Its worth noting that Geo started out as a poet first before emceeing, rollin with the Isangmahal Arts Kollective circle in Seattle in the late 90s. In the poem, like a time traveler, Geo moves through history and effectively names a few important (but often erased) figures in Philippine history. The bold words are some names you should know. It's a history lesson ya'll. The poem is tight. Aside from solid the content, Geo got some nice rhythmic emphasis in this one. Some of my favorite lines:
"I was both Gabriela and Diego Silang Lapu Lapu reborn when he talk through the song I'm Bulosan moving with the tool in my palm To get the workers and the students and the movement involved To paraphrase Jose Maria Sison A hero, serve the people, till the spirit is gone. I'm Bonifacio Before Aguinaldo betrayed him As a child I had beef with both Marcos and Reagan. I'm like Eman Lacaba Guerrilla and a poet they will salvage my prose While my body decomposes. I'm Viernes, Domingo From Friday to Sunday I rest The other days I'm overworked and depressed.."
I'm still trippin on the Silme Viernes and Gene Domingo reference--two foundational labor union leaders in Seattle assassinated because of their organizing and their anti-Marcos politics. They are also apparently days of the week. Here is the poem performed live, followed by an interview with Geo regarding Blue Scholars in 2009:
In the interview part of the video above, Geo reveals plans for 2009. Now that all the touring is done, what will be the new surprises for Blue Scholars? Will their new material be as innovative and soulful as Bayani? What kinda freaky beats does Sabzi have fermenting in the petri dish? Can Blue Scholars politics be as resistant and militant with W out and a fresh new brutha in the White House? Of course, dufus. But for everything else, I guess we'll just wait and see...
(With the video editing, I'm experimenting with layout and such. Notice there is no center...like the multicentrality demanded by the Filipino archipelagic condition. Whoa nelly, don't read too much into it...)
Bambu peaks in at the end. Wonder what '09 looks like for him?
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Here is another Geo poem. Good stuff, but its in an eerily, sexy candle-lit room. Explanations anyone?
America's Best Dance Crew Season 3 looks as crazy as ever. From cloggers from Alabama to circus-style dancers from Brooklyn, this season is probably the wildest yet. Like everyone's been talking about since Season 1, this show is a popular space with which to showcase Filipino talent (is it the "biggest" venue we've had?). Although Filipinos aren't as dominant in representation as in the two other seasons (Fil Am quota?), there still is a noticeable presence. After getting booted in the first episode last season, Team Millenia, which is mostly Fil Am and comes out of the Fil Am college "modern" dance crews, is giving it a second shot. Let's wish them luck so we can get another largely Fil Am team in the ranks of ABDC victories, and hopefully get some sistas as winners for this show since only dudes have won so far.
Now what is interesting about this first episode is the representation from Puerto Rico. Our "colonial cousins" in the PR did really good I think, but unfortunately they were the first to be cut. Who is this team? They are "G.O.P. Dance," a name for a crew that I find tragically hilarious. Are they colonized Republicans with soul?
Anyways, in all seriousness, it is worth highlighting the fact that Puerto Rico, which isn't a "formal" U.S. state, is included in America's Best Dance Crew. The Philippines and PR became colonies of the U.S. after the Spanish-American War (and the subsequent U.S. violence on these island nations), and thus have almost identical Spanish and U.S. colonial patterns. As a colony of the U.S., Puerto Rico has a non-voting delegate in the U.S. Congress, while simultaneously subjected to U.S. militarism and corporatism (peep the pharmaceutical industry's hold on the colony). As "nationals" of the U.S. (Filipinos used to be "nationals" before given independence after WWII), Puerto Ricans can travel freely throughout the U.S. But again, they have no representation in governance. This is why I find that the adoption of the name "G.O.P." to be tragically hilarious.
Before their set, the host Mario Lopez asks the audience, "Will these boys from Puerto Rico become the main attraction of the mainland?" Good question Mr. Lopez. Since they were booted in the first episode, I guess they aren't. The irony here is bountiful. But the fact that PR is represented as constitutive of the U.S. nation-state is profound, especially since U.S. colonies are "invisible" in the public imagination. The U.S. is supposed to be liberal and "exceptional" and without colonizing tendencies like old world Europe. I wonder how the public will react to gazing upon these Puerto Rican brothas as representing one of "America's Best Dance Crew," albeit they got rejected. Not "American" enough? Yes, as abjected bodies, these colonial subjects can never be subsumed within the "pure" body politic of the (white) U.S. nation-state. (Dude, what if the Philippines was able to compete in this shit? Then Guam and Northern Mariana Islands...?)
