Sitting good atop his throne, Pusha T, is ready for lyrical combat. Back, on May 25, the Clipse crusader dropped his latest album, Daytona. That capsule of creativity has caused many a conversation. Of its seven selections, “Infrared,” has created a Hip-Hop ruckus. Following perceived disrespect, on that same day, Drake took offense and vehemently rebuked Push’s artistic accusations. With Drake’s, …
New Music. | “Duppy Freestyle” | Drake.
What’s an artist to do when his creativity is called into question? Drake replies with rhyme. Shocked by the audacious wordplay on “Infrared,” a frustrated Drizzy put Pusha T, into his sights. Soon, the “I’m Upset” rapper unloaded his lyrical clip with the “Duppy Freestyle.” Drake matter-of-factly musters, “Must’ve had your “Infrared” wrong, now your head in the beam / Y’all are …
New Music. | “Infrared” | Pusha T.
Art is meant to elicit an emotional response. Pusha T, is its breathing personification. Recently, the G.O.O.D. Music president dropped his latest effort, Daytona. The seven-track collection — executively produced, in its entirety by Kanye West — made Music stop! Candid creativity, thrusted forward with a King’s pen, caused some rappers to question their inherent validity. On “Infrared,” one of Pusha …
Music Video. | “Dark Knight Dummo” | Trippie Redd Ft. Travis Scott.
Earlier this year, Trippie Redd teamed up with Travis Scott for “Dark Knight Dummo.” The Mike Dean-mix reaches an outlandish realm. Da Honorable C. N.O.T.E. helps to orchestrate the menacial score to this zombie mayhem. The creatively crass eye of director, White Trash Tyler, supplies the sublime visual accompaniment; press play! “… Bitch, I’m ballin’ hard just like a Maverick (yeah) / Money stretch long, lil’ bitch, …
Music Video. | “Newsflash!” | Niki.
The creative acumen of NIKI is certain to award her musical longevity. Pushing a recklessly confident pen, this Indonesian-import is certain to make the world aware of her innate artistry. Evolving from Instagram to international success, Ms. Zefanya is poised for greatness. ” Newsflash!,” finds NIKI politely eviscerating a young man who dared to try her morals. Continue to support this …
Music Video. | “Check” | Kash Doll.
Kash Doll, is no stranger to stardom. The emerging queen, who was raised in Detroit, has released her anticipated mixtape, Brat Mail. The nine track endeavor, contains an array of selections that speaks to life’s tapestry of truths. With lyrics highlighting the lavish life, on “Check,” KD, drops provocative rhymes that speak to her confident perspective. The Arrad Rahgoshay-visual finds Kash Doll …
Coming to My Senses- Transforming Limitations into Possibilities
Aaron Baker was barely out of diapers when he learned how to ride a motorcycle at the age of three. At the age of 20, he was no longer able to feed himself after a crash, breaking C4-5,6 vertebrae, rendering him a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the chin down. Aaron who had been highly capable could no longer do anything for …
Master of None’s Eric Wareheim is a Master of Wine
Eric Wareheim is a funny fucking guy. His gangly, goofy looks have propelled his comic adventures into SpaceX territory on groundbreaking shows like “Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!”, while his endearing kookiness has helped make season two of “Master of None”, Aziz Ansari’s Netflix hit, an absurdist journey of deranged sanity and brolicious indulgence. Wareheim is truly silly, …
Last Chance: Emilio Cavallini’s Objectual Abstractions in Washington D.C
It was an early summer day in Washington D.C. and the air was perfumed with the sweet scent emitted from globes of white, fragrant flowers popping out on the branches, trees, and balconies of Georgetown’s grand homes. Yet another variety of abstract, flower-like wall sculptures were “blooming” and filling the Capital with colors and kinetic energy: Emilio Cavallini’s dynamic works, …
Christina Aguilera & Demi Lovato Go V For Vendetta in “Fall in Line” Video
To heighten the import and weight of Christina Aguilera’s pièce de résistance of feministic anthems (“Fall In Line” being a culmination of her singles “Beautiful” and “Can’t Hold Us Down”), her latest video with Demi Lovato pays homage to uncertain V For Vendetta theme. Starting from the picturesque opening with Aguilera and Lovato frolicking about in a meadow filled with …
Unknown Horizon, The Art of Kelly Berg, Craig Krull Gallery
Kelly Berg creates dense textural compositions while playing with the dichotomies of flat vs sculptural space. The extreme energy embodied in her work gives the viewer the sense that her paintings emerge from both internal and external forces that lie just beyond the artist’s own conscious control. Kelly Berg’s current solo show, called Unknown Horizon, at Craig Krull Gallery Santa …
Music Video. | “Pay Up” | Rapsody.
