assistant manager, says that “Islam spoke to more of the realities that he was seeing. He got interested and read the Qu’ran in jail, and went back to it often.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>K9 recalls a day in 2008, when Jacka brought him to Rumi Bookstore in Fremont, owned by respected teacher \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEfyDMkdlxI&t=20s\">Feraidoon Mojadedi\u003c/a>. Jacka bought up a series of lectures from Zaytuna College Founder Hamza Yusuf. One of the books recommended to him was called \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp9KifxHZy8&list=PLNVqarhUYzInkISPRcMVFnUjnqFMFdpu6\">Purification of the Heart\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, a Mauritanian sacred text from 1844 CE about the spiritual diseases of the heart (greed, anger, jealousy) and their cures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>After studying the text deeply in 2009, Jacka released \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ss_z3d6sV2Q\">a song with the same title\u003c/a>. A rap song with Islamic themes — the streets went nuts for it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When asked how such an unlikely situation could unfold, Mojadedi says that Jacka “was with the right people, in the right place, with the right intention.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those intentions took The Jacka across the planet, something most kids from the Bay can only dream of.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Writing without a pen\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Philadelphia rapper \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/phillyfreeway/?hl=en\">Freeway\u003c/a> met Jacka in 2001 while on tour with Jay-Z in Oakland. Once they connected, they never stopped working together, be it in the studio or learning about their faith. They traveled across Africa together in 2012, and went on a lecture tour in the UK in 2014 on the topic of Islam and hip-hop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I realized that they [Bay Area rappers like Jacka] were just like me,” Freeway says today. “They were living just like me. They were Muslim, but they were on the West Coast.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931806\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931806\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1262\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-800x526.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-1020x670.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-160x105.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-768x505.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Thanksgiving-Nipsey-Hussle-280-1536x1010.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">(L–R) The Jacka, photographer D-Ray and Nipsey Hussle backstage at the New Parish nightclub in Oakland, 2013. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In the studio, Freeway says, Jacka was a force of nature.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“He mastered writing [songs] without a pen. He would write in his phone. But by the time he got to \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8I4QJ4F_mgg\">What Happened to the World\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, he said, ‘Yeah Free, I mastered writing [whole songs] without a pen.’” Jacka was keeping whole songs complete, in his head, with no paper and no phone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While on tour together, Freeway says he saw Jacka literally give people the shirt off his back: “He would get an outfit for the tour. Then when he got off stage he would give the hoodie away. When he died it affected me more than with some people I grew up with. That’s how much our hearts connected.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931801\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931801\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1767\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-800x736.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-1020x939.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-160x147.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-768x707.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC_0507-1536x1414.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A roadside memorial for The Jacka near the intersection of 94th and MacArthur in East Oakland, shortly after his murder in 2015. \u003ccite>(D-Ray)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Freeway was not alone in that feeling. Bay Area rap fans and Muslims across the planet are still mourning Dominick Newton, a.k.a. the Jacka, a.k.a. Shaheed Akbar. However, his impact on the streets — and in the hearts of young Muslims — will remain through his music for decades to come.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/real64blocks/?hl=en\">Adisa Banjoko\u003c/a> is an author and curator of hip-hop history. In 2015, he delivered a lecture on The Jacka and Malcolm X at the \u003ca href=\"https://vimeo.com/120733251\">Malcolm X 50 Conference at Lehigh University\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story has been updated to reflect that Newton was born in Phoenix, Ariz., and not Richmond, Calif. as originally stated. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>At age 7, I’m still so little that I have to tuck my legs underneath me to make myself taller in my seat. I need a clear view of the stage because André Watts, my favorite pianist, is about to make his entrance. He passes through San Francisco every year, and my mother always takes my sisters and me to his concerts. We’re all dressed up, three girls in matching dresses with white tights and Mary Janes, so excited to be here this evening. The stage door opens and he strolls out confidently, elegant in his tux and completely at home in the spotlight. He sits at the piano and my sisters and I lean in, enthralled by this dazzling young man who looks like he could be related to us, little brown girls who never see anyone who looks like us up on that big stage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_12131486']Watts died last week of prostate cancer at age 77. He was a legend, from the star-is-born launch of his career in 1963 when \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/artists/15234027/leonard-bernstein\">Leonard Bernstein\u003c/a> presented him at age 16 with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/artists/19286842/new-york-philharmonic\">New York Philharmonic\u003c/a> to his long presence as one of the most beloved American artists of his generation. As a kid, it all looked so glamorous and exciting — the fairytale origin story, the old-school Romantic virtuosity, the awards and accolades, the autograph-seekers. Back then, I had no clue about the reality of a life in music, how much it tests you, demands endless devotion and determination. And I didn’t know how lonely it is to be the only brown person on the stage. I know that now.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjsOOri_7IE\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like me, Watts was mixed: Black father, white mother. Reading interviews and articles from early in his career, I realize that he was no more able to sidestep the minefields of race than anyone else in 20th century America. He told \u003ca href=\"https://www.csmonitor.com/1982/0429/042945.html\">\u003cem>The Christian Science Monitor\u003c/em>\u003c/a> in 1982: “When I was young, I was in the peculiar position with my school chums of not being white and not being Black either. Somehow I didn’t fit in very well at all.” And in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1971/09/19/archives/-im-doing-all-right-im-never-good-enough-but-im-not-standing-still-.html\">\u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a> profile from 1971, I find this cringe-worthy description: “Depending upon mood and lighting, Watts is capable of appearing as variously as an austere mulatto dominating one of man’s most exclusive professions, a wistful pa’san surveying some Mediterranean terrace, or a bookish adolescent confronting his bar mitzvah.” Granted, times (and language) have changed since 1971, but my own identity has been similarly debated as I’ve navigated an industry that’s found me “exotic” and hard to place.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='forum_2010101885176']I never had the chance to talk with Watts about the very recent changes in our field — the long-overdue appreciation of Black composers; some progress, finally, toward diversity in American orchestras, opera houses and concert halls. I hope it made him happy to witness those developments. But this I know: Just like me, every single Black and brown musician who is active on those stages today looked to André Watts as a guiding light. He inspired us with his gorgeous artistry, and he allowed us to see ourselves in his world, to hope and dream and work as hard as we could to follow in his footsteps. He led by example, and later in his life he actively mentored the next generation of pianists as a Distinguished Professor of Piano at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. He cared about his students on a deeply personal level; he wrote to me some years ago recommending one of them for a young artists program I directed, describing the young man as “an altogether wonderful human being.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-RGG4EaEeI\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Watts loved music with what Bernstein called “a total embrace.” In his later years, he tried to keep performing despite injury and illness. The last time I saw him was in 2016, his first recital after a two-year hiatus, in a marathon program that included no less than \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/artists/15044271/franz-schubert\">Schubert\u003c/a>‘s monumental “Wanderer” Fantasy. The cancer was already taking a toll. Backstage after the concert, he was tired and unhappy with his performance. I don’t remember what I said that afternoon, but I wish I had told him how much it’s because of him that I’m even here — how much I owe my career as a pianist to hearing his concerts when I was a little girl, and to seeing him ahead of me in the lineage that is our musical family.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13889101']Reflecting on that lineage, I reached out to Bernstein’s children for their memories of the musical relationship that started André’s career. His daughter Jamie Bernstein sent these words:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Alexander and I were old enough to remember André Watts’ Young People’s Concerts debut and the vibe our dad communicated on that national broadcast. Something unusual and thrilling was about to happen. We know Watts’ path was full of maddening obstacles, as is likely to happen to just about any person of color in this country. But we’re so glad that he was truly embraced and acknowledged by the world he worked and played in. He raised us all. As we Jewish folks say, may his memory be a blessing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His memory is not only a blessing, but a legacy. André Watts opened a door of possibility and promise for my generation, and we walk through it gratefully, always careful to leave it wide open behind us for the generations to come.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ciframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/7d5Fn0V6QqEleEyEXnuhv9?utm_source=generator\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org\">NPR\u003c/a>.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Remembering+Andr%C3%A9+Watts%2C+the+American+pianist+who+opened+doors+of+possibility+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Watts died last week of prostate cancer at age 77. He was a legend, from the star-is-born launch of his career in 1963 when \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/artists/15234027/leonard-bernstein\">Leonard Bernstein\u003c/a> presented him at age 16 with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/artists/19286842/new-york-philharmonic\">New York Philharmonic\u003c/a> to his long presence as one of the most beloved American artists of his generation. As a kid, it all looked so glamorous and exciting — the fairytale origin story, the old-school Romantic virtuosity, the awards and accolades, the autograph-seekers. Back then, I had no clue about the reality of a life in music, how much it tests you, demands endless devotion and determination. And I didn’t know how lonely it is to be the only brown person on the stage. I know that now.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/BjsOOri_7IE'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/BjsOOri_7IE'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Like me, Watts was mixed: Black father, white mother. Reading interviews and articles from early in his career, I realize that he was no more able to sidestep the minefields of race than anyone else in 20th century America. He told \u003ca href=\"https://www.csmonitor.com/1982/0429/042945.html\">\u003cem>The Christian Science Monitor\u003c/em>\u003c/a> in 1982: “When I was young, I was in the peculiar position with my school chums of not being white and not being Black either. Somehow I didn’t fit in very well at all.” And in a \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1971/09/19/archives/-im-doing-all-right-im-never-good-enough-but-im-not-standing-still-.html\">\u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a> profile from 1971, I find this cringe-worthy description: “Depending upon mood and lighting, Watts is capable of appearing as variously as an austere mulatto dominating one of man’s most exclusive professions, a wistful pa’san surveying some Mediterranean terrace, or a bookish adolescent confronting his bar mitzvah.” Granted, times (and language) have changed since 1971, but my own identity has been similarly debated as I’ve navigated an industry that’s found me “exotic” and hard to place.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>I never had the chance to talk with Watts about the very recent changes in our field — the long-overdue appreciation of Black composers; some progress, finally, toward diversity in American orchestras, opera houses and concert halls. I hope it made him happy to witness those developments. But this I know: Just like me, every single Black and brown musician who is active on those stages today looked to André Watts as a guiding light. He inspired us with his gorgeous artistry, and he allowed us to see ourselves in his world, to hope and dream and work as hard as we could to follow in his footsteps. He led by example, and later in his life he actively mentored the next generation of pianists as a Distinguished Professor of Piano at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music. He cared about his students on a deeply personal level; he wrote to me some years ago recommending one of them for a young artists program I directed, describing the young man as “an altogether wonderful human being.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Reflecting on that lineage, I reached out to Bernstein’s children for their memories of the musical relationship that started André’s career. His daughter Jamie Bernstein sent these words:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Alexander and I were old enough to remember André Watts’ Young People’s Concerts debut and the vibe our dad communicated on that national broadcast. Something unusual and thrilling was about to happen. We know Watts’ path was full of maddening obstacles, as is likely to happen to just about any person of color in this country. But we’re so glad that he was truly embraced and acknowledged by the world he worked and played in. He raised us all. As we Jewish folks say, may his memory be a blessing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>His memory is not only a blessing, but a legacy. André Watts opened a door of possibility and promise for my generation, and we walk through it gratefully, always careful to leave it wide open behind us for the generations to come.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ciframe style=\"border-radius:12px\" src=\"https://open.spotify.com/embed/playlist/7d5Fn0V6QqEleEyEXnuhv9?utm_source=generator\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"fullattribution\">Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org\">NPR\u003c/a>.\u003cimg decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://www.google-analytics.com/__utm.gif?utmac=UA-5828686-4&utmdt=Remembering+Andr%C3%A9+Watts%2C+the+American+pianist+who+opened+doors+of+possibility+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13924298\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1024px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/01/GettyImages-486166770.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"660\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13924298\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/01/GettyImages-486166770.jpg 1024w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/01/GettyImages-486166770-800x516.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/01/GettyImages-486166770-1020x657.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/01/GettyImages-486166770-160x103.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/01/GettyImages-486166770-768x495.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Sun Ra and his Arkestra perform with a steel sculpture on September 23, 1978, at Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, Michigan. \u003ccite>(Leni Sinclair/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The Sun Ra Arkestra comes to San Francisco this week, and if you’re like most people, \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sun_Ra_discography\">you probably find his discography overwhelming\u003c/a>. Even diehard fans of Sun Ra, the pianist and bandleader who departed this Earthly plane 30 years ago, regularly discover new material spread across hundreds of releases.