Spring Semester Reflection

In closing this semester I have taken with me a better sense of my personal writing ability. I’ve always known that features fuels my journalistic fire, but this semester has helped me learn to be concise while conveying key information in an entertaining and memorable way. Most papers for other classes are required to be longer and therefore a student ends up trying to stretch the information as far as possible. In journalism, the opposite is necessary and learning to shorten is an art that I am beginning to learn.
Unfortunately I was so busy with other classes that I didn’t have time to participate in the layout process this semester. I wish I had because the final product looks amazing now! I am proud of everyone who worked so hard and appreciate their efforts in laying out everyone’s articles so beautifully!
I wrote an article for every issue but one and feel that my topics reached people and inspired appreciation of new music. This evidence is apparent in the feedback that I received, especially from teachers. I managed to keep up my blog and also attain a press pass for Sierra Nevada World Music Festival where I will record soundbites and report back to Santa Cruz through the student radio station.
Overall I feel that I got more formal training and immersion in the Fall, but have greatly enjoyed being part of the newspaper throughout the Spring. I will take all that I have learned with me to San Francisco State University in the Fall and will hopefully be able to contribute the student publication there. Thank you Brad for helping to revive this program and also to inspire us to keep on keepin’ on! Your friends, our guest speakers, provided inspiration and insight to the trials and tribulations of a future career in journalism. I don’t know how to grade myself although I would greatly appreciate an A.

The end is near...

Last issue in progress. Excited! and school is almost over and my story is done!

With Summer Almost Here, SNWMF Is Near!

As warm weather and the nostalgia of past summers and epic times approaches once again, many look to a more cost-efficient plan for the nearing months. Whether you’re rolling deep with your honey and chillens, a group of groovy old high school friends, or flying solo as a butterfly, Sierra Nevada World Music Festival provides a summer solstice celebration and many musical offerings for the whole crew at an affordable price.
Located within the grassy Mendocino County fairgrounds, the sleepy little strip of Boonville proper comes alive for three days with excited campers and curious day visitors, lured in by the music resonating throughout the Anderson Valley. A giant stage with lights and speakers aplenty sets the valley scene that sprawls west to the horizon line of heavy forest and treetops and east to the golden rolling hills.
Most festivals get a bad rap because they seem to be plagued with heavy drugs and even heavier hitting users. SNWMF does not claim complete immunity to these symptoms, but does however provide a much kinder and welcoming environment for kids, than say, Reggae Rising. The whole vibe is far more peaceful and all around “irie.”
Featured musicians arrive from all over the world, delivering a taste of their homeland, whether it is Montego Bay, Brooklyn, Bermuda, or Barcelona. Flavors range from reggae to hip-hop to salsa to various world vibes that are featured over three days on two stages.
The festival dates this year are Friday, June 19, through Sunday, June 21. Advance three-day tickets are $145 and single-day tickets are either $55 or $65 depending on the day. There is an additional $60 charge per vehicle to guarantee a car-camping spot. To purchase tickets or to find out additional information, visit www.snwmf.com.
If you fancy a new life adventure and you absolutely adore discovering new music and dancing the long warm days and nights away, pack up your tribe, grab a tent and some beer and head north.

Friday, June 19
Femi Kuti
Zap Mama
Ras Michael
Bushman
Ras Midas
Rusty Zinn
Sila & the Afrofunk Experience

In The Dancehall:

Jah Shaka
Jah Warrior Shelter

Saturday, June 20
Michael Rose
Sly & Robbie
Tarrus Riley
The Heptones
The Abyssinians
Etana
Cherline Anderson
The Itals
Michigan & Smiley
Vagabond Opera
Del Castillo
Comrade Fatso

In the Dancehall
Stone Love
Comanche Hi Power

Sunday, June 21
King Sunny Adé
Anthony B
Gregory Isaacs
Easy Star All-Stars
Blue King Brown
Del Castillo
The Lions
Marty Dread