Another interesting part of the episode was when G.O.P. stripped their Catholic monk vestiges. Is this a gesture of stripping their Spanish colonial heritage in exchange for a U.S. neocolonial affiliation in the form of hip hop dance? I'd like to know the intentions of that moment because shit is rife with all kinds of interpretations. What are the advantages of identifying with the U.S. nation-state? How does an act of "de-Hispanicizing" their group affiliation impact their ascriptions as Spanish-speaking Puerto Ricans? I think these questions could come right out of Raquel Rivera'sNew York Ricans from the Hip Hop Zone. A very good read.
Finally, big ups to Kid Rainen for holdin down the judging job of much-beloved J.C. Chasez. (Did anyone catch his "Big Booty Hoes" reference after Fly Khicks went on? Sneaky foolishness) Why can't they just hire Rainen to permanently hold that spot? Organic intellectual please! I really appreciated Rainen's recognition of the influence of salsa on b-boy dancing. He gave respect to G.O.P. for giving that salsa flavor and commented on how salsa influenced rockin which influenced b-boying. J.C. can't educate the public like that! Let's advocate for the change yall. Pinoys and Puerto Ricans...keep up the colonial funk.
------------------ On another note, if you're ever in Queens, NY, you should stop by one of my favorite restaurants, Philippu Lounge and Restaurante. Why is it called Philippu? Cuz its Philippine and Puerto Rican-owned, cuz. They used to sell both Filipino and Puerto Rican food, but now it's only Filipino Food (both cuisines are similar anyway). Whether you're just grabbing lunch, going on a date, or watching a Pacquiao fight with the manongs, this is a nice spot to support Filipino (and PR) business.
Before I get to "Beats, Rhymes, and Resistance," I'd first like to address the relationships between culture and politics. In the shadow of a historical transition to power with Barack Obama's presidency (what could be going through Jesse Jackson's mind right now?), there lingers many violent and disturbing acts of injustices. From the killing of Oscar Grant and shooting of Robert Tolan to Israel's grossly disproportionate military aggresion toward Palestinian people (and here), these examples are just a few of the innumerable power struggles that poor, disenfranchised, hungry, and marginalized women, men, and children live through everyday.
Obama, Grant, and Tolan
We will not go through a laundry list of oppression here. But as hip hop "heads" we know well the role culture plays in spaces of oppression and inequality. Where there is injustice there seems to always be a cultural response/expression that challenges injustice: music, dance, storytelling, language, paintings, etc. Hip hop is one mode of expression here in the States and is arguably employed with more political intensity among heads in Cuba, Germany, the Philippines, Kenya, etc.
However, the homey M.dot argues in the "Model Minority" blog:"Hip Hop isn't political.A Hip Hop show isn't political. An album isn't political." Please read her entry.
How important does cultural production (art, language, music, poetry, theater, etc.) play in radical/progressive political mobilization?
It's been more than a decade since the making of the documentary film "Beats, Rhymes, and Resistance: Pilipinos and Hip Hop in Los Angeles," which features some influential Fil Am hip hop artists (in their "younger" years!) such as Kiwi, Babu, Faith Santilla, DJ Symphany, and Icy Ice, and many others. It highlights the "cultural liberation" (as Faith Santilla says in the film) that hip hop brings to Fil Ams...the radical expressions that hip hop cultivates. "Hip hop," as DJ Dwenz says in the film, "is the voice of inner city youth." In this sense, hip hop is seen as a motivating "force" in political struggle...hip hop is political.
"Beats, Rhymes, and Resistance" is probably the first work that seriously tackles the topic of Filipinos in hip hop. Lakandiwa de Leon's "Filipinotown and the DJ Scene" (here) resonates with the film (as Lakan is a co-director) and goes into more depth with gang culture and colonization. For those who have watched "Hip Hop Mestizaje," you can see how much the film influences my own work. It has paved the way for many young folks who are seriously interrogating this subject.
But, how relevant is this film today? Given the state of hip hop in 2009, is the film's focus on hip hop's political role still applicable?
Or is M.dot right, hip hop is really less political than people may think? Peep the film here (thanks to Lakandiwa de Leon):
For Palestine, for the family of Oscar Grant, for all people looking for justice, in whatever mode we strive for a better society (whether it be hip hop culture or not), may we always move forward to love and justice.
Watching the news, it may be very hard to digest what is going on in Israel and Gaza, so much that we may feel numb to the story. Like you, I'm learning a lot myself. Let's try to break down the most fundamental aspects of the story by "placing into context" the violence occurring right now so that perhaps we can think more critically instead of "going numb" and detaching ourselves from this global crisis.