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The vast world of Sun Ra’s spaceways is unlike anything in the history of recorded American music. Spanning over four decades, it keeps one foot in the big-band stylings of major figures like Fletcher Henderson and Duke Ellington, and one in the infinite universe of free jazz and electronic synthesizers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13931138']The band’s shows in San Francisco, in fact, are split along these lines: two nights of the “exploratory side of Sun Ra,” and two nights of a more traditional big-band sound. And while 99-year-old bandleader Marshall Allen won’t be on the stand (he recently stopped touring outside the Philadelphia area), the spirit of refined exploration should be wholly present.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a newcomer, where to start? Below are five landmark Sun Ra compositions to start you on your journey.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OK9CHK4Qmsw\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Sunology’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>An early tune that wouldn’t be out of place at the Savoy Ballroom in the late 1940s, Sun Ra referred to this as “a different kind of blues.” Note the Eastern influence and the wordplay of the title (“Sun-knowledge-y”), common markers in Sun Ra’s work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cta8Jr2flk\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Fate in a Pleasant Mood’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Another one of Sun Ra’s more big-band numbers, with traditional horn voicings that bend just a \u003cem>little\u003c/em> oblong. Imagine that it’s 1:49 a.m., the supper club’s about to close, and the couples on the dance floor are just as sleepy as the band. (A \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVn3wNFmXwQ\">1985 version\u003c/a> is more upbeat — and out there.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUr2PoGa5Yc\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Interplanetary Music’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Recorded in 1960, this shows the shape of Sun Ra’s music to come. Unusual instruments, rhythm and atmosphere over melody, and a repeating chant. In later live performances, this pivotal track would get a full workout.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfdORV1-qYI\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Strange Strings’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Issued in 1967, \u003cem>Strange Strings\u003c/em> is the result of Sun Ra giving his band instruments they did not know how to play, rolling tape, and seeing what would happen. Echo effects and a giant pane of sheet metal round out the wild, improvised piece. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmY72PYQXek\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘Space Is the Place’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Sun Ra’s signature song, used in the 1974 film of the same name (\u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#sun-ra-films-space-is-the-place-in-oakland\">filmed in Oakland\u003c/a>), also contains his defining ethos: “There is no limit to the things that you can do.” At Sun Ra’s funeral, mourners sang this song on the way out of the church, the melodic lines overlapping with one another to create a vision of infinity. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The Sun Ra Arkestra performs July 20–23 at SFJAZZ in San Francisco. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfjazz.org/calendar/?month=7.2023&series=56108\">Details here\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The band’s shows in San Francisco, in fact, are split along these lines: two nights of the “exploratory side of Sun Ra,” and two nights of a more traditional big-band sound. And while 99-year-old bandleader Marshall Allen won’t be on the stand (he recently stopped touring outside the Philadelphia area), the spirit of refined exploration should be wholly present.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a newcomer, where to start? Below are five landmark Sun Ra compositions to start you on your journey.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/OK9CHK4Qmsw'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/OK9CHK4Qmsw'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003ch2>‘Sunology’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>An early tune that wouldn’t be out of place at the Savoy Ballroom in the late 1940s, Sun Ra referred to this as “a different kind of blues.” Note the Eastern influence and the wordplay of the title (“Sun-knowledge-y”), common markers in Sun Ra’s work.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/-cta8Jr2flk'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/-cta8Jr2flk'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003ch2>‘Fate in a Pleasant Mood’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Another one of Sun Ra’s more big-band numbers, with traditional horn voicings that bend just a \u003cem>little\u003c/em> oblong. Imagine that it’s 1:49 a.m., the supper club’s about to close, and the couples on the dance floor are just as sleepy as the band. (A \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVn3wNFmXwQ\">1985 version\u003c/a> is more upbeat — and out there.)\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/wUr2PoGa5Yc'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/wUr2PoGa5Yc'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003ch2>‘Interplanetary Music’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Recorded in 1960, this shows the shape of Sun Ra’s music to come. Unusual instruments, rhythm and atmosphere over melody, and a repeating chant. In later live performances, this pivotal track would get a full workout.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/tfdORV1-qYI'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/tfdORV1-qYI'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003ch2>‘Strange Strings’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Issued in 1967, \u003cem>Strange Strings\u003c/em> is the result of Sun Ra giving his band instruments they did not know how to play, rolling tape, and seeing what would happen. Echo effects and a giant pane of sheet metal round out the wild, improvised piece. \u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/CmY72PYQXek'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/CmY72PYQXek'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003ch2>‘Space Is the Place’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Sun Ra’s signature song, used in the 1974 film of the same name (\u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#sun-ra-films-space-is-the-place-in-oakland\">filmed in Oakland\u003c/a>), also contains his defining ethos: “There is no limit to the things that you can do.” At Sun Ra’s funeral, mourners sang this song on the way out of the church, the melodic lines overlapping with one another to create a vision of infinity. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The Sun Ra Arkestra performs July 20–23 at SFJAZZ in San Francisco. \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfjazz.org/calendar/?month=7.2023&series=56108\">Details here\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Robert Glasper Carries Black Music Into A Post-Hip-Hop World",
"headTitle": "Robert Glasper Carries Black Music Into A Post-Hip-Hop World | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>[dropcap]“B[/dropcap]lack music is a big house with a lot of rooms,” says pianist, composer, and producer Robert Glasper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A musical unicorn who has crystallized multiple genres into his own distinct brand, Glasper’s genius lays not only in his technical ability and musical acumen, but his willingness to embrace crossover as a necessary – and not unprecedented – aspect of Black music’s evolution and survival. While he prefers the term “musician” to “jazz musician,” he is profoundly aware of jazz’s role as canon, foundation, and inspiration for today’s musical movements — notably hip-hop. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whether it’s Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach on 1960’s “Freedom Dance” foreshadowing Public Enemy’s sociopolitical creed, or jazz samples and breakbeats becoming part of hip-hop’s DNA, “jazz and hip-hop belong together,” Glasper says. “Jazz and hip-hop were born out of necessity. They both were born out of the struggle.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/embed/_PRfWgpsjyw\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Case in point: “In Tune,” from Glasper’s latest album \u003cem>Black Radio III\u003c/em>. Amir Suleiman’s impassioned spoken-words are elegy, tribute, mourning, and resilience, a callback to the field hollers of pre-emancipation Afro-America. And, by extension, the radical truth of the Last Poets, the Black Arts Movement-identified “godfathers of rap” who developed a poetic style called “spoagraphics” to describe their visual imagery. Instead of conga drums, the heartbeat is Glasper’s piano; past the halfway mark, the song fills out with wafting horns and snare drum hits, becoming transformative and therapeutic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not a hip-hop track per se — there are no 808 beats, no machete-like scratches, no call-and-response chants. But “In Tune” is everything hip-hop ever aspired to be artistically: a marriage of traditional folkloric culture and contemporary relevance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_10759782']As the artist-in-residence and co-curator of the annual \u003ca href=\"https://www.bluenotejazz.com/jazz-festival-napa/\">Blue Note Jazz Festival in Napa, running July 28–30\u003c/a>, Glasper has assembled a lineup based on this philosophy of pastiche, bridging the worlds of hip-hop and jazz. Headliners include the “queen of hip-hop soul” Mary J. Blige, Queensbridge emcee Nas, and Chicago’s Chance the Rapper. Glasper plays live sets each of the three days, with special guests De La Soul, Lalah Hathaway, Terrace Martin and Bilal. The undercard is further saturated with the likes of Rakim and DJ Jazzy Jeff, Talib Kweli and Madlib, Digable Planets, Cordae, and host Dave Chappele. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2023 – a year deemed hip-hop’s 50th anniversary – Glasper knows the culture has become impossible to ignore. “Hip-hop is in itself so huge. It’s like the most global music in the world; every country has hip-hop. It’s been the leading thing in culture – not just in music, but in fashion, in sports. And it’s just so many things, and influenced so many people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931658\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Glasper.car_.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a brown jacket, patterned shirt and jeans leans against a luxury sportscar\" width=\"600\" height=\"900\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931658\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Glasper.car_.jpg 600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Glasper.car_-160x240.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Glasper’s informal education included sessions with Questlove and J. Dilla: ‘I literally learned from the greatest.’ \u003ccite>(Courtesy Blue Note Jazz Festival)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a live setting, Glasper says, “some hip hop artists are like having another horn in a jazz band. They’re really able to be in the moment and be able to really empathize with you, but using words, and go wherever you want to go. And that’s an art. That’s a true art.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rapping skillfully over live music and maintaining the flow of the groove is where the artistry shines, he says. “A lot of cats freestyle, (but) they’re just freestyling to a beat that’s just there, or no beat at all. You’re not freestyling to a band that could change at any moment and go different places and add elements in and out of all these different things.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Glasper points out that seminal hip-hop songs by De La Soul (“Stakes Is High”) and Nas (“The World Is Yours”) both sampled jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal. Chance The Rapper and Cordae are also heavily jazz-influenced, he adds. And not only has Madlib repurposed hundreds if not thousands of jazz records as sample loops, but DJ Jazzy Jeff’s pioneering turntablist track “A Touch of Jazz” includes elements of Marvin Gaye’s “T Plays It Cool,” Bob James’ “Westchester Lady,” and Donald Byrd’s “Change (Makes You Want to Hustle),” alongside booming drums and expressive scratch cuts. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/embed/RWJWKcUooTA\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Napa festival further accentuates the evolution of jazz culture in the Bay Area, whose history includes a San Francisco residency by New Orleans legend King Oliver in 1921, and excursions into Healdsburg by the San Francisco-based So Different jazz band during the 1920s – a time when jazz embodied the cultural leading edge of social integration efforts. Holding a major Black cultural festival in the heart of California’s wine country represents another giant step, so to speak, towards social equity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s literally what (the Blue Note Jazz Festival) is, the history of jazz, mixing it with all styles of music, and mixing the styles that jazz has influenced. And the big part of this year is 50 years of hip-hop.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Steeped in Black music’s evolution\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Glasper’s history in some ways reflects the history of jazz itself. His musical education began as a young child in Texas, where his mother, a blues and jazz singer and musical director for a Baptist church, brought him along to club dates. His first public performances were in the Black church, where he became steeped in gospel and began to develop his own style of playing. A musical prodigy, he performed with a university jazz band while still in high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13929248']An early flashpoint was seeing Roy Hargrove freely mix jazz with contemporary genres. When he first saw the trumpeter play live, “I was in high school,” he recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh, man, you could be young, Black, wear sneakers and look like that — and play jazz?’ And then I was like, ‘Oh, you can play jazz \u003cem>and\u003c/em> you could play with D’Angelo? And you can play with Common?’ I saw that in real time in real life. That inspired me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a student of the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York during the late ’90s, he met singer Bilal – who would become a regular collaborator – and became enmeshed the East Coast’s burgeoning neo-soul and hip-hop scenes, which frequently intersected through now-legendary production teams like the Ummah and the Soulquarians.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/embed/GcPjI9c8kxY\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In college, that’s what was happening around ’97, the neo-soul movement and specifically J. Dilla-infused R&B. So I was really in that scene a lot, working with Bilal, opening up for Erykah Badu and Common, and seeing people like James Poyser, who is one of the big influences on my playing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Glasper waxes poetically over producers like J. Dilla and Q-Tip, who brought a jazz sensibility to hip-hop tracks like A Tribe Called Quest’s “Lyrics to Go” and Busta Rhymes’ “Still Shining.” “They’re both jazz lovers. Coming from the jazz world, I immediately heard the jazz nuances they would put in their music, in their beats.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13931138']Glasper considers himself fortunate to have witnessed Dilla and Q-Tip’s creative process in intimate settings. “I used to go over Tip’s house and replay samples when I was in college all the time.” His first gigs playing hip-hop were with the Roots, who worked frequently with Dilla at the time. “Literally, the Roots and Dilla pretty much raised me.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From the Philadelphia hip-hop collective, “I learned how to stay in a pocket, and understand how to play (piano) like a sample, by playing with Questlove.” Sometimes, Dilla would be present during these woodshedding sessions. “Me being able to sit across the room with Dilla, him on the MPC, I’m on the keys — I literally learned from the greatest how to do that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/embed/feNYt7B237M\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2004, he released \u003cem>Mood\u003c/em>, his first album as a bandleader, a fairly traditional jazz trio album of standards and original compositions. The following year, he began his long association with Blue Note Records with the trio album \u003cem>Canvas\u003c/em>. His music began to veer toward fusion with 2007’s \u003cem>In My Element\u003c/em>, which included a cover of Radiohead’s “Everything In Its Right Place.” A 2009 offering, \u003cem>Double Booked\u003c/em>, balanced acoustic trio material with his electric band, The Robert Glasper Experiment, including a track with emcee Yasiin Bey (then known as Mos Def).