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"content": "\u003cp>Heklina, the San Francisco drag legend and longtime performer at clubs around the city, has died in London, according to multiple reports.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/joshuagrannell/posts/pfbid02KjDojuS1c3sNoGwranKLk9FKkfunAZYLBj3GD3qJhiKW5t7kmqVRsCDfdqoUWHWel\">a Facebook post\u003c/a> on Monday, friend and colleague Peaches Christ wrote, “I am shocked and horrified to bring this news to you. … This morning, in London, England, I went to collect my dear friend Heklina, who is co-starring with me in a ‘Mommie Queerest’ show here, and found her dead. I do not know the cause of death yet. I know this is shocking news and I am beyond stunned.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>London’s Soho Theatre, where Peaches Christ and Heklina had been performing together in “Mommie Queerest,” also \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/sohotheatre/status/1642989190072680451\">posted a message\u003c/a> of being “in shock and incredibly saddened with news of Heklina’s passing. Our thoughts are with Peaches, Mommie Queerest company, Heklina’s family, friends + their wider community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Watch a short documentary on Heklina here\u003c/strong>:\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61qbUimYg9g\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Heklina co-founded popular drag club Oasis, regularly performed at El Rio and The Stud, and was the creator and hostess of the long-running show Trannyshack (later called Mother). Heklina appeared regularly in drag parodies of popular television shows like \u003cem>Sex in the City\u003c/em>, \u003cem>Golden Girls\u003c/em> and \u003cem>Roseanne\u003c/em>, and produced and hosted a party called Daytime Realness — with the tagline “Dancing, Drag & Disorder” — most recently at El Rio just weeks ago, on March 19.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We at El Rio are absolutely devastated to hear of the passing of Heklina,” wrote El Rio co-owner Lynne Angel in an email to KQED. “She was a huge part of our extended family and we will miss her terribly. The mark she made on the San Francisco drag and performance scene is incomparable. We were blessed to work with her often and she was a joy to witness both on stage and off. May she be surrounded by cats, ’80s New Wave and football butts eternally. Rest in Power to one of the best.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Heklina was born in Minneapolis, and was raised in New York, New England and Iceland. After a stint in the Navy, Heklina moved to San Francisco; in an interview segment from a KQED documentary in 2015, Heklina recalled that “immediately I fell in love with it, and I felt right at home.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12242568\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12242568\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Heklina\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-1180x787.jpg 1180w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-960x640.jpg 960w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-240x160.jpg 240w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-375x250.jpg 375w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-520x347.jpg 520w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Heklina, pictured here in a promotional photo for one of many events at Oasis. \u003ccite>(Nick Ice)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I met Heklina around 1995 — which now feels like many generations past, just a year before she started her weekly party T-Shack at The Stud,” veteran drag performer Juanita MORE! wrote in an email to KQED. “I performed on the second week of the club, not caring or taking any consideration about what the theme was — and that’s how our friendship rolled. … We respected and knew what each other was great at doing. We cracked each other up all the time. The sound of her laugh will be missed greatly by everyone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_10134691']Artist and filmmaker Leo Herrera started working for Heklina as a photographer shortly after he first moved to San Francisco in 2003; Herrera was 21 at the time. By then, Trannyshack had become a San Francisco drag institution, and Heklina took Herrera under her wing. “Trannyshack brought drag back to its transgressive roots, and its roots of political resistance,” Herrera said. “There was a lot of healing that happened in the spaces that Heklina created, especially for folks that had come out of the AIDS crisis, and had moved from really homophobic places, like it was for me and my brother.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Herrera says Heklina influenced a generation of artists — both drag performers and others like him who’ve gone on to make an impact in other fields. “I think a lot of us always strived to get her approval because it was really hard to. But once you got one of her deep cackles, you knew you had done something right.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://twitter.com/sfoasis/status/1643009770927042560\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>News of Heklina’s passing devastated the drag community in San Francisco and beyond. “I kept thinking it was an April Fool’s joke, it doesn’t make sense. I spoke to her the day before yesterday when she was heading to England from Iceland,” Oasis owner D’Arcy Drollinger told the \u003ca href=\"https://datebook.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/drag-performer-heklina-reported-dead-in-london\">\u003ci>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/i>\u003c/a>. “But it is confirmed, it is real.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By Monday afternoon, a tearful crowd gathered for an informal memorial at Oasis, which Heklina co-owned until 2019. “She was a powerhouse. And she also had a soft side, and a vulnerable side, that I was lucky enough to get to know,” booking manager Carissa Hatchel, who performs as Snaxx, told KQED. “She was a very complicated person, and was very, very important to so many people in the community for so many decades now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I started drag about eight years ago, and Heklina was one of the first queens I ever saw,” said Oasis performer Nicki Jizz. “She was unfiltered, she was unapologetically Heklina. She said whatever came to her mind. She didn’t care what anyone thought — which is a great trait for a drag performer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement, State Senator Scott Wiener said he first saw Heklina perform in the 1990s, and was “devastated” by the news.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Heklina was an icon in the truest sense — funny, caring, outrageous, and brave,” Wiener wrote. “I’ve rarely worked with someone as fierce, creative, and dedicated. … She was the soul of San Francisco, and it’s hard to imagine the city without her.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Herrera echoed the sentiments of many on Monday that Heklina was synonymous with the best of drag tradition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A successful artist embodies their medium, so when we think of a brush or an instrument, we think of their name,” he said. “And I think for many of us, when we hear drag, we’re going to think of Heklina. She embodied the oldest and most powerful kind of drag that was about survival and political freedom, and I think we’re all going to miss that very much.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/scottshafer\">Scott Shafer\u003c/a> contributed to this report. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Heklina, the San Francisco drag legend and longtime performer at clubs around the city, has died in London, according to multiple reports.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/joshuagrannell/posts/pfbid02KjDojuS1c3sNoGwranKLk9FKkfunAZYLBj3GD3qJhiKW5t7kmqVRsCDfdqoUWHWel\">a Facebook post\u003c/a> on Monday, friend and colleague Peaches Christ wrote, “I am shocked and horrified to bring this news to you. … This morning, in London, England, I went to collect my dear friend Heklina, who is co-starring with me in a ‘Mommie Queerest’ show here, and found her dead. I do not know the cause of death yet. I know this is shocking news and I am beyond stunned.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>London’s Soho Theatre, where Peaches Christ and Heklina had been performing together in “Mommie Queerest,” also \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/sohotheatre/status/1642989190072680451\">posted a message\u003c/a> of being “in shock and incredibly saddened with news of Heklina’s passing. Our thoughts are with Peaches, Mommie Queerest company, Heklina’s family, friends + their wider community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Watch a short documentary on Heklina here\u003c/strong>:\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\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/61qbUimYg9g'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/61qbUimYg9g'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Heklina co-founded popular drag club Oasis, regularly performed at El Rio and The Stud, and was the creator and hostess of the long-running show Trannyshack (later called Mother). Heklina appeared regularly in drag parodies of popular television shows like \u003cem>Sex in the City\u003c/em>, \u003cem>Golden Girls\u003c/em> and \u003cem>Roseanne\u003c/em>, and produced and hosted a party called Daytime Realness — with the tagline “Dancing, Drag & Disorder” — most recently at El Rio just weeks ago, on March 19.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We at El Rio are absolutely devastated to hear of the passing of Heklina,” wrote El Rio co-owner Lynne Angel in an email to KQED. “She was a huge part of our extended family and we will miss her terribly. The mark she made on the San Francisco drag and performance scene is incomparable. We were blessed to work with her often and she was a joy to witness both on stage and off. May she be surrounded by cats, ’80s New Wave and football butts eternally. Rest in Power to one of the best.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Heklina was born in Minneapolis, and was raised in New York, New England and Iceland. After a stint in the Navy, Heklina moved to San Francisco; in an interview segment from a KQED documentary in 2015, Heklina recalled that “immediately I fell in love with it, and I felt right at home.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12242568\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12242568\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Heklina\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-1920x1280.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-1180x787.jpg 1180w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-960x640.jpg 960w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-240x160.jpg 240w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-375x250.jpg 375w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2016/10/heklina-2015-520x347.jpg 520w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Heklina, pictured here in a promotional photo for one of many events at Oasis. \u003ccite>(Nick Ice)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“I met Heklina around 1995 — which now feels like many generations past, just a year before she started her weekly party T-Shack at The Stud,” veteran drag performer Juanita MORE! wrote in an email to KQED. “I performed on the second week of the club, not caring or taking any consideration about what the theme was — and that’s how our friendship rolled. … We respected and knew what each other was great at doing. We cracked each other up all the time. The sound of her laugh will be missed greatly by everyone.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Artist and filmmaker Leo Herrera started working for Heklina as a photographer shortly after he first moved to San Francisco in 2003; Herrera was 21 at the time. By then, Trannyshack had become a San Francisco drag institution, and Heklina took Herrera under her wing. “Trannyshack brought drag back to its transgressive roots, and its roots of political resistance,” Herrera said. “There was a lot of healing that happened in the spaces that Heklina created, especially for folks that had come out of the AIDS crisis, and had moved from really homophobic places, like it was for me and my brother.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Herrera says Heklina influenced a generation of artists — both drag performers and others like him who’ve gone on to make an impact in other fields. “I think a lot of us always strived to get her approval because it was really hard to. But once you got one of her deep cackles, you knew you had done something right.”\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>News of Heklina’s passing devastated the drag community in San Francisco and beyond. “I kept thinking it was an April Fool’s joke, it doesn’t make sense. I spoke to her the day before yesterday when she was heading to England from Iceland,” Oasis owner D’Arcy Drollinger told the \u003ca href=\"https://datebook.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/drag-performer-heklina-reported-dead-in-london\">\u003ci>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/i>\u003c/a>. “But it is confirmed, it is real.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By Monday afternoon, a tearful crowd gathered for an informal memorial at Oasis, which Heklina co-owned until 2019. “She was a powerhouse. And she also had a soft side, and a vulnerable side, that I was lucky enough to get to know,” booking manager Carissa Hatchel, who performs as Snaxx, told KQED. “She was a very complicated person, and was very, very important to so many people in the community for so many decades now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I started drag about eight years ago, and Heklina was one of the first queens I ever saw,” said Oasis performer Nicki Jizz. “She was unfiltered, she was unapologetically Heklina. She said whatever came to her mind. She didn’t care what anyone thought — which is a great trait for a drag performer.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement, State Senator Scott Wiener said he first saw Heklina perform in the 1990s, and was “devastated” by the news.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Heklina was an icon in the truest sense — funny, caring, outrageous, and brave,” Wiener wrote. “I’ve rarely worked with someone as fierce, creative, and dedicated. … She was the soul of San Francisco, and it’s hard to imagine the city without her.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Herrera echoed the sentiments of many on Monday that Heklina was synonymous with the best of drag tradition.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A successful artist embodies their medium, so when we think of a brush or an instrument, we think of their name,” he said. “And I think for many of us, when we hear drag, we’re going to think of Heklina. She embodied the oldest and most powerful kind of drag that was about survival and political freedom, and I think we’re all going to miss that very much.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/scottshafer\">Scott Shafer\u003c/a> contributed to this report. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>In 2018, the Oakland Symphony’s “Rooted in Oakland” series brought an orchestral ensemble to the Paramount Theatre. But instead of the 50-piece band playing the usual Mozart or Bach, they summoned the mobbish energy of Too $hort, the Luniz and Dru Down. The mastermind behind that string-heavy tour de hyphy? Oakland’s own, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13878382/kev-choices-social-distancing-album-captures-four-weeks-of-hope-and-grief\">Kev Choice\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kevchoice/?hl=en\">Choice\u003c/a> isn’t just a prolific, classically trained composer and arranger who has worked with the Oakland and \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYuoaytEeDE\">San Francisco\u003c/a> symphonies, though; he also raps, produces, sings and is an especially fire pianist. His wide-ranging list of collaborators includes NBA superstar Damian Lillard and local rap savant \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13915940/rexx-life-raj-the-blue-hour-empire\">Rexx Life Raj\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13878382']Now, the chameleonic artist is on the verge of a new sound, one that synthesizes his maturity as a veteran Bay Area musician with his latest project, \u003ci>The Healing\u003c/i>. He’ll debut select tracks from the album as a “ghetto upscale” pre-release party with guest performances from \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AnAwaYmIlE\">Rob Woods\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/aR1LVuhivnY\">T. Carriér\u003c/a> on Friday, April 7, at the New Parish in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The event will serve as a teaser for the upcoming full-length album (scheduled to be dropped at the end of April). It’s a celebration of the local arts community that has pushed him towards his musical peak — “from concert halls to sidewalks,” as Choice puts it. Though listed as a solo project, the album’s various features — which include Woods and Carriér and contributions from \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/djdsharp/?hl=en\">DJ D-Sharp\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/drewwwbanga/\">Drew Banga\u003c/a> — are meant to tell a story about the kinds of relationships that men, Black men in particular, are capable of healing from.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a dope energy to build on. Just seeing how we’re all aligned as men in music, hip hop, community. We focus on craft, positive messaging,” he says. “There’s lots of issues around commitment, trust and transparency in any relationship. This is me telling that in a musical form.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The album is part of a planned trilogy, something Choice says is influenced by his work as an orchestra arranger in a genre which often features a series of movements and sequences to create epic emotion. \u003ci>The Healing\u003c/i> is a preamble of sorts, and Choice later plans to explore the stages of “progression” and “transformation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s about my growth as a human, musician and artist,” he adds. “Every step is building towards a larger composition. This is that first step for people to recognize and hear those elements I’ve been working on.”\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>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>‘The Healing’ album pre-release party will be at \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/thenewparish/?hl=en\">The New Parish\u003c/a> (1743 San Pablo Ave., Oakland) on Friday, April 7 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15-40 \u003ca href=\"https://www.ticketweb.com/event/kev-choice-t-carrier-rob-the-new-parish-tickets/12972385\">in advance\u003c/a>, $20 at the door.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>In 2018, the Oakland Symphony’s “Rooted in Oakland” series brought an orchestral ensemble to the Paramount Theatre. But instead of the 50-piece band playing the usual Mozart or Bach, they summoned the mobbish energy of Too $hort, the Luniz and Dru Down. The mastermind behind that string-heavy tour de hyphy? Oakland’s own, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13878382/kev-choices-social-distancing-album-captures-four-weeks-of-hope-and-grief\">Kev Choice\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/kevchoice/?hl=en\">Choice\u003c/a> isn’t just a prolific, classically trained composer and arranger who has worked with the Oakland and \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYuoaytEeDE\">San Francisco\u003c/a> symphonies, though; he also raps, produces, sings and is an especially fire pianist. His wide-ranging list of collaborators includes NBA superstar Damian Lillard and local rap savant \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13915940/rexx-life-raj-the-blue-hour-empire\">Rexx Life Raj\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Now, the chameleonic artist is on the verge of a new sound, one that synthesizes his maturity as a veteran Bay Area musician with his latest project, \u003ci>The Healing\u003c/i>. He’ll debut select tracks from the album as a “ghetto upscale” pre-release party with guest performances from \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AnAwaYmIlE\">Rob Woods\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/aR1LVuhivnY\">T. Carriér\u003c/a> on Friday, April 7, at the New Parish in Oakland.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The event will serve as a teaser for the upcoming full-length album (scheduled to be dropped at the end of April). It’s a celebration of the local arts community that has pushed him towards his musical peak — “from concert halls to sidewalks,” as Choice puts it. Though listed as a solo project, the album’s various features — which include Woods and Carriér and contributions from \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/djdsharp/?hl=en\">DJ D-Sharp\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/drewwwbanga/\">Drew Banga\u003c/a> — are meant to tell a story about the kinds of relationships that men, Black men in particular, are capable of healing from.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a dope energy to build on. Just seeing how we’re all aligned as men in music, hip hop, community. We focus on craft, positive messaging,” he says. “There’s lots of issues around commitment, trust and transparency in any relationship. This is me telling that in a musical form.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The album is part of a planned trilogy, something Choice says is influenced by his work as an orchestra arranger in a genre which often features a series of movements and sequences to create epic emotion. \u003ci>The Healing\u003c/i> is a preamble of sorts, and Choice later plans to explore the stages of “progression” and “transformation.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s about my growth as a human, musician and artist,” he adds. “Every step is building towards a larger composition. This is that first step for people to recognize and hear those elements I’ve been working on.”\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>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>‘The Healing’ album pre-release party will be at \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/thenewparish/?hl=en\">The New Parish\u003c/a> (1743 San Pablo Ave., Oakland) on Friday, April 7 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15-40 \u003ca href=\"https://www.ticketweb.com/event/kev-choice-t-carrier-rob-the-new-parish-tickets/12972385\">in advance\u003c/a>, $20 at the door.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Even in an era with endless entertainment options, there’s nothing quite like the rush of seeing 89 top-tier musicians coming together, channeling their passion — and thousands of hours of practice — into a moving vision. On Tuesday, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfsymphony.org/\">San Francisco Symphony\u003c/a> (SFS) announced its ambitious \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfsymphony.org/Calendar/2023-24/2023-24Season\">2023-2024 season\u003c/a>, featuring several world premieres, superstar guest performers, classical masterpieces, experimental SoundBox programming and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A highlight of the season is the California Festival: A Celebration of New Music, a new statewide initiative by SFS Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, LA Philharmonic Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel and San Diego Symphony Music Director Rafael Payare. (Recently poached by the New York Philharmonic\u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/12/arts/music/gustavo-dudamel-new-york-philharmonic.html\">, Dudamel’s\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/12/arts/music/gustavo-dudamel-new-york-philharmonic.html\"> esteemed tenure at the LA Phil is set to end in 2026\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Running Nov. 3–19, the California Festival features international works composed within the last five years. Salonen conducts the world premieres of \u003ci>City Lights: Aquatic Park\u003c/i> by Terry Riley — the influential minimalist composer still innovating at 87 years old — and \u003ci>Drowned in Light\u003c/i> by \u003ca href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/music/2022/03/16/cartography-project-kennedy-center-review/\">Jens Ibsen\u003c/a>, a critically acclaimed young vocalist, composer and winner of the San Francisco Conservatory’s 2022 \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13909289/emerging-black-composers-project-san-francisco-symphony-conservatory-music-trevor-weston\">Emerging Black Composers Project\u003c/a>. Salonen, a formidable composer himself, also conducts his own piece \u003ci>Kínēma\u003c/i>, featuring SFS Principal Clarinet Carey Bell.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://youtu.be/m9eJ3zp0aho\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFS’ Great Performers Series brings out Russian star pianist \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13812897/wunderkind-daniil-trifonov-takes-the-classical-music-world-by-storm\">Daniil Trifonov\u003c/a> on Nov. 19, 2023, and Chinese piano virtuoso Yuja Wang on May 15, 2024. And on April 2, 2024, cellist Yo-Yo Ma and pianist Kathryn Scott perform works by Gabriel Fauré, Antonín Dvořák and others. Alonzo King LINES Ballet joins the orchestra in June 2024 for performances of Maurice Ravel’s \u003cem>Ma Mère l’Oye\u003c/em> and Arnold Schoenberg’s \u003cem>Erwartung\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFS Music Director Laureate Michael Tilson Thomas returns to the stage to conduct several performances, starting with Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in October 2023. In January 2024, Tilson Thomas revisits Symphony No. 5 by Gustav Mahler, a defining composer of his decades-long career at SFS. (Fans will note that the same Mahler symphony is a centerpiece of the Oscar-nominated 2022 film \u003ci>Tár\u003c/i>, which included an \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2023-01-25/oscars-tar-conducting-is-bad-for-classical-music\">inexplicable dig at MTT\u003c/a>.) Barrier-breaking guest conductor Gustavo Dudamel takes the podium to conduct Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 2 on Nov. 24, 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The San Francisco Symphony’s season begins on Sept. 22, 2023. For a full concert schedule, \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfsymphony.org/Calendar/2023-24/2023-24Season\">visit the San Francisco Symphony\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Even in an era with endless entertainment options, there’s nothing quite like the rush of seeing 89 top-tier musicians coming together, channeling their passion — and thousands of hours of practice — into a moving vision. On Tuesday, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfsymphony.org/\">San Francisco Symphony\u003c/a> (SFS) announced its ambitious \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfsymphony.org/Calendar/2023-24/2023-24Season\">2023-2024 season\u003c/a>, featuring several world premieres, superstar guest performers, classical masterpieces, experimental SoundBox programming and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A highlight of the season is the California Festival: A Celebration of New Music, a new statewide initiative by SFS Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, LA Philharmonic Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel and San Diego Symphony Music Director Rafael Payare. (Recently poached by the New York Philharmonic\u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/12/arts/music/gustavo-dudamel-new-york-philharmonic.html\">, Dudamel’s\u003c/a>\u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/12/arts/music/gustavo-dudamel-new-york-philharmonic.html\"> esteemed tenure at the LA Phil is set to end in 2026\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Running Nov. 3–19, the California Festival features international works composed within the last five years. Salonen conducts the world premieres of \u003ci>City Lights: Aquatic Park\u003c/i> by Terry Riley — the influential minimalist composer still innovating at 87 years old — and \u003ci>Drowned in Light\u003c/i> by \u003ca href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/music/2022/03/16/cartography-project-kennedy-center-review/\">Jens Ibsen\u003c/a>, a critically acclaimed young vocalist, composer and winner of the San Francisco Conservatory’s 2022 \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13909289/emerging-black-composers-project-san-francisco-symphony-conservatory-music-trevor-weston\">Emerging Black Composers Project\u003c/a>. Salonen, a formidable composer himself, also conducts his own piece \u003ci>Kínēma\u003c/i>, featuring SFS Principal Clarinet Carey Bell.\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/m9eJ3zp0aho'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/m9eJ3zp0aho'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>SFS’ Great Performers Series brings out Russian star pianist \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13812897/wunderkind-daniil-trifonov-takes-the-classical-music-world-by-storm\">Daniil Trifonov\u003c/a> on Nov. 19, 2023, and Chinese piano virtuoso Yuja Wang on May 15, 2024. And on April 2, 2024, cellist Yo-Yo Ma and pianist Kathryn Scott perform works by Gabriel Fauré, Antonín Dvořák and others. Alonzo King LINES Ballet joins the orchestra in June 2024 for performances of Maurice Ravel’s \u003cem>Ma Mère l’Oye\u003c/em> and Arnold Schoenberg’s \u003cem>Erwartung\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>SFS Music Director Laureate Michael Tilson Thomas returns to the stage to conduct several performances, starting with Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in October 2023. In January 2024, Tilson Thomas revisits Symphony No. 5 by Gustav Mahler, a defining composer of his decades-long career at SFS. (Fans will note that the same Mahler symphony is a centerpiece of the Oscar-nominated 2022 film \u003ci>Tár\u003c/i>, which included an \u003ca href=\"https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2023-01-25/oscars-tar-conducting-is-bad-for-classical-music\">inexplicable dig at MTT\u003c/a>.) Barrier-breaking guest conductor Gustavo Dudamel takes the podium to conduct Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 2 on Nov. 24, 2023.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The San Francisco Symphony’s season begins on Sept. 22, 2023. For a full concert schedule, \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfsymphony.org/Calendar/2023-24/2023-24Season\">visit the San Francisco Symphony\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "spie-one-tdk-bay-area-graffiti-history-hip-hop",
"title": "‘Tax Dollars Kill’: Spie One’s Decades of Bay Area Graffiti Activism",
"publishDate": 1679511909,
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"headTitle": "‘Tax Dollars Kill’: Spie One’s Decades of Bay Area Graffiti Activism | KQED",
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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>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he name Spie One has resonated in the Bay Area for nearly 40 years. The prolific graffiti artist, muralist and artivist may be less famous than his former painting partner, the late Mike “Dream” Francisco, but Spie is no less legendary. A mainstay of the TDK Collective, Irie Posse and FC — all with gravitas and legacy in the underground art world — Spie has been both observer and participant throughout the most dynamic eras in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop history\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But who is Spie? His \u003cem>nom de guerre\u003c/em> evokes subterfuge, counter-intelligence, covertness. Indeed, maintaining anonymity was imperative at the beginning of Spie’s career, during the formative stages of Bay Area graffiti itself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the years, though, Spie evolved into a well-known force bridging activism and visual art in the streets. In recent years, he’s become an accomplished muralist working in different mediums, as well as a teacher, mentor and leader by example.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those who know Spie well enough to call him a friend talk a lot about his character — his ethics, his dedication to his craft and his belief in collective liberation. They also mention his idiosyncrasies — the bugged-out sketches he randomly emails folks, his insistence on using 20-year-old paint from his garage instead of modern spray cans, his continued willingness to get up on impromptu street art missions even though he’s married with children and has a day job as a high school art teacher.[aside postid='arts_13924167,arts_13925931,arts_13924109' label='More on Bay Area Hip-Hop Culture']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The words “community” and “family” invariably come up in conversations with and about Spie. While he can claim status in a field where toys are destroyed and respect is earned one piece at a time, one of his defining characteristics is humility. His ethos, he says, is a simple “each one teach one” philosophy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You got knowledge, you got to pass it on,” Spie continues. “I got something to share. That’s why I chose to take my work to the next generation, the youth, and to help cultivate their imagination, their radical thoughts… Hip-hop combined with that is what has shaped my pathway.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>I, Spie\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Spie grew up in a multiracial household in San Francisco in the 1970s, when the city was still identified with the remnants of 1960s counterculture. His artist mother and bus driver father were both activists whose shared worldview was shaped by revolutionary ideals. While his mom encouraged his artistic sensibilities, his dad let him pal along on bus rides and introduced him to eclectic, cutting-edge music, like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PobrSpMwKk4\">The Message\u003c/a>” — with bristling, Reagan-era sociopolitical commentary that made a lasting impression.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A tall, lanky youth, Spie was somewhat introverted, letting his artistic expressions manifest on notebooks and a dresser in his room. No one particular flashpoint led him to pursue graffiti. As a half-Asian kid, or \u003cem>hapa\u003c/em>, living in a diverse city, he was eager to carve out his own identity and find a community. The emergence of hip-hop and graffiti in the early ’80s gave him the sense of belonging and creative outlet he needed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie’s first public attempt at a graffiti piece came in 1985, at the tennis courts of McAteer High School in San Francisco. It was a simple piece: a red and black rendering of his early moniker “Spy,” written boldly. Next to it were the words “one man bomber” — a testament to the fact that Spie painted it alone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926652\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926652\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie’s first piece at San Francisco’s McAteer High School, circa late 1983 or early 1984. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a 2017 episode of Adam Fujita’s popular \u003ca href=\"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-6-season-2-spie-tdk-fc-tmc-irie-possee/id1170942266?i=1000408431397\">graffiti podcast \u003cem>My Life In Letters\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, Spie explained how the piece brought him local notoriety; he soon became an active tagger on Muni buses, as well as in the Excelsior and the Mission. A Muni Fast Pass afforded him the opportunity to visit other neighborhoods and write his graffiti name across the city, and as he grew more prolific, so did his stylistic ability and reputation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Young Spie wasn’t alone in this endeavor. Alongside him in the 1980s were hundreds, maybe thousands of restless youth finding their way within graffiti. The status quo called them vandals. But graffiti was \u003cem>their\u003c/em> counterculture, and a way to find meaning and identity in a society that didn’t always see or hear them. [pullquote size='large' citation='Spie']‘I got something to share. That’s why I chose to take my work to the next generation, the youth, and to help cultivate their imagination, their radical thoughts.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By 1982, graffiti had become known as one of hip-hop’s four elements. But it was also a standalone culture that preceded b-boying, MCing and DJ scratching. The \u003ca href=\"http://southsideprojections.org/2018/the-mural-movement-and-the-black-arts-movement/\">community mural movement\u003c/a> dated back to 1967 Chicago and aligned with the Black Arts Movement. Murals were already part of the cultural expression of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcet.org/arts-culture/el-movimiento\">El Movimiento\u003c/a>, a.k.a. the Chicano Movement, a push for ethnic identity and empowerment. The \u003ca href=\"https://blogs.cuit.columbia.edu/ijt2106/moment-of-departure/the-emergence-of-modern-graffiti/\">modern graffiti movement\u003c/a> originated in Philadelphia in the late ’60s before spreading to New York. And gang-affiliated tags had long permeated SF’s Mission and Excelsior districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These cultural precedents were integral to graffiti’s evolution. In the late 1970s and early ’80s, New York’s aerosol kings conquered the subways of the five boroughs. Even though the Metropolitan Transit Authority combatted their wild styles with “the buff,” word spread around the country with films like 1983’s \u003cem>Wild Style\u003c/em>, along with the documentary \u003cem>Style Wars\u003c/em>, which aired nationally on PBS the same year. Its broadcast on KQED \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/artschool/52/bay-area-graffiti-the-early-days\">catalyzed the Bay Area graffiti scene\u003c/a>. “There was this gravitational pull toward what was happening coming out of these films,” Spie recalls.