Context #1: Nation-building It is important to understand that the nation of Israel is NOT an ancient country that has been existing for centuries. I mean, all nations are essentially "created" and "imagined," but what makes Israel so compelling here is that it is new, born in 1948 (here and here) after violent aggression by Israel nationalists against the existing people of Palestine (and British colonizers, which is another part of the bigger story of European imperialism). When Jewish settlers (anyone in the world claiming Jewish heritage can become a citizen of Israel) started to occupy Palestine, it resulted in at least three occurrences: 1) mass exodus of Palestinians, 2) the killing of Palestinians, 3) the segregation/apartheid of Palestinians into small portions of the newly created Israeli state.
The situation can be compared to the segregated American South after Reconstruction--the lawful separation of people, the state-sponsored terrorism (lynching) in order to keep people in their place, and programs of "attrition" inflicted on Blacks through the allocation of inferior resources.
Better yet, the genocide of Native people in the U.S. is a more cogent example: separation (Indian reservations), killing (Trail of Tears, etc.), and programs of "attrition" (reservations, alcohol, inferior schools, healthcare).
Context #2: Violence begets Violence To be fair, it is up to you to research the issue and understand the other side of the story-- that of the Zionists. True, Jewish people have been persecuted throughout history, thus one of the main arguments for settling in Palestine is a space for Jewish freedom and fulfilling a narrative of "returning to Zion" as written in the Jewish holy book. So read up on that. But what can't be ignored is the wholesale, uneven violence against Palestinian people. Its truly David vs. Goliath--a nuclear-armed nation against slingshots and rockets (although in the hands of the elite few). Like Talib Kweli says, "Palestinians got rocks, Israelis got tanks." Israel's failed attempt to "tame" Lebanese Hezbollah in 2006 is an example of the extreme force Israel can wield. Today's war is seen as round 2. Remember, the war that Israel wages against Palestine is not only a war against Palestinian militants (who are not without blood on their hands), but also a war against women and children. This is the greatest tragedy...and Kiwi puts it best (in an early song on the "Stray Bullets" mixtape):
"I place my words on an altar and offer it to my ancestors To all my family, every brother and sister To every inch of the land, to every drop of the sea To every ounce of oxygen that we breathe
Cause I feel the impact of them bombing the earth Cause every bomb that they drop leaves a scar in the dirt From the woman that it hit as she was walking to work And a couple oil barrels was all it was worth..." read more or Kiwi's ("For Palestine" post)
Context #3: Collective Punishment I think one of the scariest part of the violence in Israel and Gaza is the "collateral damage" of war, in other words, the non-combatant residents such as the women and the children. Like any nation, Palestine is controlled politically by one elite party--Hamas. Hamas does not represent all Palestinians, but Israel's attack on Hamas has been deployed as an attack on the whole of Palestine. Jack Stephens (worth clicking to learn more) puts it best here: "This line of attack is no different then the line of attack the apartheid South African government used against the ANC, no different than the southern states speaking of reacting against radical Blacks within the NAACP and the SCLC, and no different then dictator Marcos justifying his suspension of democracy and imposition of martial law because of the First Quarter Storm."
As mentioned above, the attack on Gaza by the Israeli army is likened to southern Whites punishing ALL southern Blacks because of the actions of the NAACP. How can an army collectively punish a people, when a small group is the one firing the rockets on Southern Israel? In this war, both sides are losing: the non-combatant residents in Gaza and in Israel. Not a safe place to be. No wonder there are so many Palestinian refugees. (But ironically, Jewish settlement still continues). To add to that, it can be argued that continued violence helps the power agenda of both leading groups in Palestine and Israel, meaning that violence might be welcomed in order to consolidate power/incite hatred on either side.
The next time you watch "You Don't Mess With the Zohan," understand that Zohan is not just some random soldier. His character comes out of a very specific moment in history: a super soldier built to fight Palestinian/Arab resistance against Zionist occupation. Zohan is the protector of an Israeli occupation. Israel, the "only Democracy in the Middle East" surely has a lot to protect...Can Democracy exist on the prerequisite of violence? Sure, ask the United States.
Read up! Understand the issues, make informed decisions, and get a sense of your position(s). Will the new U.S. administration hold the same politics as the old? Or will our policies on the Middle East remain the same? Will the policies intensify the situation?
At the risk of "going numb," we must always be aware of the world around us. Like The Philistines say in "Free the P":
"We race for truth Now we spit it face to face From Palestine, Syria, Philippines, to America Culturally open minds Keep the strength in character..."
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Note: I write this not to insult yall's knowledge, but to help others become familiar with the issue. I've been having too many conversations about it with my folks, that I'm saddened that not many people are informed about it.
Whats up readers old and new! Welcome to the new Hip Hop Lives url address. I hope you update your google reader feeds, etc. The old one was long (hiphoplives-mrk904.blogpsot.com), and I didn't know you can customize your own url address until last week (it's now filamfunk.blogspot.com).