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then came his 2012 breakthrough \u003cem>Black Radio\u003c/em>, which featured guests Lupe Fiasco, Bilal, Lalah Hathaway, Erykah Badu and Yasiin Bey. Highlights included a Badu-ized version of the jazz standard “Afro Blue” and a decidedly non-grunge take on Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” The album established Glasper as a commercially successful, forward-thinking artist who could lead jazz music in new directions, engage non-traditional jazz audiences, and do it all in a way that wasn’t cringeworthy. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Here’s the thing, though. Rock is Black music. Hello!,” Glasper proclaims. “A lot of people still to this day don’t understand that (“Teen Spirit”), that’s a song that I’ve always loved. But I also know the roots of that song came from us. That was my reasoning for that and kind of doing it in a more urban way. So then, it speaks to more Black folk that way also.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/embed/KdgWiWrtMZo\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The tradition of jazz, he says, is rife with artists who expanded the genre by refusing to be pigeonholed, from John Coltrane interpreting “My Favorite Things” and Carmen McRae reimagining The Beatles to Donald Byrd, Herbie Hancock, Roy Ayers and Ramsey Lewis mixing jazz, funk, and R&B. To him, it’s all Black music, which he sees as “a lot of clay” that can be shaped and reformed infinitely. Ultimately, he says, “it all comes from Africa.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Awards, Tours, and the Festival\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Glasper’s stratospheric ascension in recent years has included releasing two more volumes of \u003cem>Black Radio\u003c/em>, along with more straightforward jazz projects, scoring films and documentaries, and collaborating with a host of hip-hop and soul artists – Kendrick Lamar, Mac Miller, Anderson .Paak, Maxwell, Big K.R.I.T., Q-Tip, Talib Kweli, Denzel Curry, Jill Scott, Snoop Dogg, and Common, to name a few.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13916940']Along the way, he’s collected all kinds of accolades, including an Emmy and five Grammys, and served as the artist-in-residence at the Blue Note Jazz Festival even before its original New York edition expanded to Napa in 2022.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through it all, he says he feels a sense of responsibility for maintaining jazz’s relevance in a post-hip-hop landscape, where technology has become a cultural driver and true musicianship is undervalued. Music isn’t a program in many schools anymore, he notes, and most music is made on a computer or iPhone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I feel like I’m a torchbearer, and I’ve got to survive and teach as much as I can and not feel like I’m teaching and not sound like I’m teaching,” he says. “There’s a certain way you got to do it. You just got to do stuff that speaks to people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The Blue Note Jazz Festival runs July 28–30 at Silverado Resort in Napa. \u003ca href=\"https://www.bluenotejazz.com/jazz-festival-napa/\">Details here\u003c/a>.\u003c/em> \u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">“B\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>lack music is a big house with a lot of rooms,” says pianist, composer, and producer Robert Glasper.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A musical unicorn who has crystallized multiple genres into his own distinct brand, Glasper’s genius lays not only in his technical ability and musical acumen, but his willingness to embrace crossover as a necessary – and not unprecedented – aspect of Black music’s evolution and survival. While he prefers the term “musician” to “jazz musician,” he is profoundly aware of jazz’s role as canon, foundation, and inspiration for today’s musical movements — notably hip-hop. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whether it’s Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach on 1960’s “Freedom Dance” foreshadowing Public Enemy’s sociopolitical creed, or jazz samples and breakbeats becoming part of hip-hop’s DNA, “jazz and hip-hop belong together,” Glasper says. “Jazz and hip-hop were born out of necessity. They both were born out of the struggle.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/_PRfWgpsjyw'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/_PRfWgpsjyw'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Case in point: “In Tune,” from Glasper’s latest album \u003cem>Black Radio III\u003c/em>. Amir Suleiman’s impassioned spoken-words are elegy, tribute, mourning, and resilience, a callback to the field hollers of pre-emancipation Afro-America. And, by extension, the radical truth of the Last Poets, the Black Arts Movement-identified “godfathers of rap” who developed a poetic style called “spoagraphics” to describe their visual imagery. Instead of conga drums, the heartbeat is Glasper’s piano; past the halfway mark, the song fills out with wafting horns and snare drum hits, becoming transformative and therapeutic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not a hip-hop track per se — there are no 808 beats, no machete-like scratches, no call-and-response chants. But “In Tune” is everything hip-hop ever aspired to be artistically: a marriage of traditional folkloric culture and contemporary relevance.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>As the artist-in-residence and co-curator of the annual \u003ca href=\"https://www.bluenotejazz.com/jazz-festival-napa/\">Blue Note Jazz Festival in Napa, running July 28–30\u003c/a>, Glasper has assembled a lineup based on this philosophy of pastiche, bridging the worlds of hip-hop and jazz. Headliners include the “queen of hip-hop soul” Mary J. Blige, Queensbridge emcee Nas, and Chicago’s Chance the Rapper. Glasper plays live sets each of the three days, with special guests De La Soul, Lalah Hathaway, Terrace Martin and Bilal. The undercard is further saturated with the likes of Rakim and DJ Jazzy Jeff, Talib Kweli and Madlib, Digable Planets, Cordae, and host Dave Chappele. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2023 – a year deemed hip-hop’s 50th anniversary – Glasper knows the culture has become impossible to ignore. “Hip-hop is in itself so huge. It’s like the most global music in the world; every country has hip-hop. It’s been the leading thing in culture – not just in music, but in fashion, in sports. And it’s just so many things, and influenced so many people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931658\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Glasper.car_.jpg\" alt=\"A man in a brown jacket, patterned shirt and jeans leans against a luxury sportscar\" width=\"600\" height=\"900\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931658\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Glasper.car_.jpg 600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Glasper.car_-160x240.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Glasper’s informal education included sessions with Questlove and J. Dilla: ‘I literally learned from the greatest.’ \u003ccite>(Courtesy Blue Note Jazz Festival)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a live setting, Glasper says, “some hip hop artists are like having another horn in a jazz band. They’re really able to be in the moment and be able to really empathize with you, but using words, and go wherever you want to go. And that’s an art. That’s a true art.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rapping skillfully over live music and maintaining the flow of the groove is where the artistry shines, he says. “A lot of cats freestyle, (but) they’re just freestyling to a beat that’s just there, or no beat at all. You’re not freestyling to a band that could change at any moment and go different places and add elements in and out of all these different things.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Glasper points out that seminal hip-hop songs by De La Soul (“Stakes Is High”) and Nas (“The World Is Yours”) both sampled jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal. Chance The Rapper and Cordae are also heavily jazz-influenced, he adds. And not only has Madlib repurposed hundreds if not thousands of jazz records as sample loops, but DJ Jazzy Jeff’s pioneering turntablist track “A Touch of Jazz” includes elements of Marvin Gaye’s “T Plays It Cool,” Bob James’ “Westchester Lady,” and Donald Byrd’s “Change (Makes You Want to Hustle),” alongside booming drums and expressive scratch cuts. \u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/RWJWKcUooTA'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/RWJWKcUooTA'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>The Napa festival further accentuates the evolution of jazz culture in the Bay Area, whose history includes a San Francisco residency by New Orleans legend King Oliver in 1921, and excursions into Healdsburg by the San Francisco-based So Different jazz band during the 1920s – a time when jazz embodied the cultural leading edge of social integration efforts. Holding a major Black cultural festival in the heart of California’s wine country represents another giant step, so to speak, towards social equity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s literally what (the Blue Note Jazz Festival) is, the history of jazz, mixing it with all styles of music, and mixing the styles that jazz has influenced. And the big part of this year is 50 years of hip-hop.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Steeped in Black music’s evolution\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Glasper’s history in some ways reflects the history of jazz itself. His musical education began as a young child in Texas, where his mother, a blues and jazz singer and musical director for a Baptist church, brought him along to club dates. His first public performances were in the Black church, where he became steeped in gospel and began to develop his own style of playing. A musical prodigy, he performed with a university jazz band while still in high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>An early flashpoint was seeing Roy Hargrove freely mix jazz with contemporary genres. When he first saw the trumpeter play live, “I was in high school,” he recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh, man, you could be young, Black, wear sneakers and look like that — and play jazz?’ And then I was like, ‘Oh, you can play jazz \u003cem>and\u003c/em> you could play with D’Angelo? And you can play with Common?’ I saw that in real time in real life. That inspired me.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a student of the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York during the late ’90s, he met singer Bilal – who would become a regular collaborator – and became enmeshed the East Coast’s burgeoning neo-soul and hip-hop scenes, which frequently intersected through now-legendary production teams like the Ummah and the Soulquarians.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/GcPjI9c8kxY'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/GcPjI9c8kxY'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>“In college, that’s what was happening around ’97, the neo-soul movement and specifically J. Dilla-infused R&B. So I was really in that scene a lot, working with Bilal, opening up for Erykah Badu and Common, and seeing people like James Poyser, who is one of the big influences on my playing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Glasper waxes poetically over producers like J. Dilla and Q-Tip, who brought a jazz sensibility to hip-hop tracks like A Tribe Called Quest’s “Lyrics to Go” and Busta Rhymes’ “Still Shining.” “They’re both jazz lovers. Coming from the jazz world, I immediately heard the jazz nuances they would put in their music, in their beats.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Glasper considers himself fortunate to have witnessed Dilla and Q-Tip’s creative process in intimate settings. “I used to go over Tip’s house and replay samples when I was in college all the time.” His first gigs playing hip-hop were with the Roots, who worked frequently with Dilla at the time. “Literally, the Roots and Dilla pretty much raised me.” \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From the Philadelphia hip-hop collective, “I learned how to stay in a pocket, and understand how to play (piano) like a sample, by playing with Questlove.” Sometimes, Dilla would be present during these woodshedding sessions. “Me being able to sit across the room with Dilla, him on the MPC, I’m on the keys — I literally learned from the greatest how to do that.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/feNYt7B237M'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/feNYt7B237M'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>In 2004, he released \u003cem>Mood\u003c/em>, his first album as a bandleader, a fairly traditional jazz trio album of standards and original compositions. The following year, he began his long association with Blue Note Records with the trio album \u003cem>Canvas\u003c/em>. His music began to veer toward fusion with 2007’s \u003cem>In My Element\u003c/em>, which included a cover of Radiohead’s “Everything In Its Right Place.” A 2009 offering, \u003cem>Double Booked\u003c/em>, balanced acoustic trio material with his electric band, The Robert Glasper Experiment, including a track with emcee Yasiin Bey (then known as Mos Def).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Then came his 2012 breakthrough \u003cem>Black Radio\u003c/em>, which featured guests Lupe Fiasco, Bilal, Lalah Hathaway, Erykah Badu and Yasiin Bey. Highlights included a Badu-ized version of the jazz standard “Afro Blue” and a decidedly non-grunge take on Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” The album established Glasper as a commercially successful, forward-thinking artist who could lead jazz music in new directions, engage non-traditional jazz audiences, and do it all in a way that wasn’t cringeworthy. \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Here’s the thing, though. Rock is Black music. Hello!,” Glasper proclaims. “A lot of people still to this day don’t understand that (“Teen Spirit”), that’s a song that I’ve always loved. But I also know the roots of that song came from us. That was my reasoning for that and kind of doing it in a more urban way. So then, it speaks to more Black folk that way also.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/KdgWiWrtMZo'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/KdgWiWrtMZo'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>The tradition of jazz, he says, is rife with artists who expanded the genre by refusing to be pigeonholed, from John Coltrane interpreting “My Favorite Things” and Carmen McRae reimagining The Beatles to Donald Byrd, Herbie Hancock, Roy Ayers and Ramsey Lewis mixing jazz, funk, and R&B. To him, it’s all Black music, which he sees as “a lot of clay” that can be shaped and reformed infinitely. Ultimately, he says, “it all comes from Africa.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Awards, Tours, and the Festival\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Glasper’s stratospheric ascension in recent years has included releasing two more volumes of \u003cem>Black Radio\u003c/em>, along with more straightforward jazz projects, scoring films and documentaries, and collaborating with a host of hip-hop and soul artists – Kendrick Lamar, Mac Miller, Anderson .Paak, Maxwell, Big K.R.I.T., Q-Tip, Talib Kweli, Denzel Curry, Jill Scott, Snoop Dogg, and Common, to name a few.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Along the way, he’s collected all kinds of accolades, including an Emmy and five Grammys, and served as the artist-in-residence at the Blue Note Jazz Festival even before its original New York edition expanded to Napa in 2022.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Through it all, he says he feels a sense of responsibility for maintaining jazz’s relevance in a post-hip-hop landscape, where technology has become a cultural driver and true musicianship is undervalued. Music isn’t a program in many schools anymore, he notes, and most music is made on a computer or iPhone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I feel like I’m a torchbearer, and I’ve got to survive and teach as much as I can and not feel like I’m teaching and not sound like I’m teaching,” he says. “There’s a certain way you got to do it. You just got to do stuff that speaks to people.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The Blue Note Jazz Festival runs July 28–30 at Silverado Resort in Napa. \u003ca href=\"https://www.bluenotejazz.com/jazz-festival-napa/\">Details here\u003c/a>.\u003c/em> \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "A New Record Store Is Bringing Latin Vinyl Home to the Mission District",
"headTitle": "A New Record Store Is Bringing Latin Vinyl Home to the Mission District | KQED",