he art of gold-digging is explored on, “Pay Up,” the latest release from, Rapsody. This lyrical dissertation probes the juxtaposition of male and female parasitic partners. Within the Brian Petchers-directed visual, an effortless representation of Jamla Records is on display. Sultry vocals from Heather Victoria, only adds to the emphatic Ka$h Don’t Make Beats / Khrysis production. Rap, a 9th Wonder protégée and a Roc Nation ambassador, is …
Jean Pierre Roy: The Art of Corralling Perception or The Artist as the Original Neuroscientist
Warning: by reading this article you will expand your vocabulary and learn about neuroscience -I know I did when I wrote it! Should you find yourself in doubt when reading, please check the links. Enjoy! “There are things known and there are things unknown, and in between are the doors of perception.” –Aldous Huxley It’s a chilly mid-April afternoon in …
HBO’s Fahrenheit 451 is All Smoke With No Fire
There was a moment during the HBO film adaptation of the Ray Bradbury classic Fahrenheit 451 that I audibly groaned. Up until that point, I had been enjoying seeing the establishment of this dystopia and the struggle of it’s characters come to grips with its oppressiveness. There was subtle social commentary sprinkled here and there, and I enjoyed connecting the …
New Music. | “Star 67” | Jada Lee.
avigating the ramifications of deceit, Maryland native, Jada Lee, seeks clarity on “Star 67.” She effortlessly flexes a creative repertoire. It has been honed and elevated by a higher power; her naturally soulful talent quickly becomes evident. Although, the Temple University graduate earned a 3.97 GPA, that has not helped her to avoid fuck boys. This songwriter / engineer / singer …
POSEN’S THREADS – A Process of Drawing
“Think of Stephen Posen as Theseus paying out his line, traversing his labyrinth knowing and not knowing what awaits him. Perhaps Posen shares Paul Klee’s ambition of 1908 “to note experiences which could translate themselves into line even in absolute darkness.” The tacit question is: can a line still be fictive – that is to say, imaginative – in a …
New Music. | “Need More” | Dice SoHo Ft. PnB Rock.
he time is now. Determined to capitalize off his creativity, Dice SoHo, is on the grit! The recent release of SoHo’s, Mike Dean-produced mixtape, You Could Have, is helping to fuel his insatiable pursuit to secure lyrical longevity. On “Need More,” the Houston wordslanger teams up with PnB Rock. Here, these two emerging MCs trade sixteens that are inundated with opulent ideals and focused …
Music Review. | Revisited | Andy Michaels.
usic is Andy Michaels’ global passport. Whether using published sonnets, or employing poignant lyrics, this Australian artist is on a welcomed quest to share his creative acumen. With his latest album release, Revisited, he deftly demonstrates what happens when an array of musical genres are effectively blended. Throughout the duration of Revisited, Michaels 13-track project piques interest. The first four tracks “Today’s Tomorrow,” …
Music Video. | “So Houston” | Z-Ro Ft. Lil KeKe X Big Baby Flava.
yrical legend, Z-Ro, is mastering the task of satisfying his day-one supporters and hypnotizing new ears. From his Codeine project — which dropped last year — on the track “So Houston,” the ill MC teams up with Lil KeKe and Big Baby Flava. Reverent sixteens wrapped in sincerity are offered to H-Town’s musical forerunners. This Dang Films visual, astutely combines an organic Screwston aesthetic with the penetrating Synesthetic beat; simply put, this …
Andy Mister Ascends With “New Dawn Fades” At TURN GALLERY
There’s nothing overtly didactic about 39-year-old artist Andy Mister’s solo show at TURN Gallery, New Dawn Fades. There are, however, 11 painstaking works on display featuring roughly the same number of representational images, each deftly rendered in incredible detail on monochrome paper using carbon pencil, charcoal and acrylic. The recent passing of Tom Wolfe, an at times controversial literary giant, …
Summer Group Show @ Francis M. Naumann Fine Art
Francis M. Naumann is one of the top Duchamp scholars in the world and he keeps an exhibition space on the 3rd floor of “The Gallery Building” at 24 West 57th Street in New York. A selection of works by Mike Bidlo – Rafael Leonardo Black – Robert Brinker – Brice Brown – Katherine S. Dreier – TR Ericsson – …
Parallel Existences Add to One’s Eerie Stay at the Tranquility Base Hotel in Video for Arctic Monkeys’ “Four Out of Five”
As far as the “concept album” goes, it seemed the music industry had given up on it altogether until Arctic Monkeys decided to release the piano-heavy (and therefore out of character for the band) Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino on May 11th. Marking the band’s first record since 2013’s AM, the abrupt shift in sonic tone, as well as thematic …
Christina Aguilera’s Latest, “Fall In Line,” Builds on Themes of Stripped’s “Beautiful” & “Can’t Hold Us Down”
For over a decade now, Christina Aguilera has essentially coasted on the “artistic merit” of 2002’s “Beautiful” (as there is nothing of the kind to be found in being a judge on a reality show), immortalized in Mean Girls by Damian’s (Daniel Franzese) talent show performance. As one of her most “serious” singles (even garnering the honors of GLAAD), the …
Music Video. | “Forget About Yesterday” | Ajay Mathur.