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>One wall to rule them all\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>By the mid-’80s, a series of walls in an unsecured downtown parking lot near Van Ness Avenue and Market Street became an unlikely ground zero for aspiring aerosol aficionados. A wall painted by Doug “Dug-1” Cunningham in 1986 entitled “Psycho City” became so iconic, the quasi-legal graffiti spot was soon named in its honor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When Dug hit it, it was a full-on burner,” Spie recalls, referring to a particularly impressive stylistic production that metaphorically burned competition. “It was like it was framed. It was very solidly panoramic, rectangular. It had characters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Afterwards, “[graffiti] just started to expand to all the neighboring walls, to the point where [Psycho City] became the place to go to paint,” Spie adds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926653\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926653\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-800x550.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"550\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-800x550.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-768x528.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986.jpg 1011w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dug-1’s ‘Psycho City’ piece gave the legendary San Francisco graffiti spot its name in 1986. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Graffiti artists from all over the Bay Area, and even other states and countries, found their way to Psycho City. Over time, the scene became more competitive as wall space became more limited. A piece painted one night might be painted over the next. Needless to say, the competition fueled innovation, as productions became bolder, bigger and more ambitious.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie recalls Psycho City remaining active up until November 1992, when a street festival featuring barbeque, DJs, and breakdancing by NYC’s Rock Steady Crew attracted police attention. In the ensuing confrontation, police vehicles were vandalized. The cops returned in greater numbers and began ticketing people. Soon after, “No Loitering” signs were put up, which allowed police to cite anyone in the area, effectively ending Psycho City’s reign. The irony, Spie says, is that instead of graffiti being contained within one centralized location, the police action “ended up pushing it to other parts of town.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13864059\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13864059\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-800x514.png\" alt='Mike \"Dream\" Francisco' width=\"800\" height=\"514\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-800x514.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-160x103.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-768x494.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-1020x656.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-1200x771.png 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-1920x1234.png 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM.png 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie’s late painting partner, Mike ‘Dream’ Francisco. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Pieces of a Dream\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>By 1987, Spie had earned a reputation as an up-and-coming artist with a versatile array of lettering styles. That reputation would only grow over time — and with the help of a legendary collaborator.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over in Oakland, a Filipino American artist named Mike “Dream” Francisco had established himself as the king of the 23rd Yard, a popular graffiti destination. At the time, “I didn’t know Dream, but he was my hero,” Spie says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July 1987, Dream painted a massive mural at the 23rd Yard entitled “Best of Both Worlds.” The painting — which has since become the center spread of 2011’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/the-history-of-american-graffiti-from-subway-car-to-gallery\">The History of American Graffiti\u003c/a>\u003c/em> — consisted of two elaborately detailed letterforms, one in the computer-esque “New Wave” style and the other in the abstract “Funk” style. In mastering both styles, Dream was sending a not-so-subtle message to fellow artists of unity instead of division.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie and some artist pals journeyed to Oakland to see the wall. “Everyone was talking about it,” he says. He and Dream became friends that day, although it would be another two years before they would begin collaborating in earnest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soon after, Phase 2’s widely respected magazine \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://rmc.library.cornell.edu/EAD/htmldocs/RMM08067.html\">International Graffiti Times\u003c/a>\u003c/em> put out a call for artist submissions. “Dream won that one and it got really popularized. And then everybody knew that the Bay Area had a scene going on… Dream put the Bay Area on the map as far as graff,” Spie says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926667\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13926667 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-800x145.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"145\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-800x145.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-1020x185.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-160x29.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-768x140.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-1536x279.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-2048x372.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-1920x349.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dream’s 1987 ‘Best of Both Worlds’ wall in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Bay Area graffiti was growing exponentially, “but it was frowned upon,” says Susan Cervantes of Mission-based arts non-profit \u003ca href=\"https://www.precitaeyes.org/\">Precita Eyes\u003c/a>. “If you had a marker you were considered a criminal. Youth were taking a lot of risk trying to do it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the subculture continued to thrive. In August 1987, Henry Chalfant and James Prigoff’s book \u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em> showcased local artists Crayone TWS, Del Phresh, Whisky and Daube alongside national and international talent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were in love with [\u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em>],” Spie says. He notes Prigoff, then a local resident, would sometimes invite Bay Area artists over to his house to view photographs of graffiti from other regions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cervantes, a community muralist since the ’70s, recognized that a new artistic movement was underway. Precita Eyes hosted a book release party for \u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em>, and Cervantes curated a graffiti art competition at Mission Cultural Center, which brought her into contact with 16-year-old Spie, who knew some of the artists in the competition. After the event, Spie stayed in touch with Cervantes and the organization as they started to integrate graffiti’s aesthetic into their youth programming. They’ve been connected ever since.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1996, Spie and Dream participated in a panel during Precita Eyes’ first Urban Youth Arts Festival. “They discussed their experiences in the graffiti movement with all the young people who came to participate,” Cervantes says. “They were really good about the history of the graff movement and how important it was to show respect for each others’ work.” Their engagement with young people set a tone that Precita Eyes has followed for 27 years, with the annual festival as a linchpin of its programmatic activities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“[Spie] is a really special person,” Cervantes says. “I think he’s very articulate not only in his visual expression, but also in activism around the issues that are important to him.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926650\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926650\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-800x528.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"528\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-800x528.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-1020x673.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-768x506.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-1536x1013.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mike “Dream” Francisco stands before his collaborative mural with Spie One, ‘Tax Dollars Kill,’ in 1995. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Fighting the power\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Spie has always viewed activism as a generational legacy. He tells a story of how, during the height of the anti-apartheid movement, Berkeley hosted a “Spirit of Soweto” street festival on Telegraph Avenue. Revolution Books provided canvases for artists to paint politically-themed works. Coincidentally, Spie and Dream both brought sketches of \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luVpsM3YAgw\">Steve Biko\u003c/a>, a martyred South African activist.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Clearly, the two artists were aligned in their politics and artistic sensibilities, and Spie and Dream began working together shortly after. By that point, Spie had become a master of letterforms, characters and backgrounds. In archival photographs of their many collaborations, the pair appear evenly matched; a 1992 co-production at Psycho City literally rises above lesser tags with blazingly vibrant colors and impeccable aerosol calligraphy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926654\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926654\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-800x517.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"517\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-800x517.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-1020x659.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-160x103.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-768x496.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-1536x993.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi.jpg 1685w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A collaborative piece by Spie and Dream at Psycho City in 1992. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Spie joined Dream’s crew TDK, influencing the collective’s aesthetic artistically and ideologically. The acronym originally stood for “Those Damn Kids,” but soon morphed into alternate meanings, among them “Teach Dem Knowledge.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Francisco “Amend” Sanchez was still in high school when he met Dream, who was working at the Built to Last tattoo parlor, where aspiring young artists would often “hover” to watch the master at work. At the time, Sanchez had a different tag, but he switched to writing Amend after Dream told him, “Your name should represent. You should have some value to who you are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>TDK, Amend says, isn’t just about the style of graffiti. “It’s also about just the culture within, an urban community that you want to represent and speak up for.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Amend, Spie plays a unique role within the crew. “He doesn’t get enough credit on how influential he’s been in the Bay Area for multiple generations. As far as TDK goes, I think he’s the main guy who would push Mike Dream, to push the crew to go into that whole social justice point of view, speaking up for … people in the community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This was the ‘Fight the Power’ era,” Spie recalls — a time when hip-hop often felt like a political movement, and rappers like Public Enemy and KRS-One pushed the envelope of sociopolitical commentary in pop culture. For Spie, it was a no-brainer to contribute visually, and inspire others to do the same. There were many causes to join: reproductive rights, opposing anti-immigration laws, protesting LAPD’s beating of Rodney King, pushing back against the Gulf War and resisting the 500-year anniversary of Columbus’ “discovery” of America in 1992.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was a great time of awareness,” Spie says. “I was very much in a learning mode of being aware of the Native struggle and needing to [let people] know that we are occupying Native peoples’ territories.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926719\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926719\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-800x580.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"580\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-800x580.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-1020x740.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-160x116.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-768x557.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-1536x1114.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy.jpg 1783w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie’s ‘Solidarity’ was commissioned by the Oakland Museum of California for the exhibition ‘Respect: Style and Wisdom of Hip-Hop’ in 2018. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>No justice, just us\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As political graffiti proliferated in the Bay Area, a January 1993 exhibition at Oakland’s Pro Arts gallery titled \u003cem>No Justice No Peace\u003c/em> became the first local gallery show to feature the artform. Eastside Arts Alliance co-founder Greg Morozumi organized it during the Rodney King protests, which raised profound questions about police accountability. The exhibition, Spie says, was a “proverbial middle finger” against the system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To enter the gallery, attendees had to walk over an American flag. “That was the welcome mat,” Spie says. Inside, viewers were greeted by paintings by Spie, Dream, Krash, Dug-1 and Refa One — most of which questioned the authority of law enforcement while reinforcing community resilience. Spie and Dream’s “No Justice” paid tribute to Jesse “Plan-B” Hall, an \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/7-NYa6SDNP8\">emerging rapper who was murdered in a still-unsolved drive-by shooting\u003c/a> in Oakland’s Sobrante Park. Juxtaposed with a Krash painting of a porcine-faced police officer pointing a gun, the piece addressed the emotional toll of inner-city violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926659\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926659\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-800x554.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"554\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-800x554.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-1020x706.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-768x532.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-1536x1063.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93.jpg 1712w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A look inside the ‘No Justice, No Peace’ exhibition at ProArts in 1993. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 1994, Dream and Spie painted an on-stage backdrop for KMEL’s annual Summer Jam concert. The show, headlined by Patti LaBelle, also featured locals E-40, Rappin’ 4-Tay, Tony! Toni! Toné! and A Lighter Shade of Brown, along with Public Enemy, OutKast and Queen Latifah. The backdrop proved that the duo weren’t always incendiary, with colorful letters spelling out “Respect” along with the message “peace follows.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1995, Spie and Dream collaborated on one of their most unflinching murals: “Tax Dollars Kill.” The names of the artists appeared in typical graffiti wildstyle fashion; above them was a depiction of lightning striking the U.S. Capitol building. The symbolism was inescapable, especially because the mural’s title was rendered boldly above the signatures in white lettering, like a masthead.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout their association, Spie and Dream would “always try to bring some kind of message … something poetic to be a part of what people were reading, as far as the painting goes. And that just kind of kept manifesting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926708\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926708\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410.jpg 1224w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A copy of a 1994 edition of the \u003ci>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/i> saved by Spie One, showing Patti Labelle performing in front of his collaborative mural with Mike “Dream” Francisco. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In addition to political influence, artist Cece Carpio, who calls Spie a mentor, maintains that he helped establish a Bay Area-identified lettering style. In the pre-internet days, she explains, graffiti was less ubiquitous and regions were often associated with specific styles. “Back then, the Bay Area letters got kind of curvy, just stylized lettering. I actually believe that’s something that the Bay Area started, and Spie was one of the pioneers who did that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A controversial mural with a message\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While enrolled as an undergrad at San Francisco State University in 1996, Spie painted his first work with acrylic paint and brushes: a portrait of Malcolm X to commemorate the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#third-world-liberation-front-paves-the-way-for-black-and-brown-unity\">1968 Third World Liberation Front student strike\u003c/a>, which resulted in the creation of one of the country’s first ethnic studies departments. Working in the mode of a traditional painter caused some apprehension and soul-searching for Spie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was always just this back-and-forth around, ‘Are you staying true to this art form? Are you trying to do that other established thing that other people already consider art?’” he recalls. “That was something that I struggled with a lot of those years. But I think the Malcolm X piece really helped me to open up my own personal arts avenues much wider.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the mural’s unveiling was a success (Spie got to meet Malcolm’s widow, Betty Shabazz, who came out for the event), the project had a long and controversial backstory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An earlier version of the mural, painted by Oakland artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13851520/rightnowish-refa-one-spraypaint-in-hand-honors-west-oaklands-history\">Refa One\u003c/a>, included a border with dollar bills, a burning American flag, and a Star of David. Needless to say, this did not go over well with the university, whose spokesperson \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1994/05/27/us/san-francisco-state-destroys-malcolm-x-mural-after-furor.html\">called the piece “hateful” in \u003cem>The\u003c/em> \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. [ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school administration ordered the mural to be covered up, but a group of students reclaimed it with a bucket of water and soap, and camped out in front of the mural to protect it from further harm. In response, the school brought in a tactical unit in riot gear, aided by the SFPD, Spie recalls. Eventually, the mural was sandblasted over. “It was like they were assassinating Malcolm twice,” Spie says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two years later, the university put out another call for artists, and Spie was selected. Facing pressure from student activists, the school administration asked him to work with a Black artist, Kamau Ayubbi, a friend he knew from the 23rd Yard. The completed mural, still visible today, features two portraits of Malcolm X, with the African continent surrounding the United States, painted in black, in the background. It also includes a Malcolm X quote: “Our objective is complete freedom, justice, and equality By Any Means Necessary.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926660\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926660\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-800x570.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"570\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-800x570.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-1020x727.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-160x114.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-768x548.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-1536x1095.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-2048x1460.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-1920x1369.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie and Kama Ayubbo’s 1996 Malcolm X mural at San Francisco State University. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Rebel without a pause\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In 2000, the unthinkable happened: Mike Dream was murdered in West Oakland. The still-unsolved killing deprived the Bay Area of its most legendary graffiti artist. “It was a devastating blow when he left this world. … So much of my own kind of self-actualization came through his guidance,” Spie \u003ca href=\"https://eastbayexpress.com/a-dream-continued-1/\">later told the \u003cem>East Bay Express\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. Spie and the TDK crew have kept Dream alive and in their hearts for the past 23 years, organizing a series of annual “Dream Day” events in Oakland \u003ca href=\"https://hiphopandpolitics.com/tag/mike-dream/\">beginning in 2010\u003c/a>, benefitting Dream’s son Akil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDp38sltic8\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rather than slow down, though, TDK remained active. Amend, Vogue and Stash all became widely known artists in their own right. Dream protege Marty Aranaydo, a.k.a. Meut TDK, a.k.a. DJ Willie Maze, furthered hip-hop activism through painting and as a member of socially conscious DJ collective Local 1200. Meanwhile, Spie soldiered on, earning a teaching credential and landing a job teaching art at a regional high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the 2000s, a new generation of artist collectives emerged, building directly on Dream and Spie’s sociopolitical blueprint and the family values of TDK. \u003ca href=\"https://www.trustyourstruggle.org/\">Trust Your Struggle\u003c/a> member Carpio says Spie has gone out of his way to push her artistic efforts to the next level. And while \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13868732/cece-carpio\">Carpio’s work stands on its own\u003c/a>, Spie’s influence reflects in themes of Indigenous advocacy, resilience and racial solidarity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two recently painted a commemorative project at UC Berkeley honoring the Third World Liberation Front. The project, which has yet to be installed, features vibrant portraits of revolutionary icons Richard Aoki, June Jordan, Lehman Brightman, Ron Takaki and LaNada War Jack. According to Carpio, “what makes [Spie’s art] different in comparison to a lot of other graffiti and street art is his accountability to the movement and his accountability to the community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926661\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926661\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-800x816.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"816\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-800x816.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-1020x1040.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-160x163.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-768x783.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-1506x1536.jpg 1506w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-1920x1958.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall.jpg 2006w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">2014’s ‘Key Tree,’ Spie’s contribution to Oakland’s Palestine Solidarity Wall, visualizes liberation of oppressed peoples. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Spie has painted in New York, Los Angeles, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Cuba, Costa Rica, Mexico and Portugal. Still, some of his most memorable work has been local. In 2007, he, Mike Ramos and H.O.M.E.Y. \u003ca href=\"https://digitalstories.famsf.org/teo/#teotihuacan-in-san-francisco\">painted\u003c/a> the mythical Aztec Feathered Serpent in the Mission. In 2014, he was one of 12 muralists who contributed to the “\u003ca href=\"https://artforces.org/projects/murals/usa/oakland-palestine-solidarity-mural/\">Oakland Palestine Solidarity Mural\u003c/a>” in Uptown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2018, he manifested a solidarity-themed mural as part of the Oakland Museum’s first-ever hip-hop exhibit, and a ruby-throated hummingbird for environmental justice organization PODER. During the pandemic, he and several family members volunteered to paint the exterior of the Precita Eyes building. In 2021, during the George Floyd protests, he was one of the first artists to turn downtown Oakland into an outdoor art gallery. And in 2022, he painted a work entitled “\u003ca href=\"https://www.artspanart.org/eric-norberg-eai-summer-2022\">Serve the People\u003c/a>” on the window of Casa De Apoyo, a transitional housing resource center in the Excelsior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As he’s become a more accomplished muralist, Spie has stayed true to his roots by including elements of graffiti even when working with other mediums. “I can remember that he started using acrylic paint with a brush to block in everything, and then he would do all the fine effects and details with the aerosol,” Cervantes says. “And that’s kind of what our youth arts program still does today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout his storied career, Spie says he “always chose the side of the earth, the subjected and the oppressed. And, you know, what they like to say: the voice of the voiceless.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926662\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926662\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie and Cece Carpio collaborated on a tribute to the Third World Liberation Front and other revolutionary activists. Their work will be installed at UC Berkeley at a later date. \u003ccite>(Cece Carpio)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>TDK: The Dream Kontinues\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Spie can recount descriptive accounts of protests from decades past, but when asked about future projects, he simply sends over a link to YBCA’s recent “YBCA 100” celebration, with a visual art display by TDK Collective.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the event, Spie held court on the venue’s second floor, dressed unassumingly in a Madow Futur jacket and \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/i5OX8pDTyow\">Bored Stiff\u003c/a> baseball hat. As he greeted attendees, including visual artist Agana and documentary filmmaker Eli Jacobs-Fantauzzi, a monitor played \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/artschool/52/bay-area-graffiti-the-early-days\">Bay Area Graffiti: The Early Years\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, followed by \u003cem>Style Wars\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Art supplies were laid out on a table, along with various hardcover books on graffiti. Adjacent walls were decorated with TDK’s historical works: several Spie-Dream collaborations, including “Tax Dollars Kill,” and a tribute to the Rodney King uprisings that depicted an overturned police car, a colorful piece by Pak (R.I.P.), a tribute to Plan-B, and a late career piece by Dream. Several of Spie’s solo works were integrated, among them two vibrant “Spie” letterforms, linked by the word “vs.” (referencing the classic \u003cem>Mad\u003c/em> magazine cartoon “Spy vs. Spy”). The artist was clearly in his element.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie pulled out a binder he’d assembled, consisting of Dream’s pieces, sketches, quotes and airbrush work. The collection held serious gravitas; all that it needed to be included in a library alongside \u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em>, \u003cem>Dondi White: Style Master General\u003c/em> and similar graffiti books was a hardcover binding and written essays.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whatever the future holds – a comprehensive TDK retrospective, the publication of his Dream book or some other legacy project – Spie doesn’t reveal exact plans. It’s understandable, and completely in character, that after five decades as an artist, he seems to take satisfaction in maintaining his mystique, revealing only what he deems necessary.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Meet graffiti artist Spie One, the Bay Area legend whose work spans nearly every era of graffiti.",
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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>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">T\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>he name Spie One has resonated in the Bay Area for nearly 40 years. The prolific graffiti artist, muralist and artivist may be less famous than his former painting partner, the late Mike “Dream” Francisco, but Spie is no less legendary. A mainstay of the TDK Collective, Irie Posse and FC — all with gravitas and legacy in the underground art world — Spie has been both observer and participant throughout the most dynamic eras in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop history\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But who is Spie? His \u003cem>nom de guerre\u003c/em> evokes subterfuge, counter-intelligence, covertness. Indeed, maintaining anonymity was imperative at the beginning of Spie’s career, during the formative stages of Bay Area graffiti itself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the years, though, Spie evolved into a well-known force bridging activism and visual art in the streets. In recent years, he’s become an accomplished muralist working in different mediums, as well as a teacher, mentor and leader by example.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those who know Spie well enough to call him a friend talk a lot about his character — his ethics, his dedication to his craft and his belief in collective liberation. They also mention his idiosyncrasies — the bugged-out sketches he randomly emails folks, his insistence on using 20-year-old paint from his garage instead of modern spray cans, his continued willingness to get up on impromptu street art missions even though he’s married with children and has a day job as a high school art teacher.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The words “community” and “family” invariably come up in conversations with and about Spie. While he can claim status in a field where toys are destroyed and respect is earned one piece at a time, one of his defining characteristics is humility. His ethos, he says, is a simple “each one teach one” philosophy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You got knowledge, you got to pass it on,” Spie continues. “I got something to share. That’s why I chose to take my work to the next generation, the youth, and to help cultivate their imagination, their radical thoughts… Hip-hop combined with that is what has shaped my pathway.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>I, Spie\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Spie grew up in a multiracial household in San Francisco in the 1970s, when the city was still identified with the remnants of 1960s counterculture. His artist mother and bus driver father were both activists whose shared worldview was shaped by revolutionary ideals. While his mom encouraged his artistic sensibilities, his dad let him pal along on bus rides and introduced him to eclectic, cutting-edge music, like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PobrSpMwKk4\">The Message\u003c/a>” — with bristling, Reagan-era sociopolitical commentary that made a lasting impression.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A tall, lanky youth, Spie was somewhat introverted, letting his artistic expressions manifest on notebooks and a dresser in his room. No one particular flashpoint led him to pursue graffiti. As a half-Asian kid, or \u003cem>hapa\u003c/em>, living in a diverse city, he was eager to carve out his own identity and find a community. The emergence of hip-hop and graffiti in the early ’80s gave him the sense of belonging and creative outlet he needed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie’s first public attempt at a graffiti piece came in 1985, at the tennis courts of McAteer High School in San Francisco. It was a simple piece: a red and black rendering of his early moniker “Spy,” written boldly. Next to it were the words “one man bomber” — a testament to the fact that Spie painted it alone.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926652\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926652\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Spy-McAteer-e1679434426890.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie’s first piece at San Francisco’s McAteer High School, circa late 1983 or early 1984. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a 2017 episode of Adam Fujita’s popular \u003ca href=\"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-6-season-2-spie-tdk-fc-tmc-irie-possee/id1170942266?i=1000408431397\">graffiti podcast \u003cem>My Life In Letters\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, Spie explained how the piece brought him local notoriety; he soon became an active tagger on Muni buses, as well as in the Excelsior and the Mission. A Muni Fast Pass afforded him the opportunity to visit other neighborhoods and write his graffiti name across the city, and as he grew more prolific, so did his stylistic ability and reputation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Young Spie wasn’t alone in this endeavor. Alongside him in the 1980s were hundreds, maybe thousands of restless youth finding their way within graffiti. The status quo called them vandals. But graffiti was \u003cem>their\u003c/em> counterculture, and a way to find meaning and identity in a society that didn’t always see or hear them. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By 1982, graffiti had become known as one of hip-hop’s four elements. But it was also a standalone culture that preceded b-boying, MCing and DJ scratching. The \u003ca href=\"http://southsideprojections.org/2018/the-mural-movement-and-the-black-arts-movement/\">community mural movement\u003c/a> dated back to 1967 Chicago and aligned with the Black Arts Movement. Murals were already part of the cultural expression of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcet.org/arts-culture/el-movimiento\">El Movimiento\u003c/a>, a.k.a. the Chicano Movement, a push for ethnic identity and empowerment. The \u003ca href=\"https://blogs.cuit.columbia.edu/ijt2106/moment-of-departure/the-emergence-of-modern-graffiti/\">modern graffiti movement\u003c/a> originated in Philadelphia in the late ’60s before spreading to New York. And gang-affiliated tags had long permeated SF’s Mission and Excelsior districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These cultural precedents were integral to graffiti’s evolution. In the late 1970s and early ’80s, New York’s aerosol kings conquered the subways of the five boroughs. Even though the Metropolitan Transit Authority combatted their wild styles with “the buff,” word spread around the country with films like 1983’s \u003cem>Wild Style\u003c/em>, along with the documentary \u003cem>Style Wars\u003c/em>, which aired nationally on PBS the same year. Its broadcast on KQED \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/artschool/52/bay-area-graffiti-the-early-days\">catalyzed the Bay Area graffiti scene\u003c/a>. “There was this gravitational pull toward what was happening coming out of these films,” Spie recalls.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>One wall to rule them all\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>By the mid-’80s, a series of walls in an unsecured downtown parking lot near Van Ness Avenue and Market Street became an unlikely ground zero for aspiring aerosol aficionados. A wall painted by Doug “Dug-1” Cunningham in 1986 entitled “Psycho City” became so iconic, the quasi-legal graffiti spot was soon named in its honor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When Dug hit it, it was a full-on burner,” Spie recalls, referring to a particularly impressive stylistic production that metaphorically burned competition. “It was like it was framed. It was very solidly panoramic, rectangular. It had characters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Afterwards, “[graffiti] just started to expand to all the neighboring walls, to the point where [Psycho City] became the place to go to paint,” Spie adds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926653\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926653\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-800x550.