Our Moms, The Early 90's... The After Shock of Reganomics,
CRACK, GUNS, PRISON, GANGS, GRAFF WRITERS AND
FAST CASH... Sun Tsu's ART OF WAR.. Nat Turner, Basquiat,
Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Che, Emilliano Zappata,
John Brown, Angela Davis, Assata Shakur, The Black Panther Party,
Kung Fu Movies, BEER, WEED (only the STICKYEST of the ICKY),
PRINCE, Bjork, Public Enemy, Jimi Hendrix, BAD BRAINS,
TUPAC (both), Jay "El Presidente" Z, NWA, Nas, Guns n' Roses,
Rage Against the Machine, E-40, System of a Down, Deftones,
Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath, Bone Thugs, DIPSET, ICE-T,
Dj Quick... ahh the list is too F..$%ing long, ya dig...
I'm just too tired to even think about it....
Rock and roll has been awaiting the coming of Game Rebellion for a long time: An all Black all outta Brooklyn band whose metal, punk and rudeboy skanking licks sound as credible and crunchy as their hiphop lyrics and headnodding bounce. Game makes the difficult sound effortless and the miraculous seem second nature: A hard rock band with a B-boy MC who can actually spit? No problem. A street worthy mixtape of hiphop anthems created by a band that actually rocks and flows? No problem.
Game Rebellion has been making big waves on the New York Afro-punk/Black Rock scene for about three years. In that short time they've ventured out even further out to slam heads rock houses and muddy the lilywhite waters of alt-rock from NYC and Cali to Puerto Rico and the UK. They just may be the best-kept secret in music right now (their vaunted endorsement sealed with a kiss from Sade notwithstanding).
A band of rowdy brothers with higher education pedigrees--Yohimbe and Netic have college paper, Chief Med is a qualified acupuncturist-- they've got nice skills on the mic and book learned brains and aren't afraid if today's dumbered-down hiphop knows it. They're no strangers to the classroom, the rehearsal room, the protest line or one suspects, give their brand of gangsta-militancy, the police.
Up until now there hasn't been a full-length Game Rebellion recording that adequately captured their dual mastery of hiphop's beats and rhymes driven swagger and assault-sonics and rock and roll's action-figure machismo. Up until now you haven't heard anybody dare attempt a project like Game Rebellion's Searching for Rick Rubin--a balls-out-balls-to-the-wall remix/reimagining/re-playing of tunes that bear the stamp of Rubin's studio-magic wand.Because Game got gusto and gumtption they got up up for the challenge of instrumentally replaying and rewriting songs that made hiphop matter in the 80s and 90s.
For Game Rebellion's MC Netic the choice of Rubin as a guiding light was a no-brainer. "He was the first guy to get it right as far as mixing the sounds of hiphop and rock. I also did my thesis on him in college."
Reading is fundamental with Game--especially with respect to the history of culture, politics and hiphop. Game's keyboard, trumpet and hypeman Emi recalls a night spent on Google scavenging for all things Rubin and finding not just Run DMCs "My Adidas", PEs "Public Enemy No.1", The Geto Boys "My Minds Playing Tricks on Me", Jay Z''s "99 Problems" and LL's 'Going Back To Cali'-- reinventions of which did make Searching''s cut (as 'did Red Hot Chili Pepper's "Under The Bridge" and The Dixie Chick's) but Sir Mix A Lot's 'Baby Got Back' which, strangely, did not.
Though hiphop and rock share common ancestors, like Mama Africa and Fats Domino, and though both idioms now share common audiences, bridging the two always requires mad skills and realness to convince true fans that you're not a joke, a wankster, a limp bizkit. For the record, Game Rebellion is that band, yeah, we're talking those kinda Negroes, New Africans, the kind intent on who bringing us a walloping slice of The Other Real Black Experience-- that louder, darker and prouder strain mainstream media loves to ignore, the one responsible for Jimi Hendrix, Public Enemy, Fishbone, Dead prez, among others.
After hearing Searchin' you suspect these Game Rebellion cats would fearlessly paratroop into a stadium full of Wu Tang Clan or Slayer fans, not flinch (or worse beg for peace, love and understanding), do their stompdown thang, and leave waving hardcore Wu or Slayer heads on a stick.
