“…a savvy synthesis of musical language and a forceful, yet conversational style of writing-out-loud… He’s that guy sitting across from you on the G line, suddenly shouting out not in subway-craziness but in epiphany. Think much-maligned Eminem in his his most devastatingly personal moments… This is a guy who knows words and music and the ways in which they either cooperate or compete… The Wilkman cometh…”- Tom Chesek
Listen for music written and performed by Rock WILK on MTV's "Making The Band 4" and "The Real World"!
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Influences
influenced by the freedom to speak, to express ones self in an artistic manner.
"No Person is Your Friend That Demands Your Silence and Denies You Your Right to Grow -Alice Walker"
people who influence me...............
My Grandmother, Grandfather, Mother, Father, Stevie Wonder, Donny Hathaway, Spike Lee, KRS-One, Eminem, Jay Z, Run DMC, John Coltraine, Miles Davis, Black Ice, Wes Montgomery, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King Jr, Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Red Auerbach, Natasha Kubis, Common, Talib Kweli, Richie Hart, Chris Spain, Bobby McFerrin, Prince, Luther Vandross, Justin Timberlake, Herbie Hancock, Michael Raysses, Christina Aguilera, Beck, TM Stevens, Famous Famiglia [best pizza in NYC and throughout the world!!!]
NEW YORK CITY, THE GREATEST CITY IN THE WORLD!!!!!!!!!!
Marty Glickman, Lloyd Phillips, Michael Wilk, Amy Wilk, Nicky Kalliongis, Bob Cutarella, Thomas Rome, Will @ "Food 4 Thought" in Bed Stuy, Rasi in Ft Greene, Pierre and Raoul at Le Grand Dakar with all the great food and music
Jim and Phil Wharton, Tommy Nohilly, Quincy Jones, Cinema Paradiso, Crash, Turtles Can Fly, The Tuvian throat singer I heard at Yankee Stadium,
The Aleems, The G Train,
Philly Frank of Classon Ave, Vernard of 95th St, Donnie Hausig,
I could go on and on.......... my day to day life influences me all the time because I never take anything for granted............
Sounds Like
"WILK is the Muhammad Ali of hip hop and spoken word...floating like a butterfly, stinging like a bee.
Looking into his eyes when he mans the machine gun of his tongue is like looking into a bunker, only to watch the tracers he dispatches as they light the sky around him, for all of us to see.
thanks for the light, WILK!"
and by the way..................
"mr. wilk's song on katrina does more in :42 seconds to address the tragedy known as 'katrina' than the pathetic non-response of the federal government in the first three days after the flood.
speaking power to truth and speaking truth powerfully, wilk is an artistic bail-out in a time of spiritual bankruptcy...
keep the riches flowing, mr. wilk."
Michael Raysses, writer/actor/National Public Radio commentator
“… He’s that guy sitting across from you on the G line, suddenly shouting out not in subway-craziness but in epiphany. Think much-maligned Eminem in his most devastatingly personal moments… This is a guy who knows words and music and the ways in which they either cooperate or compete… The Wilkman cometh…”- Tom Chesek, Red Bank Orbit
“We caught a preview of Rock WILK’s show last week at SICA’s “Eclectia” and highly recommend catching this intense, emphatic performer”- The Tri City News
some people say Justin Timberlake, Eminem, Beck,... It really depends upon the song you happen to be listening to. Truly, I don't think I sound like ANYONE ELSE. I'm honored to be mentioned with any of those guys, and I'm certainly influenced by all of them, but I think I have my own sound. If I were to be objective, here's what I really think............
Really.............sounds alot like this dude...................
and he uses stuff like this only AFTER he writes his songs, to just kinda see what happens...........
but sometimes, he also sounds like this guy.............
nah, he definitely reminds me of this cat, yea, sounds like him, for sure...
but I'm POSITIVE I saw him singing into this little recorder, some shit like that, on the A Train one day, yea, I'm SURE OF IT, THAT'S HIM. I saw a cop come up to him just to check him out. Must of thought he was up to no good, but I heard him tell the cop he was just writing some songs............. yea, that's the guy
So usually after I finish a song, I get out of the trains and go ride the bus to finish up the lyrics. Get my little composition notebook out [yup, just like the ones we all used in first grade] and listen to what I sang into my digital recorder to finish up the lyrics. So one week I got on the 5 Bus on Riverside Drive, 3 days in a row, pretty much at the same time each day, and I notice I have the same bus driver 3 days in a row, very unusual for New York City.