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"550\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-800x550.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-160x110.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986-768x528.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Psycho-City-DUG-TMF-1986.jpg 1011w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dug-1’s ‘Psycho City’ piece gave the legendary San Francisco graffiti spot its name in 1986. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Graffiti artists from all over the Bay Area, and even other states and countries, found their way to Psycho City. Over time, the scene became more competitive as wall space became more limited. A piece painted one night might be painted over the next. Needless to say, the competition fueled innovation, as productions became bolder, bigger and more ambitious.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie recalls Psycho City remaining active up until November 1992, when a street festival featuring barbeque, DJs, and breakdancing by NYC’s Rock Steady Crew attracted police attention. In the ensuing confrontation, police vehicles were vandalized. The cops returned in greater numbers and began ticketing people. Soon after, “No Loitering” signs were put up, which allowed police to cite anyone in the area, effectively ending Psycho City’s reign. The irony, Spie says, is that instead of graffiti being contained within one centralized location, the police action “ended up pushing it to other parts of town.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13864059\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13864059\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-800x514.png\" alt='Mike \"Dream\" Francisco' width=\"800\" height=\"514\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-800x514.png 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-160x103.png 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-768x494.png 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-1020x656.png 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-1200x771.png 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM-1920x1234.png 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/08/Screen-Shot-2019-08-14-at-7.32.36-AM.png 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie’s late painting partner, Mike ‘Dream’ Francisco. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Pieces of a Dream\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>By 1987, Spie had earned a reputation as an up-and-coming artist with a versatile array of lettering styles. That reputation would only grow over time — and with the help of a legendary collaborator.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over in Oakland, a Filipino American artist named Mike “Dream” Francisco had established himself as the king of the 23rd Yard, a popular graffiti destination. At the time, “I didn’t know Dream, but he was my hero,” Spie says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July 1987, Dream painted a massive mural at the 23rd Yard entitled “Best of Both Worlds.” The painting — which has since become the center spread of 2011’s \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/the-history-of-american-graffiti-from-subway-car-to-gallery\">The History of American Graffiti\u003c/a>\u003c/em> — consisted of two elaborately detailed letterforms, one in the computer-esque “New Wave” style and the other in the abstract “Funk” style. In mastering both styles, Dream was sending a not-so-subtle message to fellow artists of unity instead of division.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie and some artist pals journeyed to Oakland to see the wall. “Everyone was talking about it,” he says. He and Dream became friends that day, although it would be another two years before they would begin collaborating in earnest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soon after, Phase 2’s widely respected magazine \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://rmc.library.cornell.edu/EAD/htmldocs/RMM08067.html\">International Graffiti Times\u003c/a>\u003c/em> put out a call for artist submissions. “Dream won that one and it got really popularized. And then everybody knew that the Bay Area had a scene going on… Dream put the Bay Area on the map as far as graff,” Spie says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926667\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13926667 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-800x145.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"145\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-800x145.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-1020x185.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-160x29.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-768x140.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-1536x279.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-2048x372.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dream-Best-of-Both-Worlds_Spie-One-1920x349.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dream’s 1987 ‘Best of Both Worlds’ wall in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Bay Area graffiti was growing exponentially, “but it was frowned upon,” says Susan Cervantes of Mission-based arts non-profit \u003ca href=\"https://www.precitaeyes.org/\">Precita Eyes\u003c/a>. “If you had a marker you were considered a criminal. Youth were taking a lot of risk trying to do it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the subculture continued to thrive. In August 1987, Henry Chalfant and James Prigoff’s book \u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em> showcased local artists Crayone TWS, Del Phresh, Whisky and Daube alongside national and international talent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were in love with [\u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em>],” Spie says. He notes Prigoff, then a local resident, would sometimes invite Bay Area artists over to his house to view photographs of graffiti from other regions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cervantes, a community muralist since the ’70s, recognized that a new artistic movement was underway. Precita Eyes hosted a book release party for \u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em>, and Cervantes curated a graffiti art competition at Mission Cultural Center, which brought her into contact with 16-year-old Spie, who knew some of the artists in the competition. After the event, Spie stayed in touch with Cervantes and the organization as they started to integrate graffiti’s aesthetic into their youth programming. They’ve been connected ever since.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1996, Spie and Dream participated in a panel during Precita Eyes’ first Urban Youth Arts Festival. “They discussed their experiences in the graffiti movement with all the young people who came to participate,” Cervantes says. “They were really good about the history of the graff movement and how important it was to show respect for each others’ work.” Their engagement with young people set a tone that Precita Eyes has followed for 27 years, with the annual festival as a linchpin of its programmatic activities.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“[Spie] is a really special person,” Cervantes says. “I think he’s very articulate not only in his visual expression, but also in activism around the issues that are important to him.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926650\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926650\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-800x528.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"528\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-800x528.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-1020x673.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-768x506.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878-1536x1013.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/TAXdollarsKILLportrait95-Final300dpi-e1679434266878.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mike “Dream” Francisco stands before his collaborative mural with Spie One, ‘Tax Dollars Kill,’ in 1995. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Fighting the power\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Spie has always viewed activism as a generational legacy. He tells a story of how, during the height of the anti-apartheid movement, Berkeley hosted a “Spirit of Soweto” street festival on Telegraph Avenue. Revolution Books provided canvases for artists to paint politically-themed works. Coincidentally, Spie and Dream both brought sketches of \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luVpsM3YAgw\">Steve Biko\u003c/a>, a martyred South African activist.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Clearly, the two artists were aligned in their politics and artistic sensibilities, and Spie and Dream began working together shortly after. By that point, Spie had become a master of letterforms, characters and backgrounds. In archival photographs of their many collaborations, the pair appear evenly matched; a 1992 co-production at Psycho City literally rises above lesser tags with blazingly vibrant colors and impeccable aerosol calligraphy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926654\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926654\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-800x517.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"517\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-800x517.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-1020x659.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-160x103.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-768x496.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi-1536x993.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spiedream@psycho11_92-300dpi.jpg 1685w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A collaborative piece by Spie and Dream at Psycho City in 1992. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Spie joined Dream’s crew TDK, influencing the collective’s aesthetic artistically and ideologically. The acronym originally stood for “Those Damn Kids,” but soon morphed into alternate meanings, among them “Teach Dem Knowledge.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Francisco “Amend” Sanchez was still in high school when he met Dream, who was working at the Built to Last tattoo parlor, where aspiring young artists would often “hover” to watch the master at work. At the time, Sanchez had a different tag, but he switched to writing Amend after Dream told him, “Your name should represent. You should have some value to who you are.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>TDK, Amend says, isn’t just about the style of graffiti. “It’s also about just the culture within, an urban community that you want to represent and speak up for.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to Amend, Spie plays a unique role within the crew. “He doesn’t get enough credit on how influential he’s been in the Bay Area for multiple generations. As far as TDK goes, I think he’s the main guy who would push Mike Dream, to push the crew to go into that whole social justice point of view, speaking up for … people in the community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This was the ‘Fight the Power’ era,” Spie recalls — a time when hip-hop often felt like a political movement, and rappers like Public Enemy and KRS-One pushed the envelope of sociopolitical commentary in pop culture. For Spie, it was a no-brainer to contribute visually, and inspire others to do the same. There were many causes to join: reproductive rights, opposing anti-immigration laws, protesting LAPD’s beating of Rodney King, pushing back against the Gulf War and resisting the 500-year anniversary of Columbus’ “discovery” of America in 1992.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was a great time of awareness,” Spie says. “I was very much in a learning mode of being aware of the Native struggle and needing to [let people] know that we are occupying Native peoples’ territories.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926719\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926719\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-800x580.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"580\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-800x580.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-1020x740.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-160x116.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-768x557.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy-1536x1114.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-2018-oakland-museum-solidarity-copy.jpg 1783w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie’s ‘Solidarity’ was commissioned by the Oakland Museum of California for the exhibition ‘Respect: Style and Wisdom of Hip-Hop’ in 2018. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>No justice, just us\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As political graffiti proliferated in the Bay Area, a January 1993 exhibition at Oakland’s Pro Arts gallery titled \u003cem>No Justice No Peace\u003c/em> became the first local gallery show to feature the artform. Eastside Arts Alliance co-founder Greg Morozumi organized it during the Rodney King protests, which raised profound questions about police accountability. The exhibition, Spie says, was a “proverbial middle finger” against the system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To enter the gallery, attendees had to walk over an American flag. “That was the welcome mat,” Spie says. Inside, viewers were greeted by paintings by Spie, Dream, Krash, Dug-1 and Refa One — most of which questioned the authority of law enforcement while reinforcing community resilience. Spie and Dream’s “No Justice” paid tribute to Jesse “Plan-B” Hall, an \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/7-NYa6SDNP8\">emerging rapper who was murdered in a still-unsolved drive-by shooting\u003c/a> in Oakland’s Sobrante Park. Juxtaposed with a Krash painting of a porcine-faced police officer pointing a gun, the piece addressed the emotional toll of inner-city violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926659\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926659\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-800x554.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"554\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-800x554.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-1020x706.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-160x111.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-768x532.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93-1536x1063.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/noJUSTICEcolorEnhanced93.jpg 1712w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A look inside the ‘No Justice, No Peace’ exhibition at ProArts in 1993. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In 1994, Dream and Spie painted an on-stage backdrop for KMEL’s annual Summer Jam concert. The show, headlined by Patti LaBelle, also featured locals E-40, Rappin’ 4-Tay, Tony! Toni! Toné! and A Lighter Shade of Brown, along with Public Enemy, OutKast and Queen Latifah. The backdrop proved that the duo weren’t always incendiary, with colorful letters spelling out “Respect” along with the message “peace follows.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1995, Spie and Dream collaborated on one of their most unflinching murals: “Tax Dollars Kill.” The names of the artists appeared in typical graffiti wildstyle fashion; above them was a depiction of lightning striking the U.S. Capitol building. The symbolism was inescapable, especially because the mural’s title was rendered boldly above the signatures in white lettering, like a masthead.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout their association, Spie and Dream would “always try to bring some kind of message … something poetic to be a part of what people were reading, as far as the painting goes. And that just kind of kept manifesting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926708\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926708\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/IMG_6410.jpg 1224w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A copy of a 1994 edition of the \u003ci>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/i> saved by Spie One, showing Patti Labelle performing in front of his collaborative mural with Mike “Dream” Francisco. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In addition to political influence, artist Cece Carpio, who calls Spie a mentor, maintains that he helped establish a Bay Area-identified lettering style. In the pre-internet days, she explains, graffiti was less ubiquitous and regions were often associated with specific styles. “Back then, the Bay Area letters got kind of curvy, just stylized lettering. I actually believe that’s something that the Bay Area started, and Spie was one of the pioneers who did that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A controversial mural with a message\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>While enrolled as an undergrad at San Francisco State University in 1996, Spie painted his first work with acrylic paint and brushes: a portrait of Malcolm X to commemorate the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#third-world-liberation-front-paves-the-way-for-black-and-brown-unity\">1968 Third World Liberation Front student strike\u003c/a>, which resulted in the creation of one of the country’s first ethnic studies departments. Working in the mode of a traditional painter caused some apprehension and soul-searching for Spie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was always just this back-and-forth around, ‘Are you staying true to this art form? Are you trying to do that other established thing that other people already consider art?’” he recalls. “That was something that I struggled with a lot of those years. But I think the Malcolm X piece really helped me to open up my own personal arts avenues much wider.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the mural’s unveiling was a success (Spie got to meet Malcolm’s widow, Betty Shabazz, who came out for the event), the project had a long and controversial backstory.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An earlier version of the mural, painted by Oakland artist \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13851520/rightnowish-refa-one-spraypaint-in-hand-honors-west-oaklands-history\">Refa One\u003c/a>, included a border with dollar bills, a burning American flag, and a Star of David. Needless to say, this did not go over well with the university, whose spokesperson \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1994/05/27/us/san-francisco-state-destroys-malcolm-x-mural-after-furor.html\">called the piece “hateful” in \u003cem>The\u003c/em> \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The school administration ordered the mural to be covered up, but a group of students reclaimed it with a bucket of water and soap, and camped out in front of the mural to protect it from further harm. In response, the school brought in a tactical unit in riot gear, aided by the SFPD, Spie recalls. Eventually, the mural was sandblasted over. “It was like they were assassinating Malcolm twice,” Spie says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Two years later, the university put out another call for artists, and Spie was selected. Facing pressure from student activists, the school administration asked him to work with a Black artist, Kamau Ayubbi, a friend he knew from the 23rd Yard. The completed mural, still visible today, features two portraits of Malcolm X, with the African continent surrounding the United States, painted in black, in the background. It also includes a Malcolm X quote: “Our objective is complete freedom, justice, and equality By Any Means Necessary.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926660\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926660\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-800x570.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"570\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-800x570.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-1020x727.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-160x114.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-768x548.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-1536x1095.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-2048x1460.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Malcolm-X-sfsu-1996-1920x1369.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie and Kama Ayubbo’s 1996 Malcolm X mural at San Francisco State University. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>Rebel without a pause\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>In 2000, the unthinkable happened: Mike Dream was murdered in West Oakland. The still-unsolved killing deprived the Bay Area of its most legendary graffiti artist. “It was a devastating blow when he left this world. … So much of my own kind of self-actualization came through his guidance,” Spie \u003ca href=\"https://eastbayexpress.com/a-dream-continued-1/\">later told the \u003cem>East Bay Express\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. Spie and the TDK crew have kept Dream alive and in their hearts for the past 23 years, organizing a series of annual “Dream Day” events in Oakland \u003ca href=\"https://hiphopandpolitics.com/tag/mike-dream/\">beginning in 2010\u003c/a>, benefitting Dream’s son Akil.\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/cDp38sltic8'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/cDp38sltic8'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Rather than slow down, though, TDK remained active. Amend, Vogue and Stash all became widely known artists in their own right. Dream protege Marty Aranaydo, a.k.a. Meut TDK, a.k.a. DJ Willie Maze, furthered hip-hop activism through painting and as a member of socially conscious DJ collective Local 1200. Meanwhile, Spie soldiered on, earning a teaching credential and landing a job teaching art at a regional high school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the 2000s, a new generation of artist collectives emerged, building directly on Dream and Spie’s sociopolitical blueprint and the family values of TDK. \u003ca href=\"https://www.trustyourstruggle.org/\">Trust Your Struggle\u003c/a> member Carpio says Spie has gone out of his way to push her artistic efforts to the next level. And while \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13868732/cece-carpio\">Carpio’s work stands on its own\u003c/a>, Spie’s influence reflects in themes of Indigenous advocacy, resilience and racial solidarity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two recently painted a commemorative project at UC Berkeley honoring the Third World Liberation Front. The project, which has yet to be installed, features vibrant portraits of revolutionary icons Richard Aoki, June Jordan, Lehman Brightman, Ron Takaki and LaNada War Jack. According to Carpio, “what makes [Spie’s art] different in comparison to a lot of other graffiti and street art is his accountability to the movement and his accountability to the community.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926661\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926661\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-800x816.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"816\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-800x816.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-1020x1040.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-160x163.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-768x783.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-1506x1536.jpg 1506w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall-1920x1958.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/spie-key-tree-palestine-liberation-wall.jpg 2006w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">2014’s ‘Key Tree,’ Spie’s contribution to Oakland’s Palestine Solidarity Wall, visualizes liberation of oppressed peoples. \u003ccite>(Spie One)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Spie has painted in New York, Los Angeles, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, Cuba, Costa Rica, Mexico and Portugal. Still, some of his most memorable work has been local. In 2007, he, Mike Ramos and H.O.M.E.Y. \u003ca href=\"https://digitalstories.famsf.org/teo/#teotihuacan-in-san-francisco\">painted\u003c/a> the mythical Aztec Feathered Serpent in the Mission. In 2014, he was one of 12 muralists who contributed to the “\u003ca href=\"https://artforces.org/projects/murals/usa/oakland-palestine-solidarity-mural/\">Oakland Palestine Solidarity Mural\u003c/a>” in Uptown.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2018, he manifested a solidarity-themed mural as part of the Oakland Museum’s first-ever hip-hop exhibit, and a ruby-throated hummingbird for environmental justice organization PODER. During the pandemic, he and several family members volunteered to paint the exterior of the Precita Eyes building. In 2021, during the George Floyd protests, he was one of the first artists to turn downtown Oakland into an outdoor art gallery. And in 2022, he painted a work entitled “\u003ca href=\"https://www.artspanart.org/eric-norberg-eai-summer-2022\">Serve the People\u003c/a>” on the window of Casa De Apoyo, a transitional housing resource center in the Excelsior.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As he’s become a more accomplished muralist, Spie has stayed true to his roots by including elements of graffiti even when working with other mediums. “I can remember that he started using acrylic paint with a brush to block in everything, and then he would do all the fine effects and details with the aerosol,” Cervantes says. “And that’s kind of what our youth arts program still does today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Throughout his storied career, Spie says he “always chose the side of the earth, the subjected and the oppressed. And, you know, what they like to say: the voice of the voiceless.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926662\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926662\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/3f.-twLF_whole_perspective-scaled-e1679437175726.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Spie and Cece Carpio collaborated on a tribute to the Third World Liberation Front and other revolutionary activists. Their work will be installed at UC Berkeley at a later date. \u003ccite>(Cece Carpio)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>TDK: The Dream Kontinues\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Spie can recount descriptive accounts of protests from decades past, but when asked about future projects, he simply sends over a link to YBCA’s recent “YBCA 100” celebration, with a visual art display by TDK Collective.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the event, Spie held court on the venue’s second floor, dressed unassumingly in a Madow Futur jacket and \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/i5OX8pDTyow\">Bored Stiff\u003c/a> baseball hat. As he greeted attendees, including visual artist Agana and documentary filmmaker Eli Jacobs-Fantauzzi, a monitor played \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/artschool/52/bay-area-graffiti-the-early-days\">Bay Area Graffiti: The Early Years\u003c/a>\u003c/em>, followed by \u003cem>Style Wars\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Art supplies were laid out on a table, along with various hardcover books on graffiti. Adjacent walls were decorated with TDK’s historical works: several Spie-Dream collaborations, including “Tax Dollars Kill,” and a tribute to the Rodney King uprisings that depicted an overturned police car, a colorful piece by Pak (R.I.P.), a tribute to Plan-B, and a late career piece by Dream. Several of Spie’s solo works were integrated, among them two vibrant “Spie” letterforms, linked by the word “vs.” (referencing the classic \u003cem>Mad\u003c/em> magazine cartoon “Spy vs. Spy”). The artist was clearly in his element.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Spie pulled out a binder he’d assembled, consisting of Dream’s pieces, sketches, quotes and airbrush work. The collection held serious gravitas; all that it needed to be included in a library alongside \u003cem>Spraycan Art\u003c/em>, \u003cem>Dondi White: Style Master General\u003c/em> and similar graffiti books was a hardcover binding and written essays.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Whatever the future holds – a comprehensive TDK retrospective, the publication of his Dream book or some other legacy project – Spie doesn’t reveal exact plans. It’s understandable, and completely in character, that after five decades as an artist, he seems to take satisfaction in maintaining his mystique, revealing only what he deems necessary.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"title": "How Filipinos in the Mission Recorded the First Asian American Rock Album",
"headTitle": "How Filipinos in the Mission Recorded the First Asian American Rock Album | KQED",
"content": "\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926505\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926505\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-800x630.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"630\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-800x630.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-160x126.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-768x605.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1.jpg 813w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">From left to right: Frank Magtoto, David Bustamante, Bert Ancheta, Carlos Bato Badia, Romeo Bustamante, Michael Gopaul and David ‘D’ Zandos. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Dakila begins their debut album with a call to arms for the young Filipinos, Latinos, and Black kids they rubbed shoulders with as teenagers living in the Mission. “We are all brothers and sisters / Let’s work together,” they sing in Tagalog over a Latin rock groove.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were right in the middle of this wave of activism. I was hoping our band would encourage Filipinos to go out there and be counted,” says Dakila’s drummer Frank Magtoto, recalling his youth in the ’70s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a band now considered obscure, Dakila can claim some incredible achievements. After Fanny, they were the second Filipino band signed to a major label, and the first to put their Filipino identity front and center. They were the first American band to record a track in Tagalog. In their time, they were popular, playing shows for Bill Graham alongside the biggest names of their generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Santana and Malo, the Pointer Sisters and Sly, and us. We practiced alongside them, we covered their songs, and we sometimes performed with them,” guitar player David Bustamante reminisces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Along with vocalist Romeo Bustamante and conguero Carlos Badia, Frank and David were part of a crowded scene in the Mission, the Black and Brown counterpart to the San Francisco sound up in Haight-Ashbury.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We had all these other bands around us. We felt like we had to come up with a brand of our own, in music or in identity. We’re not Latinos, we’re actually Filipinos from the Mission,” recalls David, “and, on our first record, I think we wanted to expand on that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=868204738/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dakila is now getting the attention they have always deserved. Their debut album was reissued in Europe last year, just in time for the 50th anniversary of its release. They are the subject of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/dakilamovie/\">documentary\u003c/a> coming out this year called \u003ca href=\"https://www.dakilamovie.com/\">\u003cem>Searchin’ For My Soul: The Dakila Story\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, directed by local filmmaker Paul Abueg-Igaz. And David, the youngest surviving member of the band, is preparing to take Dakila to concerts across the Bay for the first time since the pandemic started, hoping to capitalize on their newfound popularity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In recent interviews, what he and Frank told me was simply incredible. The story of Dakila connects with the major social struggles shaking the Bay at the time, including the birth of the Asian American protest movement and the United Farm Workers’ fight for labor rights. This political consciousness animated their work — and led to what was likely the first truly Asian American rock album in music history.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The first politically Asian American album\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The story of Asian immigrants and their descendants in American music is as long as the history of Asian immigration itself. Every moment in American music history had their representative: Jazz had Japanese American pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi, for example, and early rock ’n’ roll had Filipino four-piece The Rocky Fellers. They certainly broke barriers for Asians in American pop culture, but these forerunners generally lacked an explicitly political, pan-continental self-image; after all, they existed before the term “Asian American” was even coined. That broader political identity only came into being in 1968, when graduate students \u003ca href=\"https://time.com/5837805/asian-american-history/\">Yuji Ichioka and Emma Gee coined the term\u003c/a> to unify activists at UC Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yellow Pearl’s folk album \u003cem>A Grain of Sand\u003c/em>, released independently in 1973, is usually cited as the first consciously Asian American album by music critics, thanks to its radical lyrics and pan-Asian philosophy. But perhaps this judgment reflects a pattern, all too common in Asian American studies, of overlooking the achievements of Filipinos. In fact, Dakila’s self-titled came out a year earlier than Yellow Pearl’s work, in 1972, and clearly expresses an Asian American consciousness, down to the decision to sing proudly in Tagalog.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dakila wanted their music to represent Asian Americans, and they made several radical choices to support that movement. On their debut album’s promotional tour, they played for Asian American student groups in campuses across the West Coast. They also performed benefit concerts to fundraise for Cesar Chavez as part of the oft-forgotten Filipino contingent of the United Farm Workers movement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926507\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926507\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-800x643.jpg\" alt=\"An overhead shot of Dakila performing in front of a large club crowd. \" width=\"800\" height=\"643\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-800x643.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-160x129.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-768x618.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dakila perform at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco in 1972. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The first track on their album nods to their involvement in local activism; it includes the slogan “Makibaka,” Tagalog for “struggle,” in its lyrics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Makibaka was a protest chant that was happening here in the U.S.,” says Frank, who had never spoken about Dakila in the press prior to our interview. “Filipinos were using that when they were protesting our colleges, our government.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dakila’s background probably contributed to their prescient activist turn. The band’s history is intimately connected with the issues that animated the ’70s generation of Filipino American activists: the American occupation of the Philippines, the Vietnam War and the search for a uniquely Fil-Am identity.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Dakila’s rise to fame\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Every Filipino member of Dakila has family ties to the military bases that dot the Bay, the legacy of a government program that granted citizenship to those who served in the Army or Navy during the American occupation of the Philippines. For the Bustamante brothers, Romeo and David, as well as their cousin Frank, the rhythms of military life defined their childhood. Their dads’ army band music was the soundtrack of those years, but once they caught the Beatlemania bug as teenagers, they ditched it for the electric sound of rock’n’roll.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David and Romeo got their start rocking out for the school crowds of Vallejo, while Frank did the same over in the Mission, where they respectively grew up. But they didn’t get together and try to make it big until many years later, after Romeo got back from his Vietnam War conscription in Germany with an itch to make a change in his life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David, who was younger than Romeo by almost a decade, was still a senior in high school when his older brother informed him of his plans. “Romeo wanted to form a band because when Santana came out in ’69, he fell in love with that music,” says David. “He had moved to the Mission and his tastes had changed — before that we were playing R&B and funk for school crowds. So he told me that when I got out of high school, I should go play with him in San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Romeo assembled a talented, multiracial group of musicians for his band, including the Ancheta cousins, two Filipino guitarists who went on to found the first Asian American hard rock band \u003ca href=\"https://goldendragonband.bandcamp.com/album/golden-dragon\">Golden Dragon\u003c/a>, and Michael Gopaul, Romeo’s brother-in-law who was also a timbales player.