"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931714\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Three people in front of a window with a large tiger mural painted on it\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931714\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Co-owners (from left) Ruben “Ruffy” Rangel, Maria Jose “Majoo” Salguero, and Miles Ake stand outside their record store Discodelic Disco Viajantes on 24th Street in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 15, 2023, during a grand opening celebration. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With its bold block letters above 24th Street, the \u003ca href=\"https://missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com/mission/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/24th-Street_Photo-by-Ekevara-Kitpowsong-6668.jpg\">Discolandia\u003c/a> sign is an icon of the Mission District. But Discolandia, a Latin-focused record store, \u003ca href=\"https://missionlocal.org/2018/04/a-blast-from-the-past-discolandia/\">closed over a decade ago\u003c/a>. Since then, there’s been no record store in the neighborhood that caters specifically to the Mission’s Latinx population.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That finally changes this week with the July 15 opening of Discodelic, which specializes in vinyl from Latin American and Caribbean countries, offering Latin soul, cumbia, salsa, boleros, Cuban music, reggae and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postid='arts_11835183']The store, a physical home for the record label of the same name, will operate at 3174 24th St., in a space where two vinyl record stores, Pyramid Records and Explorist International, once stood years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A musical archaeological expedition\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Discodelic founders Ruben “Ruffy” Rangel, 43, and Maria Jose “Majoo” Salguero, 30, met through MySpace 13 years ago, bonding over their shared love of ska, rocksteady and reggae. Their conversations soon grew into travel plans.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Since the ’90s, I have always been looking for discos in stores, at swap meets, everywhere,” said Rangel. “But I never traveled much until I started traveling together with Majoo.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931636\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Records fill the bins at Discodelic Disco Viajantes record store\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931636\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Records start to fill the bins at Discodelic Disco Viajantes record store in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 13, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The duo began to travel all over Central America, looking for vinyl that was pressed in the 1960s and 1970s, much of which was presumed lost due to wars in the region.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While both were passionate about their mission, it was especially meaningful for Salguero, who is Salvadoran; record stores were practically nonexistent in the country in the early 2010s. This crate-digging mission turned out to be a musical archaeological expedition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We went to old bodegas, old radio stations, and houses,” Rangel said. “We went looking for artists, old labels that were closed for decades, and we ended up accumulating a large amount of old recordings.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931634\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931634\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-800x380.jpg\" alt=\"in a diptych, two people search through records and 45s\" width=\"800\" height=\"380\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-800x380.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-1020x484.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-160x76.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-768x364.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-1536x729.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-1920x911.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig.jpg 2023w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Once the Discodelic team arrives in a country, they look through old bodegas, old radio stations and defunct record label warehouses. At left, Majoo searches through a collection spread throughout a bedroom in Perú. Ruffy is seen searching through a collection of 45s in Costa Rica. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Discodelic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2015, the duo opened their first brick-and-mortar record store, Discodelic, in El Salvador. But they weren’t content to just sell records — they began to track down musicians and collaborate with record labels to reissue some of the older records they’d found. This soon became their \u003ca href=\"https://discodelic.bandcamp.com/music\">very own reissue label\u003c/a> — also named Discodelic — which now has 10 releases under its belt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the beginning, we knew we only wanted to be in El Salvador for one year because we’re ‘Discos Viajantes de Otros Dimensions (Traveling Vinyl Discs from Other Dimensions),’” Rangel said, a name that came out of years spend traveling around Central America to find vinyl. “We stayed in El Salvador to start a vinyl community there.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931632\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 960px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_.jpeg\" alt=\"a Latino man and a Latina woman stand together outside the door of a record store they own\" width=\"960\" height=\"719\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931632\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_.jpeg 960w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_-800x599.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_-160x120.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_-768x575.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ruben ‘Ruffy’ Rangel and María José ‘Majoo’ Salguero stand outside their store, Discodelic, in Guatemala in 2016. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Discodelic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Though the Salvadoran store was a success, attracting young people first learning about vinyl as well as older folks who shared stories about the music, Rangel and Salguero decided to pack it up in 2016 and move to Guatemala.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rangel wanted to bring something to Guatemala beyond the retail store, so the Discodelic duo began connecting with DJs in Guatemala and from other countries to start parties, working with artists and DJs from Mexico, Japan, Costa Rica, Germany and more. Soon, the duo’s interests expanded beyond Central American music. They set off to visit neighboring countries like the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, Barbados and Panama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931631\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931631\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-800x581.jpg\" alt=\"two Latinx people and two Kenyan people stand holding 45s in a village in Kenya\" width=\"800\" height=\"581\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-800x581.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-1020x741.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-160x116.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-768x558.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-1536x1116.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya.jpg 1842w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The duo behind Discodelic, in the middle of an 18-month world tour to find vinyl and 45s. Here they are pictured visiting with music fans in Kenya. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Discodelic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>When it comes to buying valuable records in countries where vinyl might not be popular anymore, Rangel said that Discodelic maintains their own code of ethics, and they want to be known for paying a fair price.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When we went to Mexico, we gained a sort of reputation,” Rangel said. “‘The Discodelics are the crazy ones who go around the world looking for strange discos.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The San Franciscan connection\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Making DJ connections at parties came easily for Rangel and Salguero. One night, they befriended a 37-year-old San Franciscan named Miles Ake, a chef and a part-time DJ.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931713\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A young woman in a blue jacket and glasses browses a record bin\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931713\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Karla Herrera browses records at Discodelic Disco Viajantes on 24th Street in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 15, 2023, during a grand opening celebration for the record store. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2018, Discodelic invited Ake to DJ at a music festival in Mexico City called Latinos Con Soul. Ake helped the duo with contacts in the States and with shipping vinyl. Working together, the three brought the festival \u003ca href=\"https://dothebay.com/events/2018/11/3/revoluciones-tropisoul-festival-djs-xicasoul-philippe-noel-ruffy-tnt\">TropiSol\u003c/a> to the Bay Area in the same year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That reputation and connections helped the store flourish — but again, the duo missed traveling. So in the same year, they packed their house into a storage room and went on an 18-month tour to buy more vinyl, visiting Guyana, Surname, Turkey, Ethiopia, Egypt, Kenya, Portugal, Bolivia and Peru.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VICu0BAxhI\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soon after the duo’s return to Mexico, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and closed the physical Discodelic storefront.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Around the same time, back in San Francisco, Miles Ake lost his job as a chef. Ake suggested the duo open a Discodelic store in the Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I knew that the location of a Discodelic would be perfect on 24th Street,” Ake said. “It’s just a way to bring back a Latin record store to the neighborhood.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ake also knew that there was a local scene ready to support and benefit from a Latin and Caribbean-focused record store, with the DJ collective Chulita Vinyl Club, Latin soul collectives, vinyl collectors and numerous Bay Area fans all eager to embrace a new space.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931712\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931712\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Co-owners Ruben “Ruffy” Rangel and Maria Jose “Majoo” Salguero talk with shoppers at Discodelic Disco Viajantes on 24th Street in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 15, 2023, during a grand opening celebration. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>The store on 24th Street\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The three business owners have an ambitious plan for the storefront, promising art exhibitions, conferences, the launch of their book publishing company Que Bonito, a podcast and, of course, DJ events.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>LPs and 45s on offer represent a wide range of artists, from Latin America and beyond, including Joe Baatan, Ralfi Pagan, Clive Zanda, The Skatalites, Rabbits & Carrots, Leo Acosta, Mulatu Astatke and Poder de Alma. One of Ruben’s favorites is Leo Soto’s “Caballo Psicodelico,” a rare 45 they were able to find in Mexico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Discodelic’s inventory will also include records from their own label, and new music the team enjoys, like that of \u003ca href=\"https://earenas.bandcamp.com/music\">É Arenas\u003c/a>, a founding member of Chicano Batman. There’s also Bay Area music, like Oakland’s \u003ca href=\"https://ritmostropicosmos.bandcamp.com/\">Ritmos Tropicoso\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931640\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931640\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"a poster from a concert in panama hangs on the wall of a record store\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Artwork and records fill the wall at Discodelic. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The prices also vary widely, with some records priced at $10, and other rarer ones at $80, $500 and up to $800. Those are special outliers, though, and “we have a lot of classic records at accessible prices,” Rangel said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While in San Francisco, Discodelics’ founders want to strengthen connections here: they hope to collaborate on events or reissues with Jose “Chepito” Arias, a percussionist who recorded with Santana, as well as Poder de Alma in San Leandro, and Los Vampiros, who hail from Stockton.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We want this place to be a place of entry for nostalgia,” Salguero said. “What better place than the Mission District?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931714\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Three people in front of a window with a large tiger mural painted on it\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931714\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67022_230715-Discodelic-11-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Co-owners (from left) Ruben “Ruffy” Rangel, Maria Jose “Majoo” Salguero, and Miles Ake stand outside their record store Discodelic Disco Viajantes on 24th Street in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 15, 2023, during a grand opening celebration. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>With its bold block letters above 24th Street, the \u003ca href=\"https://missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com/mission/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/24th-Street_Photo-by-Ekevara-Kitpowsong-6668.jpg\">Discolandia\u003c/a> sign is an icon of the Mission District. But Discolandia, a Latin-focused record store, \u003ca href=\"https://missionlocal.org/2018/04/a-blast-from-the-past-discolandia/\">closed over a decade ago\u003c/a>. Since then, there’s been no record store in the neighborhood that caters specifically to the Mission’s Latinx population.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That finally changes this week with the July 15 opening of Discodelic, which specializes in vinyl from Latin American and Caribbean countries, offering Latin soul, cumbia, salsa, boleros, Cuban music, reggae and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The store, a physical home for the record label of the same name, will operate at 3174 24th St., in a space where two vinyl record stores, Pyramid Records and Explorist International, once stood years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A musical archaeological expedition\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Discodelic founders Ruben “Ruffy” Rangel, 43, and Maria Jose “Majoo” Salguero, 30, met through MySpace 13 years ago, bonding over their shared love of ska, rocksteady and reggae. Their conversations soon grew into travel plans.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Since the ’90s, I have always been looking for discos in stores, at swap meets, everywhere,” said Rangel. “But I never traveled much until I started traveling together with Majoo.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931636\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"Records fill the bins at Discodelic Disco Viajantes record store\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931636\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS66971_230713-DiscodelicRecords-18-BL-KQED-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Records start to fill the bins at Discodelic Disco Viajantes record store in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 13, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The duo began to travel all over Central America, looking for vinyl that was pressed in the 1960s and 1970s, much of which was presumed lost due to wars in the region.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While both were passionate about their mission, it was especially meaningful for Salguero, who is Salvadoran; record stores were practically nonexistent in the country in the early 2010s. This crate-digging mission turned out to be a musical archaeological expedition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We went to old bodegas, old radio stations, and houses,” Rangel said. “We went looking for artists, old labels that were closed for decades, and we ended up accumulating a large amount of old recordings.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931634\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931634\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-800x380.jpg\" alt=\"in a diptych, two people search through records and 45s\" width=\"800\" height=\"380\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-800x380.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-1020x484.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-160x76.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-768x364.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-1536x729.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig-1920x911.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Dig.jpg 2023w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Once the Discodelic team arrives in a country, they look through old bodegas, old radio stations and defunct record label warehouses. At left, Majoo searches through a collection spread throughout a bedroom in Perú. Ruffy is seen searching through a collection of 45s in Costa Rica. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Discodelic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2015, the duo opened their first brick-and-mortar record store, Discodelic, in El Salvador. But they weren’t content to just sell records — they began to track down musicians and collaborate with record labels to reissue some of the older records they’d found. This soon became their \u003ca href=\"https://discodelic.bandcamp.com/music\">very own reissue label\u003c/a> — also named Discodelic — which now has 10 releases under its belt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the beginning, we knew we only wanted to be in El Salvador for one year because we’re ‘Discos Viajantes de Otros Dimensions (Traveling Vinyl Discs from Other Dimensions),’” Rangel said, a name that came out of years spend traveling around Central America to find vinyl. “We stayed in El Salvador to start a vinyl community there.