ritically-acclaimed for his innate artistry, Ajay Mathur, keeps reinforcing his musical legacy. The latest album from this Grammy-nominated singer / songwriter, Little Boat, proves that he continues to build upon previous professional success. Backed by the Swiss-based, Yakketeeyak Music, in the whimsical visual for “Forget About Yesterday,” Mathur makes heartbreak almost appealing. On the self-produced track, all the stages of a self-induced grief are …
Caveat Brings “Intelligent Nightlife” To The Lower East Side
The still somewhat quaint, Callery pear tree-lined Clinton Street on Manhattan’s Lower East Side has served as an ongoing case study in urban advancement since the early nineties when it transformed from a drug-swirling hotbed to niche culinary destination. Molecular gastronomy pioneer Wylie Dufresne’s wd-50 led the gentrifying charge in many ways, but it was the restaurant’s late 2014 closing …
Sex and the City Isn’t As Irrelevant As Its Current Detractors (Sarah Jessica Parker Included) Are Making It Out to Be
As even Sarah Jessica Parker cowers to the juggernaut of gender fluidity and racial inclusivity that has rendered all pop culture offerings of the past utterly obsolete, one can’t deny that there are still many beacons of truth contained within the show that made daft white girls everywhere want to move to New York. And yes, Carrie Bradshaw (Parker) was the …
New Music. | “SSP” | Dice SoHo Ft. Ty Dolla $ign X Desiigner.
epping Houston, Dice SoHo, is tasked with establishing lyrical longevity. Earning the respect of sonic savant, Mike Dean, Dice has teamed up with Dean’s label, M.W.A. Perhaps this cunning move in creativity will help to launch SoHo’s burgeoning career in rhyme. Following the success of his risque single, “Giraffe,” the recent release of “SSP,” continues to thrust Dice SoHo into the limelight. An …
Rita Ora’s “Girls” Is Neither A Fitting Homage to “Lady Marmalade” Nor Genuine In Its Fair-weather Bisexuality
Long ago, during a time when George W. Bush was coming to the twilight of his presidency and presumably thinking about, well, not much of anything at all, Katy Perry was rattling conservative cages with something that was somehow still too salacious for mainstream consumption: two women kissing. Later, when we would find out that the narrative was inspired by Miley …
Music Video. | “Proud” | 2 Chainz Ft. YG x Offset.
lthough, The Play Don’t Care Who Makes It, dropped back in February, of the four-track EP, “Proud,” remains a stand-out. The incomparable 2 Chainz teamed up with both YG and Offset for this self-directed visual. What’s a better way to celebrate Mother’s Day? To bolster the matter-of-fact lyricism from these accomplished artists, respective cameos from their mothers heightens the overall ocular experience. Keep ya head on a swivel, as later …
Sara Driver: For Real
Sara Driver is one of the most relevant and underappreciated filmmakers of a generation. Take Boom For Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat, her documentary piecing together the life of an artist and friend before he became famous. Driver who has witnessed decay and regrowth in New York City since being a grad student at NYU circa Jim …
The Disgust One Feels Over Grimes’ Concession to Dating Elon Musk
Grimes (Christian name Claire Boucher) has never been known for folding to the what one would call the pressures of dating a douchebag once you become something of a pop star. Though she began as an under the radar MySpace musician starting in 2007, the level to which Vancouver’s own has ascended from lo-fi urchin to electronic powerhouse has been …
Music Review. | The Sandcastle King | Aya Maguire
olded by music since her childhood, Aya Maguire, has long been a student of sound. During her senior year in high school, the multifaceted musician — who brings to life guitar riffs, cello crescendos, and vocal gymnastics — truly began to hone her gift. Six years of growth is reflected within the initial effort, The Sandcastle King. This compelling and complete body of …
Liu Bolin X Ruinart at Frieze New York
Known as the Invisible Man, Chinese artist Liu Bolin is the latest contemporary artist to be commissioned by the House of Ruinart to collaborate on a creative project for the art world’s favorite champagne. Featured at art fairs around the world, Ruinart has a long history of working with artists and designers in residence to annually create a project that …
Music Video. | “This Is America” | Childish Gambino.