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of our original members was Raul Rekow,” David says, referring to Santana’s longtime conga drummer. “He actually got his start with us before he joined Santana.” In the final lineup, though, Rekow was replaced by another conguero, Carlos Badia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They quickly attained prominence in the Mission’s Latin rock scene, then the focus of intense major label interest after the success of bands like Santana and Malo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Three record companies approached us and wanted to give us a record deal,” recalls David. “We were in a bidding war with our friends in Malo, but they ended up signed to Warner Brothers while we went with Epic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926508\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926508\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-800x530.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of Dakila rocking out on an outdoor festival stage. \" width=\"800\" height=\"530\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-800x530.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-768x509.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dakila live in the ’70s. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At the time, the band performed under the name Soul Sacrifice — but Romeo felt like they should change their name to something that stood out, something perhaps in Tagalog, their first language. Romeo’s dad was the one who proposed the winning name Dakila, Tagalog for “great.” It put the band’s Filipino heritage front and center, and had another appeal as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It kind of sounded like \u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">‘\u003c/span>tequila,’” says Frank, laughing. “And that wasn’t a bad thing for a band to be associated with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Dakila tries for the big leagues\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Dakila was up to this point a live band, and this was their first time in a record studio. “We practiced every day so we don’t waste any studio time,” says David. “We played like ten original songs for them, which the producers cut and spliced into six tracks on the album.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David is still disgruntled by the producers’ edits, which the band had no say in. “They were like, you’re done recording, you guys come back in the week. Meanwhile, they sped things up and played things backwards and did studio tricks. When we finally heard it, we thought it didn’t sound like us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The meddling didn’t end with their production. For unknown reasons, Epic decided to release Dakila’s first single, the patchouli-tinged instrumental “El Dùbi,” with a comedic spoken word A-side called “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ag1Lg1eTrdI\">Language Lessons\u003c/a>,” created without the band’s involvement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I didn’t know why [Epic] had to do this language thing,” says Frank with irritation. The spoken word piece posed as an instruction manual for DJs struggling to pronounce Dakila’s Tagalog song titles, but this was just an elaborate set-up for racist jokes about Filipino people (“small but wiry”) and the Tagalog language.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926522\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926522\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"The members of Dakila pose around a wicker chair, surrounded by trees. \" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The cover of Dakila’s self-titled debut album, shot by Herb Greene in Golden Gate Park.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nevertheless, there was one thing about the release the band did have control over: the album cover. Shot by \u003ca href=\"https://www.herbgreenefoto.com/\">Herb Greene\u003c/a> in Golden Gate Park, it features the band members arrayed around a large, round wicker chair, an \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_V10kWLh71U\">omnipresent feature of album covers in the ’70s\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We borrowed that chair from \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mabuhay_Gardens\">Mabuhay [Gardens]\u003c/a> – it was a Filipino restaurant before it became a punk venue, you know,” says Frank. “A lot of people didn’t know this when it was trendy in the ’70s, but it was a Filipino chair, with Filipino origins.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The “peacock” chair, as it is sometimes called, was first built by Filipino prisoners forced into manufacturing goods for American export during the country’s occupation by the United States. The band’s reclamation of that chair was also a reclamation of that history. In their image and in their music, Filipinos were now speaking back to their former colonizers. [aside postid='arts_13924042,arts_13905208,news_11943512']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Epic Records, though, didn’t know how to promote a proudly Filipino American band. After making a last ditch effort to boost sales by touring the band through Asian American hotspots in California and Hawaii, Epic quietly dropped the band and scrapped their in-progress second album.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the band, there was a lot of dissatisfaction with the way things were going,” says Frank. “Not just about the label, but also the band. Members were getting restless, saying we’re not making it because of you, because of this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I decided to leave,” says David. “I thought, if this wasn’t going to work out, I’d rather go back to school and get a degree in something that will get me money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David wasn’t alone in thinking this way: The rest of Dakila called it quits a year after they left Epic.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The band breaks up, but they aren’t forgotten\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Carlos Badia and Michael Gopaul left the music industry and disappeared from their bandmates’ lives after Dakila broke up, while the Ancheta cousins moved on to their other band, Golden Dragon. Frank worked his way up from a floor job at a company warehouse to becoming a programmer for that company, all without a degree, while David went to school for nursing and got a job at John Muir Health, in Concord.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While they got on with their lives, the band had no idea that their music was still out there, circulating in bootlegged copies in Europe, Asia and South America.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A while ago, some people started telling me that my old band had been up on YouTube for a couple years now,” says David. “I was like, \u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">‘\u003c/span>I don’t know.’ I wasn’t on the internet back then. I guess there are some underground people, a younger generation, who like our music. I started looking it up, and wow, people were selling us on eBay. Cassettes. CDs. Eight tracks!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926509\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 776px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926509\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973..jpg\" alt=\"David Bustamante plays a guitar solo with great concentration.\" width=\"776\" height=\"960\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973..jpg 776w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973.-160x198.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973.-768x950.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 776px) 100vw, 776px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">David Bustamante at a 1973 Dakila Concert at Winterland in San Francisco, where the band performed with Malo and Buddy Miles. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>David, now retired from his job, dedicates his time to preserving the legacy of Dakila. He tried to iron out the ownership rights from Epic Records, copyrighted Dakila’s logo and, most importantly, got the band back together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“David started calling all the band members who were still around for a concert called Voices of Latin Rock,” says Frank. “The promoter of the event wanted to get all the groups that used to play in the ’70s, and he knew Dakila from way back when.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What was supposed to be a one-off reunion turned into multiple event appearances throughout the Bay. The reunion began with David, Romeo, Frank and a new crop of Filipino musicians playing Dakila’s back catalog, but eventually Romeo and Frank decided to retire. Now, David, a full-time musician again, is the only one keeping Dakila alive, performing both their released music and tracks off their scrapped album that never saw the light of day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, for their album’s 50th anniversary, the newly reunited band partnered with Spain’s \u003ca href=\"https://guerssen.com/\">Guerssen Records\u003c/a> to put out the only official reissue of \u003cem>Dakila\u003c/em>. And David finally got his revenge on the producers: “I asked them to digitally slow the tempo down on some tracks to reflect how we wanted it,” David says. “It’s not perfect, but it’s better in my ears.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As for the rest of the living members, they’re all appearing in the forthcoming documentary on the band, \u003cem>Searchin’ For My Soul\u003c/em>, which takes its title from the final track on their album.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Michael wrote that one,” muses David. “It’s really about searching for your identity, you know? A lot of our music is about speaking up and showing who you are. We were one of a kind; you weren’t seeing people like us on the main stage, or on movies, or TV. Now it’s common. We have a lot of Filipino artists, like H.E.R. What we were trying to say back then is becoming reality today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>For Dakila concert announcements and updates on their upcoming documentary, follow \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dakilaband/\">David Bustamante \u003c/a>and the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dakilamovie/\">Searchin’ for My Soul\u003c/a>\u003cem> film on Instagram. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926505\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926505\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-800x630.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"630\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-800x630.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-160x126.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1-768x605.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/From-left-to-right-Frank-Magtoto-David-Bustamante-Bert-Ancheta-Carlos-Bato-Badia-Rome-Bustamante-Michael-Gopaul-David-DZandos-1.jpg 813w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">From left to right: Frank Magtoto, David Bustamante, Bert Ancheta, Carlos Bato Badia, Romeo Bustamante, Michael Gopaul and David ‘D’ Zandos. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Dakila begins their debut album with a call to arms for the young Filipinos, Latinos, and Black kids they rubbed shoulders with as teenagers living in the Mission. “We are all brothers and sisters / Let’s work together,” they sing in Tagalog over a Latin rock groove.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We were right in the middle of this wave of activism. I was hoping our band would encourage Filipinos to go out there and be counted,” says Dakila’s drummer Frank Magtoto, recalling his youth in the ’70s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a band now considered obscure, Dakila can claim some incredible achievements. After Fanny, they were the second Filipino band signed to a major label, and the first to put their Filipino identity front and center. They were the first American band to record a track in Tagalog. In their time, they were popular, playing shows for Bill Graham alongside the biggest names of their generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Santana and Malo, the Pointer Sisters and Sly, and us. We practiced alongside them, we covered their songs, and we sometimes performed with them,” guitar player David Bustamante reminisces.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Along with vocalist Romeo Bustamante and conguero Carlos Badia, Frank and David were part of a crowded scene in the Mission, the Black and Brown counterpart to the San Francisco sound up in Haight-Ashbury.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We had all these other bands around us. We felt like we had to come up with a brand of our own, in music or in identity. We’re not Latinos, we’re actually Filipinos from the Mission,” recalls David, “and, on our first record, I think we wanted to expand on that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=868204738/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dakila is now getting the attention they have always deserved. Their debut album was reissued in Europe last year, just in time for the 50th anniversary of its release. They are the subject of a \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/dakilamovie/\">documentary\u003c/a> coming out this year called \u003ca href=\"https://www.dakilamovie.com/\">\u003cem>Searchin’ For My Soul: The Dakila Story\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, directed by local filmmaker Paul Abueg-Igaz. And David, the youngest surviving member of the band, is preparing to take Dakila to concerts across the Bay for the first time since the pandemic started, hoping to capitalize on their newfound popularity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In recent interviews, what he and Frank told me was simply incredible. The story of Dakila connects with the major social struggles shaking the Bay at the time, including the birth of the Asian American protest movement and the United Farm Workers’ fight for labor rights. This political consciousness animated their work — and led to what was likely the first truly Asian American rock album in music history.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The first politically Asian American album\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The story of Asian immigrants and their descendants in American music is as long as the history of Asian immigration itself. Every moment in American music history had their representative: Jazz had Japanese American pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi, for example, and early rock ’n’ roll had Filipino four-piece The Rocky Fellers. They certainly broke barriers for Asians in American pop culture, but these forerunners generally lacked an explicitly political, pan-continental self-image; after all, they existed before the term “Asian American” was even coined. That broader political identity only came into being in 1968, when graduate students \u003ca href=\"https://time.com/5837805/asian-american-history/\">Yuji Ichioka and Emma Gee coined the term\u003c/a> to unify activists at UC Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yellow Pearl’s folk album \u003cem>A Grain of Sand\u003c/em>, released independently in 1973, is usually cited as the first consciously Asian American album by music critics, thanks to its radical lyrics and pan-Asian philosophy. But perhaps this judgment reflects a pattern, all too common in Asian American studies, of overlooking the achievements of Filipinos. In fact, Dakila’s self-titled came out a year earlier than Yellow Pearl’s work, in 1972, and clearly expresses an Asian American consciousness, down to the decision to sing proudly in Tagalog.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dakila wanted their music to represent Asian Americans, and they made several radical choices to support that movement. On their debut album’s promotional tour, they played for Asian American student groups in campuses across the West Coast. They also performed benefit concerts to fundraise for Cesar Chavez as part of the oft-forgotten Filipino contingent of the United Farm Workers movement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926507\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926507\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-800x643.jpg\" alt=\"An overhead shot of Dakila performing in front of a large club crowd. \" width=\"800\" height=\"643\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-800x643.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-160x129.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972-768x618.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/WINTERLAND-SF-1972.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dakila perform at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco in 1972. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The first track on their album nods to their involvement in local activism; it includes the slogan “Makibaka,” Tagalog for “struggle,” in its lyrics.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Makibaka was a protest chant that was happening here in the U.S.,” says Frank, who had never spoken about Dakila in the press prior to our interview. “Filipinos were using that when they were protesting our colleges, our government.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dakila’s background probably contributed to their prescient activist turn. The band’s history is intimately connected with the issues that animated the ’70s generation of Filipino American activists: the American occupation of the Philippines, the Vietnam War and the search for a uniquely Fil-Am identity.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Dakila’s rise to fame\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Every Filipino member of Dakila has family ties to the military bases that dot the Bay, the legacy of a government program that granted citizenship to those who served in the Army or Navy during the American occupation of the Philippines. For the Bustamante brothers, Romeo and David, as well as their cousin Frank, the rhythms of military life defined their childhood. Their dads’ army band music was the soundtrack of those years, but once they caught the Beatlemania bug as teenagers, they ditched it for the electric sound of rock’n’roll.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David and Romeo got their start rocking out for the school crowds of Vallejo, while Frank did the same over in the Mission, where they respectively grew up. But they didn’t get together and try to make it big until many years later, after Romeo got back from his Vietnam War conscription in Germany with an itch to make a change in his life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David, who was younger than Romeo by almost a decade, was still a senior in high school when his older brother informed him of his plans. “Romeo wanted to form a band because when Santana came out in ’69, he fell in love with that music,” says David. “He had moved to the Mission and his tastes had changed — before that we were playing R&B and funk for school crowds. So he told me that when I got out of high school, I should go play with him in San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Romeo assembled a talented, multiracial group of musicians for his band, including the Ancheta cousins, two Filipino guitarists who went on to found the first Asian American hard rock band \u003ca href=\"https://goldendragonband.bandcamp.com/album/golden-dragon\">Golden Dragon\u003c/a>, and Michael Gopaul, Romeo’s brother-in-law who was also a timbales player.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“One of our original members was Raul Rekow,” David says, referring to Santana’s longtime conga drummer. “He actually got his start with us before he joined Santana.” In the final lineup, though, Rekow was replaced by another conguero, Carlos Badia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They quickly attained prominence in the Mission’s Latin rock scene, then the focus of intense major label interest after the success of bands like Santana and Malo.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Three record companies approached us and wanted to give us a record deal,” recalls David. “We were in a bidding war with our friends in Malo, but they ended up signed to Warner Brothers while we went with Epic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926508\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926508\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-800x530.jpg\" alt=\"A photo of Dakila rocking out on an outdoor festival stage. \" width=\"800\" height=\"530\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-800x530.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n-768x509.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/20615_462202417150574_1324443240_n.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dakila live in the ’70s. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>At the time, the band performed under the name Soul Sacrifice — but Romeo felt like they should change their name to something that stood out, something perhaps in Tagalog, their first language. Romeo’s dad was the one who proposed the winning name Dakila, Tagalog for “great.” It put the band’s Filipino heritage front and center, and had another appeal as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It kind of sounded like \u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">‘\u003c/span>tequila,’” says Frank, laughing. “And that wasn’t a bad thing for a band to be associated with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Dakila tries for the big leagues\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Dakila was up to this point a live band, and this was their first time in a record studio. “We practiced every day so we don’t waste any studio time,” says David. “We played like ten original songs for them, which the producers cut and spliced into six tracks on the album.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David is still disgruntled by the producers’ edits, which the band had no say in. “They were like, you’re done recording, you guys come back in the week. Meanwhile, they sped things up and played things backwards and did studio tricks. When we finally heard it, we thought it didn’t sound like us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The meddling didn’t end with their production. For unknown reasons, Epic decided to release Dakila’s first single, the patchouli-tinged instrumental “El Dùbi,” with a comedic spoken word A-side called “\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ag1Lg1eTrdI\">Language Lessons\u003c/a>,” created without the band’s involvement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I didn’t know why [Epic] had to do this language thing,” says Frank with irritation. The spoken word piece posed as an instruction manual for DJs struggling to pronounce Dakila’s Tagalog song titles, but this was just an elaborate set-up for racist jokes about Filipino people (“small but wiry”) and the Tagalog language.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926522\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926522\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-800x800.jpg\" alt=\"The members of Dakila pose around a wicker chair, surrounded by trees. \" width=\"800\" height=\"800\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-800x800.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-1020x1020.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-160x160.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover-768x768.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/dakila-album-cover.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The cover of Dakila’s self-titled debut album, shot by Herb Greene in Golden Gate Park.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Nevertheless, there was one thing about the release the band did have control over: the album cover. Shot by \u003ca href=\"https://www.herbgreenefoto.com/\">Herb Greene\u003c/a> in Golden Gate Park, it features the band members arrayed around a large, round wicker chair, an \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_V10kWLh71U\">omnipresent feature of album covers in the ’70s\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We borrowed that chair from \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mabuhay_Gardens\">Mabuhay [Gardens]\u003c/a> – it was a Filipino restaurant before it became a punk venue, you know,” says Frank. “A lot of people didn’t know this when it was trendy in the ’70s, but it was a Filipino chair, with Filipino origins.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The “peacock” chair, as it is sometimes called, was first built by Filipino prisoners forced into manufacturing goods for American export during the country’s occupation by the United States. The band’s reclamation of that chair was also a reclamation of that history. In their image and in their music, Filipinos were now speaking back to their former colonizers. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Epic Records, though, didn’t know how to promote a proudly Filipino American band. After making a last ditch effort to boost sales by touring the band through Asian American hotspots in California and Hawaii, Epic quietly dropped the band and scrapped their in-progress second album.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the band, there was a lot of dissatisfaction with the way things were going,” says Frank. “Not just about the label, but also the band. Members were getting restless, saying we’re not making it because of you, because of this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I decided to leave,” says David. “I thought, if this wasn’t going to work out, I’d rather go back to school and get a degree in something that will get me money.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>David wasn’t alone in thinking this way: The rest of Dakila called it quits a year after they left Epic.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The band breaks up, but they aren’t forgotten\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Carlos Badia and Michael Gopaul left the music industry and disappeared from their bandmates’ lives after Dakila broke up, while the Ancheta cousins moved on to their other band, Golden Dragon. Frank worked his way up from a floor job at a company warehouse to becoming a programmer for that company, all without a degree, while David went to school for nursing and got a job at John Muir Health, in Concord.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While they got on with their lives, the band had no idea that their music was still out there, circulating in bootlegged copies in Europe, Asia and South America.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“A while ago, some people started telling me that my old band had been up on YouTube for a couple years now,” says David. “I was like, \u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400\">‘\u003c/span>I don’t know.’ I wasn’t on the internet back then. I guess there are some underground people, a younger generation, who like our music. I started looking it up, and wow, people were selling us on eBay. Cassettes. CDs. Eight tracks!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926509\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 776px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926509\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973..jpg\" alt=\"David Bustamante plays a guitar solo with great concentration.\" width=\"776\" height=\"960\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973..jpg 776w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973.-160x198.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/David-Bustamante-in-Dakila-SF-Winterland-with-Malo-and-Buddy-Miles-Band.-1973.-768x950.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 776px) 100vw, 776px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">David Bustamante at a 1973 Dakila Concert at Winterland in San Francisco, where the band performed with Malo and Buddy Miles. \u003ccite>(Guerssen Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>David, now retired from his job, dedicates his time to preserving the legacy of Dakila. He tried to iron out the ownership rights from Epic Records, copyrighted Dakila’s logo and, most importantly, got the band back together.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“David started calling all the band members who were still around for a concert called Voices of Latin Rock,” says Frank. “The promoter of the event wanted to get all the groups that used to play in the ’70s, and he knew Dakila from way back when.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What was supposed to be a one-off reunion turned into multiple event appearances throughout the Bay. The reunion began with David, Romeo, Frank and a new crop of Filipino musicians playing Dakila’s back catalog, but eventually Romeo and Frank decided to retire. Now, David, a full-time musician again, is the only one keeping Dakila alive, performing both their released music and tracks off their scrapped album that never saw the light of day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, for their album’s 50th anniversary, the newly reunited band partnered with Spain’s \u003ca href=\"https://guerssen.com/\">Guerssen Records\u003c/a> to put out the only official reissue of \u003cem>Dakila\u003c/em>. And David finally got his revenge on the producers: “I asked them to digitally slow the tempo down on some tracks to reflect how we wanted it,” David says. “It’s not perfect, but it’s better in my ears.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As for the rest of the living members, they’re all appearing in the forthcoming documentary on the band, \u003cem>Searchin’ For My Soul\u003c/em>, which takes its title from the final track on their album.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Michael wrote that one,” muses David. “It’s really about searching for your identity, you know? A lot of our music is about speaking up and showing who you are. We were one of a kind; you weren’t seeing people like us on the main stage, or on movies, or TV. Now it’s common. We have a lot of Filipino artists, like H.E.R. What we were trying to say back then is becoming reality today.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter 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>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>For Dakila concert announcements and updates on their upcoming documentary, follow \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dakilaband/\">David Bustamante \u003c/a>and the \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/dakilamovie/\">Searchin’ for My Soul\u003c/a>\u003cem> film on Instagram. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Robert Smith of The Cure Convinces Ticketmaster to Give Partial Refunds, Lower Fees",
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"content": "\u003cp>One cure — or a treatment, at least — for high Ticketmaster fees turns out to be The Cure frontman Robert Smith, who said he was “\u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/RobertSmith/status/1636188988238077953\">sickened\u003c/a>” by the charges and \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/RobertSmith/status/1636496816521748481?s=20\">announced Thursday\u003c/a> that Ticketmaster will offer partial refunds and lower fees for The Cure tickets moving forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postid='arts_13923059']“After further conversation, Ticketmaster have agreed with us that many of the fees being charged are unduly high,” Smith tweeted. Smith said the company agreed to offer a $5-10 refund per ticket for verified fan accounts “as a gesture of goodwill.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cure fans who already bought tickets for shows on the band’s May-July tour will get their refunds automatically, Smith said, and all future ticket purchases will incur lower fees.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://twitter.com/RobertSmith/status/1636496816521748481\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The announcement came a day after Smith shared his frustration on Twitter, saying he was “as sickened as you all are by today’s Ticketmaster ‘fees’ debacle. To be very clear: the artist has no way to limit them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In some cases, fans say the fees more than doubled their ticket price, with \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/Tim_Burgess/status/1636357859192569856?s=20\">one social media user\u003c/a> sharing that they paid over $90 in fees for a $80 ticket.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postid='arts_13921777']Ticketmaster has been in a harsh spotlight in recent months. Last November, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/11/17/1137465465/taylor-swift-ticketmaster-klobuchar-tennessee\">Taylor Swift fans waited hours\u003c/a>, paid high fees and weathered outages on the Ticketmaster website to try to score tickets to her Eras Tour. A day before the tickets were set to open to the general public, the company canceled the sale due to “extraordinarily high demands on ticketing systems and insufficient remaining ticket inventory to meet that demand.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement on Instagram, Swift said it was “excruciating for me to watch mistakes happen with no recourse.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In January, following that debacle, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/01/24/1150942804/taylor-swift-ticketmaster-senate-hearing-live-nation\">the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing looking at Live Nation\u003c/a> — the company that owns Ticketmaster — and the lack of competition in the ticketing industry. Meanwhile, attorneys general across many states initiated consumer protection investigations, Swift’s fans sued the company for fraud and antitrust violations and some lawmakers called for Ticketmaster to be broken up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ticketmaster did not immediately respond to NPR’s request for comment.\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=Robert+Smith+of+The+Cure+convinces+Ticketmaster+to+give+partial+refunds%2C+lower+fees+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/em>\u003c/div>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>One cure — or a treatment, at least — for high Ticketmaster fees turns out to be The Cure frontman Robert Smith, who said he was “\u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/RobertSmith/status/1636188988238077953\">sickened\u003c/a>” by the charges and \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/RobertSmith/status/1636496816521748481?s=20\">announced Thursday\u003c/a> that Ticketmaster will offer partial refunds and lower fees for The Cure tickets moving forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“After further conversation, Ticketmaster have agreed with us that many of the fees being charged are unduly high,” Smith tweeted. Smith said the company agreed to offer a $5-10 refund per ticket for verified fan accounts “as a gesture of goodwill.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cure fans who already bought tickets for shows on the band’s May-July tour will get their refunds automatically, Smith said, and all future ticket purchases will incur lower fees.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Ticketmaster has been in a harsh spotlight in recent months. Last November, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2022/11/17/1137465465/taylor-swift-ticketmaster-klobuchar-tennessee\">Taylor Swift fans waited hours\u003c/a>, paid high fees and weathered outages on the Ticketmaster website to try to score tickets to her Eras Tour. A day before the tickets were set to open to the general public, the company canceled the sale due to “extraordinarily high demands on ticketing systems and insufficient remaining ticket inventory to meet that demand.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a statement on Instagram, Swift said it was “excruciating for me to watch mistakes happen with no recourse.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In January, following that debacle, \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/2023/01/24/1150942804/taylor-swift-ticketmaster-senate-hearing-live-nation\">the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing looking at Live Nation\u003c/a> — the company that owns Ticketmaster — and the lack of competition in the ticketing industry. Meanwhile, attorneys general across many states initiated consumer protection investigations, Swift’s fans sued the company for fraud and antitrust violations and some lawmakers called for Ticketmaster to be broken up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ticketmaster did not immediately respond to NPR’s request for comment.\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=Robert+Smith+of+The+Cure+convinces+Ticketmaster+to+give+partial+refunds%2C+lower+fees+&utme=8(APIKey)9(MDAxOTAwOTE4MDEyMTkxMDAzNjczZDljZA004)\">\u003c/em>\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Friendship Over Fame: Hip-Hop Crew UglyFace Highlights the Power of a Collective",