In the Dancehall
TippaTone Hi-Fi

Metals Story- Fall Semester

Pino Alto Story- Fall Semester

Never Had Nobody Like M. Ward

The February release of M. Ward’s seventh album “Hold Time” leaves very little to be desired by listeners. Ward comes forth once again with a soothing, sentimental and righteously rockin’ sound. California-born Ward has been primarily dominating the Portland music scene, making guest collaborations from production to singing to contributing instrumentals with performers such as Norah Jones, John Fahey, Bright Eyes, Jenny Lewis, The Court & Spark, Cat Power, Beth Orton, and many others.
His melodramatic melodies range from whimsical to deeply introspective. There is a kind of ethereal ache in his voice that resonates throughout “Hold Time.” Whether he is complemented by Zooey Deschanel’s (actress, musician and singer-songwriter) sweet chorus in “Rave On” and “Never Had Nobody Like You,” or the smooth and soulful Lucinda Williams in “Oh Lonesome Me,” Ward effectively calms the nerves and infuses the soul with a sense of peace and self reflection.
“To Save Me” features Jason Lytle from the indie rock group Grandaddy and produces an upbeat rhythm that tastes a little of 1950s rock flavor infused with contemporary musical accents. His sound is incomparable, beautifully unique and seriously playful. “Hold Time” is quite possibly the album I would choose for a personal soundtrack.
Overall this album is worth a free listen if not a purchase and can be appreciated by any musical enthusiast. It delivers an element of spunk and innocence that anyone can enjoy. On May 16th Ward will perform at the Fox Theater in Oakland; tickets are available at ticketmaster.com. For more information visit www.mwardmusic.com or www.myspace.com/mward

From Refugee to Rapstar

From Refugee to Rap Star: K’naan Dives into the Mainstream

“Nothing is perfect man, that's what the world is,
All I know is,
I'm enjoying today.
You know, 'cause it isn't everybody that you get to give.”

Before he felt the warmth of spotlights on his face, he felt the heat of gunfire and grenades. And before he became an internationally recognized celebrity, he narrowly escaped one of the world’s most war-torn countries. Somalia born K’naan returns once again, but this time he’s flooding the airwaves and truly “blowing up the spot.”
K’naan’s first album entitled “The Dusty Foot Philosopher,” slid under the pop culture radar. He opened shows for Damian Marley’s Welcome To Jamrock tour, and kept a small yet diehard following over the past three years. This time around K’naan is being embraced as a hip-hop celebrity and welcomed with open ears by everyone from National Public Radio to MTV. His second album “Troubadour,” released in early 2009, resonates much catchier rhythms and lyrics than his previous tracks and sounds to be catering to a much different crowd. This crowd is the North American popular culture and so far he is having ample success.
Staying true to his poetic roots, K’naan raps as if he’s teaching a course on hip-hop 101. He aims to educate and inform with his clear and clever rhymes. He infuses the mix musically with hints of reggae and authentic African drumbeats.
Recently he has performed and been interviewed on the Jimmy Kimmel show, MTV, NPR, and numerous smaller radio and television networks all over the country.
Some of his new tracks mirror his first album in essence and originality while others ooze with a feeling of exceedingly aged cheese and make the listener long for authentic songs past filled with hand drums and raw riddims. This evidence of smoothing over the raw instrumentals with synthesized sound goo and frequent choral “la la la’s” shows K’naan’s evident migration from raw rootsy goodness to lame ass radio routine.
Although he remains true to the art of rhyme, he falters in successfully trodding through the muck which some of us refer to as “mainstream music,” or “radio rap.” Fame and acclaim will continue to lift this newfound superstar up hopefully without tainting his highly original style any further.
His new album features collaborations with some Hip Hop greats such as Chubb Rock, Mos Def and Chali 2na and also singer Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley, the son of reggae legend Bob Marley. Other tracks feature artists such as Adam Levine, the front man for Maroon 5 and Metallica’s lead guitarist and songwriter, Kirk Hammett.
For more information or to hear his interviews and music visit
http://www.npr.org keyword: k’naan, http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/knaan/artist.jhtml, http://www.myspace.com/knaanmusic, or
http://www.knaanmusic.com/