I like riding the 5, down Riverside Dr. and then down Broadway once we hit 72nd Street, because then we're gonna hit alot of traffic and that would always leave me with plenty of time to finish doing what I needed to do. By the time the bus got to the last stop on Houston Street in the Village, I'm done, song completed!
Funny story, though, the bus driver also noticed me. I could tell because when I looked up at the front of the bus, I noticed his eyes in the rear view mirror checking me out, his eyes lookin' a little suspicious, like "what's this guy doing riding my bus everyday? Sittin' in the back with this notebook, what's up with him?" Finally on the 3rd day, this bus driver stops the bus at 92nd Street, walks back to the rear of the bus where I was making my daily office, and asked me, "what are you doing?" I said, "what do you mean? I'm riding the bus". He said, "look, if you're here from the city evaluating me, just tell me, I can't take you sitting back there taking notes on my driving, so just tell me what's up". I told him I was just writing some songs, showed him the notebook and we had a good laugh. He said, "yo man, I've been driving this bus so slow all week because of you, thought I was in some kinda trouble". True New York City story...............
I think I "sound like" all a that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WILK debut solo album, "Broke Wide Open" CD available now!!!
New York City's own, Rock WILK is a socially and politically charged vocalist, spoken word performance artist and an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, his music has been described as "rap with melody". He writes all of his music and poetry while riding the subways of NYC. He has worked as a studio and touring background vocalist for many years as well, most recently singing with the legendary Patti LaBelle and contributing vocal and horn arrangements to the Grammy Award winning Les Paul compilation album, LES PAUL AND FRIENDS, appearing with such artists as Slash, Joan Osborne and Edgar Winter, among others.
Rock can be seen singing, rapping and participating in various poetry slams at some of the most legendary music and spoken word mecca's anywhere, like The Nuyorican Poets Cafe and The Bowery Poetry Club, both New York City landmarks, in addition to doing various different versions of performances for students from the kindergarten level, all the way to inspiring High School and College students. Rock is also currently working closely with The Revision Theater of Asbury Park, New Jersey, developing his play BROKE WIDE OPEN, in addition to doing outreach work with The Revision, lending his multifaceted performance abilities to bring theater, music and social awareness to the community at large. Rock WILK is hitting a different stage and rockin' a different mic almost every night of the week, constantly on the journey to continue his growth as an artist.
Rock's music can also be heard on such TV shows as MTV's "The Real World" and "Making The Band".
Got WILK?
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING!!!!!!
A ROCK, AND A HISTORIC PLACE
Wilk to power: Singer, poet, spoken word artist Rock Wilk offers the Shore audience a look at his “work in progress” known as “Ma’Plej’.”
By TOM CHESEK
"At first glance, it’s a matchup of vocalist and venue that’s simply strange — the kind of idea that just seems “too true to be good.”
At center stage, you’ve got the man known as Rock Wilk, a lifelong New Yorker recently (temporarily?) transplanted to the Shore. A veteran of the recording studio and a chronicler of stories. A poet who works in the cadences of the hip-hop tradition, and a character who claims to do his best writing while riding the subways.
Hovering above it all, you’ve got Stephen Crane (1871-1900), the renowned 19th century author whose Civil War novel The Red Badge of Courage has been taught in high schools for generations. A war correspondent and prolific journalist who served as an early editor of the Asbury Park (Shore) Press.
It’s at Crane’s house on Fourth Avenue in Asbury Park that Rock Wilk will be standing in the modestly scaled parlor on Thursday night; addressing visitors to the historic Victorian-era home with a program entitled Ma’Plej’, a “work in progress” that’s built upon a foundation of tracks from his self-released CD Broke Wide Open.