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"content": "\u003cp>It’s easier than ever to feel out of sync with others. The past few years have brought an alarming \u003ca href=\"https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2023/03/02/mental-health-and-the-pandemic-what-u-s-surveys-have-found/\">rise in purposelessness and a lack of belonging\u003c/a> among young people. And despite social media’s promise of constant connectivity, studies show that \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/03/06/518362255/feeling-lonely-too-much-time-on-social-media-may-be-why\">it makes us feel lonelier\u003c/a>, especially when TikTok stars, Instagram fame and polarizing Twitter debates all promote individual glory over collective growth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/uglyface.88/?hl=en\">UglyFace\u003c/a> — a rap quartet of former high school homies who’ve since grown up and kept in touch through music — wants none of that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The popular thought is to push individualism, but that just creates division,” says Andre Mosley, a founding member of the group. “We don’t have to step on each other’s necks to be big. We can all be our own version of big. There’s a bunch of stars in the sky, they all get to shine and coexist. Why can’t we?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Originating in Tracy in 2007, UglyFace is leaning into free-spirited collaboration without any end goal, other than to connect with each other and their audience. Their latest effort, \u003ci>FIND YOUR TRiBE\u003c/i>, is proof.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOjHuZzD2L8\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Initially released as \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/4Z7OPWbaoOtmwFGyFoCsVx\">Episodes 1\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/2An37IdU5MJ84RSJfi8i7j\">2\u003c/a> in January and February of this year, FIND YOUR TRiBE (the lowercase “i” intentionally de-emphasizes individual ego) is a monthly series of multimedia content — audio, music and visuals that document their countless hours spent kicking it, goofing around and recording.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The projects span 21 and 32 minutes, with 26 and 17 tracks, respectively, and embrace a fragmented stream-of-consciousness approach. Imagine watching YouTube videos, while listening to a dope rap album, while overhearing your best friends’ opinions and peeking inside a notebook of someone’s sketches. While it might sound overwhelming, the end product is cohesive — more artful than haphazard — and surprisingly effortless to digest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926207\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926207\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A group of local rappers wanders along the coast of the San Pablo Bay\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">From left, Andre Mosley, Aric Jones, Kevin Farpella and Aaron Temple of UglyFace walk along the waterfront in Richmond, California on March 10, 2023. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The group is made up of Mosley (a baritone vocalist and playful lyricist who often sings the hooks), Aaron Temple (a versatile rapper, producer, singer, videographer and sound editor who provides an anchor for the group), Aric Jones (the group’s third rapper, producer, songwriter and singer who originally hails from Chicago) and Kevin Farpella (a wizardly producer, writer, and audio engineer who brings it all together at his guest house in Tracy, which has been converted into their recording studio).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With stylistic qualities that range from \u003ci>Chappelle’s Show\u003c/i> (which utilized comedic sketches as a form of social critique) to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13916267/learn-the-story-of-san-franciscos-toughest-skate-spot-in-new-thrasher-video\">Thrasher Magazine \u003c/a>(with an in-your-face DIY aesthetic), \u003ci>FIND YOUR TRiBE\u003c/i> feels expansive, inviting multiple audiences to mingle with it. During our conversation, Temple cited \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRJA2YrA6qI\">Spice 1’s “187 Proof” music video\u003c/a>, which features claymation, as inspiration. Farpella credits early Kanye West production as his guidance. Jones is a Bone Thugs and Twista enthusiast. Meanwhile, Mosley pays homage to Northern California icons, like E-40 and Mac Dre, through his wordplay. It’s an amalgamation of all that flavor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926210\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926210\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A group of local rappers stands in front of a wall with graffiti in Richmond, CA\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">UglyFace stands for a portrait in front of an abandoned building after recording content for their online series. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As a unit, they’re paving a way for a hyper-blended genre made up of low-budget storytelling, group therapy and good ol’ sound system-rattling slaps. Collectively, they’ve become a contemporary rap ensemble built on deep trust, versatility and quirky experimentation — allowing for vulnerability to shine from different angles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nobody wants to be stuck in one role,” Mosely says. “Sometimes we want to make a beat, or sing, or rap, or make a movie, or a podcast. I grew up in the choir, but I don’t want to just fucking sing everyday. Sometimes I want to make a video. It helps us to not become fatigued in one role.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That multi-layered approach is obvious on an album that isn’t afraid to veer outside the box. Slow-crooning tracks like “OFF HAND EP2” bleed into snippets of podcast excerpts like “AUTOCORRECT FYT.” Chippy conversations about who’s the best \u003ca href=\"http://techdeck.com/en_us\">Tech Deck\u003c/a> user on “SKATE FYT” are preceded by the playfully upbeat and optimistically worded “Instructional Song EP2.” From moment to moment, the project is spontaneous and largely unscripted: It’s basement-comedy in the form of a visual documentary. It’s a smoker’s lounge soundtrack with Bay Area argot. They even include faux commercials, like “GHETTO ASHTRAY PSA,” reminiscent of ‘90s rap album skits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was just trying to get in where I fit in with my ideas,” says Temple. “We thought of it like we were making a show. It’s just a mix of our jokes, car shit, tapes on financial advice, cooking advice, our interests, opinions and views.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPhpbri7nnI\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Currently, they’re working on future evolutions of their project — EP3 and EP4 are nearly finished — and have been in talks with DJ Toure of the Hieroglyphics for potential expansion and collaboration. No matter how it manifests, at its core, the series is a reminder about the importance of fostering our friendships and sharing that joy with others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the project doesn’t only highlight the idyllic elements of community-building. At times, the songs and accompanying videos highlight the messy challenges of artistic process and group dynamics. Perhaps most notably, a four-minute argument between Temple and Mosley is included on EP2 as “THE FIGHT FYT,” an unfiltered display of anger and hostility between group members. (It ends in genuine daps and apologies.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We almost stopped filming but it happened, it’s real, and they reconciled,” Farpella tells me of the fight. “The feedback so far has been heavily geared towards that argument, about how it even helped some listeners learn strategies about how to communicate more effectively when they’re angry. I was honestly surprised.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like a ‘90s VHS skate video with bloopers, injuries and outtakes, it’s all part of their cascade of caught-on-camera moments presented naturally, with minimal editing. The result is endearing, provocative and relatable, utilizing footage that other internet creators might dismiss due to a perceived lack of cohesion.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926211\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926211\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"a local rapper texts his friend on the phone\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aric Jones of UglyFace wears a hoodie reading “Tribe”, part of the title of the group’s latest series. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>They’re also learning and growing — in real time. In one of UglyFace’s more innovative approaches, they’ve invited listeners to \u003ca href=\"https://uglyfaced.com/blogs/news/tagged/fan-surveys\">fill out surveys\u003c/a>, so that anyone can provide feedback or request what they want to see or hear next from the group. In doing so, participants gain a 1% share for any song of their choice in the group’s catalogue (a process that involves fans receiving a check, as they explain on “ONE PERCENT SURVEY FYT”). It’s reminiscent of what Vallejo rapper LaRussell has done in recent years with his \u003ca href=\"https://southernlaced.com/2022/10/05/larussells-pay-what-you-want-approach-garners-one-thousand-album-sales-first-day/\">“pay what you want” model\u003c/a>; still, it’s a “fan empowerment” tactic that is far from common in the rap game.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We like to do protype things, just off the feeling and vibe,” says Jones, the only member who’s no longer local; he’s currently living in LA. “[FIND YOUR TRiBE] is still in the pilot phase, but we’re not afraid to fail or go down other avenues. People don’t always like to be vulnerable like that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926209\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926209\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A group of rappers stand in front of the San Pablo Bay\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Friends since high school, the members of UglyFace stand on an island in front of the San Pablo Bay. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The result is a rare rap collaboration that is rough-edged, unfinished and imperfect, without any over-curated bullshit, but nevertheless worthy of being shared. In our age of symmetrical crops and sparkling filters, it’s a breath of fresh air to see strangers messing around — and messing up — while wandering towards something new.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-12904247\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"39\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39-160x16.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39-240x23.jpg 240w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39-375x37.jpg 375w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>‘FIND YOUR TRiBE’ \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/4Z7OPWbaoOtmwFGyFoCsVx\">\u003ci>EP1\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> and \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/2An37IdU5MJ84RSJfi8i7j\">\u003ci>EP2\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> (albums and compilation videos) are currently available on all streaming platforms. EP3 is scheduled to release in the last week of March. Follow \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/uglyface.88/?hl=en\">\u003ci>UglyFace\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> online for livestreams and announcements about their album-making process.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
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"title": "Friendship Over Fame: Hip-Hop Crew UglyFace Highlights the Power of a Collective | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>It’s easier than ever to feel out of sync with others. The past few years have brought an alarming \u003ca href=\"https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2023/03/02/mental-health-and-the-pandemic-what-u-s-surveys-have-found/\">rise in purposelessness and a lack of belonging\u003c/a> among young people. And despite social media’s promise of constant connectivity, studies show that \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/03/06/518362255/feeling-lonely-too-much-time-on-social-media-may-be-why\">it makes us feel lonelier\u003c/a>, especially when TikTok stars, Instagram fame and polarizing Twitter debates all promote individual glory over collective growth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/uglyface.88/?hl=en\">UglyFace\u003c/a> — a rap quartet of former high school homies who’ve since grown up and kept in touch through music — wants none of that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The popular thought is to push individualism, but that just creates division,” says Andre Mosley, a founding member of the group. “We don’t have to step on each other’s necks to be big. We can all be our own version of big. There’s a bunch of stars in the sky, they all get to shine and coexist. Why can’t we?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Originating in Tracy in 2007, UglyFace is leaning into free-spirited collaboration without any end goal, other than to connect with each other and their audience. Their latest effort, \u003ci>FIND YOUR TRiBE\u003c/i>, is proof.\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/sOjHuZzD2L8'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/sOjHuZzD2L8'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Initially released as \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/4Z7OPWbaoOtmwFGyFoCsVx\">Episodes 1\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/2An37IdU5MJ84RSJfi8i7j\">2\u003c/a> in January and February of this year, FIND YOUR TRiBE (the lowercase “i” intentionally de-emphasizes individual ego) is a monthly series of multimedia content — audio, music and visuals that document their countless hours spent kicking it, goofing around and recording.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The projects span 21 and 32 minutes, with 26 and 17 tracks, respectively, and embrace a fragmented stream-of-consciousness approach. Imagine watching YouTube videos, while listening to a dope rap album, while overhearing your best friends’ opinions and peeking inside a notebook of someone’s sketches. While it might sound overwhelming, the end product is cohesive — more artful than haphazard — and surprisingly effortless to digest.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926207\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926207\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A group of local rappers wanders along the coast of the San Pablo Bay\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63612_03102023_kqed_uglyface-195-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">From left, Andre Mosley, Aric Jones, Kevin Farpella and Aaron Temple of UglyFace walk along the waterfront in Richmond, California on March 10, 2023. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The group is made up of Mosley (a baritone vocalist and playful lyricist who often sings the hooks), Aaron Temple (a versatile rapper, producer, singer, videographer and sound editor who provides an anchor for the group), Aric Jones (the group’s third rapper, producer, songwriter and singer who originally hails from Chicago) and Kevin Farpella (a wizardly producer, writer, and audio engineer who brings it all together at his guest house in Tracy, which has been converted into their recording studio).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With stylistic qualities that range from \u003ci>Chappelle’s Show\u003c/i> (which utilized comedic sketches as a form of social critique) to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13916267/learn-the-story-of-san-franciscos-toughest-skate-spot-in-new-thrasher-video\">Thrasher Magazine \u003c/a>(with an in-your-face DIY aesthetic), \u003ci>FIND YOUR TRiBE\u003c/i> feels expansive, inviting multiple audiences to mingle with it. During our conversation, Temple cited \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRJA2YrA6qI\">Spice 1’s “187 Proof” music video\u003c/a>, which features claymation, as inspiration. Farpella credits early Kanye West production as his guidance. Jones is a Bone Thugs and Twista enthusiast. Meanwhile, Mosley pays homage to Northern California icons, like E-40 and Mac Dre, through his wordplay. It’s an amalgamation of all that flavor.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926210\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926210\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A group of local rappers stands in front of a wall with graffiti in Richmond, CA\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63621_03102023_kqed_uglyface-207-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">UglyFace stands for a portrait in front of an abandoned building after recording content for their online series. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As a unit, they’re paving a way for a hyper-blended genre made up of low-budget storytelling, group therapy and good ol’ sound system-rattling slaps. Collectively, they’ve become a contemporary rap ensemble built on deep trust, versatility and quirky experimentation — allowing for vulnerability to shine from different angles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Nobody wants to be stuck in one role,” Mosely says. “Sometimes we want to make a beat, or sing, or rap, or make a movie, or a podcast. I grew up in the choir, but I don’t want to just fucking sing everyday. Sometimes I want to make a video. It helps us to not become fatigued in one role.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That multi-layered approach is obvious on an album that isn’t afraid to veer outside the box. Slow-crooning tracks like “OFF HAND EP2” bleed into snippets of podcast excerpts like “AUTOCORRECT FYT.” Chippy conversations about who’s the best \u003ca href=\"http://techdeck.com/en_us\">Tech Deck\u003c/a> user on “SKATE FYT” are preceded by the playfully upbeat and optimistically worded “Instructional Song EP2.” From moment to moment, the project is spontaneous and largely unscripted: It’s basement-comedy in the form of a visual documentary. It’s a smoker’s lounge soundtrack with Bay Area argot. They even include faux commercials, like “GHETTO ASHTRAY PSA,” reminiscent of ‘90s rap album skits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was just trying to get in where I fit in with my ideas,” says Temple. “We thought of it like we were making a show. It’s just a mix of our jokes, car shit, tapes on financial advice, cooking advice, our interests, opinions and views.”\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/fPhpbri7nnI'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/fPhpbri7nnI'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Currently, they’re working on future evolutions of their project — EP3 and EP4 are nearly finished — and have been in talks with DJ Toure of the Hieroglyphics for potential expansion and collaboration. No matter how it manifests, at its core, the series is a reminder about the importance of fostering our friendships and sharing that joy with others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the project doesn’t only highlight the idyllic elements of community-building. At times, the songs and accompanying videos highlight the messy challenges of artistic process and group dynamics. Perhaps most notably, a four-minute argument between Temple and Mosley is included on EP2 as “THE FIGHT FYT,” an unfiltered display of anger and hostility between group members. (It ends in genuine daps and apologies.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We almost stopped filming but it happened, it’s real, and they reconciled,” Farpella tells me of the fight. “The feedback so far has been heavily geared towards that argument, about how it even helped some listeners learn strategies about how to communicate more effectively when they’re angry. I was honestly surprised.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Like a ‘90s VHS skate video with bloopers, injuries and outtakes, it’s all part of their cascade of caught-on-camera moments presented naturally, with minimal editing. The result is endearing, provocative and relatable, utilizing footage that other internet creators might dismiss due to a perceived lack of cohesion.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926211\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926211\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"a local rapper texts his friend on the phone\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63616_03102023_kqed_uglyface-244-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aric Jones of UglyFace wears a hoodie reading “Tribe”, part of the title of the group’s latest series. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>They’re also learning and growing — in real time. In one of UglyFace’s more innovative approaches, they’ve invited listeners to \u003ca href=\"https://uglyfaced.com/blogs/news/tagged/fan-surveys\">fill out surveys\u003c/a>, so that anyone can provide feedback or request what they want to see or hear next from the group. In doing so, participants gain a 1% share for any song of their choice in the group’s catalogue (a process that involves fans receiving a check, as they explain on “ONE PERCENT SURVEY FYT”). It’s reminiscent of what Vallejo rapper LaRussell has done in recent years with his \u003ca href=\"https://southernlaced.com/2022/10/05/larussells-pay-what-you-want-approach-garners-one-thousand-album-sales-first-day/\">“pay what you want” model\u003c/a>; still, it’s a “fan empowerment” tactic that is far from common in the rap game.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We like to do protype things, just off the feeling and vibe,” says Jones, the only member who’s no longer local; he’s currently living in LA. “[FIND YOUR TRiBE] is still in the pilot phase, but we’re not afraid to fail or go down other avenues. People don’t always like to be vulnerable like that.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926209\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926209\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-800x532.jpg\" alt=\"A group of rappers stand in front of the San Pablo Bay\" width=\"800\" height=\"532\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-800x532.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-1020x678.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut-1536x1022.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63608_03102023_kqed_uglyface-088-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Friends since high school, the members of UglyFace stand on an island in front of the San Pablo Bay. \u003ccite>(Kori Suzuki/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The result is a rare rap collaboration that is rough-edged, unfinished and imperfect, without any over-curated bullshit, but nevertheless worthy of being shared. In our age of symmetrical crops and sparkling filters, it’s a breath of fresh air to see strangers messing around — and messing up — while wandering towards something new.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-12904247\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"39\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39.jpg 400w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39-160x16.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39-240x23.jpg 240w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2017/03/Q.Logo_.Break_-400x39-375x37.jpg 375w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>‘FIND YOUR TRiBE’ \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/4Z7OPWbaoOtmwFGyFoCsVx\">\u003ci>EP1\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> and \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/album/2An37IdU5MJ84RSJfi8i7j\">\u003ci>EP2\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> (albums and compilation videos) are currently available on all streaming platforms. EP3 is scheduled to release in the last week of March. Follow \u003c/i>\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/uglyface.88/?hl=en\">\u003ci>UglyFace\u003c/i>\u003c/a>\u003ci> online for livestreams and announcements about their album-making process.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>When \u003ca href=\"https://dorothymoskowitz.com/\">Dorothy Moskowitz\u003c/a> first listened to work by the Italian composer \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/fBioxJ2ElQU\">Francesco Paolo Paladino\u003c/a>, she heard something in his music that reminded her of the sound pieces of her youth. “I was astounded at how much chaos and mischief there was,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now 82, Moskowitz has been involved in composing, recording and performing music for over seven decades. She was the lead vocalist for the experimental rock band The United States of America, which put out one eponymous album in 1968 and disbanded shortly after. Over the intervening years, Moskowitz has toured with Country Joe’s All Star Band, written original pieces for children’s musical theater, taught music and maintained her own recording practice out of her Bay Area home studio.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On March 17, her latest effort, \u003ci>\u003ca href=\"https://www.tompkinssquare.com/under-an-endless-sky.html\">Under an Endless Sky\u003c/a>\u003c/i>, a collaboration with Paladino and the poet \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luca_Ferrari_(writer)\">Luca Chino Ferrari\u003c/a> under the name The United States of Alchemy, comes out on Tompkins Square records. Moskowitz’s voice sits delicately over the electro-acoustic compositions, singing evocative lines that originated in Italian (Ferrari is a poet). Imagine Marianne Faithfull working with minimalist composer John Adams and you can begin to grok the shape of this lovely, sometimes eerie music. The team worked back and forth via email, with most of Ferrari’s lines passing through Google translate before Moskowitz refined the words and phrases in English and set it all to melodies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s part of the aesthetic, as far as I’m concerned,” says Moskowitz of her preference for collaboration over email. “I think there’s something that contaminates when you see people on Zoom and they’re in their pajamas. Not seeing or hearing each other keeps it very, very pure, very elevated. It’s coming from another world.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s definitely something otherworldly about transmitting emails back and forth across two languages and international borders that helps to explain the seven ethereal songs on \u003ci>Under an Endless Sky\u003c/i>. The album opens with a 23-minute title track of virtual keyboards, violins, a string trio (\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/trio_cavalazzi/?hl=en\">Trio Cavalazzi\u003c/a>) and horns. Moskowitz’s vocals first enter at nearly the three-minute mark, underlining the sci-fi-esque nature of our modern existence: “How strange a thing is man / A blinded lab rat in a cage / Stuck in his house, elevator or car / His eyes engulfed by screens.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=515981304/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike Hamlet’s “\u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_a_piece_of_work_is_a_man\">what a piece of work is man\u003c/a>” monologue, which moves from admiration to condemnation of these humans, “the paragon of animals,” “Under an Endless Sky” begins with someone trapped by their technology who still has a chance to experience all that the physical world has to offer. “We’ve lost time, but we do not despair / For there’s no other way to go / But to live in the here and now,” Moskowitz sings in her modular melody.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My job was to turn these really profound and philosophical musings of Luca’s into something that could be sung that had euphony and alliteration and sometimes rhyme — if they allowed it,” she says. “I was the tailor, the dressmaker, to Luca’s fabric.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The one song where she veered deeper into lyric writing is the album’s most affecting, “My Doomsday Serenade.” It’s a dense composition, full of tone shifts and overlaid vocals, with contributions from both Trio Cavalazzi and Italian electronic musician \u003ca href=\"https://www.riccardosinigaglia.com/\">Riccardo Sinigaglia\u003c/a>. Moskowitz is thrilled by this generational merger: the “kids” of Trio Cavalazzi; Sinigaglia, born in 1953; and Moskowitz in her 80s. “I think it’s really unusual that we have fused like that,” she enthuses. “Francesco pulled it all together.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926268\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200.jpg\" alt=\"Two white men pose seated, smiling with ceramic frogs in their hands\" width=\"1200\" height=\"809\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926268\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-800x539.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-1020x688.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-768x518.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Francesco Paolo Paladino and Luca Chino Ferrari hamming it up in Piacenza, Italy. \u003ccite>(Maria Assunta Karini)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As for the lyrics, Moskowitz says she and Ferrari went back and forth about the context of “doomsday.” For him, it was about a weighing of the soul, not just in an afterlife but as part of our everyday existence. “He really likes the luster of having ambiguity,” she says of his writing style. “You don’t know whether I’m talking about my mortality or whether I’m talking about ethics or whether I’m talking about Egyptian mythology.” The answer, she says, is “all three, yes.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This song hits differently with Moskowitz on vocals than it would with a younger singer. Clear and precise, her voice carries with it the years of experience that give the words “It pounds out a reckoning / And beckons me to face up to myself” real weight — more prophetic than theoretical.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And for all of Moskowitz’s claims to favor traditional and direct lyrics (she cites the 15 years she spent writing original songs for the children’s theater company she co-ran in San Francisco), she also loves a well-placed evocative word, like “threnody” (a lament). During our interview, she urged me to make her sound “more folksy,” even as she referenced philosophers and listed off her many collaborators and accomplishments. As a first-generation American, she says she has a tendency to “lard my sentences with four syllables” — another delightful turn of phrase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926267\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200.jpg\" alt=\"Sepia toned image of white woman in glasses singing into mic\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1508\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926267\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-800x1005.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-1020x1282.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-160x201.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-768x965.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An undated photo of Dorothy Moskowitz. \u003ccite>(Tompkins Square)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Throughout, she was adamant about Paladino and Ferrari’s roles in the music-making. “Both these guys are geniuses, I will reiterate, put it in print!” she says. The dynamic between the three seems to have been effusive and full of praise, hence the moniker United States of Alchemy. What they were creating, and how they were creating it, felt magical.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The album closes with “Unknown to Ourselves,” a spare track with just Paladino on virtual keyboards and piano and Mauro Sambo on saxophone. Moskowitz’s vocals — about the finite nature of life and companionship — dominate for its first three minutes, until the music fades and the ambient sounds of a chirping cricket sing the whole production to sleep.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It might sound lonely, maybe a little bleak, but Moskowitz has a very positive take on the song, which is fueling her artistic productivity. “The way out of being unknown to ourselves is through creativity,” she says. “I think from the neck up, I’m still young. It helps keep me young to be this engaged, to be this pressured. I think it’s very, very healthy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moskowitz is definitely busy: she has a double album, \u003ci>\u003ca href=\"https://soundcloud.com/peter-olof-fransson/the-afterlife-feat-dorothy-moskowitz\">The Afterlife\u003c/a>\u003c/i>, due soon with Swedish composer Peter Olof Fransson; a solo album called \u003ci>Rising to Eternity\u003c/i> (about the Webb telescope) coming out at the end of this year; The United States of Alchemy is working on a second album; and she also has “many songs unfinished” with her regular collaborator, the critic, novelist and songwriter \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Lucas\">Tim Lucas\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The conventional wisdom in the industry is that you don’t put anything out until something else is absorbed, otherwise you’re competing with yourself,” she explains. “And I think that’s good if you’re under 70 years old. But in your twilight years … I want to get everything out before the marbles go.”\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 floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>‘Under an Endless Sky’ comes out Friday, March 17 on Tompkins Square. There will be a “low-key record release” on April 8, 1–3 p.m. at Oakland’s Mars Records (4125 Piedmont Ave.) with Dorothy Moskowitz present to sign copies.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>When \u003ca href=\"https://dorothymoskowitz.com/\">Dorothy Moskowitz\u003c/a> first listened to work by the Italian composer \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/fBioxJ2ElQU\">Francesco Paolo Paladino\u003c/a>, she heard something in his music that reminded her of the sound pieces of her youth. “I was astounded at how much chaos and mischief there was,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now 82, Moskowitz has been involved in composing, recording and performing music for over seven decades. She was the lead vocalist for the experimental rock band The United States of America, which put out one eponymous album in 1968 and disbanded shortly after. Over the intervening years, Moskowitz has toured with Country Joe’s All Star Band, written original pieces for children’s musical theater, taught music and maintained her own recording practice out of her Bay Area home studio.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>On March 17, her latest effort, \u003ci>\u003ca href=\"https://www.tompkinssquare.com/under-an-endless-sky.html\">Under an Endless Sky\u003c/a>\u003c/i>, a collaboration with Paladino and the poet \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luca_Ferrari_(writer)\">Luca Chino Ferrari\u003c/a> under the name The United States of Alchemy, comes out on Tompkins Square records. Moskowitz’s voice sits delicately over the electro-acoustic compositions, singing evocative lines that originated in Italian (Ferrari is a poet). Imagine Marianne Faithfull working with minimalist composer John Adams and you can begin to grok the shape of this lovely, sometimes eerie music. The team worked back and forth via email, with most of Ferrari’s lines passing through Google translate before Moskowitz refined the words and phrases in English and set it all to melodies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s part of the aesthetic, as far as I’m concerned,” says Moskowitz of her preference for collaboration over email. “I think there’s something that contaminates when you see people on Zoom and they’re in their pajamas. Not seeing or hearing each other keeps it very, very pure, very elevated. It’s coming from another world.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s definitely something otherworldly about transmitting emails back and forth across two languages and international borders that helps to explain the seven ethereal songs on \u003ci>Under an Endless Sky\u003c/i>. The album opens with a 23-minute title track of virtual keyboards, violins, a string trio (\u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/trio_cavalazzi/?hl=en\">Trio Cavalazzi\u003c/a>) and horns. Moskowitz’s vocals first enter at nearly the three-minute mark, underlining the sci-fi-esque nature of our modern existence: “How strange a thing is man / A blinded lab rat in a cage / Stuck in his house, elevator or car / His eyes engulfed by screens.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c!-- iframe plugin v.4.3 wordpress.org/plugins/iframe/ -->\u003cbr>\n\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=515981304/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/\" width=\"100%\" height=\"500\" scrolling=\"yes\" class=\"iframe-class\" frameborder=\"0\">\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Unlike Hamlet’s “\u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/What_a_piece_of_work_is_a_man\">what a piece of work is man\u003c/a>” monologue, which moves from admiration to condemnation of these humans, “the paragon of animals,” “Under an Endless Sky” begins with someone trapped by their technology who still has a chance to experience all that the physical world has to offer. “We’ve lost time, but we do not despair / For there’s no other way to go / But to live in the here and now,” Moskowitz sings in her modular melody.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“My job was to turn these really profound and philosophical musings of Luca’s into something that could be sung that had euphony and alliteration and sometimes rhyme — if they allowed it,” she says. “I was the tailor, the dressmaker, to Luca’s fabric.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The one song where she veered deeper into lyric writing is the album’s most affecting, “My Doomsday Serenade.” It’s a dense composition, full of tone shifts and overlaid vocals, with contributions from both Trio Cavalazzi and Italian electronic musician \u003ca href=\"https://www.riccardosinigaglia.com/\">Riccardo Sinigaglia\u003c/a>. Moskowitz is thrilled by this generational merger: the “kids” of Trio Cavalazzi; Sinigaglia, born in 1953; and Moskowitz in her 80s. “I think it’s really unusual that we have fused like that,” she enthuses. “Francesco pulled it all together.