------------------- Check out my homegirl Jian's new blog on all things fresh and hip in Virginia Beach, VA: VB2DC (or Virginia Beach to DC--she resides in DC but reps VB). Get updated on the scene in VB, from fashion, to events, to artists. This is the home of Chad Hugo and N.E.R.D. and a historic Fil Am hip hop community. Whats up Salem High? Ha!
Yes that is Glory's famous pizza bread. What you know!
If you want to read a VERY fictional account of the VB Filipino community, you should pick up my friend Ate Evelina Galang's novel One Tribe. (I think that's me holding the book in that picture at the top). It has some interesting narrative on the tensions involved in community-building, a perpetual challenge considering the diversity of Fil Am communities. VB is a navy community, so that adds more dimensions to the context (just like Jacksonville, FL or San Diego). What's notable in the book is the gang culture among the young people, a very real part of our history that is rarely written about, so this book is a good start to hopefully more explorations about Fil Ams and gang culture (both violent and "crew" gang culture).
And the other reason why VA Beach is on my mind is my childhood homey just got married this weekend. He grew up in VA Beach, and many family members from VA Beach came down to Jacksonville for the wedding. The VB hip hop scene is well-known to be hot, the groom even imported a DJ from VA Beach, Philip Andrada, with all his equipment, just to rock the reception. Oh, and we did rock. Can you imagine all the groomsman lookin fresh in tuxedos and sneakers? After all these years, my homeys still bustin mills and 90s. This is the most hip hop wedding I've been to! Congrats Jo and Cheryl!
---------------- Speaking of VB and navy towns, if you don't already know, I am a content producer for a very neat Pilipino website called BakitWhy.com. This site is the biggest, most comprehensive, most "national" website that consolidates a young Pinoy/ay community. Anyways, I wrote something relating to the navy experience in our community; here's a little piece on my hometown. Enjoy!
Fighting Cocks start off the night with their mellow, soulful style. Photo courtesy of Mike Nailat. Find more pictures at Mike's Flickr here.
On Saturday, December 13th, the Beatrock store in Long Beach and Sights and Sounds presented an art and music mash-up featuring paintings by LA favorites Stuter, Alfie Numeric, Pancho, and many others. Music was provided by Bambu, The Committee, Flowethics and J-One, Fighting Cocks, K9, and Mass Movement.
This was the first time I've been to the Beatrock store, and it was a great experience seeing all the art and performers congregate at a dope space not far from the city of LA. You can also cop a bunch of gear. Not too late if you're still shopping for gifts for the holidays. They not only sell the coveted Beatrock brands, but also other clothing, such as a funny new brand called Chicharron Adventures.
This store is quickly becoming a notable cultural space "outside" of the traffic-ridden LA-proper area. So for folks who live in Carson, Cerritos, Long Beach, Torrance, even Orange County, this spot will be a little bit closer if you usually hit up cultural events. It's a colorful, beautiful joint, so you should stop by even if there is no performance occurring.
Here is the address: Beatrock Flagship Store 4158 Norse Way Long Beach, CA
As always, Bambu wreck-shopped. The Committee ended their set with a hot 90's hip hop tribute--anthems such as Mtume (Biggie Smalls "Juicy" more specifically), Mary J. Blige, Talib Kweli (more 2003ish), all with live instrumentation! Hire them, Jimmy Fallen, instead of The Roots! Also, K9 represented the "5th" element of hip hop with a beatboxing exhibition. Aaliyah "One in a Million" all through voice, what? (Bambu controls the crowd. Photo courtesy of Mike Nailat)
The man behind Beatrock, David Araquel, is doing a great job with the store. Starting off as the kid in high school who people always turned to to draw sketches or paint murals, David has turned his passion into a successful cultural and business venture. From a simple idea years ago of building a store to a growing and thriving store/cultural space, this Beatrock thing is really taking off!
Check out an article I wrote and "commercial" I filmed/edited for BakitWhy:
Many came, and many got turned away. The Pnoy Apparel/Alpha Psi Rho event "A Sammy Thing" (in reference to the cartoon character Sammy the Sun) at San Diego State University on December the 9th was so popular security rolled deep (police car and all) in an effort to "control" the crowd. So apologies to the many people who could not get in and missed an all-star jam featuring the hottest Fil Am talent.
Peep this poetry piece Geologic aka Geo aka Prometheus Brown spits at the "Shirt the Kids" event at San Diego State University in December 2008.
(With the video editing, I'm experimenting with layout and such. Notice there is no center...like the multicentrality demanded by the Filipino archipelagic condition. Whoa nelly, don't read too much into it...)
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