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931632\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 960px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_.jpeg\" alt=\"a Latino man and a Latina woman stand together outside the door of a record store they own\" width=\"960\" height=\"719\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931632\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_.jpeg 960w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_-800x599.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_-160x120.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DIscodelic.Duo_-768x575.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Ruben ‘Ruffy’ Rangel and María José ‘Majoo’ Salguero stand outside their store, Discodelic, in Guatemala in 2016. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Discodelic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Though the Salvadoran store was a success, attracting young people first learning about vinyl as well as older folks who shared stories about the music, Rangel and Salguero decided to pack it up in 2016 and move to Guatemala.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rangel wanted to bring something to Guatemala beyond the retail store, so the Discodelic duo began connecting with DJs in Guatemala and from other countries to start parties, working with artists and DJs from Mexico, Japan, Costa Rica, Germany and more. Soon, the duo’s interests expanded beyond Central American music. They set off to visit neighboring countries like the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, Barbados and Panama.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931631\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931631\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-800x581.jpg\" alt=\"two Latinx people and two Kenyan people stand holding 45s in a village in Kenya\" width=\"800\" height=\"581\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-800x581.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-1020x741.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-160x116.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-768x558.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya-1536x1116.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/Discodelic-Kenya.jpg 1842w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The duo behind Discodelic, in the middle of an 18-month world tour to find vinyl and 45s. Here they are pictured visiting with music fans in Kenya. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Discodelic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>When it comes to buying valuable records in countries where vinyl might not be popular anymore, Rangel said that Discodelic maintains their own code of ethics, and they want to be known for paying a fair price.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When we went to Mexico, we gained a sort of reputation,” Rangel said. “‘The Discodelics are the crazy ones who go around the world looking for strange discos.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The San Franciscan connection\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Making DJ connections at parties came easily for Rangel and Salguero. One night, they befriended a 37-year-old San Franciscan named Miles Ake, a chef and a part-time DJ.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931713\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A young woman in a blue jacket and glasses browses a record bin\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931713\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67018_230715-Discodelic-02-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Karla Herrera browses records at Discodelic Disco Viajantes on 24th Street in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 15, 2023, during a grand opening celebration for the record store. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 2018, Discodelic invited Ake to DJ at a music festival in Mexico City called Latinos Con Soul. Ake helped the duo with contacts in the States and with shipping vinyl. Working together, the three brought the festival \u003ca href=\"https://dothebay.com/events/2018/11/3/revoluciones-tropisoul-festival-djs-xicasoul-philippe-noel-ruffy-tnt\">TropiSol\u003c/a> to the Bay Area in the same year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That reputation and connections helped the store flourish — but again, the duo missed traveling. So in the same year, they packed their house into a storage room and went on an 18-month tour to buy more vinyl, visiting Guyana, Surname, Turkey, Ethiopia, Egypt, Kenya, Portugal, Bolivia and Peru.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/3VICu0BAxhI'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/3VICu0BAxhI'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Soon after the duo’s return to Mexico, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and closed the physical Discodelic storefront.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Around the same time, back in San Francisco, Miles Ake lost his job as a chef. Ake suggested the duo open a Discodelic store in the Bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I knew that the location of a Discodelic would be perfect on 24th Street,” Ake said. “It’s just a way to bring back a Latin record store to the neighborhood.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ake also knew that there was a local scene ready to support and benefit from a Latin and Caribbean-focused record store, with the DJ collective Chulita Vinyl Club, Latin soul collectives, vinyl collectors and numerous Bay Area fans all eager to embrace a new space.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931712\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931712\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/RS67019_230715-Discodelic-06-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Co-owners Ruben “Ruffy” Rangel and Maria Jose “Majoo” Salguero talk with shoppers at Discodelic Disco Viajantes on 24th Street in San Francisco’s Mission District on July 15, 2023, during a grand opening celebration. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>The store on 24th Street\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The three business owners have an ambitious plan for the storefront, promising art exhibitions, conferences, the launch of their book publishing company Que Bonito, a podcast and, of course, DJ events.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>LPs and 45s on offer represent a wide range of artists, from Latin America and beyond, including Joe Baatan, Ralfi Pagan, Clive Zanda, The Skatalites, Rabbits & Carrots, Leo Acosta, Mulatu Astatke and Poder de Alma. One of Ruben’s favorites is Leo Soto’s “Caballo Psicodelico,” a rare 45 they were able to find in Mexico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Discodelic’s inventory will also include records from their own label, and new music the team enjoys, like that of \u003ca href=\"https://earenas.bandcamp.com/music\">É Arenas\u003c/a>, a founding member of Chicano Batman. There’s also Bay Area music, like Oakland’s \u003ca href=\"https://ritmostropicosmos.bandcamp.com/\">Ritmos Tropicoso\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931640\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931640\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"a poster from a concert in panama hangs on the wall of a record store\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/discodelic.poster.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Artwork and records fill the wall at Discodelic. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The prices also vary widely, with some records priced at $10, and other rarer ones at $80, $500 and up to $800. Those are special outliers, though, and “we have a lot of classic records at accessible prices,” Rangel said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While in San Francisco, Discodelics’ founders want to strengthen connections here: they hope to collaborate on events or reissues with Jose “Chepito” Arias, a percussionist who recorded with Santana, as well as Poder de Alma in San Leandro, and Los Vampiros, who hail from Stockton.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We want this place to be a place of entry for nostalgia,” Salguero said. “What better place than the Mission District?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "michael-sneed-is-more-than-a-vibe-hes-a-symbol-for-oakland",
"title": "Michael Sneed Is More Than a Vibe — He’s a Symbol for Oakland",
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"content": "\u003cp>Walking around 15th Street in Oakland on a Friday afternoon — past beloved eateries like Minto’s Jamaican Restaurant & Bar, Baba’s House and Hoza Pizzeria — reminds me of what makes the Bay Area such a vibrant destination. On our best days, no one is beating our pound-for-pound cultural offerings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Our region is also struggling: we’ve made headlines in recent months for rising crime, the fentanyl crisis and other challenges. Many of those criticisms are arguably hyperbolized or oversimplifications of social issues with systemic root causes. But there are undoubtedly real shortcomings that make it difficult for longtime residents, particularly creatives and working- and middle-class families, to thrive along this wondrously fog-filled coast.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Personally, I’ve grappled with what it means to be from a place that doesn’t have many affordable spaces left, and I wonder about the psychological consequences of that daily erasure. It’s no secret that Bay Area cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/26/most-expensive-cities-to-raise-a-child-in-the-us.html\">regularly lead the nation as the most expensive zip codes\u003c/a> in which to raise a family.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Michael Sneed — an East Oakland rapper, producer and vocalist — explores this duality on his latest EP, \u003ci>Junior Varsity Blues\u003c/i>. The record is a poetic manifesto, colored by jaded grief about displacement and his changing community. But he doesn’t shy away from expressing hometown pride, either. Having started out rapping at age 15, the 24-year-old is now unlocking his vocal superpowers to share narratives about Black joy, personal malaise, reclamation, nostalgia and the importance of friendships amid the swirling chaos of tech-fueled capitalism.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13880362\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13880362 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-800x533.jpeg\" alt=\"three young men sit on a sofa in a music studio\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-160x107.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-1020x680.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-1920x1280.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Michael Sneed (center) at Different Fur Studios in San Francisco with Mikos da Gawd (left) and WADE08 (right). \u003ccite>(Erin Conger)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Sneed grew up in the 100s section of Deep East Oakland with his parents and older sisters. He lives on a block that is still predominantly Black, where close-knit families support each other. He’s fortunate, Sneed tells me. But for many lifelong Oaklanders, particularly Black, Latinx and Pacific Islanders, \u003ca href=\"https://bayareaequityatlas.org/node/65531\">the city’s dramatic shifts have made it nearly impossible to remain.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not news that the Bay Area’s inequities disproportionately affect the Black community. “The slow churn of the erasure of the region’s historic communities that birthed the Black Panther Party and raised the likes of Maya Angelou and Etta James is well underway,” \u003ca href=\"https://capitalbnews.org/climate-reparations-bay-area/\">writes Adam Mahoney\u003c/a>, in a piece on climate reparations, reporting that the nine-county region’s Black population has decreased by 20% since 1990, while the total population has grown by 25%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As we wander downtown Oakland, Sneed recalls the city he grew up in, and what he most misses about it: poetry slams and open mics for youth, Monta Ellis on the Golden State Warriors, and most importantly, his peers and friends who have had to move away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931359\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931359\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A young Oakland rapper leans against a wall in Oakland on a sunny day\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Michael Sneed poses for a portrait in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Juliana Yamada)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“No one has been immediately displaced in my family, but I’ve had peers who can’t find housing because it’s too expensive,” he says. “There’s no reason why there should be people houseless on freeways in tents. It shouldn’t be a thing. The whole purpose of having a government is to prevent that and to protect the people, especially if you have a government with as much money as the United States and California. There’s no reason.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Following a\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BAPTZcMtMI\"> song collaboration and high-profile tour with P-Lo,\u003c/a> Sneed returned to The Town more attuned than ever to what makes the Bay Area simultaneously special and intolerable. A particularly poignant example of his gospel-inspired sound is “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGuS7hnPNyc\">Paw Patrol\u003c/a>,” accompanied by a music video filmed in his neighborhood that evokes a homely retro vibe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGuS7hnPNyc\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Forced migration and gentrification are prevalent themes in his music, especially on tracks like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11940879/michael-sneed-city\">“City,” which outline the rapper’s frustrations with houselessness and exorbitant rents. \u003c/a>With a high-pitched voice that many have compared to Chicago’s Chance the Rapper, Sneed weaves in and out of intonations with a choir-trained precision that borders on falsetto, presenting a simple but profound question as the song’s hook: “Ayo the block don’t look the same as it used to, where my city go?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Combined with deep reflections about his family’s health (most notably, the painful loss of his grandmother and aunt), the birth of his niece, playing basketball as a teenager, and criticisms of the tech industry, the seven-track project presents a layered portrait of a young, Black man who graduated from Howard University who is living as joyfully as he can under the crushing weight of Northern California’s demands. It’s a theme many local artists have explored in their music. But with Sneed, there’s a touch of theatrics and a goofy lovability that’s rare in East Oakland rap.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the album’s standout singles, “The Answer,” draws from the artist’s love of hoops (functioning as a reference to the iconic point guard, Allen Iverson, who was known as both A.I. and The Answer in his playing days) while expressing his flamboyance with clever wordplay: “When I was five I used to get in trouble for coloring out of the lines/ why if you colored they want you to stay in the line/ I feel like A.I. up in his prime.” The video, which is titled “the world’s first A.I. music video,” reached 16,000 views in one month (and no, it is not the world’s first A.I. music video).\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925558\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13925558\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.-.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Michael Sneed performs at Brick and Mortar Music Hall in San Francisco on Feb. 22, 2023. \u003ccite>(Estefany Gonzalez)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I wasn’t thinking of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13928457/chatgpt-says-these-are-the-best-bay-area-rap-albums-of-all-time\">artificial intelligence \u003c/a>at all,” Sneed tells me inside The Hatch, a Black-owned bar in the city, while sipping on a non-alcoholic lemonade. “That song to me is kind of using Allen Iverson as this guy who did his own thing. He wore the baggy shorts, the gold chains. He said ‘I’m gonna be so hip-hop that it makes you uncomfortable.’ And he was almost punished because of that. [This song is about] using him, or his avatar, as a way to highlight Black men like that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A.I. was so fearless and unapologetically himself and hip-hop, and it kind of gave athletes [and] people of the culture in general freedom to express themselves in spaces that aren’t necessarily hip-hop or basketball,” he continues. “That’s tight about him. I don’t think he gets enough props for that. In a way, he was postmodernist.