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926268\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200.jpg\" alt=\"Two white men pose seated, smiling with ceramic frogs in their hands\" width=\"1200\" height=\"809\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926268\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-800x539.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-1020x688.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/FrancescoLuca_1200-768x518.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Francesco Paolo Paladino and Luca Chino Ferrari hamming it up in Piacenza, Italy. \u003ccite>(Maria Assunta Karini)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>As for the lyrics, Moskowitz says she and Ferrari went back and forth about the context of “doomsday.” For him, it was about a weighing of the soul, not just in an afterlife but as part of our everyday existence. “He really likes the luster of having ambiguity,” she says of his writing style. “You don’t know whether I’m talking about my mortality or whether I’m talking about ethics or whether I’m talking about Egyptian mythology.” The answer, she says, is “all three, yes.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This song hits differently with Moskowitz on vocals than it would with a younger singer. Clear and precise, her voice carries with it the years of experience that give the words “It pounds out a reckoning / And beckons me to face up to myself” real weight — more prophetic than theoretical.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And for all of Moskowitz’s claims to favor traditional and direct lyrics (she cites the 15 years she spent writing original songs for the children’s theater company she co-ran in San Francisco), she also loves a well-placed evocative word, like “threnody” (a lament). During our interview, she urged me to make her sound “more folksy,” even as she referenced philosophers and listed off her many collaborators and accomplishments. As a first-generation American, she says she has a tendency to “lard my sentences with four syllables” — another delightful turn of phrase.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926267\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200.jpg\" alt=\"Sepia toned image of white woman in glasses singing into mic\" width=\"1200\" height=\"1508\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926267\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-800x1005.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-1020x1282.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-160x201.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Dorothy_1200-768x965.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An undated photo of Dorothy Moskowitz. \u003ccite>(Tompkins Square)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Throughout, she was adamant about Paladino and Ferrari’s roles in the music-making. “Both these guys are geniuses, I will reiterate, put it in print!” she says. The dynamic between the three seems to have been effusive and full of praise, hence the moniker United States of Alchemy. What they were creating, and how they were creating it, felt magical.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The album closes with “Unknown to Ourselves,” a spare track with just Paladino on virtual keyboards and piano and Mauro Sambo on saxophone. Moskowitz’s vocals — about the finite nature of life and companionship — dominate for its first three minutes, until the music fades and the ambient sounds of a chirping cricket sing the whole production to sleep.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It might sound lonely, maybe a little bleak, but Moskowitz has a very positive take on the song, which is fueling her artistic productivity. “The way out of being unknown to ourselves is through creativity,” she says. “I think from the neck up, I’m still young. It helps keep me young to be this engaged, to be this pressured. I think it’s very, very healthy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moskowitz is definitely busy: she has a double album, \u003ci>\u003ca href=\"https://soundcloud.com/peter-olof-fransson/the-afterlife-feat-dorothy-moskowitz\">The Afterlife\u003c/a>\u003c/i>, due soon with Swedish composer Peter Olof Fransson; a solo album called \u003ci>Rising to Eternity\u003c/i> (about the Webb telescope) coming out at the end of this year; The United States of Alchemy is working on a second album; and she also has “many songs unfinished” with her regular collaborator, the critic, novelist and songwriter \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Lucas\">Tim Lucas\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The conventional wisdom in the industry is that you don’t put anything out until something else is absorbed, otherwise you’re competing with yourself,” she explains. “And I think that’s good if you’re under 70 years old. But in your twilight years … I want to get everything out before the marbles go.”\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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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ci>‘Under an Endless Sky’ comes out Friday, March 17 on Tompkins Square. There will be a “low-key record release” on April 8, 1–3 p.m. at Oakland’s Mars Records (4125 Piedmont Ave.) with Dorothy Moskowitz present to sign copies.\u003c/i>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Editor’s note\u003c/strong>: This story is part of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">That’s My Word\u003c/a>, KQED’s year-long exploration of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop\u003c/a> history, with new content dropping all throughout 2023.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 4.6875em;float: left;line-height: 0.733em;padding: 0.05em 0.1em 0 0;font-family: times, serif, georgia\">O\u003c/span>n the title track of Too Short’s 1990 album \u003ci>Short Dog’s In the House\u003c/i>, wedged between bars about globetrotting and cold mackin’, the pioneering Oakland MC says, “I used to be local ’til I signed with Jive / Too Short done went nationwide.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After a decade that started with Short \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#too-short-and-freddy-b-start-making-handmade-tapes\">slanging tapes out of his trunk\u003c/a> as an independent artist, this was Short breaking into the hip-hop’s golden age of the ’90s. \u003ci>Short Dog’s In the House\u003c/i> features notable songs like “Pimpology,” one of the first of many tracks to sample lines from \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#the-mack-filmed-in-oakland\">the movie \u003ci>The Mack\u003c/i>, filmed in Oakland\u003c/a>. “Nothing But a Word to Me,” with Ice Cube, marks an early collaboration between major artists from Northern and Southern California. And the song “Short But Funky” is both a thinly veiled diss to MC Hammer and Too Short’s mission statement as an artist.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The album’s biggest single, “The Ghetto,” found Short deviating from his player persona, dropping socially conscious rhymes over a classic Donny Hathaway interpolation. The album sold over a million units and influenced generations of hip-hop heads. It’s a classic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw0uz88E2gI\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then there’s its illustrated cover art: a group of animated human-bodied dog-faced characters cold chilling in a parking lot. Cars that look like Mercedes-Benzes, Lamborghinis and Cadillacs are parked all around, as poodle and bulldog-like characters cut eyes, point fingers and posture like folks would at any social happening. This one is clearly a sideshow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While this scene unfolds in the foreground, a larger canine figure in an Oakland jacket looms near the city’s skyline, like an overseeing oracle, here to tell the world about The Town. And at the bottom left corner of the album cover, in tiny lettering, there’s a signature from the artist: Curtis “Bozie” Wayne Riley Jr.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926255\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926255\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-800x539.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"539\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-800x539.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-768x518.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait.jpg 896w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">At left, a sketch from Boze, typifying the sort of characters he’d often draw in high school in the Bay Area. At right, a recent portrait of Boze. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Boze Riley)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“The process of me doing the album cover, it started way before I ever met Short,” says Bozie, who now goes simply by Boze, on a recent video call. “For me, it started at The Art School.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the mid-to-late ’80s, Boze was a student at \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/groups/2234613913\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Arts Magnet School\u003c/a>, a.k.a. “The Art School,” a high school on the California College of The Arts campus. Boze, a multitalented kid from Deep East Oakland, attributes his skills to the tutelage of his artistic parents, the influence of his neighborhood, the lessons from his high school and his affinity for hip-hop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At The Art School, he had an African-American instructor named Robert L. Caillier who taught college-level arts courses, didn’t take any mess and was a firm believer in students using the classroom to refine their individual voices. “We were given the green light to draw all the things that we love,” says Boze. “So we were drawing hip-hop characters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From 8th grade until 12th grade, Boze constantly practiced drawing donkey ropes, Kangol hats, Gazelle glasses, and Adidas with the fat strings. After graduation, Boze used his talents to freelance, illustrating projects for MC Ant, Tomahawk Records’ Indian Tone and a logo for East Bay rapper Spice 1.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926016\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926016\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/R-1268690-1219563443.jpg\" alt=\"Spice 1\" width=\"600\" height=\"589\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/R-1268690-1219563443.jpg 600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/R-1268690-1219563443-160x157.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An early single by Spice 1, with a logo drawn by Boze. \u003ccite>(Jive Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Money was slow, though, and Boze briefly considered turning to the streets. Then he got into airbrushing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During that era, about three major hip-hop tours would come to town each year, and Boze would be ready. “I’d be in my grandmother’s garage airbrushing like 10-12 outfits, charging people $350 a piece,” says Boze, noting that white Guess or Levi’s jeans were a favorite. “My grandmother was getting mad because she’d see all these guys with 5.0’s, glasshouses, and K5s pulling up and coming to the house,” says Boze, imitating his grandmother’s concerned voice. “I’m in there airbrushing! I had an honest hustle.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Along with visual art, Boze was a part of\u003ca href=\"https://www.discogs.com/artist/4904066-T-CAP-Productions\"> T-CAP Productions\u003c/a>’ group \u003ca href=\"https://www.discogs.com/artist/203244-Capital-Tax\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Capital Tax\u003c/a>. He earned a name as a dancer, designed the logo for the crew and even did some musical production.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"CAPITAL TAX- 2 TIMIN\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/skuAI7yFFJ0?start=1&feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As his reputation and clientele in Deep East Oakland grew, Boze eventually made artwork for someone in Too Short’s crew. Coincidentally, Short had recorded a new album for Jive, and he needed artwork too. “They came to me,” says Boze. “Short was like, ‘I want you to do a sideshow scene, but I need it with dogs.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Short also suggested to Boze a few types of cars to draw, but told him to use his imagination with the rest. Boze is quick to mention that modern sideshows are different than the one depicted on the album cover, the way they used to be. “It was more like a car show. People brought out Falcons, Novas, Cougars, Mustangs. Trues and Vogues, Zapco boards. It was a chill situation,” says Boze. In the late 1980s, he adds, only a few people did donuts, police rarely came, and afterward, folks would hit Mexicali Rose or Denny’s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID='arts_13923766']With years of preparation from art school under his belt, chronicling that era of the sideshow came easy; Boze says he knocked it out in two or three days. But the image that’s widely known — that’s the second drawing. The first one was rejected by Jive; the label needed certain specs for reproduction. “Short never gave me back the original one,” says Boze. “So either Short still has it, or someone at Jive does.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The version that adorns the platinum-selling album, meanwhile, has been widely shared and impactful. Short has \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/sJXzYAeTk0U?t=118\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">gone on record\u003c/a> to mention the importance of the album cover, as have other major artists. Even Snoop Dogg seemed to have a fanboy moment when recently discussing the album art, and how it directly influenced the \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doggystyle\">cartoon-dog cover art\u003c/a> for his smash-hit album \u003cem>Doggystyle\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Snoop Dogg & Too Short Talk Music (April 07, 2020)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/qnd3wBdXXDE?start=1020&feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Boze tells me he’s talked to people about the \u003ci>Short Dog’s in the House\u003c/i> art all across the country: Virginia, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and even in Alabama, where he now resides. Years removed from the experience, now working as a curator of arts education for the \u003ca href=\"https://artistcommunities.org/directory/organizations/coleman-center-arts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Coleman Center of the Arts\u003c/a> in York, Alabama, Boze says he doesn’t often discuss the album — but when it does come up, people tell him how it made them feel. Not the music on the album, but the artwork itself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A teenager at the time of the drawing, Boze says it’s wild to think the image could be likened to a hip-hop version of \u003ca href=\"https://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/sugar-shack#&gid=cc5054066ed84c259198418242e77992&pid=25074691\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Sugar Shack\u003c/a>, the dance-hall scene painted by Ernie Barnes, which was featured on the cover of Marvin Gaye’s \u003cem>I Want You\u003c/em> and shown the final credits of the show \u003cem>Good Times\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While it’s debatable if the image is on that same cultural level, the numbers don’t lie. “Over a million people have seen this work, I’ve got the plaque to prove it,” says Boze with a laugh. “I’m a platinum artist.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\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\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>Editor’s note\u003c/strong>: This story is part of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">That’s My Word\u003c/a>, KQED’s year-long exploration of \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop\">Bay Area hip-hop\u003c/a> history, with new content dropping all throughout 2023.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 4.6875em;float: left;line-height: 0.733em;padding: 0.05em 0.1em 0 0;font-family: times, serif, georgia\">O\u003c/span>n the title track of Too Short’s 1990 album \u003ci>Short Dog’s In the House\u003c/i>, wedged between bars about globetrotting and cold mackin’, the pioneering Oakland MC says, “I used to be local ’til I signed with Jive / Too Short done went nationwide.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After a decade that started with Short \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#too-short-and-freddy-b-start-making-handmade-tapes\">slanging tapes out of his trunk\u003c/a> as an independent artist, this was Short breaking into the hip-hop’s golden age of the ’90s. \u003ci>Short Dog’s In the House\u003c/i> features notable songs like “Pimpology,” one of the first of many tracks to sample lines from \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/bayareahiphop/timeline#the-mack-filmed-in-oakland\">the movie \u003ci>The Mack\u003c/i>, filmed in Oakland\u003c/a>. “Nothing But a Word to Me,” with Ice Cube, marks an early collaboration between major artists from Northern and Southern California. And the song “Short But Funky” is both a thinly veiled diss to MC Hammer and Too Short’s mission statement as an artist.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The album’s biggest single, “The Ghetto,” found Short deviating from his player persona, dropping socially conscious rhymes over a classic Donny Hathaway interpolation. The album sold over a million units and influenced generations of hip-hop heads. It’s a classic.\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/fw0uz88E2gI'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/fw0uz88E2gI'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And then there’s its illustrated cover art: a group of animated human-bodied dog-faced characters cold chilling in a parking lot. Cars that look like Mercedes-Benzes, Lamborghinis and Cadillacs are parked all around, as poodle and bulldog-like characters cut eyes, point fingers and posture like folks would at any social happening. This one is clearly a sideshow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While this scene unfolds in the foreground, a larger canine figure in an Oakland jacket looms near the city’s skyline, like an overseeing oracle, here to tell the world about The Town. And at the bottom left corner of the album cover, in tiny lettering, there’s a signature from the artist: Curtis “Bozie” Wayne Riley Jr.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926255\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926255\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-800x539.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"539\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-800x539.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-160x108.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait-768x518.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Boze.illos_.portrait.jpg 896w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">At left, a sketch from Boze, typifying the sort of characters he’d often draw in high school in the Bay Area. At right, a recent portrait of Boze. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Boze Riley)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“The process of me doing the album cover, it started way before I ever met Short,” says Bozie, who now goes simply by Boze, on a recent video call. “For me, it started at The Art School.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the mid-to-late ’80s, Boze was a student at \u003ca href=\"https://www.facebook.com/groups/2234613913\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Arts Magnet School\u003c/a>, a.k.a. “The Art School,” a high school on the California College of The Arts campus. Boze, a multitalented kid from Deep East Oakland, attributes his skills to the tutelage of his artistic parents, the influence of his neighborhood, the lessons from his high school and his affinity for hip-hop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At The Art School, he had an African-American instructor named Robert L. Caillier who taught college-level arts courses, didn’t take any mess and was a firm believer in students using the classroom to refine their individual voices. “We were given the green light to draw all the things that we love,” says Boze. “So we were drawing hip-hop characters.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From 8th grade until 12th grade, Boze constantly practiced drawing donkey ropes, Kangol hats, Gazelle glasses, and Adidas with the fat strings. After graduation, Boze used his talents to freelance, illustrating projects for MC Ant, Tomahawk Records’ Indian Tone and a logo for East Bay rapper Spice 1.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926016\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13926016\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/R-1268690-1219563443.jpg\" alt=\"Spice 1\" width=\"600\" height=\"589\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/R-1268690-1219563443.jpg 600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/R-1268690-1219563443-160x157.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">An early single by Spice 1, with a logo drawn by Boze. \u003ccite>(Jive Records)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Money was slow, though, and Boze briefly considered turning to the streets. Then he got into airbrushing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During that era, about three major hip-hop tours would come to town each year, and Boze would be ready. “I’d be in my grandmother’s garage airbrushing like 10-12 outfits, charging people $350 a piece,” says Boze, noting that white Guess or Levi’s jeans were a favorite. “My grandmother was getting mad because she’d see all these guys with 5.0’s, glasshouses, and K5s pulling up and coming to the house,” says Boze, imitating his grandmother’s concerned voice. “I’m in there airbrushing! I had an honest hustle.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Along with visual art, Boze was a part of\u003ca href=\"https://www.discogs.com/artist/4904066-T-CAP-Productions\"> T-CAP Productions\u003c/a>’ group \u003ca href=\"https://www.discogs.com/artist/203244-Capital-Tax\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Capital Tax\u003c/a>. He earned a name as a dancer, designed the logo for the crew and even did some musical production.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"CAPITAL TAX- 2 TIMIN\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/skuAI7yFFJ0?start=1&feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As his reputation and clientele in Deep East Oakland grew, Boze eventually made artwork for someone in Too Short’s crew. Coincidentally, Short had recorded a new album for Jive, and he needed artwork too. “They came to me,” says Boze. “Short was like, ‘I want you to do a sideshow scene, but I need it with dogs.’”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Short also suggested to Boze a few types of cars to draw, but told him to use his imagination with the rest. Boze is quick to mention that modern sideshows are different than the one depicted on the album cover, the way they used to be. “It was more like a car show. People brought out Falcons, Novas, Cougars, Mustangs. Trues and Vogues, Zapco boards. It was a chill situation,” says Boze. In the late 1980s, he adds, only a few people did donuts, police rarely came, and afterward, folks would hit Mexicali Rose or Denny’s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>With years of preparation from art school under his belt, chronicling that era of the sideshow came easy; Boze says he knocked it out in two or three days. But the image that’s widely known — that’s the second drawing. The first one was rejected by Jive; the label needed certain specs for reproduction. “Short never gave me back the original one,” says Boze. “So either Short still has it, or someone at Jive does.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The version that adorns the platinum-selling album, meanwhile, has been widely shared and impactful. Short has \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/sJXzYAeTk0U?t=118\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">gone on record\u003c/a> to mention the importance of the album cover, as have other major artists. Even Snoop Dogg seemed to have a fanboy moment when recently discussing the album art, and how it directly influenced the \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doggystyle\">cartoon-dog cover art\u003c/a> for his smash-hit album \u003cem>Doggystyle\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ciframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Snoop Dogg & Too Short Talk Music (April 07, 2020)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/qnd3wBdXXDE?start=1020&feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen>\u003c/iframe>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Boze tells me he’s talked to people about the \u003ci>Short Dog’s in the House\u003c/i> art all across the country: Virginia, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and even in Alabama, where he now resides. Years removed from the experience, now working as a curator of arts education for the \u003ca href=\"https://artistcommunities.org/directory/organizations/coleman-center-arts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Coleman Center of the Arts\u003c/a> in York, Alabama, Boze says he doesn’t often discuss the album — but when it does come up, people tell him how it made them feel. Not the music on the album, but the artwork itself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A teenager at the time of the drawing, Boze says it’s wild to think the image could be likened to a hip-hop version of \u003ca href=\"https://www.mfah.org/exhibitions/sugar-shack#&gid=cc5054066ed84c259198418242e77992&pid=25074691\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Sugar Shack\u003c/a>, the dance-hall scene painted by Ernie Barnes, which was featured on the cover of Marvin Gaye’s \u003cem>I Want You\u003c/em> and shown the final credits of the show \u003cem>Good Times\u003c/em>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While it’s debatable if the image is on that same cultural level, the numbers don’t lie. “Over a million people have seen this work, I’ve got the plaque to prove it,” says Boze with a laugh. “I’m a platinum artist.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>When drummer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/yoyoka_drums/?hl=en\">Yoyoka Soma\u003c/a> first rocketed into internet stardom in 2018, millions swarmed to her videos, proclaiming her the next big star in rock ‘n’ roll. Soma, then an elementary school student living in Hokkaido, Japan, seemed to already possess musical sensibilities some adults spend their whole lives training for.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Watching her was hypnotic: Music seemed to take over her entire body. Each hit of the cymbal appeared to electrify her limbs, powering the next succession of passionate and coordinated movements. Her expressions bounced from playful to focused, but never strained. It looked impossibly easy for her — even at age 7.[aside label=\"Related Stories\" postID=\"arts_13912562\"]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For as long as she can remember, drums have provided the musician an oasis from stress, frustration and unease. “If I have nerves, I sit at the drums and it’s gone,” says Soma, now 13, in a recent interview at her current home in Oakland. “I don’t know why but …they disappear once I sit at my drum set.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soma has lived in the Bay Area with her family — father Akifumi, mother Rie and younger brother Shido — since late 2022. Last fall, the Soma family decided to move to the states so that Soma could explore and grow more freely as a musician, uninhibited by their native Japan’s school system, which she describes as more traditional. Soma is currently in seventh grade at Oakland School for the Arts, where she is learning jazz and blues drum techniques that push her beyond her proclivity for the rock genre. When recalling music classes in Japan, Soma remembers their limitations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926106\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926106\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A family of four people, Japanese immigrants, smile for a portrait outside in front of trees: a teenage girl, her father, her younger brother and her mother\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yoyoka Soma (left) poses for a photo with her dad Akifumi, mom Rie and younger brother Shido near their home in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s totally different because my Japanese school was not an arts school,” says Soma. “Class was very traditional: there was just the recorder, singing, piano and harmonica. I like those but there was no choice. So I couldn’t play the drums.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Discouraged at school, Soma would pour herself into the drums at home — an instrument she’d been learning since she was one. Her parents, also musicians, were supportive and often held jam sessions where they’d play along to their favorite songs together — eventually forming their family band, KANEAIYOYOKA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When Akifumi and Rie began uploading her \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/@yoyoka_soma/featured\">solo cover videos to YouTube\u003c/a> in 2015, she steadily amassed an audience. In 2018, that audience exploded following a viral cover of the 1969 Led Zeppelin track “Good Times Bad Times.” In it, a younger Soma sports a short bowl cut, crinkling her nose and smiling as she plays to the song’s energetic and varied tempos. Over the next couple of years, her covers of other American rock staples like Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” gained massive views and earned her two guest appearances on \u003cem>The Ellen Show\u003c/em> in 2019.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91pz1E8pAOY\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But in recent conversations, the online attention and acclaim she received during that period don’t really come up. Lately, Soma is fully occupied with school, practice, gigs and filming videos and live streams for her subscribers. During the week, she begins most mornings first sleeping through her 6:30 a.m. alarm before trudging to the kitchen for breakfast and heading out for school. From 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., she works through a packed schedule of English, music, social studies, math and life science courses before heading home for individual drum practice, dinner and more practice with family. “I’m so tired every day, most recently,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While her music classes in Japan felt a bit sterile and restricted, Soma says her current music courses are full of energy and chaos — sometimes to a fault. There is constant noise and a rowdiness that Soma has had trouble adjusting to. “My friends are so loud, [specifically] the boys,” she says. “I don’t like it — that part. But I have new experiences every day and I can learn [techniques] outside of rock music.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As she navigates this new setting, her greatest challenge is following along and understanding the material in English during her other classes. “Everyday, [I think]: ‘What are you talking about, teacher?’” says Soma. “My friends are so kind, like speaking a bit slowly. But in class, I don’t know! It’s the most difficult thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926086\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926086\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"a young Japanese girl plays the drums while smiling\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yoyoka Soma says the language barrier has been difficult since moving to the U.S. — but music helps bridge the gaps. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In her alone time, she often retreats to nature or returns to her drum set at home to clear her head. These long school days, crammed with confusing lectures and new concepts taught in a language she has not yet grasped, are often overwhelming. In a recurring dream, she attends a school where the language barrier she currently struggles with is nonexistent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everyone speaks different languages, but I hear Japanese,” says Soma. “I like that dream. All the time. Every day, I go to that dream.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While Soma grapples with language obstacles, music and art allow her to fill in those gaps of understanding with others. During jam sessions with her classmates and other Bay Area artists, there is sometimes a moment of silent magic: where the groove and rhythm sync up between musicians and they’re able to improvise something unique to their musical connection. These sessions also act as keys that unlock new landscapes of sounds, genres and histories — allowing for an exchange of ideas and emotions without having to speak a word.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since moving to the East Bay, Soma has jammed with Oakland singer-songwriter Fantastic Negrito, whose soulful songs that combine blues, roots rock and country have inspired her to learn more about genre-blending music. Her friends at school have introduced her to an array of hip-hop and rap, where the art of sampling and revamping older songs and beats is generative and full of possibility. Music has offered her a new way of expanding her relationships, not only with new friends and fellow musicians, but with Oakland and herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926085\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926085\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"a four-person Japanese family sit in a home music studio practicing instruments and smiling\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yoyoka Soma and her family practice for their band, Kaneaiyoyoka, at their home in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Moving forward, Soma doesn’t have many long term plans sketched out. She wants to eventually make albums, have more jam sessions and perform at more events. But she also wants to read books, drink chocolate milk with her schoolmates, run around outside with her brother Shido and visit the Oakland Zoo. The pressure of being held in such high regard — and on a very public scale — isn’t really at the forefront of her mind. Soma, for all her talent and gifts, is still a young teen adjusting to completely new surroundings. In this current stage of life, of uncertainty and adaptation, she is inspired by the everyday: By moments of spontaneity that she translates through her rebellious, spirited playing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Any creation of mine can be music. It should be natural until I die,” says Soma. “If I can give some courage or confidence to people, I want to be that person. I want to [give] back.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKMlpDgg64E\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 floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Yoyoka Soma will perform at Notes & Words, an annual benefit concert for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, on March 25. \u003ca href=\"https://www.notesandwords.org/\">Tickets and information here\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>When drummer \u003ca href=\"https://www.instagram.com/yoyoka_drums/?hl=en\">Yoyoka Soma\u003c/a> first rocketed into internet stardom in 2018, millions swarmed to her videos, proclaiming her the next big star in rock ‘n’ roll. Soma, then an elementary school student living in Hokkaido, Japan, seemed to already possess musical sensibilities some adults spend their whole lives training for.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Watching her was hypnotic: Music seemed to take over her entire body. Each hit of the cymbal appeared to electrify her limbs, powering the next succession of passionate and coordinated movements. Her expressions bounced from playful to focused, but never strained. It looked impossibly easy for her — even at age 7.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For as long as she can remember, drums have provided the musician an oasis from stress, frustration and unease. “If I have nerves, I sit at the drums and it’s gone,” says Soma, now 13, in a recent interview at her current home in Oakland. “I don’t know why but …they disappear once I sit at my drum set.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soma has lived in the Bay Area with her family — father Akifumi, mother Rie and younger brother Shido — since late 2022. Last fall, the Soma family decided to move to the states so that Soma could explore and grow more freely as a musician, uninhibited by their native Japan’s school system, which she describes as more traditional. Soma is currently in seventh grade at Oakland School for the Arts, where she is learning jazz and blues drum techniques that push her beyond her proclivity for the rock genre. When recalling music classes in Japan, Soma remembers their limitations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926106\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926106\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"A family of four people, Japanese immigrants, smile for a portrait outside in front of trees: a teenage girl, her father, her younger brother and her mother\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63028_001_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yoyoka Soma (left) poses for a photo with her dad Akifumi, mom Rie and younger brother Shido near their home in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s totally different because my Japanese school was not an arts school,” says Soma. “Class was very traditional: there was just the recorder, singing, piano and harmonica. I like those but there was no choice. So I couldn’t play the drums.