A collection of songs inspired by personal travail, current events and other messy aspects of life — yeah, real songs, with the veteran vocal arranger multi-tracking his vocals into the tight harmonies of millennial R&B sounds — the CD was performed and produced in its entirely by Wilk, inside his Bedford-Stuyvesant apartment. A look here brings you a telling of the artist’s life story, the making of the album, and a sharing of the view from his window.
There’s more to Ma’Plej’ — the title’s an acronym of Wilk family member names, as well as a representation of the author’s “pledge” to use his musical gifts for the betterment of the world — than a run-through of album cuts. It’s a performance piece that uses spoken word interludes and visual elements as well, to convey “a show that’s socially and politically charged.”
A serious guy whose steely-eyed intensity brings to mind the younger work of actor Vincent D’Onofrio, Wilk has a background that has allowed him to work on records by some of the era’s pre-eminent purveyors of pop......."
to read more, here's the link to the original story...
http://www.redbankorbit.com/wordpress/2008/08/a-rock-and-a-historic-place/more-1940
Music Blogs > Better Living Through MP3 > Free MP3s: Wilk Music, Plastic Little: Hip-Hop Hopefuls
Free MP3s: Wilk Music, Plastic Little: Hip-Hop Hopefuls
Posted Tue May 20 4:07pm PDT by Ken Micallef in Better Living Through MP3
"Dime store rappers are a nickel a dozen, just take a ride on the New York City subway or walk down a street through the borough of your choice. Personally, I miss the days when promising young hip-hoppers could be seen city-wide, carrying a big boombox on their shoulder, blasting crazy beats like a loud message to the masses. Now, they don't even bother with the CD player, these psych-cases just get in your face, spouting moronic verses while channeling their inner Tourette's syndrome. Sure, they carry pen and paper, but can they read?
Anyway, one young hip-hop soon-to-be-mogul has recently invaded my personal space--and it's all good. Wilk is a New York City native (da Bronx) who uses the subways for more than simple transportation. Riding the rails from his home in Bed-Sty way up to 207th street in Manhattan or down to Coney then round to the East Village, Wilk envisions our beautiful, if overly commercialized city, as his own personal inspiration pad. Broke Wide Open was written entirely on the New York City subway system. Does this remind me of Travis Bickle's response to the Yellow Cab dispatcher's inquiry as to whether he would work uptown and Jewish holidays, only to reply, "Anytime, anywhere, don't make no difference to me"? You bet it does! Wilk's Broke Wide Open is his personal mission statement of a journey through brain melting times.
You see, folks, our man Wilk is a real New Yawka. His friendships attest to his attachments to the Big Apple's history and entertainment circles. One of Wilk's best pals is movie producer mogul Jack Rollins. A really big cheese in this wacky industry of ours, Jack has managed none other than David Letterman, Dick Cavett, and Woody Allen, and is perhaps best known for his long time partnership with Charles H. Joffe, the executive producer for practically every Woody Allen film in existence. Not bad street cred, huh? Whenever Wilk was feeling depressed during the recording of Broke Wide Open, Rollins would simply say "Stay with it," no doubt the same advice he offered to everyone from Woody Allen to David Steinberg to Tiny Tim. That, and an egg cream is all a real New Yawka needs to get off his ass and turn lemons into lemonade.
Recorded entirely in Wilk's Bed-Sty loft, with our protagonist singing all the harmonies, playing all the instruments, and programming everything else, Broke Wide Open matches blue eyed soul vocalizing with a typical hip-hop template. Opener "Be Quiet" rides its own rails over a swaggering programmed hip-hop beat, but Wilk's vocals, which are rapper-lite at best, are actually more of the crooning, Daryl Hall (of Hall and Oates) school. Does it work? Only because Wilk's big choruses quickly grab our attention. "I need to find a white girl, I meant to say the right girl" is the kind of clever subversion Wilk offers over super catchy, infectious hooks.
There is enough evidence in the album's 14 tracks to suggest that Wilk is a crossover driven artist, from the honey dark, Creed worthy, hands-in-the-air harmonies of "Johnny" to the multi-tracked gospel chorus of "Stroke." He gets all weird and Travis Bickle-like (again) in "Song For My Mother," proclaims his "nice Jewish boy roots" with weight in the finger-snapping, throat-humming "What Did You Mean," and creates a Ninjatune worthy moment in "Jane's Talkin' Union."