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Basketball is a major element of \u003cem>Junior Varsity Blues\u003c/em>, with fictional skits of a team tryout peppering the 23-minute project. It’s the only sport Sneed grew up playing, and it’s how he bonded with his peers and family members. For an artsy kid, it gave him an unexpected outlet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Even though I wasn’t good, it was important to me,” he admits. “I was always daydreaming, never paying attention. I dressed goofy. I showed up [to play basketball] in church socks. But it’s how I met a lot of friends in high school.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwCgGd-dDn0\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With \u003ca href=\"https://www.theringer.com/nba-draft/2023/3/28/23657469/amen-ausar-thompson-twins-2023-nba-draft-overtime-elite\">his younger twin cousins recently entering the NBA as nationally touted prospects\u003c/a>, Sneed appreciates what athletics can provide for a community. But he doesn’t overly glamorize the sport, either. His music regularly veers into his more niche interests — like anime (which his Nickelodeon’s \u003cem>Avatar\u003c/em>-inspired tagline, “Yip! Yip!” makes clear in every verse) and Broadway musical productions like \u003ci>The Lion King\u003c/i> and \u003ci>Wicked \u003c/i>(his EP features a song titled “WICKED”).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite his introspective nerdisms, though, it’s not all “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poIXEf0k9oo\">Hula Hoop\u003c/a>” and “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BJPSKr0DBQ\">Hopscotch\u003c/a>” games for Sneed. Beyond the lighthearted inner child hardwired into his raps, his songs inevitably return to heavy subject matter, like contemplating the death of Black Panther Party leaders, having emotional withdrawals while withdrawing money from the bank and losing faith in God over slow-paced, self-produced instrumentals. Songs like “It’s Impossible! It’s a Miracle!” serve as cathartic hymnals, presenting the rapper in his most vulnerable state as he rattles off a litany of impossible life challenges.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was so much adversity [at the time of writing the song]. Mending felt like it would be a miracle,” Sneed says. “I’m only myself because of how hard things can be. I need someone to tell me it’ll be alright. I’m always trying to put that in my music. It’s really just me speaking to myself. If my words can help someone else through those tough Monday mornings, then alright. That’s powerful. It’s to help me, and to help others.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931357\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931357\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A young Oakland rapper leans against the glass window outside of the Fox Theater\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bay Area rapper Michael Sneed poses for a portrait in front of the Fox Theatre. Sneed grew up consuming theatre and his roots now influence his music. \u003ccite>(Juliana Yamada)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Currently an unsigned artist, the ascendant Oaklander is considering a move to Los Angeles, where other successful East Bay artists like Kehlani, G Eazy and P-Lo have already relocated. It’s relatively common for Bay Area artists — particularly rappers — to leave the Bay. There’s a cross-national migratory route to Atlanta that has been popularized by Too $hort and Iamsu!. And, of course there’s New York City, which is the current residence of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/reyresurreccion/?hl=en\">Rey Resurreccion\u003c/a> and serves as a part-time getaway for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13908051/rising-artist-ovrkast-makes-introspective-rap-for-cloudy-days\">Ovrkast., one of Sneed’s best friends\u003c/a> and closest collaborators. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13908051/rising-artist-ovrkast-makes-introspective-rap-for-cloudy-days\">It’s a phenomenon that KQED’s Pendarvis Harshaw once dubbed “\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13846175/ian-kelly-and-the-role-of-the-bay-area-expatriate\">the role of the Bay Area expatriate\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13908051/rising-artist-ovrkast-makes-introspective-rap-for-cloudy-days\">” in music.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if Sneed can’t afford to remain in his city of birth, or feels like artistic opportunities are greater elsewhere, he plans to stay connected to his home in the East Bay. He’s done it before, when he left Oakland for Washington D.C. to attend university, then came back. The temporary move expanded his sense of self and place, bolstering his appreciation — and complex understanding — for his return.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regardless of wherever Sneed lands, he’ll take East Oakland with him. As he declares on “WICKED,” “I’m not a vibe, I’m a symbol to my city.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12127869\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-800x78.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Michael Sneed’s \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/1SIeFvO8So4ow0vcFosVQ6\">‘Junior Varsity Blues’ \u003c/a> is available on all streaming platforms. His recent tourmate, P-Lo, will be at \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/p_lo/status/1676792144466710528\">STUNNA’s Shop at Stashed SF\u003c/a> (2360 3rd St., SF) on Sat., July 15 from 4 – 8 p.m. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Walking around 15th Street in Oakland on a Friday afternoon — past beloved eateries like Minto’s Jamaican Restaurant & Bar, Baba’s House and Hoza Pizzeria — reminds me of what makes the Bay Area such a vibrant destination. On our best days, no one is beating our pound-for-pound cultural offerings.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Our region is also struggling: we’ve made headlines in recent months for rising crime, the fentanyl crisis and other challenges. Many of those criticisms are arguably hyperbolized or oversimplifications of social issues with systemic root causes. But there are undoubtedly real shortcomings that make it difficult for longtime residents, particularly creatives and working- and middle-class families, to thrive along this wondrously fog-filled coast.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Personally, I’ve grappled with what it means to be from a place that doesn’t have many affordable spaces left, and I wonder about the psychological consequences of that daily erasure. It’s no secret that Bay Area cities \u003ca href=\"https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/26/most-expensive-cities-to-raise-a-child-in-the-us.html\">regularly lead the nation as the most expensive zip codes\u003c/a> in which to raise a family.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Michael Sneed — an East Oakland rapper, producer and vocalist — explores this duality on his latest EP, \u003ci>Junior Varsity Blues\u003c/i>. The record is a poetic manifesto, colored by jaded grief about displacement and his changing community. But he doesn’t shy away from expressing hometown pride, either. Having started out rapping at age 15, the 24-year-old is now unlocking his vocal superpowers to share narratives about Black joy, personal malaise, reclamation, nostalgia and the importance of friendships amid the swirling chaos of tech-fueled capitalism.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13880362\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13880362 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-800x533.jpeg\" alt=\"three young men sit on a sofa in a music studio\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-800x533.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-160x107.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-1020x680.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/05/Holiday18-preview_090-1920x1280.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Michael Sneed (center) at Different Fur Studios in San Francisco with Mikos da Gawd (left) and WADE08 (right). \u003ccite>(Erin Conger)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Sneed grew up in the 100s section of Deep East Oakland with his parents and older sisters. He lives on a block that is still predominantly Black, where close-knit families support each other. He’s fortunate, Sneed tells me. But for many lifelong Oaklanders, particularly Black, Latinx and Pacific Islanders, \u003ca href=\"https://bayareaequityatlas.org/node/65531\">the city’s dramatic shifts have made it nearly impossible to remain.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s not news that the Bay Area’s inequities disproportionately affect the Black community. “The slow churn of the erasure of the region’s historic communities that birthed the Black Panther Party and raised the likes of Maya Angelou and Etta James is well underway,” \u003ca href=\"https://capitalbnews.org/climate-reparations-bay-area/\">writes Adam Mahoney\u003c/a>, in a piece on climate reparations, reporting that the nine-county region’s Black population has decreased by 20% since 1990, while the total population has grown by 25%.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As we wander downtown Oakland, Sneed recalls the city he grew up in, and what he most misses about it: poetry slams and open mics for youth, Monta Ellis on the Golden State Warriors, and most importantly, his peers and friends who have had to move away.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931359\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931359\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A young Oakland rapper leans against a wall in Oakland on a sunny day\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_016-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Michael Sneed poses for a portrait in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Juliana Yamada)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“No one has been immediately displaced in my family, but I’ve had peers who can’t find housing because it’s too expensive,” he says. “There’s no reason why there should be people houseless on freeways in tents. It shouldn’t be a thing. The whole purpose of having a government is to prevent that and to protect the people, especially if you have a government with as much money as the United States and California. There’s no reason.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Following a\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BAPTZcMtMI\"> song collaboration and high-profile tour with P-Lo,\u003c/a> Sneed returned to The Town more attuned than ever to what makes the Bay Area simultaneously special and intolerable. A particularly poignant example of his gospel-inspired sound is “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGuS7hnPNyc\">Paw Patrol\u003c/a>,” accompanied by a music video filmed in his neighborhood that evokes a homely retro vibe.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/MGuS7hnPNyc'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/MGuS7hnPNyc'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Forced migration and gentrification are prevalent themes in his music, especially on tracks like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11940879/michael-sneed-city\">“City,” which outline the rapper’s frustrations with houselessness and exorbitant rents. \u003c/a>With a high-pitched voice that many have compared to Chicago’s Chance the Rapper, Sneed weaves in and out of intonations with a choir-trained precision that borders on falsetto, presenting a simple but profound question as the song’s hook: “Ayo the block don’t look the same as it used to, where my city go?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Combined with deep reflections about his family’s health (most notably, the painful loss of his grandmother and aunt), the birth of his niece, playing basketball as a teenager, and criticisms of the tech industry, the seven-track project presents a layered portrait of a young, Black man who graduated from Howard University who is living as joyfully as he can under the crushing weight of Northern California’s demands. It’s a theme many local artists have explored in their music. But with Sneed, there’s a touch of theatrics and a goofy lovability that’s rare in East Oakland rap.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the album’s standout singles, “The Answer,” draws from the artist’s love of hoops (functioning as a reference to the iconic point guard, Allen Iverson, who was known as both A.I. and The Answer in his playing days) while expressing his flamboyance with clever wordplay: “When I was five I used to get in trouble for coloring out of the lines/ why if you colored they want you to stay in the line/ I feel like A.I. up in his prime.” The video, which is titled “the world’s first A.I. music video,” reached 16,000 views in one month (and no, it is not the world’s first A.I. music video).\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925558\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13925558\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--800x533.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.--1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/02/Michael-Sneed-performs-at-Brick-and-Mortar-Music-Hall-in-San-Francisco-on-Wednesday-Wednesday-Feb.-22-2023.-.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Michael Sneed performs at Brick and Mortar Music Hall in San Francisco on Feb. 22, 2023. \u003ccite>(Estefany Gonzalez)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I wasn’t thinking of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13928457/chatgpt-says-these-are-the-best-bay-area-rap-albums-of-all-time\">artificial intelligence \u003c/a>at all,” Sneed tells me inside The Hatch, a Black-owned bar in the city, while sipping on a non-alcoholic lemonade. “That song to me is kind of using Allen Iverson as this guy who did his own thing. He wore the baggy shorts, the gold chains. He said ‘I’m gonna be so hip-hop that it makes you uncomfortable.’ And he was almost punished because of that. [This song is about] using him, or his avatar, as a way to highlight Black men like that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A.I. was so fearless and unapologetically himself and hip-hop, and it kind of gave athletes [and] people of the culture in general freedom to express themselves in spaces that aren’t necessarily hip-hop or basketball,” he continues. “That’s tight about him. I don’t think he gets enough props for that. In a way, he was postmodernist.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Basketball is a major element of \u003cem>Junior Varsity Blues\u003c/em>, with fictional skits of a team tryout peppering the 23-minute project. It’s the only sport Sneed grew up playing, and it’s how he bonded with his peers and family members. For an artsy kid, it gave him an unexpected outlet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Even though I wasn’t good, it was important to me,” he admits. “I was always daydreaming, never paying attention. I dressed goofy. I showed up [to play basketball] in church socks. But it’s how I met a lot of friends in high school.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/VwCgGd-dDn0'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/VwCgGd-dDn0'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With \u003ca href=\"https://www.theringer.com/nba-draft/2023/3/28/23657469/amen-ausar-thompson-twins-2023-nba-draft-overtime-elite\">his younger twin cousins recently entering the NBA as nationally touted prospects\u003c/a>, Sneed appreciates what athletics can provide for a community. But he doesn’t overly glamorize the sport, either. His music regularly veers into his more niche interests — like anime (which his Nickelodeon’s \u003cem>Avatar\u003c/em>-inspired tagline, “Yip! Yip!” makes clear in every verse) and Broadway musical productions like \u003ci>The Lion King\u003c/i> and \u003ci>Wicked \u003c/i>(his EP features a song titled “WICKED”).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Despite his introspective nerdisms, though, it’s not all “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poIXEf0k9oo\">Hula Hoop\u003c/a>” and “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BJPSKr0DBQ\">Hopscotch\u003c/a>” games for Sneed. Beyond the lighthearted inner child hardwired into his raps, his songs inevitably return to heavy subject matter, like contemplating the death of Black Panther Party leaders, having emotional withdrawals while withdrawing money from the bank and losing faith in God over slow-paced, self-produced instrumentals. Songs like “It’s Impossible! It’s a Miracle!” serve as cathartic hymnals, presenting the rapper in his most vulnerable state as he rattles off a litany of impossible life challenges.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“There was so much adversity [at the time of writing the song]. Mending felt like it would be a miracle,” Sneed says. “I’m only myself because of how hard things can be. I need someone to tell me it’ll be alright. I’m always trying to put that in my music. It’s really just me speaking to myself. If my words can help someone else through those tough Monday mornings, then alright. That’s powerful. It’s to help me, and to help others.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931357\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931357\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A young Oakland rapper leans against the glass window outside of the Fox Theater\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/michaelsneed_JY_004-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bay Area rapper Michael Sneed poses for a portrait in front of the Fox Theatre. Sneed grew up consuming theatre and his roots now influence his music. \u003ccite>(Juliana Yamada)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Currently an unsigned artist, the ascendant Oaklander is considering a move to Los Angeles, where other successful East Bay artists like Kehlani, G Eazy and P-Lo have already relocated. It’s relatively common for Bay Area artists — particularly rappers — to leave the Bay. There’s a cross-national migratory route to Atlanta that has been popularized by Too $hort and Iamsu!. And, of course there’s New York City, which is the current residence of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/reyresurreccion/?hl=en\">Rey Resurreccion\u003c/a> and serves as a part-time getaway for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13908051/rising-artist-ovrkast-makes-introspective-rap-for-cloudy-days\">Ovrkast., one of Sneed’s best friends\u003c/a> and closest collaborators. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13908051/rising-artist-ovrkast-makes-introspective-rap-for-cloudy-days\">It’s a phenomenon that KQED’s Pendarvis Harshaw once dubbed “\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13846175/ian-kelly-and-the-role-of-the-bay-area-expatriate\">the role of the Bay Area expatriate\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13908051/rising-artist-ovrkast-makes-introspective-rap-for-cloudy-days\">” in music.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even if Sneed can’t afford to remain in his city of birth, or feels like artistic opportunities are greater elsewhere, he plans to stay connected to his home in the East Bay. He’s done it before, when he left Oakland for Washington D.C. to attend university, then came back. The temporary move expanded his sense of self and place, bolstering his appreciation — and complex understanding — for his return.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regardless of wherever Sneed lands, he’ll take East Oakland with him. As he declares on “WICKED,” “I’m not a vibe, I’m a symbol to my city.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-12127869\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-800x78.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Michael Sneed’s \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/1SIeFvO8So4ow0vcFosVQ6\">‘Junior Varsity Blues’ \u003c/a> is available on all streaming platforms. His recent tourmate, P-Lo, will be at \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/p_lo/status/1676792144466710528\">STUNNA’s Shop at Stashed SF\u003c/a> (2360 3rd St., SF) on Sat., July 15 from 4 – 8 p.m. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"slug": "whats-pimpin-madlines-coco-peila-ryan-nicole-xen-stcharles-tiara-mbonisi",