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Discouraged at school, Soma would pour herself into the drums at home — an instrument she’d been learning since she was one. Her parents, also musicians, were supportive and often held jam sessions where they’d play along to their favorite songs together — eventually forming their family band, KANEAIYOYOKA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When Akifumi and Rie began uploading her \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/@yoyoka_soma/featured\">solo cover videos to YouTube\u003c/a> in 2015, she steadily amassed an audience. In 2018, that audience exploded following a viral cover of the 1969 Led Zeppelin track “Good Times Bad Times.” In it, a younger Soma sports a short bowl cut, crinkling her nose and smiling as she plays to the song’s energetic and varied tempos. Over the next couple of years, her covers of other American rock staples like Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” gained massive views and earned her two guest appearances on \u003cem>The Ellen Show\u003c/em> in 2019.\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/91pz1E8pAOY'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/91pz1E8pAOY'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>But in recent conversations, the online attention and acclaim she received during that period don’t really come up. Lately, Soma is fully occupied with school, practice, gigs and filming videos and live streams for her subscribers. During the week, she begins most mornings first sleeping through her 6:30 a.m. alarm before trudging to the kitchen for breakfast and heading out for school. From 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., she works through a packed schedule of English, music, social studies, math and life science courses before heading home for individual drum practice, dinner and more practice with family. “I’m so tired every day, most recently,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While her music classes in Japan felt a bit sterile and restricted, Soma says her current music courses are full of energy and chaos — sometimes to a fault. There is constant noise and a rowdiness that Soma has had trouble adjusting to. “My friends are so loud, [specifically] the boys,” she says. “I don’t like it — that part. But I have new experiences every day and I can learn [techniques] outside of rock music.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As she navigates this new setting, her greatest challenge is following along and understanding the material in English during her other classes. “Everyday, [I think]: ‘What are you talking about, teacher?’” says Soma. “My friends are so kind, like speaking a bit slowly. But in class, I don’t know! It’s the most difficult thing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926086\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926086\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"a young Japanese girl plays the drums while smiling\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63038_012_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yoyoka Soma says the language barrier has been difficult since moving to the U.S. — but music helps bridge the gaps. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In her alone time, she often retreats to nature or returns to her drum set at home to clear her head. These long school days, crammed with confusing lectures and new concepts taught in a language she has not yet grasped, are often overwhelming. In a recurring dream, she attends a school where the language barrier she currently struggles with is nonexistent.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Everyone speaks different languages, but I hear Japanese,” says Soma. “I like that dream. All the time. Every day, I go to that dream.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While Soma grapples with language obstacles, music and art allow her to fill in those gaps of understanding with others. During jam sessions with her classmates and other Bay Area artists, there is sometimes a moment of silent magic: where the groove and rhythm sync up between musicians and they’re able to improvise something unique to their musical connection. These sessions also act as keys that unlock new landscapes of sounds, genres and histories — allowing for an exchange of ideas and emotions without having to speak a word.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since moving to the East Bay, Soma has jammed with Oakland singer-songwriter Fantastic Negrito, whose soulful songs that combine blues, roots rock and country have inspired her to learn more about genre-blending music. Her friends at school have introduced her to an array of hip-hop and rap, where the art of sampling and revamping older songs and beats is generative and full of possibility. Music has offered her a new way of expanding her relationships, not only with new friends and fellow musicians, but with Oakland and herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13926085\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13926085\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"a four-person Japanese family sit in a home music studio practicing instruments and smiling\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/RS63049_023_KQEDArts_YoyokaSomaDrummer_02092023-qut.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yoyoka Soma and her family practice for their band, Kaneaiyoyoka, at their home in Oakland. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Moving forward, Soma doesn’t have many long term plans sketched out. She wants to eventually make albums, have more jam sessions and perform at more events. But she also wants to read books, drink chocolate milk with her schoolmates, run around outside with her brother Shido and visit the Oakland Zoo. The pressure of being held in such high regard — and on a very public scale — isn’t really at the forefront of her mind. Soma, for all her talent and gifts, is still a young teen adjusting to completely new surroundings. In this current stage of life, of uncertainty and adaptation, she is inspired by the everyday: By moments of spontaneity that she translates through her rebellious, spirited playing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Any creation of mine can be music. It should be natural until I die,” says Soma. “If I can give some courage or confidence to people, I want to be that person. I want to [give] back.”\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/PKMlpDgg64E'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/PKMlpDgg64E'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\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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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Yoyoka Soma will perform at Notes & Words, an annual benefit concert for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals, on March 25. \u003ca href=\"https://www.notesandwords.org/\">Tickets and information here\u003c/a>. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "‘The Birds’ Is Turning 60 — What’s That Creepy-Ass Song the Kids Were Singing Anyway?",
"headTitle": "‘The Birds’ Is Turning 60 — What’s That Creepy-Ass Song the Kids Were Singing Anyway? | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> turns 60 on March 28, and the film remains just as unnerving now as it was when it came out in 1963. Based on a \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Birds_(story)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">1952 Daphne du Maurier story\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13904911/bay-area-horror-movies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">inspired by a real-life incident\u003c/a> in which \u003ca href=\"https://www.mercurynews.com/2015/12/07/this-hitchcock-movie-was-inspired-by-crab-toxin-frenzy-in-capitola/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">residents of Capitola were attacked\u003c/a> by unhinged seabirds, the Hitchcock classic remains a Bay Area favorite.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In case you’re one of the three people here who hasn’t yet seen it, the story goes a little something like this: After San Francisco gal-about-town Melanie Daniels (played by Tippi Hedren) goes to Bodega Bay (for what can only be described as a thirsty prank), the small community is subjected to increasingly violent attacks by a variety of birds. Chimneys are invaded! Windows are smashed! Eyes are pecked out! Teachers are murdered! As the attacks increase in severity, Melanie is transformed from a confident practical joker into a shell of herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postid='arts_13904911']At Melanie’s side is the Brenner family. There’s her love interest, Mitch (Rod Taylor), Mitch’s mom Lydia (Jessica Tandy) and his little sister Cathy (Veronica Cartwright). Try to ignore the fact that the math in this family makes no sense at all. Lydia is in her fifties, Mitch is in his thirties, but Cathy is \u003cem>just\u003c/em> turning 11? (Talk about a 1950s miracle baby!)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one point, after the first avian-inflicted deaths start to occur, Melanie goes to collect Cathy from school. What follows is probably the most iconic scene in the whole movie. As Melanie waits on a bench outside, smoking a cigarette, crows eerily gather on a climbing frame behind her. All the while, the children inside can be heard singing a folksy refrain, heightening the sense of impending doom.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19r7ctge2lI\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given that \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> has no musical score and is soundtracked almost entirely by the sound of screeching birds, the children’s song carries a particular sense of foreboding. Their repetitive little ditty has creeped me out since I was a child myself, and it continues to do so. In part, because it sounds like a song that is intrinsically designed to drive you mad if you listen to it for long enough.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So where the hell did this thing come from?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s called “Risselty Rosselty” and the version that we hear in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> goes a little something like this:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>I married my wife in the month of June,\u003cbr>\nRisselty rosselty, now, now, now,\u003cbr>\nI brought her home by the light of the moon,\u003cbr>\nRisselty rosselty, hey Johnny Dosselty,\u003cbr>\nNickety nackety, rustical quality,\u003cbr>\nWillickey wallackey now, now, now.\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>In subsequent verses, while the more nonsensical lines remain roughly the same, the first and third lines often change to push the song’s narrative along.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the second verse, we find out that the wife “combed her hair but once a year,” and that “with every stroke, she shed a tear.” In the fifth we hear that she “swept up the floor but once a year,” and “said that brooms were much too dear.” In the seventh, the wife churns “butter in her dad’s old boot,” and “for a catch, she used her foot.” In the seventh, things get even grosser: “The butter, it came out a grisly grey,” and “the cheese, it took legs and ran away.” In the ninth, her husband finally tries to put his foot down and fails. “I asked my wife to wash the floor,” this verse goes, “she gave me my hat and she showed me the door.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The version of “Risselty Rosselty” that we hear in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> is actually a sanitized rendition of a 19th century Scottish folk song called “Wee Cooper O’Fife,” in which a wife is failing to perform her household duties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sample verse:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>She wadna wash, nor she wadna wring,\u003cbr>\nNickety, Nackety, noo, noo, noo,\u003cbr>\nFor the spoiling o’ her gowden ring,\u003cbr>\nHey Willy Wallacky, hoo John Dougal,\u003cbr>\nA lane, quo’Rushity, roue, roue, roue.\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>In this original, wee Cooper (the husband), frustrated by his wife’s vanity and laziness, takes to physically abusing her to teach her a lesson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yeah.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one point he lays “sheep’s skin” on her back before beating her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>The Cooper has gane to his woo’ pack,\u003cbr>\nNickety, Nackety, noo, noo, noo,\u003cbr>\nAnd he’s laid a sheep’s skin on his wife’s back,\u003cbr>\nHey Willy Wallacky, hoo John Dougal,\u003cbr>\nA lane, quo’Rushity, roue, roue, roue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s I’ll no thrash ye for your gentle kin,\u003cbr>\nNickety, Nackety, noo, noo, noo,\u003cbr>\nBut I will thrash my ain sheep’s skin,\u003cbr>\nHey Willy Wallacky, hoo John Dougal,\u003cbr>\nA lane, quo’Rushity, roue, roue, roue.\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>(No wonder \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> didn’t go with the original.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Wee Cooper O’ Fife,” it turns out, originally arrived in the United States sometime at the turn of the 19th century, and was later recorded by a variety of American folk artists including \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFb_xMF5GTI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Burl Ives\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dagbxOZ9D5Q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Glenn Yarbrough\u003c/a>. The version we hear in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em>, however, is more closely based on a rendition by Pete Seeger from 1957 that erased all of that uncomfortable domestic violence stuff.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzguForOrjI\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>(Seeger’s sister \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzB_EjRA5j0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Peggy also recorded a version\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postid='arts_13921101']“Risselty-Rosselty” wound up in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> almost by happenstance. Legend has it that Alfred Hitchcock asked the movie’s scriptwriter \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Hunter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Evan Hunter\u003c/a> to come up with an appropriate song to soundtrack Melanie’s anxiety as she waits for Cathy outside the schoolhouse. For inspiration, Hunter asked his three sons about songs they were singing at school and “Risselty-Rosselty” happened to be one of them. Hunter picked up the lyrics from a teacher at his sons’ school in Westchester, New York, and updated them to better fit the movie, and the times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The scene of course culminates in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hplpQt424Ls\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">scores of children getting attacked by the crows\u003c/a>, as they run screaming from their school. Gloriously, the original schoolhouse still stands in Bodega Bay, albeit with a fence around it and a request from its residents not to approach the front door.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Should you wish to pay it a visit, you know what the soundtrack should be.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> turns 60 on March 28, and the film remains just as unnerving now as it was when it came out in 1963. Based on a \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Birds_(story)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">1952 Daphne du Maurier story\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13904911/bay-area-horror-movies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">inspired by a real-life incident\u003c/a> in which \u003ca href=\"https://www.mercurynews.com/2015/12/07/this-hitchcock-movie-was-inspired-by-crab-toxin-frenzy-in-capitola/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">residents of Capitola were attacked\u003c/a> by unhinged seabirds, the Hitchcock classic remains a Bay Area favorite.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In case you’re one of the three people here who hasn’t yet seen it, the story goes a little something like this: After San Francisco gal-about-town Melanie Daniels (played by Tippi Hedren) goes to Bodega Bay (for what can only be described as a thirsty prank), the small community is subjected to increasingly violent attacks by a variety of birds. Chimneys are invaded! Windows are smashed! Eyes are pecked out! Teachers are murdered! As the attacks increase in severity, Melanie is transformed from a confident practical joker into a shell of herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given that \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> has no musical score and is soundtracked almost entirely by the sound of screeching birds, the children’s song carries a particular sense of foreboding. Their repetitive little ditty has creeped me out since I was a child myself, and it continues to do so. In part, because it sounds like a song that is intrinsically designed to drive you mad if you listen to it for long enough.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So where the hell did this thing come from?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s called “Risselty Rosselty” and the version that we hear in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> goes a little something like this:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>I married my wife in the month of June,\u003cbr>\nRisselty rosselty, now, now, now,\u003cbr>\nI brought her home by the light of the moon,\u003cbr>\nRisselty rosselty, hey Johnny Dosselty,\u003cbr>\nNickety nackety, rustical quality,\u003cbr>\nWillickey wallackey now, now, now.\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>In subsequent verses, while the more nonsensical lines remain roughly the same, the first and third lines often change to push the song’s narrative along.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the second verse, we find out that the wife “combed her hair but once a year,” and that “with every stroke, she shed a tear.” In the fifth we hear that she “swept up the floor but once a year,” and “said that brooms were much too dear.” In the seventh, the wife churns “butter in her dad’s old boot,” and “for a catch, she used her foot.” In the seventh, things get even grosser: “The butter, it came out a grisly grey,” and “the cheese, it took legs and ran away.” In the ninth, her husband finally tries to put his foot down and fails. “I asked my wife to wash the floor,” this verse goes, “she gave me my hat and she showed me the door.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The version of “Risselty Rosselty” that we hear in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> is actually a sanitized rendition of a 19th century Scottish folk song called “Wee Cooper O’Fife,” in which a wife is failing to perform her household duties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sample verse:\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>She wadna wash, nor she wadna wring,\u003cbr>\nNickety, Nackety, noo, noo, noo,\u003cbr>\nFor the spoiling o’ her gowden ring,\u003cbr>\nHey Willy Wallacky, hoo John Dougal,\u003cbr>\nA lane, quo’Rushity, roue, roue, roue.\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>In this original, wee Cooper (the husband), frustrated by his wife’s vanity and laziness, takes to physically abusing her to teach her a lesson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yeah.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At one point he lays “sheep’s skin” on her back before beating her.\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>The Cooper has gane to his woo’ pack,\u003cbr>\nNickety, Nackety, noo, noo, noo,\u003cbr>\nAnd he’s laid a sheep’s skin on his wife’s back,\u003cbr>\nHey Willy Wallacky, hoo John Dougal,\u003cbr>\nA lane, quo’Rushity, roue, roue, roue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s I’ll no thrash ye for your gentle kin,\u003cbr>\nNickety, Nackety, noo, noo, noo,\u003cbr>\nBut I will thrash my ain sheep’s skin,\u003cbr>\nHey Willy Wallacky, hoo John Dougal,\u003cbr>\nA lane, quo’Rushity, roue, roue, roue.\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003cp>(No wonder \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> didn’t go with the original.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Wee Cooper O’ Fife,” it turns out, originally arrived in the United States sometime at the turn of the 19th century, and was later recorded by a variety of American folk artists including \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFb_xMF5GTI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Burl Ives\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dagbxOZ9D5Q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Glenn Yarbrough\u003c/a>. The version we hear in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em>, however, is more closely based on a rendition by Pete Seeger from 1957 that erased all of that uncomfortable domestic violence stuff.\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/mzguForOrjI'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/mzguForOrjI'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>(Seeger’s sister \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzB_EjRA5j0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Peggy also recorded a version\u003c/a>.)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“Risselty-Rosselty” wound up in \u003cem>The Birds\u003c/em> almost by happenstance. Legend has it that Alfred Hitchcock asked the movie’s scriptwriter \u003ca href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evan_Hunter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Evan Hunter\u003c/a> to come up with an appropriate song to soundtrack Melanie’s anxiety as she waits for Cathy outside the schoolhouse. For inspiration, Hunter asked his three sons about songs they were singing at school and “Risselty-Rosselty” happened to be one of them. Hunter picked up the lyrics from a teacher at his sons’ school in Westchester, New York, and updated them to better fit the movie, and the times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The scene of course culminates in \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hplpQt424Ls\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">scores of children getting attacked by the crows\u003c/a>, as they run screaming from their school. Gloriously, the original schoolhouse still stands in Bodega Bay, albeit with a fence around it and a request from its residents not to approach the front door.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Should you wish to pay it a visit, you know what the soundtrack should be.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "bay-area-west-coast-south-rap-hip-hop-master-p-no-limit",
"title": "How the Bay Area and the South Became Hip-Hop Family",
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"headTitle": "How the Bay Area and the South Became Hip-Hop Family | 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 Bay Area hip-hop history, with new content dropping all throughout 2023.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 4.6875em;float: left;line-height: 0.733em;padding: 0.05em 0.1em 0 0;font-family: times, serif, georgia\">“P\u003c/span>icture me on a tour bus in 1995 with a bunch of West Coast artists,” Percy “Master P” Miller wrote in his 2007 book \u003cem>Guaranteed Success\u003c/em>. “My brother and I were the only artists from the South. We were the opening act, and they wouldn’t even play our music on the bus.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the time, in 1995, Master P was near the end of his four-year tenure as the owner of a small record store, No Limit Records & Tapes, in Richmond. The New Orleans-raised artist had relocated to the Bay Area to attend Merritt College, and he opened his San Pablo Avenue shop with $10,000 he’d inherited from a malpractice settlement after his grandfather’s death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I took that money and made my first financial investment: I bought a record store that was going out of business in an urban community,” wrote Master P. He negotiated six months of free rent in exchange for improving the retail space. “As a result, my record store was a booming success and, for the first time, I began to experience a comfortable lifestyle.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not everyone was checking for Master P and No Limit, though. In addition to being shunned by his tour mates, San Francisco radio station KMEL wouldn’t play his music — “even though I done sold more records than any other artist in the Bay Area,” he \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Rap-s-Master-P-Has-a-Master-Plan-Media-rejects-2824304.php\">told Billy Jam for a 1997 \u003cem>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em> article\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the time of that interview, Master P was back in New Orleans, living an ostentatious multimillionaire lifestyle. No Limit had become a successful label with national distribution through Priority Records, and its massive sales funded Master P’s ever-expanding business empire. (By 1998, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/13/arts/gangsta-rapper-turns-entrepreneur-28-master-p-has-created-one-biggest.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">No Limit had cumulative record sales totaling $120 million\u003c/a>, according to \u003cem>The New York Times\u003c/em>.) He’d had an entrepreneurial spirit that dated back to his childhood, but it was in the Bay Area — home of the “out the trunk” independent rap hustle since the early ’80s — where he absorbed the game that facilitated his nationwide success.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925975\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13925975\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-800x1097.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1097\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-800x1097.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1020x1399.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-160x219.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-768x1053.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1120x1536.jpg 1120w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1493x2048.jpg 1493w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1920x2634.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-scaled.jpg 1866w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Master P attends the 26th Annual American Music Awards in Los Angeles. By the time of this photo, in 1999, his label No Limit had grossed over $120 million in album sales. \u003ccite>(Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Master P’s empire is just one example of the ongoing cultural exchange between the Bay Area and the South, which goes back decades: During the Second Great Migration between 1940 and 1970, Black Southerners \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11910890/how-oaklands-16th-street-train-station-helped-build-west-oakland-and-the-modern-civil-rights-movement\">flocked to cities like Oakland, Richmond and San Francisco\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the years that followed, their descendants helped establish the Bay Area’s distinctive hip-hop culture, whose sound and independent business model then traveled back to Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston and Memphis. Close observers of the rap scenes in these Southern cities will find strong ties to the Bay Area, and in turn, Southern rappers, producers and promoters have had a sizable stamp on the Bay Area’s own scene. This close kinship between the two regions undeniably shaped hip-hop history — and it continues to this day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>[Listen to our ‘From the Bay to the South’ playlist, curated by Tamara Palmer, on \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5K9S3wYkGHf9hk7k8sOdv6?si=f46124d722c84c0b\">Spotify\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeGdTT0--8KiiMa4o9t3tOxhGg4lfIPEA\">YouTube\u003c/a>.]\u003c/em>\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/5K9S3wYkGHf9hk7k8sOdv6?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\u003ch2>The Bay-to-South business pipeline\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Master P and No Limit weren’t alone. Over the years, artists and record labels all across the South adopted the Bay Area’s independent business model and used it to achieve great success.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Selling tapes out the trunk of the car, that was pretty much patented by E-40, Too $hort, Tony Draper at Suave House, Rap-A-Lot, people like that,” Vallejo-born rapper Earl “E-40” Stevens said in an interview for my 2004 book about Southern rap, shouting out two Houston labels. “Then came along the Master Ps of the world and the Cash Moneys. They watched the game and did what they supposed to do, and now they reaching for the stars.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/4mrKNCTlv0s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2019 interview with Sway Calloway\u003c/a>, Master P seemed to agree with this assessment. He referred to E-40’s uncle, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssiJQSm-Ln4\">soul singer\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/26/arts/music/the-first-family-of-hyphy-pops-a-collar-whatd-they-say.html\">entrepreneur\u003c/a> Saint Charles Thurman, as the “OG” music distributor who taught him how to release records independently. Watching Thurman’s success running the small distribution company Solar Music Group, Master P realized: “I don’t need to wait for the big companies to push me, I’m going to get out there and push myself,” he recalled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://youtu.be/ErwejjBZRMo\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In turn, Master P along with other Southern artists, DJs and promoters played a crucial role in the national success of Bay Area artists like E-40 in the ’90s. Taking a cue from Herm Lewis, the Hunters Point street activist who \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvTaoNzFGHU&list=PLU1OibAu4SezP41p6YZUfkokGSFMhlz3Y\">popularized artist compilations\u003c/a>, Master P released \u003cem>West Coast Bad Boyz, Vol. 1: Anotha Level of the Game\u003c/em> in 1994. It included contributions from the Bay Area’s JT the Bigga Figga, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13923766/rbl-posse-a-lesson-to-be-learned-album-cover\">RBL Posse\u003c/a>, Rappin’ 4-Tay, Ray Luv and Dre Dog (now Andre Nickatina).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Master P would continue to release compilations after he moved No Limit back home to Louisiana. In 1997, the label’s breakout year, \u003cem>West Coast Bad Boyz II\u003c/em> starred Mac Dre, E-A-Ski and Sacramento rappers C-Bo, Lunasicc and Marvaless, and was dedicated to Tupac Shakur. Even more successful was the soundtrack to the 1997 movie \u003cem>I’m Bout It\u003c/em>, with E-40, B-Legit, E-A-Ski and JT The Bigga Figga, and which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 4 on the Billboard 200.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>E-40 also credits DJs and promoters like Meen Green in Dallas, Greg Street in Atlanta and Marvin “Jabber Jaws” Williams in Shreveport for helping build his career on the radio and in clubs in those early years. Forming a constellation across the south, they booked him for gigs and put his records in rotation. [pullquote size='large']Close observers of the rap scenes in Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston and Memphis will find strong ties to the Bay Area, and in turn, Southern rappers, producers and promoters have had a sizable stamp on the Bay Area’s own scene.[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though streaming has long replaced the “out the trunk” era, the Bay Area’s influence on independent music distribution remains. These days, the savviest artists from the South know that they need to hit San Francisco to strike a lucrative business deal with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/ourturbulentdecade/2012-empire-brought-the-music-industry-back-to-san-francisco\">EMPIRE\u003c/a>, now the world’s leading hip-hop distributor. When I visited the company’s well-appointed Financial District penthouse office in 2019, I met the remarkable Memphis rapper Adolph “Young Dolph” Thornton.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I can’t shake,” he said warmly when introduced, offering a big hug in place of a stiff hand. Dolph, who was later murdered in his hometown in 2021, was responsible for two gold-certified records on EMPIRE’s wall. His EMPIRE deal also enabled him to sign and develop his own artists, such as fellow Memphis rapper Key Glock, setting them up to win via collaborations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It wasn’t the first time the Bay Area played an important role in a Memphis artist’s success. Young Dolph’s one-time rival, Yo Gotti, made his mid-2010s comeback with hits like “Act Right,” produced by Pinole’s P-Lo, and “Law,” featuring E-40. (E-40 also \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIeGHPGSyRM\">recorded\u003c/a> with the late “Queen of Memphis,” Three Six Mafia’s Gangsta Boo, who \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/GangstaBooQOM/status/185053550299193344\">once proclaimed\u003c/a>: “SHOUT OUT TO THE BAY AREA!!! I ROCKS WITH YALL THE LONG WAAAAY.”)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://youtu.be/8HYXw1vADFQ\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Going back further, musical and cultural influence has also flowed from Memphis to the Bay. MC Hammer \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/mchammer/status/27278318672?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">admitted on Twitter\u003c/a> that he learned the pre-crunk, pre-hyphy “get buck” style of dancing (later known as gangsta walking) in Memphis in the late ’80s. And iconic Memphis duo 8Ball & MJG worked with marquee Bay Area names like E-40, Mac Mall, Rappin’ 4-Tay and Spice 1 on both group and solo projects in the late ’90s and early aughts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even though Atlanta had become the rap industry’s power center by the time EMPIRE launched in San Francisco in 2010, keeping EMPIRE’s headquarters in the Bay Area is a core part of the company’s mission. “San Francisco has always been a place where incredible creatives were bred, but few of them are here at this point,” EMPIRE Vice President Nima Etminan told me in 2019. “Even in the music scene, when you look at it, a Sway [Calloway from SiriusXM], or an Ebro [Darden of Hot 97 in New York], or a [early Apple Music exec] Larry Jackson … all came from here, but people don’t really realize it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think [being in the] Financial District on the 24th floor in downtown San Francisco is definitely not necessarily the cheapest route to take,” Etminan continued, “but it’s a statement. It’s like, you’ve got to come \u003cem>here\u003c/em> to see us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The Bay’s influence on bounce and trap, and the South’s mark on hyphy\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Bay Area, Atlanta, Houston and New Orleans share a love for big, trunk-rattling beats, and collaborations between the cities’ artists have resulted in influential hits. Atlanta hitmaker Lil Jon bumped Too Short in his ride in high school, and later produced Short’s “Blow The Whistle” and E-40’s “Tell Me When to Go,” the twin beacons that introduced hyphy to the rest of the nation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://youtu.be/2GZbaXdK8Js\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In turn, producers from the Bay Area have facilitated crucial Southern records. The late KMEL DJ Cameron Paul’s track “Brown Beats” helped form the \u003ca href=\"https://1079ishot.com/new-orleans-bounce-cameron-paul-brown-beats/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">spine of New Orleans bounce music\u003c/a>. Houston’s DJ Screw, who passed away in 2000, recorded a session in his home studio with Texas-born Oaklander Spice 1, and was known to feature plenty of Bay Area rap songs on his influential “Grey Tape” cassette mixes. Mike Dean, who produced for Houston’s Rap-A-Lot Records, crafted beats for \u003cem>Stackin Chips\u003c/em>, the 1997 debut album of Keak Da Sneak’s group 3X Krazy, and Bay Area artists like Yukmouth (whose Smoke-A-Lot Records is distributed by Rap-A-Lot), Seagram and producer Tone Capone recorded for the label in the ’90s and early aughts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just outside of Houston in Port Arthur, Chad “Pimp C” Butler of UGK shared a close friendship and musical camaraderie with Too Short. In 2007, the night before he died, Pimp C appeared onstage at Too Short’s show at the now-defunct House of Blues on the Sunset Strip, according to Julia Beverly’s biography \u003cem>Sweet Jones: Pimp C’s Trill Life Story\u003c/em>. In what’s said to be \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JK3HLJk8iMY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">his final interview\u003c/a>, Pimp C credited the Oakland legend for his career longevity: “I just follow what Too Short told me. He told me ‘Don’t Stop Rappin’.’ I just kept on making the kind of records that the people down where I live at like.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Outkast, whose Andre 3000 has acknowledged the Bay Area as a notable early influence, broadcast an alternative rap sound out of Atlanta in the ’90s. “I have to — I \u003cem>have\u003c/em> to — give a shout to the Hieroglyphics crew and Souls Of Mischief, because as kids we were hugely influenced by them,” Andre 3000 told \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/microphonecheck/2014/09/26/351559126/andre-3000-you-can-do-anything-from-atlanta\">NPR’s \u003cem>Microphone Check\u003c/em>\u003c/a> in 2014. And Outkast’s Big Boi was just as direct about another Bay Area influence: “One of my favorite rappers happens to be Too Short,” he rapped on the 2010 track “Fo Yo Sorrows.