You'll likely want to see them wreck the house for yourself before you'll trust that assessment on faith. Until then check out Searching and just know that everything Game's doing here they can do from the stage even more boom-bip-astically, MC-nastily, hardcore-actively--no little thanks due to Game's bass and drummer combo Black Steel and Mr Pink who never heard a jazz,rock,soul or hiphop groove they couldnt mosh to the floor, poplock into obedience, and harness like a tornado.
If you dug '99 Problems' before you're about dig it some more, (and if you're a radical maybe even more than before) when you hear Netic twist the hook's provocative declaration into "99 Problems and a Bush aint one of them" (and then compare the lame suckaduck in the white house to daddysboy AJ Soprano.) And if you live for the evil chromatics of a punk-prog band like Tool than you'll likely get more live when you hear how guitarists Yohimbe and Chief Med piledrive the riff from hell into this ravenous track. What Game does with "My Adidas" is pure bebop theory in action--lacing one of the biggest and most beloved hooks in hiphop history with their own black-market sneaker-pimp scenario. Netic and Yohimbe both speak of the trepidation that came with this project, the mandate for it "not be corny" looming like a vulture above all else. Corny they've avoided for sure (whew!) but fortunately not at the expense of rampaging angst, militancy, wit and youthful exuberance.
Much love to the GAME REBELLION family! It was nice seeing yall this weekend & I look forward to the show on Wednesday! I will give you a shout later to talk details. Much Respect
yall got to come out for this one. big bay Geezus is gonna be in town.
The New York Launch off party for the Trust Your Hustle Mural Tour. This is a Mural Unveiling and Dance Party to celebrate the beginning of a 6 week Mural Tour across the United States with members of the Trust Your Struggle Collective from the Bay Area and New York.
Trust Your Struggle Collective is a group of community organizers, teachers, and designers dedicated to work towards social justice and community building through the medium of art.
Come celebrate on one of the sickest private rooftops in Brooklyn:
wuttup fellow rebels...just givin a shout...i missed leeks party, so i'm wonderin when i get see yall rock again...u can catch us at Trash bar on sunday the 8th...9pm...the revolution will be Live! yall...one
FRIDAY, JUNE 13TH 9PM-4AM *FREE BEFORE 11PM/ $5 AFTER w Flier, rsvp or email print out TWO FLOORS DRINK SPECIALS Free T shirt giveaways from 1SoulDesigns @ DEITY 368 ATLANTIC AVENUE BETWEEN HOYT and BOND
SUBWAY: A,C,G to Hoyt-Schermerhorn, 2,3 Nevins 4,5 & Q to Atlantic ave, F or G to Bergen street
Come enjoy the hardest hitting dj's from coast to coast and see some of the most amazing artist in the country. This party will also be the release party for my brother Elan Vytal aka DJ Scientific's new track and video called, 'Feelin Like'. The brother Scientific aka Elan Vytal is from the Bay Area and has been on the grind here in NY since 2002. Along his side we will have my brother DJ Cato aka Congri representin the NYC, BAy Area Dj Daniela, LadyCreme, dj mellow g (el Barrio) and yours truelly Dj Profeta with live percussion instrumentation spinning a mix of salsa, hip hop, funk, soulful house, reggae, and other world music.
We also have live performances by Rob Murat and Unconscious Logic with Matt Z on violin!! Live visual and body painting by Trust Your Struggle Join us and bridge the coasts!! Please spread the word and pass this email along to all the homies. Come and enjoy this historic event!
This is an official invite to our first MAD HELLA party. This Wednesday May 14th at 8pm we will launching Hella Mad from BK to the Bay party. This monthly party will pay tribute to the daily, monthly and yearly commuters on the bay area-Brooklyn shuttle. Big up all Brooklyn and Bay Area Massive!
The event will be held at 507 Lounge which is located @ 507 Grand Street between Lorimer St and Union Ave in Williamsburge, Brooklyn/ G train to Metropolitan L train to Lorimer. Come enjoy the hardest hitting dj's from coast to coast and build on creating a conscious community of artists, educators, and everyday change agents.
This party will be hosted by Fran Boogie (all the way from the Sucka Free Pacific Standard Time Crew) and include an intro dj set by DJ Profeta. DJ Laylo ( NYC, Liberation Lounge) and DJ Sake 1 (San Francisco, Local 1200 Crew) will take the party to the next level spinning a mix of hip hop, reggae, and old school latin music.
Happy Hour 1/2 price drinks from 8-10pm Free T shirt giveaways from 1SoulDesigns No Cover.. FREE FREE FREEE Spread the word and come and enjoy this historic event!