"title": "Watch: ‘What’s Pimpin’?’ Tells Survivor Stories from Bay Area Pimp Culture",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>\u003ci>Editor’s note:\u003c/i>\u003c/b>\u003ci> This story is part of \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"http://kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">That’s My Word\u003c/a>\u003ci>, KQED’s year-long exploration of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop history\u003c/a>, with new content dropping all throughout 2023. \u003c/i>[aside postid='arts_13930886,arts_13931108,arts_13930867']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since Too Short’s \u003cem>Born to Mack\u003c/em> dropped in 1987, countless Bay Area rap albums have portrayed pimps as folk heroes who get money and status through the sex trade. But there’s a grim reality behind this aspirational image. Although adult sex workers do consensually participate in the industry, the Bay Area is also an international hub for sex trafficking, including of minors, many of whom have survived abuse and neglect from their caregivers, and often go through the foster care system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a discussion with hip-hop artists \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mad.lines/\">Maddy Clifford\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.msryannicole.com/\">RyanNicole\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.cocopeila.com/\">Coco Peila\u003c/a>, survivor advocate \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/bighairbawse/?hl=en\">Xenia St. Charles\u003c/a> explains how struggling young people get lured into exploitation. Later in the conversation, womanist writer and podcast host \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/bigmoufwoman/\">Tiara Mbonisi\u003c/a> of \u003cem>Big Mouf Woman\u003c/em> offers tools women can use to protect themselves in a misogynistic culture. \u003cem>— Nastia Voynovskaya, lead producer\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-11687704\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_-800x60.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"60\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_-400x30.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_-768x58.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/stillirise2/whats-pimpin-feat-ryannicole-madlines--coco-peila\">Listen to the track “What’s Pimpin’?”\u003c/a> by Still I Rise (MADlines, Coco Peila and RyanNicole).\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>If you or anyone you know is experiencing sexual violence, you can get free, confidential help at the RAINN hotline at 800-656-4673 or via chat at online.rainn.org. The National Human Trafficking Hotline is available at 1-888-373-7888 or via text message at 233733.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>\u003ci>Editor’s note:\u003c/i>\u003c/b>\u003ci> This story is part of \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"http://kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">That’s My Word\u003c/a>\u003ci>, KQED’s year-long exploration of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop history\u003c/a>, with new content dropping all throughout 2023. \u003c/i>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since Too Short’s \u003cem>Born to Mack\u003c/em> dropped in 1987, countless Bay Area rap albums have portrayed pimps as folk heroes who get money and status through the sex trade. But there’s a grim reality behind this aspirational image. Although adult sex workers do consensually participate in the industry, the Bay Area is also an international hub for sex trafficking, including of minors, many of whom have survived abuse and neglect from their caregivers, and often go through the foster care system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a discussion with hip-hop artists \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/mad.lines/\">Maddy Clifford\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.msryannicole.com/\">RyanNicole\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.cocopeila.com/\">Coco Peila\u003c/a>, survivor advocate \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/bighairbawse/?hl=en\">Xenia St. Charles\u003c/a> explains how struggling young people get lured into exploitation. Later in the conversation, womanist writer and podcast host \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/bigmoufwoman/\">Tiara Mbonisi\u003c/a> of \u003cem>Big Mouf Woman\u003c/em> offers tools women can use to protect themselves in a misogynistic culture. \u003cem>— Nastia Voynovskaya, lead producer\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-11687704\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_-800x60.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"60\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_-400x30.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/06/Turntable.Break_-768x58.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/stillirise2/whats-pimpin-feat-ryannicole-madlines--coco-peila\">Listen to the track “What’s Pimpin’?”\u003c/a> by Still I Rise (MADlines, Coco Peila and RyanNicole).\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>If you or anyone you know is experiencing sexual violence, you can get free, confidential help at the RAINN hotline at 800-656-4673 or via chat at online.rainn.org. The National Human Trafficking Hotline is available at 1-888-373-7888 or via text message at 233733.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Getting 'The Shot' at the History of the Bay Day Party",
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"content": "\u003cp>On the latest episode of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrcnRVZo1Y9S-8xIlv8knxRcYwCqsu1OC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u003cem>History of the Bay Podcast\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, host Dregs One talks with legendary hip-hop photographer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/isawdray/?hl=en\">D-Ray\u003c/a>. Throughout the conversation, she drives home the notion that good photography is all about getting \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931453\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931453\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Legendary hip-hop photographer from Hayward, D-Ray, standing with influential San Francisco hip-hop engineer and artist manager D.E.O..\" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Legendary hip-hop photographer D-Ray stands with influential San Francisco hip-hop engineer and artist manager, D.E.O. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She explains that access is a necessity, technical skills are important and cultural competency is key, but having the ability to get \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em> — one image that speaks to the overall spirit of the event — that’s what’s most important.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931465\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931465\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Members from the San Francisco collective Family Not a Group stop for a photo. \" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Members from the San Francisco collective Family Not a Group stop for a photo. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On Sunday afternoon in San Francisco, The Midway was converted into a cathedral of Bay Area hip-hop culture as it hosted the first ever History of The Bay day party. A celebration of all aspects of Bay Area hip-hop culture, the event was organized by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dregs_one/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dregs One\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/deo415/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">D.E.O.\u003c/a> and the team behind the aforementioned podcast; and hosted by the lively brother from East Oakland, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/lordrab/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lord Rab\u003c/a> of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/novultures/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">No Vultures\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931466\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931466\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06358_720.jpg\" alt=\"A whole bunch of SF Giants hats and peace signs.\" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06358_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06358_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A whole bunch of SF Giants hats and peace signs. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Veteran rappers who’ve put on for the region for decades rocked the stage as fans and fellow artists packed into the quaint outdoor area and rapped along to their favorite songs bar for bar. Inside were panel discussions about the state of the culture and vendors selling clothing stitched with the game given to them from the soil. I walked laps around the venue, amongst acclaimed artists of all sorts, hunting for \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931458\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931458\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-800x1197.jpg\" alt=\"Bay Area hip-hop producer Koast wearing the region on his back. \" width=\"800\" height=\"1197\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-800x1197.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-1020x1526.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-160x239.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-768x1149.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-1027x1536.jpg 1027w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bay Area hip-hop producer Koast wearing the region on his back. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I made images of Giants baseball hat brims pulled low over faces billowing clouds of smoke, photographed a woman with electric red hair rocking a pair of glowing golden “415” earrings, and snapped the moment when Nef The Pharoh asked the audience to raise their middle fingers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931459\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931459\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Nef The Pharaoh asked audience members to show him their middle fingers and many of them responded accordingly. \" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nef The Pharaoh asking audience members to hoist their middle fingers. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>An \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/CugaXKBLWkp/?hl=en\">exhibition of Bay Area rap artifacts\u003c/a> in the hallway curated by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/braincamping\">Anthony MacArthur\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\nshowcased a treasure trove of items: a copy of Paris’ \u003cem>The Devil Made Me Do It\u003c/em>, a Zion I flyer, a DVD of Mac Dre’s \u003cem>Treal TV\u003c/em>, an image of Rappin’ 4-Tay in \u003cem>Murder Dog\u003c/em> magazine, a tape of Souls of Mischief’s \u003cem>’93 Til Infinity\u003c/em>. Bruh, these fools even had a pair of Hammer pants on display.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931469\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931469\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/img_9240_720.jpg\" alt=\"A mini Tupac figurine and a copy of Souls of Mischief's classic '93 Til Infinity on display. \" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/img_9240_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/img_9240_720-160x120.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A mini Tupac figurine and a copy of Souls of Mischief’s classic ”93 Til Infinity’ on display. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It was one big-ass reminder of Bay Area hip-hop’s global impact; supported by the fact some of these iconic artists were in the building.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931461\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931461\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Hip-hop in the Bay on full display.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Hip-hop in the Bay on full display. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As Yukmouth of the Luniz, San Quinn, RBL Posse, Mac Mall and more hit the stage, D-Ray, the photographer who inspired my photographic philosophy for the evening, stood on stage with her designer hand bag and camera. Earlier she’d spoken on a panel alongside renowned Oakland aerosol artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/ladimeuna/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dime\u003c/a> of the \u003ca href=\"https://linktr.ee/fewandfarwomen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Few & Far Women collective\u003c/a>, pioneering Oakland lyricist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/cmgflowz/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Carla “CMG” Green\u003c/a> of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/consciousdaughters/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Conscious Daughters\u003c/a>, and KQED Arts’ associate editor \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/nananastia/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nastia Voynovskaya\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931464\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931464\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"The Baby Mama Mafia, a group comprised of lyricist Beastella, DJ Ella Baker and rapper The Booth Fairy, pose for a photo.\" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Baby Mama Mafia, a group comprised of lyricist Beastella, DJ Ella Baker and rapper The Booth Fairy, pose for a photo. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As East Oakland legend and \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/2GZbaXdK8Js?t=109\">king of the super duper hyphy hyphy\u003c/a> Keak The Sneak hit the stage, the audience erupted. With the crowd gathering ever closer to him, Keak, who uses a wheelchair after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13849409/keak-da-sneak-heads-to-prison-no-compassion-for-disabilities-he-says\">surviving multiple gunshot wounds and a series of medical issues\u003c/a>, became hard to see.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931468\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931468\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06312_720.jpg\" alt=\"San Francisco lyricist San Quinn dropping bars with a mic in his hand and Fillmore stitched on his hat. \" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06312_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06312_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco lyricist San Quinn drops bars at the History of the Bay party. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I stood 10 feet from the stage, periodically taking photos when the line of sight allowed for it while simultaneously rapping every lyric as Keak tore through his list of hits. At one point Keak paused to to appreciate the love from the crowd, and let out an exuberant smile. My camera clicked. I got \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931467\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931467\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06271_720.jpg\" alt=\"San Francisco lyricist and actress Tia Nomore poses for a photo.\" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06271_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06271_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco lyricist and actress Tia Nomore poses for a photo. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The image of his smile was emblematic of the entire day: the joy of Bay Area hip-hop, personified. The event allowed me to meet \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/noah.haytin/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">designers behind logos\u003c/a> I’ve seen for decades and shake the hand of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13895586/a-salute-to-san-francisco-rap\">lyricists I’ve been following for years\u003c/a>. Dregs One freestyled for a minute or two straight about miscellaneous objects that folks in the audience handed him, and you could hear people laughing at his punchlines. All afternoon I saw folks hugging, passing trees and taking selfies together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931462\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931462\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06369_720.jpg\" alt=\"People handed Dregs-One rolling trays, hats and other miscellaneous items for him to freestyle about, and he did so with ease. \" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06369_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06369_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The audience handed Dregs One rolling trays, hats and other miscellaneous items as he freestyled about them with ease. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>After making the image of Keak’s smile, I took my eye away from my viewfinder and saw that D-Ray had left her position from the crowded stage. She was now in the audience, with me, in front of the stage — except she was \u003cem>right\u003c/em> in front, with a clear view of Keak, and at that very moment holding up her phone to take a portrait. Damn, I bet she has an even better angle of \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931463\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931463\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Legendary hip-hop photographer D-Ray gets "the shot" of Keak Da Sneak.\" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Legendary hip-hop photographer D-Ray makes a portrait of Keak Da Sneak. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Again, access is a necessity, technical skills are important and cultural competency is key. But a big part of getting the shot it is simply about being at the right place at the right time. And for one overcast July day in San Francisco, the right place was an outdoor patio surrounded by folks celebrating the spirit of hip-hop in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "As Keak Da Sneak got love from the crowd, his smile reflected the whole day's spirit of Bay Area hip-hop.",
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"title": "Photos: History of the Bay Day Party with Keak, Luniz, RBL and More | KQED",
"description": "Pendarvis Harshaw shares photos and reflections from Dregs One's July 9 party in San Francisco with Keak Da Sneak, RBL Posse, Luniz, Mac Mall and more.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>On the latest episode of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLrcnRVZo1Y9S-8xIlv8knxRcYwCqsu1OC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u003cem>History of the Bay Podcast\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, host Dregs One talks with legendary hip-hop photographer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/isawdray/?hl=en\">D-Ray\u003c/a>. Throughout the conversation, she drives home the notion that good photography is all about getting \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931453\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931453\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Legendary hip-hop photographer from Hayward, D-Ray, standing with influential San Francisco hip-hop engineer and artist manager D.E.O..\" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06276.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Legendary hip-hop photographer D-Ray stands with influential San Francisco hip-hop engineer and artist manager, D.E.O. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>She explains that access is a necessity, technical skills are important and cultural competency is key, but having the ability to get \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em> — one image that speaks to the overall spirit of the event — that’s what’s most important.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931465\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931465\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Members from the San Francisco collective Family Not a Group stop for a photo. \" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06396.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Members from the San Francisco collective Family Not a Group stop for a photo. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On Sunday afternoon in San Francisco, The Midway was converted into a cathedral of Bay Area hip-hop culture as it hosted the first ever History of The Bay day party. A celebration of all aspects of Bay Area hip-hop culture, the event was organized by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dregs_one/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dregs One\u003c/a>, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/deo415/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">D.E.O.\u003c/a> and the team behind the aforementioned podcast; and hosted by the lively brother from East Oakland, \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/lordrab/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lord Rab\u003c/a> of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/novultures/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">No Vultures\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931466\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931466\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06358_720.jpg\" alt=\"A whole bunch of SF Giants hats and peace signs.\" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06358_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06358_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A whole bunch of SF Giants hats and peace signs. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Veteran rappers who’ve put on for the region for decades rocked the stage as fans and fellow artists packed into the quaint outdoor area and rapped along to their favorite songs bar for bar. Inside were panel discussions about the state of the culture and vendors selling clothing stitched with the game given to them from the soil. I walked laps around the venue, amongst acclaimed artists of all sorts, hunting for \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931458\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931458\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-800x1197.jpg\" alt=\"Bay Area hip-hop producer Koast wearing the region on his back. \" width=\"800\" height=\"1197\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-800x1197.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-1020x1526.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-160x239.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-768x1149.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298-1027x1536.jpg 1027w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06298.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Bay Area hip-hop producer Koast wearing the region on his back. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I made images of Giants baseball hat brims pulled low over faces billowing clouds of smoke, photographed a woman with electric red hair rocking a pair of glowing golden “415” earrings, and snapped the moment when Nef The Pharoh asked the audience to raise their middle fingers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931459\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931459\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Nef The Pharaoh asked audience members to show him their middle fingers and many of them responded accordingly. \" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06344.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Nef The Pharaoh asking audience members to hoist their middle fingers. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>An \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/p/CugaXKBLWkp/?hl=en\">exhibition of Bay Area rap artifacts\u003c/a> in the hallway curated by \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/braincamping\">Anthony MacArthur\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\nshowcased a treasure trove of items: a copy of Paris’ \u003cem>The Devil Made Me Do It\u003c/em>, a Zion I flyer, a DVD of Mac Dre’s \u003cem>Treal TV\u003c/em>, an image of Rappin’ 4-Tay in \u003cem>Murder Dog\u003c/em> magazine, a tape of Souls of Mischief’s \u003cem>’93 Til Infinity\u003c/em>. Bruh, these fools even had a pair of Hammer pants on display.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931469\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931469\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/img_9240_720.jpg\" alt=\"A mini Tupac figurine and a copy of Souls of Mischief's classic '93 Til Infinity on display. \" width=\"720\" height=\"540\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/img_9240_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/img_9240_720-160x120.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A mini Tupac figurine and a copy of Souls of Mischief’s classic ”93 Til Infinity’ on display. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It was one big-ass reminder of Bay Area hip-hop’s global impact; supported by the fact some of these iconic artists were in the building.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931461\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931461\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-800x600.jpg\" alt=\"Hip-hop in the Bay on full display.\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/IMG_9238-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Hip-hop in the Bay on full display. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As Yukmouth of the Luniz, San Quinn, RBL Posse, Mac Mall and more hit the stage, D-Ray, the photographer who inspired my photographic philosophy for the evening, stood on stage with her designer hand bag and camera. Earlier she’d spoken on a panel alongside renowned Oakland aerosol artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/ladimeuna/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dime\u003c/a> of the \u003ca href=\"https://linktr.ee/fewandfarwomen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Few & Far Women collective\u003c/a>, pioneering Oakland lyricist \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/cmgflowz/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Carla “CMG” Green\u003c/a> of \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/consciousdaughters/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Conscious Daughters\u003c/a>, and KQED Arts’ associate editor \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/nananastia/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Nastia Voynovskaya\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931464\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931464\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"The Baby Mama Mafia, a group comprised of lyricist Beastella, DJ Ella Baker and rapper The Booth Fairy, pose for a photo.\" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06233.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Baby Mama Mafia, a group comprised of lyricist Beastella, DJ Ella Baker and rapper The Booth Fairy, pose for a photo. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As East Oakland legend and \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/2GZbaXdK8Js?t=109\">king of the super duper hyphy hyphy\u003c/a> Keak The Sneak hit the stage, the audience erupted. With the crowd gathering ever closer to him, Keak, who uses a wheelchair after \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13849409/keak-da-sneak-heads-to-prison-no-compassion-for-disabilities-he-says\">surviving multiple gunshot wounds and a series of medical issues\u003c/a>, became hard to see.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931468\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931468\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06312_720.jpg\" alt=\"San Francisco lyricist San Quinn dropping bars with a mic in his hand and Fillmore stitched on his hat. \" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06312_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06312_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco lyricist San Quinn drops bars at the History of the Bay party. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I stood 10 feet from the stage, periodically taking photos when the line of sight allowed for it while simultaneously rapping every lyric as Keak tore through his list of hits. At one point Keak paused to to appreciate the love from the crowd, and let out an exuberant smile. My camera clicked. I got \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931467\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931467\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06271_720.jpg\" alt=\"San Francisco lyricist and actress Tia Nomore poses for a photo.\" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06271_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06271_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco lyricist and actress Tia Nomore poses for a photo. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The image of his smile was emblematic of the entire day: the joy of Bay Area hip-hop, personified. The event allowed me to meet \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/noah.haytin/?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">designers behind logos\u003c/a> I’ve seen for decades and shake the hand of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13895586/a-salute-to-san-francisco-rap\">lyricists I’ve been following for years\u003c/a>. Dregs One freestyled for a minute or two straight about miscellaneous objects that folks in the audience handed him, and you could hear people laughing at his punchlines. All afternoon I saw folks hugging, passing trees and taking selfies together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931462\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 720px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13931462\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06369_720.jpg\" alt=\"People handed Dregs-One rolling trays, hats and other miscellaneous items for him to freestyle about, and he did so with ease. \" width=\"720\" height=\"481\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06369_720.jpg 720w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/dsc06369_720-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The audience handed Dregs One rolling trays, hats and other miscellaneous items as he freestyled about them with ease. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>After making the image of Keak’s smile, I took my eye away from my viewfinder and saw that D-Ray had left her position from the crowded stage. She was now in the audience, with me, in front of the stage — except she was \u003cem>right\u003c/em> in front, with a clear view of Keak, and at that very moment holding up her phone to take a portrait. Damn, I bet she has an even better angle of \u003cem>the shot\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13931463\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13931463\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-800x535.jpg\" alt=\"Legendary hip-hop photographer D-Ray gets "the shot" of Keak Da Sneak.\" width=\"800\" height=\"535\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-800x535.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-1020x682.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-768x513.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/07/DSC06387.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Legendary hip-hop photographer D-Ray makes a portrait of Keak Da Sneak. \u003ccite>(Pendarvis Harshaw)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Again, access is a necessity, technical skills are important and cultural competency is key. But a big part of getting the shot it is simply about being at the right place at the right time. And for one overcast July day in San Francisco, the right place was an outdoor patio surrounded by folks celebrating the spirit of hip-hop in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"78\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-12127869\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/09/Q.Logo_.Break_-768x75.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" />\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
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"soldout": {
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"title": "SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America",
"tagline": "A new future for housing",
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