Gospel inspired, R&B enabled, and "nice Jewish boy" sanctified, Wilk is on the way up. (See Wilkmusic.com for more madness)"
Ken Micaleff, Yahoo.com
WILK debut solo album, "Broke Wide Open" CD available now!!!
I’d love to say that the making of this album was the happiest time of my life. It certainly is the greatest opportunity that I’ve had since I decided to make music my career. The truth is, this has been one of the most challenging times of my life. My professional life, my personal life, everything seemed to have gotten to that place where you feel as if you’re running straight uphill in the deepest, sloppiest mud you could imagine, with a 100 lb bag on your back, hurricane winds blowing straight in your face, rain pounding down from a dark sky, so that you can’t even see where you’re going. But I always push ahead, because I’m optimistic by nature and I have faith that there’s always something exciting waiting for me, and something to learn from the struggle involved in getting up that hill. I try to enjoy the journey, listening to myself breathe as I keep climbing. Two things my mother always said to me, “everything always works out for the best”, and “beshert, beshert”, which say to me, “stay positive and good things will come”. I try to live each day with my mother in my ear.
My Mother:
My story begins before I was born. My mother, a single woman living in The Bronx, NY, was having an affair with her boss, who happened to be 25 years older than her, and had a wife and 3 kids. She got pregnant, decided not to tell her boss, and just took off. Disappeared. Then, after a lot of thought, a lot of soul searching [I hope], she decided she couldn’t keep me, and that I was going to be given up for adoption. Or maybe she decided she simply didn’t want me. I guess I’ll never really know, but after a few short stays at 4 different foster homes, I was finally permanently adopted by 2 of the most amazing people on this planet, Leon and Phyllis Wilk. I never take for granted what “could have been” and I will always feel as if my parents saved my life. But when I refer to my “mother”, I’m always talking about Phyllis Wilk.
She chose me, she gave me a permanent home, she made me feel as if the world was a safe place. She’s my mother. Period. My biological mother, though, gave me the greatest gift of my life. She decided to give me up for adoption, to let me go. With this selfless act, she allowed me to be a part of a beautiful family, and I see that as her legacy. She did what was right for the child, just as a good mother should. Someone once said to me, “do you realize that the first major event in your life was that your mother gave you away? That she decided that you just weren’t worth the time and effort?” I have to say, in the deepest part of myself, it never felt that way to me. I think she realized that she had to send me “home”, and I’ve always felt as if it took a lot of courage to do that. To Ms. Seidenberg, I thank you.
Why:
The main reason I decided to do this album, was that I felt I had a lot going on inside of me that had to come out. If I was going to do a solo project, it was gonna be because I felt as if I had something to say, and this was definitely the right time for me to take this journey. These songs are really who I am, how I feel, how I look at the world around me. My hope is that each song evokes feelings in the listener about his or her own life, that these stories seem reminiscent of what is inside of everyone.
As my good friend Jack Rollins compelled me to do, I tried to reveal myself, to strip down naked and open my personal window, to let you see who I am, in hopes that you might allow me into your world, briefly, one song at a time. Working on this album has been the most amazing and fulfilling time of my life and has been a great learning experience. I would say that I’ve learned more over the past 6 months than I have in my entire life.
Where and how:
These songs were all written while riding the subways here in NYC. I’ve always written that way. For some reason, when I get on the train, I just feel so inspired by what’s around me. As anyone who knows me will tell you, I LOVE New York City, it’s so deep in my blood, it can make me cry at times.
Being out in the midst of the incredible diversity of this city always makes me feel as if I’m a part of something very special, and music just comes flowing out of me. I always travel around with my small, handheld digital recorder and a notebook, and ride the subways until I have a song. If I get on the A Train in Brooklyn, usually by the time I get to 207th Street in Manhattan, the last stop, a new song will be born. If not, I’ll ride down to 145th St, get on the D Train and head to the Bronx. My personal adventures always seem to, eventually, wind up with a song. Once I have sung all of my ideas into my recorder, I’ll get on a bus and finish up the lyrics. I guess I really have to thank the MTA and New York City for all the inspiration it has brought me over the years.