merica, the hypocrite! Sweet as apple pie, Childish Gambino’s latest offering — the Hiro Murai-directed visual “This Is America” — is delicious. Delectably distorted metaphors, both verbal and visible, represent the contrived Stepin Fetchin stereotypes that continue to plague these un-United States. Gambino demonstrates how pursued happiness is mocked by the Have’s asphyxiating ignorance and their misplaced fear. Melanated skin ignorantly associated with Sin continues …
This is America is Social Dissonance You Can Dance To
Let America be America again. Let it be the dream it used to be. Let it be the pioneer on the plain Seeking a home where he himself is free. (America never was America to me.) This is how Langston Hughes begins his poem Let America Be America Again. I teach this poem at least twice a year in my …
The FRIEZE Phenomenon New York 2018
One arrives at the North or South entrance to FRIEZE, and once past security has the immediate sensation of light-soaked space in airy white tents, where walls sparely installed with wonderful artworks are high planes that seem to stand without support. While this spacial euphoria may be lost fairly quickly when one begins to circumambulate the color-coded divisions of the …
Art New York 2018 at Pier 94 (100-Photo Recap)
I swung by Art New York located by the Piers on the west side of New York City this past weekend to see if it would stand up to its sister fair in Miami. Its known as the affordable art fair so I figure I go act like a window shopper and I am glad I did. Check out some …
Dangerous Rhythms, Latin Jazz, and TJ English’s The Corporation
Best-selling author TJ English’s epic new Cuban true-crime thriller, The Corporation, is about to be made into a Leonardo DiCaprio-produced, Benicio Del Toro-starring Hollywood feature film. A frenzied bidding war produced a rumored seven-figure deal that was reached based on a 100-page proposal before the book was even written. TJ is celebrated for his studies of the Irish mob, including …
East End Collected4
On Saturday, March 31 the Southampton Arts Center opened its fourth East End Collected exhibition (East End Collected4). Artist Paton Miller has curated the exhibit since its inception six years ago. Mr. Miller, who had been approached by then-mayor Mark Epley, suggested showcasing the work of East End artists, borrowed from collectors. As a prelude to reopening the space that …
Frieze NY 2018 Highlight: Gert and Uwe Tobias at Rodolphe Janssen
A delightful highlight of Frieze NY this year is the french-blue painted booth by Rodolphe Janssen. Following suit in a series of twin artist collaborations like Doug and Mike Starn and Os Gemeos are works by identical twin brothers Gert + Uwe Tobias. Humming with the freshness of spring, fairy tale-inspired ceramics and woodcuts on canvas bloom in different sizes …
A Bird’s Eye View of FRIEZE New York
FREIZE New York ran for 5 days from Tuesday the 2nd through Sunday the 6th of May. The fair was founded in London in 2003 as a philanthropic project to promote contemporary art, an offshoot of the eponymous magazine, it has taken place annually in London in October. In 2012 FREIZE New York was opened in “bespoke” white tent structures, …
Darkness on the Edge of Town, a Frieze Recap
Highlight of the Day! Won’t you join me in the Pettibon Zone? (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Nudes! Nudes! Nudes! (Ladies Edition) Richard Diebenkorn, Untitled (Reclining Figure), 1966/George Condo, Showgirl, 2008/Joan Semmel, Double Take, 1991 Jordan Nassar’s Embroidery Installation at Anat Ebgi Gallery I want artwork that reflects ME. Literally! This fair is making me hungry. Is that toast? Somebody …
Music Video. | “The Yield” | Kate Fenner.
aried experiences transform into wisdom on, Middle Voice. This is the third solo album from Canadian crooner, Kate Fenner. Currently based in New York City, the musician and mother uniquely employs her polished art to advocate a prime perspective. Over 10 selections constitute Kate’s robust effort. “The Yield,” offers familiar Folk yearnings which are amplified by an eased angst. Fenner beautifully conveys how …
I Came, I Went, I Came Again! Frieze Flutters and The Uncle Jerry Show
Nothing is free in life, in the end you pay for your pleasure with pain, heartache, and decay. Consider the art fair, a dinosaur whose fossil was unearthed and resurrected, Jurassic Park-like, on Randall’s Island this week, and whose lumbering stride threatens to trample everything that fails to hightail it out of its path. So come, go, and come again …
Best Booth at Frieze New York: Bill Beckley, the Eighties, Albertz Benda Gallery Booth SP21
Chelsea gallery, Albertz Benda featured a stunning exhibition of works by the American artist (and poet as we see it), Bill Beckley. A teacher at SVA and trailblazer who, many years ago, organized the first exhibition at the legendary 112 Greene Street Workshop in SoHo in 1972 with Gordon Matta Clark, Rafi Ferrer, Barry Le Va, Jeffery Lew, Bill Bollinger, and Alan Saret. Beckley’s …
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