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://youtu.be/qsUSlR7tTEs\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Later, as trap music began to fill the Southern streets, a Bay Area-bred producer helped develop its sound and take it to the national airwaves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Xavier “Zaytoven” Dotson was born to a military family in Germany and spent his formative years in San Francisco before joining his parents in Atlanta, where a giant, free basement studio at their new Georgia home beckoned. Within a year, when he wasn’t away from the studio playing organ for his parents’ church, Zaytoven produced Gucci Mane’s breakout 2005 hit “Icy.” Word quickly got around the proverbial trap that Zaytoven’s basement was \u003cem>the\u003c/em> place to record, and his client list grew to include Future, Usher, Travis Scott, the late Young Dolph and many others.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://youtu.be/Io6D5tAK8Ks\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Even though it’s with artists from the South, you can hear, you can see where the sound came from: that’s Bay Area music all day long,” Zaytoven said of “Icy” in a \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/jrbRSK0Dkfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2018 interview with \u003cem>The Sana G Morning Show\u003c/em>\u003c/a> on KMEL. “[The Bay] still has a funky instrumentation sound to it, so even when I’m in the South making just gutter beats, I still got them melodic sounds going on. That’s what attached me to the Bay Area so much. … I definitely try to represent the Bay every time I get. This is where I got my game from!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2021, the producer returned to his local roots and worked with EMPIRE to release the compilation \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13895586/a-salute-to-san-francisco-rap\">\u003cem>Zaytoven Presents: Fo15\u003c/em>\u003c/a> on April 15 (or 415 Day, in homage to San Francisco’s area code). Up-and-coming San Francisco artists on the collection included Lil Bean, Lil Pete, Lil Yee, KxNG Llama, Prezi and ZayBang — proving that the Bay Area-South pipeline is far from running dry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was molded in San Francisco, California,” Zaytoven added in his KMEL interview. “That’s why I represent the Bay Area.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925986\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13925986\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Zaytoven performs at AfroTech 2019 at Oakland Marriott City Center on Nov. 9, 2019. \u003ccite>(Robin L Marshall/Getty Images for AfroTech)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>A cultural and philanthropic exchange\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Beyond business and beats, Northern California has made an imprint on the South’s cultural institutions thanks to philanthropy and outreach from artists like Tupac and E-40. Though Tupac is considered a West Coast icon, surprisingly, Too Short called him “the heartbeat of the South” when I interviewed him in 2004.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I used to be at the club and the DJ would put on records off \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> because \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> came out right after Pac died,” said Too Short, who lived in Atlanta in the mid-’90s. “You would swear that nigga was on stage! The whole damn crowd be singing every word. It would be like a concert, and he ain’t even there.” [aside postid='arts_13924126,arts_13924224,arts_13925177']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Towards the end of his life, Tupac \u003ca href=\"https://people.com/archive/all-eyes-on-her-vol-48-no-22/\">moved his mother Afeni Shakur\u003c/a> (who was originally from North Carolina) to Stone Mountain, Georgia, a suburb near Atlanta where he purchased his first home. Afeni operated the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts in the former Confederate town from 2005 to 2015. It was an extension of the annual PACamp that Afeni started in 1997 as a free summer arts program for youth ages 12–18.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When I visited the arts center a few months after its opening, I was struck by a statue of Tupac in the Peace Garden, which represented how he might have looked had he been allowed to grow older. It was remarkable that Tupac’s legacy was housed in Georgia instead of the Bay Area or Los Angeles. And his influence resonated beyond the Peach State throughout the South.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just saw how much of an influence Tupac had on Master P and No Limit, how much of an influence Tupac had on the whole city of Atlanta, Georgia and on Houston, Texas, and just how much influence on that whole ‘\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J90bUNuJ20k\">Bankhead [Bounce]\u003c/a>’ and getting crunk certain songs off \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> had on that shit,” Too Short said. “Tupac was so much crunk — his shit was so crunk as far as what crunk meant, you know what I’m saying? He was a part of it even though he had just passed away. But he was a part of it. The \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> album was in it. It was in the scene.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925976\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 766px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13925976\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Tupac-Statue-By-Tamara-Palmer.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"766\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Tupac-Statue-By-Tamara-Palmer.jpeg 766w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Tupac-Statue-By-Tamara-Palmer-160x214.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 766px) 100vw, 766px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tupac statue at the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts in Stone Mountain, Georgia in 2006. \u003ccite>(Tamara Palmer)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Two decades after the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center opened, E-40 would make his own impact on a southern state by investing in its young artists. The veteran rapper still has family in Texas and Louisiana, and studied at Grambling State University in Louisiana for a year. Although he didn’t complete his degree there, he made a lasting contribution with \u003ca href=\"https://www.complex.com/music/e40-100k-donation-hbcu-alma-mater-grambling\">his $100,000 donation\u003c/a> to the university’s marching band and music program, which now boasts the brand-new Earl “E-40” Stevens Sound Recording Studio on campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Music is my passion,” E-40 said while presenting the check in February 2023. “Music is therapeutic and healing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The South wasn’t just where E-40 spent formative years as a young musician. It also influenced a key part of his artistry: his slang, much of which he has invented himself over the years. “Of course, I don’t make up all the fuckin’ words in the world, but I make up at least 75% of the shit I say,” said E-40 in a 2004 \u003cem>Murder Dog\u003c/em> interview. “The other 25%, I get words from down South, choppin’ it up with my folks down South.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The familial, cultural and business ties between the Bay Area and the South are strong and diverse, and have been for generations. It’s time to appreciate and nurture these bonds. And the beat goes on: as this back-and-forth flow of influence continues to percolate behind the scenes, the future is looking rather funky.\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>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"http://www.thetamarapalmer.com/\">Tamara Palmer\u003c/a> is a DJ and the author of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.amazon.com/Country-Fried-Soul-Adventures-Hip-Hop/dp/0879308575\">Country Fried Soul: Adventures in Dirty South Hip-Hop\u003c/a>\u003cem> (Backbeat Books, 2005). She’s currently working on a personal rap anthology called \u003c/em>California Love\u003cem>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Mapping the connections between Master P, E-40, Outkast, Too Short, UGK and others in hip-hop's Bay Area-Southern pipeline.",
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"title": "How the Bay Area and the South Became Hip-Hop Family | KQED",
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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 Bay Area hip-hop history, with new content dropping all throughout 2023.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cspan style=\"font-size: 4.6875em;float: left;line-height: 0.733em;padding: 0.05em 0.1em 0 0;font-family: times, serif, georgia\">“P\u003c/span>icture me on a tour bus in 1995 with a bunch of West Coast artists,” Percy “Master P” Miller wrote in his 2007 book \u003cem>Guaranteed Success\u003c/em>. “My brother and I were the only artists from the South. We were the opening act, and they wouldn’t even play our music on the bus.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At the time, in 1995, Master P was near the end of his four-year tenure as the owner of a small record store, No Limit Records & Tapes, in Richmond. The New Orleans-raised artist had relocated to the Bay Area to attend Merritt College, and he opened his San Pablo Avenue shop with $10,000 he’d inherited from a malpractice settlement after his grandfather’s death.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I took that money and made my first financial investment: I bought a record store that was going out of business in an urban community,” wrote Master P. He negotiated six months of free rent in exchange for improving the retail space. “As a result, my record store was a booming success and, for the first time, I began to experience a comfortable lifestyle.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not everyone was checking for Master P and No Limit, though. In addition to being shunned by his tour mates, San Francisco radio station KMEL wouldn’t play his music — “even though I done sold more records than any other artist in the Bay Area,” he \u003ca href=\"https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Rap-s-Master-P-Has-a-Master-Plan-Media-rejects-2824304.php\">told Billy Jam for a 1997 \u003cem>San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em> article\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the time of that interview, Master P was back in New Orleans, living an ostentatious multimillionaire lifestyle. No Limit had become a successful label with national distribution through Priority Records, and its massive sales funded Master P’s ever-expanding business empire. (By 1998, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/13/arts/gangsta-rapper-turns-entrepreneur-28-master-p-has-created-one-biggest.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">No Limit had cumulative record sales totaling $120 million\u003c/a>, according to \u003cem>The New York Times\u003c/em>.) He’d had an entrepreneurial spirit that dated back to his childhood, but it was in the Bay Area — home of the “out the trunk” independent rap hustle since the early ’80s — where he absorbed the game that facilitated his nationwide success.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925975\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13925975\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-800x1097.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1097\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-800x1097.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1020x1399.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-160x219.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-768x1053.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1120x1536.jpg 1120w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1493x2048.jpg 1493w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-1920x2634.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-461087774-scaled.jpg 1866w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Master P attends the 26th Annual American Music Awards in Los Angeles. By the time of this photo, in 1999, his label No Limit had grossed over $120 million in album sales. \u003ccite>(Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Master P’s empire is just one example of the ongoing cultural exchange between the Bay Area and the South, which goes back decades: During the Second Great Migration between 1940 and 1970, Black Southerners \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11910890/how-oaklands-16th-street-train-station-helped-build-west-oakland-and-the-modern-civil-rights-movement\">flocked to cities like Oakland, Richmond and San Francisco\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the years that followed, their descendants helped establish the Bay Area’s distinctive hip-hop culture, whose sound and independent business model then traveled back to Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston and Memphis. Close observers of the rap scenes in these Southern cities will find strong ties to the Bay Area, and in turn, Southern rappers, producers and promoters have had a sizable stamp on the Bay Area’s own scene. This close kinship between the two regions undeniably shaped hip-hop history — and it continues to this day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>[Listen to our ‘From the Bay to the South’ playlist, curated by Tamara Palmer, on \u003ca href=\"https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5K9S3wYkGHf9hk7k8sOdv6?si=f46124d722c84c0b\">Spotify\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeGdTT0--8KiiMa4o9t3tOxhGg4lfIPEA\">YouTube\u003c/a>.]\u003c/em>\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/5K9S3wYkGHf9hk7k8sOdv6?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\u003ch2>The Bay-to-South business pipeline\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Master P and No Limit weren’t alone. Over the years, artists and record labels all across the South adopted the Bay Area’s independent business model and used it to achieve great success.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Selling tapes out the trunk of the car, that was pretty much patented by E-40, Too $hort, Tony Draper at Suave House, Rap-A-Lot, people like that,” Vallejo-born rapper Earl “E-40” Stevens said in an interview for my 2004 book about Southern rap, shouting out two Houston labels. “Then came along the Master Ps of the world and the Cash Moneys. They watched the game and did what they supposed to do, and now they reaching for the stars.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In a \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/4mrKNCTlv0s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2019 interview with Sway Calloway\u003c/a>, Master P seemed to agree with this assessment. He referred to E-40’s uncle, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssiJQSm-Ln4\">soul singer\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/26/arts/music/the-first-family-of-hyphy-pops-a-collar-whatd-they-say.html\">entrepreneur\u003c/a> Saint Charles Thurman, as the “OG” music distributor who taught him how to release records independently. Watching Thurman’s success running the small distribution company Solar Music Group, Master P realized: “I don’t need to wait for the big companies to push me, I’m going to get out there and push myself,” he recalled.\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/ErwejjBZRMo'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/ErwejjBZRMo'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>In turn, Master P along with other Southern artists, DJs and promoters played a crucial role in the national success of Bay Area artists like E-40 in the ’90s. Taking a cue from Herm Lewis, the Hunters Point street activist who \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvTaoNzFGHU&list=PLU1OibAu4SezP41p6YZUfkokGSFMhlz3Y\">popularized artist compilations\u003c/a>, Master P released \u003cem>West Coast Bad Boyz, Vol. 1: Anotha Level of the Game\u003c/em> in 1994. It included contributions from the Bay Area’s JT the Bigga Figga, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13923766/rbl-posse-a-lesson-to-be-learned-album-cover\">RBL Posse\u003c/a>, Rappin’ 4-Tay, Ray Luv and Dre Dog (now Andre Nickatina).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Master P would continue to release compilations after he moved No Limit back home to Louisiana. In 1997, the label’s breakout year, \u003cem>West Coast Bad Boyz II\u003c/em> starred Mac Dre, E-A-Ski and Sacramento rappers C-Bo, Lunasicc and Marvaless, and was dedicated to Tupac Shakur. Even more successful was the soundtrack to the 1997 movie \u003cem>I’m Bout It\u003c/em>, with E-40, B-Legit, E-A-Ski and JT The Bigga Figga, and which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and No. 4 on the Billboard 200.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>E-40 also credits DJs and promoters like Meen Green in Dallas, Greg Street in Atlanta and Marvin “Jabber Jaws” Williams in Shreveport for helping build his career on the radio and in clubs in those early years. Forming a constellation across the south, they booked him for gigs and put his records in rotation. \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Though streaming has long replaced the “out the trunk” era, the Bay Area’s influence on independent music distribution remains. These days, the savviest artists from the South know that they need to hit San Francisco to strike a lucrative business deal with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/ourturbulentdecade/2012-empire-brought-the-music-industry-back-to-san-francisco\">EMPIRE\u003c/a>, now the world’s leading hip-hop distributor. When I visited the company’s well-appointed Financial District penthouse office in 2019, I met the remarkable Memphis rapper Adolph “Young Dolph” Thornton.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I can’t shake,” he said warmly when introduced, offering a big hug in place of a stiff hand. Dolph, who was later murdered in his hometown in 2021, was responsible for two gold-certified records on EMPIRE’s wall. His EMPIRE deal also enabled him to sign and develop his own artists, such as fellow Memphis rapper Key Glock, setting them up to win via collaborations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It wasn’t the first time the Bay Area played an important role in a Memphis artist’s success. Young Dolph’s one-time rival, Yo Gotti, made his mid-2010s comeback with hits like “Act Right,” produced by Pinole’s P-Lo, and “Law,” featuring E-40. (E-40 also \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIeGHPGSyRM\">recorded\u003c/a> with the late “Queen of Memphis,” Three Six Mafia’s Gangsta Boo, who \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/GangstaBooQOM/status/185053550299193344\">once proclaimed\u003c/a>: “SHOUT OUT TO THE BAY AREA!!! I ROCKS WITH YALL THE LONG WAAAAY.”)\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/8HYXw1vADFQ'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/8HYXw1vADFQ'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Going back further, musical and cultural influence has also flowed from Memphis to the Bay. MC Hammer \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/mchammer/status/27278318672?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">admitted on Twitter\u003c/a> that he learned the pre-crunk, pre-hyphy “get buck” style of dancing (later known as gangsta walking) in Memphis in the late ’80s. And iconic Memphis duo 8Ball & MJG worked with marquee Bay Area names like E-40, Mac Mall, Rappin’ 4-Tay and Spice 1 on both group and solo projects in the late ’90s and early aughts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even though Atlanta had become the rap industry’s power center by the time EMPIRE launched in San Francisco in 2010, keeping EMPIRE’s headquarters in the Bay Area is a core part of the company’s mission. “San Francisco has always been a place where incredible creatives were bred, but few of them are here at this point,” EMPIRE Vice President Nima Etminan told me in 2019. “Even in the music scene, when you look at it, a Sway [Calloway from SiriusXM], or an Ebro [Darden of Hot 97 in New York], or a [early Apple Music exec] Larry Jackson … all came from here, but people don’t really realize it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think [being in the] Financial District on the 24th floor in downtown San Francisco is definitely not necessarily the cheapest route to take,” Etminan continued, “but it’s a statement. It’s like, you’ve got to come \u003cem>here\u003c/em> to see us.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The Bay’s influence on bounce and trap, and the South’s mark on hyphy\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Bay Area, Atlanta, Houston and New Orleans share a love for big, trunk-rattling beats, and collaborations between the cities’ artists have resulted in influential hits. Atlanta hitmaker Lil Jon bumped Too Short in his ride in high school, and later produced Short’s “Blow The Whistle” and E-40’s “Tell Me When to Go,” the twin beacons that introduced hyphy to the rest of the nation.\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/2GZbaXdK8Js'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/2GZbaXdK8Js'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>In turn, producers from the Bay Area have facilitated crucial Southern records. The late KMEL DJ Cameron Paul’s track “Brown Beats” helped form the \u003ca href=\"https://1079ishot.com/new-orleans-bounce-cameron-paul-brown-beats/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">spine of New Orleans bounce music\u003c/a>. Houston’s DJ Screw, who passed away in 2000, recorded a session in his home studio with Texas-born Oaklander Spice 1, and was known to feature plenty of Bay Area rap songs on his influential “Grey Tape” cassette mixes. Mike Dean, who produced for Houston’s Rap-A-Lot Records, crafted beats for \u003cem>Stackin Chips\u003c/em>, the 1997 debut album of Keak Da Sneak’s group 3X Krazy, and Bay Area artists like Yukmouth (whose Smoke-A-Lot Records is distributed by Rap-A-Lot), Seagram and producer Tone Capone recorded for the label in the ’90s and early aughts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just outside of Houston in Port Arthur, Chad “Pimp C” Butler of UGK shared a close friendship and musical camaraderie with Too Short. In 2007, the night before he died, Pimp C appeared onstage at Too Short’s show at the now-defunct House of Blues on the Sunset Strip, according to Julia Beverly’s biography \u003cem>Sweet Jones: Pimp C’s Trill Life Story\u003c/em>. In what’s said to be \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JK3HLJk8iMY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">his final interview\u003c/a>, Pimp C credited the Oakland legend for his career longevity: “I just follow what Too Short told me. He told me ‘Don’t Stop Rappin’.’ I just kept on making the kind of records that the people down where I live at like.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Outkast, whose Andre 3000 has acknowledged the Bay Area as a notable early influence, broadcast an alternative rap sound out of Atlanta in the ’90s. “I have to — I \u003cem>have\u003c/em> to — give a shout to the Hieroglyphics crew and Souls Of Mischief, because as kids we were hugely influenced by them,” Andre 3000 told \u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/sections/microphonecheck/2014/09/26/351559126/andre-3000-you-can-do-anything-from-atlanta\">NPR’s \u003cem>Microphone Check\u003c/em>\u003c/a> in 2014. And Outkast’s Big Boi was just as direct about another Bay Area influence: “One of my favorite rappers happens to be Too Short,” he rapped on the 2010 track “Fo Yo Sorrows.”\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/qsUSlR7tTEs'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/qsUSlR7tTEs'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>Later, as trap music began to fill the Southern streets, a Bay Area-bred producer helped develop its sound and take it to the national airwaves.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Xavier “Zaytoven” Dotson was born to a military family in Germany and spent his formative years in San Francisco before joining his parents in Atlanta, where a giant, free basement studio at their new Georgia home beckoned. Within a year, when he wasn’t away from the studio playing organ for his parents’ church, Zaytoven produced Gucci Mane’s breakout 2005 hit “Icy.” Word quickly got around the proverbial trap that Zaytoven’s basement was \u003cem>the\u003c/em> place to record, and his client list grew to include Future, Usher, Travis Scott, the late Young Dolph and many others.\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/Io6D5tAK8Ks'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/Io6D5tAK8Ks'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>“Even though it’s with artists from the South, you can hear, you can see where the sound came from: that’s Bay Area music all day long,” Zaytoven said of “Icy” in a \u003ca href=\"https://youtu.be/jrbRSK0Dkfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2018 interview with \u003cem>The Sana G Morning Show\u003c/em>\u003c/a> on KMEL. “[The Bay] still has a funky instrumentation sound to it, so even when I’m in the South making just gutter beats, I still got them melodic sounds going on. That’s what attached me to the Bay Area so much. … I definitely try to represent the Bay every time I get. This is where I got my game from!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2021, the producer returned to his local roots and worked with EMPIRE to release the compilation \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13895586/a-salute-to-san-francisco-rap\">\u003cem>Zaytoven Presents: Fo15\u003c/em>\u003c/a> on April 15 (or 415 Day, in homage to San Francisco’s area code). Up-and-coming San Francisco artists on the collection included Lil Bean, Lil Pete, Lil Yee, KxNG Llama, Prezi and ZayBang — proving that the Bay Area-South pipeline is far from running dry.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I was molded in San Francisco, California,” Zaytoven added in his KMEL interview. “That’s why I represent the Bay Area.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925986\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13925986\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/GettyImages-1186811732.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Zaytoven performs at AfroTech 2019 at Oakland Marriott City Center on Nov. 9, 2019. \u003ccite>(Robin L Marshall/Getty Images for AfroTech)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>A cultural and philanthropic exchange\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Beyond business and beats, Northern California has made an imprint on the South’s cultural institutions thanks to philanthropy and outreach from artists like Tupac and E-40. Though Tupac is considered a West Coast icon, surprisingly, Too Short called him “the heartbeat of the South” when I interviewed him in 2004.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I used to be at the club and the DJ would put on records off \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> because \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> came out right after Pac died,” said Too Short, who lived in Atlanta in the mid-’90s. “You would swear that nigga was on stage! The whole damn crowd be singing every word. It would be like a concert, and he ain’t even there.” \u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Towards the end of his life, Tupac \u003ca href=\"https://people.com/archive/all-eyes-on-her-vol-48-no-22/\">moved his mother Afeni Shakur\u003c/a> (who was originally from North Carolina) to Stone Mountain, Georgia, a suburb near Atlanta where he purchased his first home. Afeni operated the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts in the former Confederate town from 2005 to 2015. It was an extension of the annual PACamp that Afeni started in 1997 as a free summer arts program for youth ages 12–18.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When I visited the arts center a few months after its opening, I was struck by a statue of Tupac in the Peace Garden, which represented how he might have looked had he been allowed to grow older. It was remarkable that Tupac’s legacy was housed in Georgia instead of the Bay Area or Los Angeles. And his influence resonated beyond the Peach State throughout the South.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just saw how much of an influence Tupac had on Master P and No Limit, how much of an influence Tupac had on the whole city of Atlanta, Georgia and on Houston, Texas, and just how much influence on that whole ‘\u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J90bUNuJ20k\">Bankhead [Bounce]\u003c/a>’ and getting crunk certain songs off \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> had on that shit,” Too Short said. “Tupac was so much crunk — his shit was so crunk as far as what crunk meant, you know what I’m saying? He was a part of it even though he had just passed away. But he was a part of it. The \u003cem>Makaveli\u003c/em> album was in it. It was in the scene.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_13925976\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 766px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13925976\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Tupac-Statue-By-Tamara-Palmer.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"766\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Tupac-Statue-By-Tamara-Palmer.jpeg 766w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/Tupac-Statue-By-Tamara-Palmer-160x214.jpeg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 766px) 100vw, 766px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Tupac statue at the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts in Stone Mountain, Georgia in 2006. \u003ccite>(Tamara Palmer)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Two decades after the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center opened, E-40 would make his own impact on a southern state by investing in its young artists. The veteran rapper still has family in Texas and Louisiana, and studied at Grambling State University in Louisiana for a year. Although he didn’t complete his degree there, he made a lasting contribution with \u003ca href=\"https://www.complex.com/music/e40-100k-donation-hbcu-alma-mater-grambling\">his $100,000 donation\u003c/a> to the university’s marching band and music program, which now boasts the brand-new Earl “E-40” Stevens Sound Recording Studio on campus.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Music is my passion,” E-40 said while presenting the check in February 2023. “Music is therapeutic and healing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The South wasn’t just where E-40 spent formative years as a young musician. It also influenced a key part of his artistry: his slang, much of which he has invented himself over the years. “Of course, I don’t make up all the fuckin’ words in the world, but I make up at least 75% of the shit I say,” said E-40 in a 2004 \u003cem>Murder Dog\u003c/em> interview. “The other 25%, I get words from down South, choppin’ it up with my folks down South.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The familial, cultural and business ties between the Bay Area and the South are strong and diverse, and have been for generations. It’s time to appreciate and nurture these bonds. And the beat goes on: as this back-and-forth flow of influence continues to percolate behind the scenes, the future is looking rather funky.\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>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003ca href=\"http://www.thetamarapalmer.com/\">Tamara Palmer\u003c/a> is a DJ and the author of \u003c/em>\u003ca href=\"https://www.amazon.com/Country-Fried-Soul-Adventures-Hip-Hop/dp/0879308575\">Country Fried Soul: Adventures in Dirty South Hip-Hop\u003c/a>\u003cem> (Backbeat Books, 2005). She’s currently working on a personal rap anthology called \u003c/em>California Love\u003cem>\u003cem>.\u003c/em>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"city-arts": {
"id": "city-arts",
"title": "City Arts & Lectures",
"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.cityarts.net/",
"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
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"rss": "https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"
}
},
"closealltabs": {
"id": "closealltabs",
"title": "Close All Tabs",
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"info": "Close All Tabs breaks down how digital culture shapes our world through thoughtful insights and irreverent humor.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
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"order": 1
},
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"id": "code-switch-life-kit",
"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"meta": {
"site": "radio",
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},
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
"airtime": "THU 10pm, FRI 1am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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}
},
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"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
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"freakonomics-radio": {
"id": "freakonomics-radio",
"title": "Freakonomics Radio",
"info": "Freakonomics Radio is a one-hour award-winning podcast and public-radio project hosted by Stephen Dubner, with co-author Steve Levitt as a regular guest. It is produced in partnership with WNYC.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
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},
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"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
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"link": "/radio/program/fresh-air",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/381444908/podcast.xml"
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"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510051/podcast.xml"
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},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
"title": "Hidden Brain",
"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/423302056/hidden-brain",
"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
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},
"how-i-built-this": {
"id": "how-i-built-this",
"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this",
"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
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},
"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
"meta": {
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"order": 15
},
"link": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
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"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/2p3Fifq96nw9BPcmFdIq0o?si=39209f7b25774f38",
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"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/6c3dd23c-93fb-4aab-97ba-1725fa6315f1/hyphenaci%C3%B3n",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC2275451163"
}
},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1492194549",
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}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
"meta": {
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"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
"subscribe": {
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
}
},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Masters-of-Scale-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "http://mastersofscale.app.link/",
"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/464615685/mind-shift-podcast",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share",
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}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
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"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
}
},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm",
"meta": {
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"source": "wnyc"
},
"link": "/radio/program/on-the-media",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"
}
},
"pbs-newshour": {
"id": "pbs-newshour",
"title": "PBS NewsHour",
"info": "Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PBS-News-Hour-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/",
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"source": "pbs"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pbs-newshour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/",
"rss": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"
}
},
"perspectives": {
"id": "perspectives",
"title": "Perspectives",
"tagline": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991",
"info": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Perspectives_Tile_Final.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Perspectives",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/perspectives/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 14
},
"link": "/perspectives",
"subscribe": {
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"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432309616/perspectives",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/category/perspectives/feed/",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvcGVyc3BlY3RpdmVzL2NhdGVnb3J5L3BlcnNwZWN0aXZlcy9mZWVkLw"
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},
"planet-money": {
"id": "planet-money",
"title": "Planet Money",
"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
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