Some insight:
My father and my grandmother [she's in the pic above next to the song, "treat you like my own"] were both great storytellers. Just sitting around after a meal with them was a gift. You would hear the most amazing stories. They both had this ability to make you hang on every word, to make you laugh until you cried. My mother continued that tradition after both my father and grandmother had passed away, and she had the same ability to communicate. With all of them, it was as if you were getting a history lesson from the greatest, most interesting, and funniest teachers of all time. I guess this is what I miss every day of my life. With all of them gone now, my connection to that generation has passed away with them. Loss of people like that are startling reminders of how finite things are in this life, how final all of our experiences and relationships can be, and how we should never take them for granted. I tried my best to use my family in the making of this album, channeling all of them while writing these songs. I wanted to really tell stories, not just craft pop songs. I wanted to communicate in an interesting way, so I hope that comes across in these songs.
Getting it recorded:
Once I had all of the songs written, it was time to get into the studio and produce them. My studio is in a loft, literally in the middle of my apartment here in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, and it’s a small space, but perfect for my needs. Once the production process began, I didn’t leave that space for about 4 solid months. The only time I left was to go running every morning, usually over either the Williamsburg Bridge, the Brooklyn Bridge or The Manhattan Bridge, from Brooklyn into Manhattan.
What a perfect way to start each day, with this stunning view of the most beautiful city in the world, getting my workout in, and then heading home to get back to my music.
After a quick shower, I’d get right into the studio, usually working until about 3am every day. I lost about 20 lbs during this process, simply because I was forgetting to eat, I was so consumed with the work.
These songs are extremely personal, and as a matter of fact, I got physically sick working on a few of them. There were many times I didn’t think I was going to be able to complete this project, that it was just too difficult to get through, because I was digging so deep inside of myself. But as each day passed, I realized how important it was for me to finish, so I “stayed with it”, as Mr. Rollins would tell me from time to time. And what a gift those times were, when he would share his experience with me. Coming from a man who had a very significant hand in the careers of Woody Allen, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal, David Letterman, Tony Bennett, and many more, I was all ears, all the time. Mr. Rollins has this tremendous insight into the deepest part of a person. He really pays attention, listens, and is probably the wisest person I have ever known. My conversations with him will be with me forever, like jewels from an early civilization that increase in value everyday, they become more meaningful every minute. “Open your window”, “when you find a great artist, first you define them, then you refine them, until they’re one of a kind”. I would often think, “Who gets to experience something like this while they’re working on an album?” Nobody, would be the answer to that question. I’ll say it again, what a gift to know Jack Rollins, to be able to call him my friend, and to have had him take an interest in my work.
Finally:
So here I am, putting these songs out into the universe for everyone to hear, and I hope that you feel them and enjoy them as much as I do. The day I dropped the final mixes off to the mastering studio, it felt as if I was taking my children to school for the first time, holding their hands and then letting them go. Releasing them to find their own, individual paths. That’s what my desire is for these songs, that they touch as many people as possible, and that they all find infinite and diverse paths to travel. I guess this album is my legacy, and I hope in a small way it’s a contribution to my communities, both immediate and global. I thank you for listening to my stories, and I hope you enjoy the way I tell them. Be sure to keep in touch with me and lemmeno what you think…………………..
Hey Wilk. It's a long time!!! I didn't open myspace coz I had too many things to do. I've got married on last july and honeymoon in Singapore on august... so you understand.
How are you?
I see you've put many new songs on your player, always great and interesting. Congratulations.
That your songs, your voice, your love and energy ...transform the energy that is around my Country (Honduras) and all the countries in need...we must attain peace...
Yo Wilk. You are Sounding "SUPER REAL" Now. Getting Down Real and Dirty Huh? Keeping It real From Day One, Each Day New Visions. Thank You For Your Kindest Words.
We need your help! Please vote for us to be your "Married on Myspace" couple. -- vote once per day if ya can! Voting ends this Friday so please spread the word! Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What's poppin wit you Wilk,I see you doin your thing. Just came thru to see what you had goin on since it's been awhile seen I really was on here. Do you r thing homie.
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