Kellen Rice
E-Mail: k.ricePSA@gmail.com
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Blast Magazine’s Interview with Lupe Fiasco
September 11th, 2008
Are you that guy who sits in the corner of the bar, desperately wishing for the guts to get up on stage to try your hand-or rather, voice-at karaoke? Do you down glasses of liquid courage one after the other just to pass out before it’s your turn at the mic?
We have good news for you. iNiS along with Microsoft Game Studios has been developing an answer to your woes in the form of the forthcoming karaoke video game “Lips,” to be released only on XBox 360 November 21.
We first encountered Lips at E3 in July.
Described as “Guitar Hero, only with a mic,” not only can you connect to your iPod or other mp3 player to sing along to your own tunes, but the game also features the songs of several popular and critically-acclaimed artists including Duffy’s “Mercy” and Lupe Fiasco’s “Superstar”.
I recently got the chance to speak to Lupe Fiasco, whose concept album “The Cool” went certified gold, selling over 500,000 copies in the U.S. Fiasco dished about his part in the game as well as some of his current projects.
Kellen: How did you get involved with the game, and what was your reaction to being asked to perform?
Lupe: Uh, I got approached by XBox, Microsoft, actually a while back when they were kind of developing the game out. What struck me most, more than like you know, “come be in a game,, you know, “here’s a little money for you,” whatever — it was that the caliber of artist that they were putting me with to be kinda the initial roll-out, to actually instill the game and sell it, was dope. People like Duffy, and I was like wow, Duffy, and I went, she’s big and dope. And it made me just feel big and dope. It made me feel like, oh, I’m a somebody. Yay! [laughs]
‘Midnight Sun’ is Canceled: Eh, No Great Loss.
September 8th, 2008Read my review of the movie here!
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Images of the fourth-generation iPod Nano were leaked onto the Internet recently. Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, immediately announced, “That’s it. We’re not making any more iPods. The idea that someone would leak those images is hurtful and wrong and because of that, no more iPods will be available for purchase until my feelings aren’t so hurt.”
In related news, Metallica’s new album has also been leaked onto the Internet after a store in France sold a copy early. In response, Metallica destroyed their studio and in an interview told their fans, “Listen, We’re so glad we have your support during this distressing time, and I’m sure you’ll sympathize with us when we say that because of this leak, we’ve decided never to record any music ever again.”
Metallica wasn’t the only band to suffer such a terrible calamity. After Bono played songs from U2’s forthcoming album too loudly on his stereo, a fan who’d recorded them uploaded them to the Internet. While U2 has refused comment personally, a representative produced the following press release: “Bono, The Edge, Adam, and Larry are all inconsolable due to this horrific breach of their rights as artists. As a group, they’ve completely lost their motivation to create music and have decided not to complete the album.”
“Twilight” author Stephenie Meyer reached a similar decision when the unfinished manuscript of her Twilight re-telling “Midnight Sun” was leaked. In a statement on her website, she wrote:
My first feeling was that there was no way to continue. Writing isn’t like math; in math, two plus two always equals four no matter what your mood is like. With writing, the way you feel changes everything. If I tried to write Midnight Sun now, in my current frame of mind, James would probably win and all the Cullens would die, which wouldn’t dovetail too well with the original story. In any case, I feel too sad about what has happened to continue working on Midnight Sun, and so it is on hold indefinitely.
Fortunately, only one of those stories is completely true, and you probably know which one. After observing the furor in the Twilight fandom over the past week and a half or so when the first twelve chapters of Midnight Sun were leaked, the only description possible is “bizarre”. As shown above, artists’ work gets leaked all the time. But why is Stephenie Meyer’s case so terrible that she has decided to cease writing the Midnight Sun altogether? Frankly, it’s bewildering and Meyer’s behavior seems to be much more similar to that of a spoilt child than of a professional author. Still, her decision has provoked her fans’ sympathy in an unparalleled fashion. The many Twilight fan-sites have joined together to create a virtual “quilt” (a somewhat revolting work of Photoshop), a support video (complete with a somewhat revolting homemade soundtrack), and an entire site devoted to sending care packages to Meyer in the wake of the distressing event. Read the rest of this entry “
Twilight: A Follow-Up, and a Promise
August 23rd, 2008After sound rebukes from those who commented on my previous article (Twilight Sucks… And Not In A Good Way), like ‘Sydnie’ and ‘Kalo’, who wrote, “All of your opinions are completely FALSE!” and “YOU JUST THINK TOO MUCH JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE !” respectively, I decided to listen to those like ‘Melissa’ who demanded that I “write a bookseries[sic] that is that popular and, in [their] opinion, genious[sic]” before earning the privilege to criticize Stephenie Meyer’s dismal oeuvre.
You know what? They’re right. What right do I have to dislike a published novel? How dare I exercise my 1st Amendment rights and express my opinion about the Twilight series without also having sold 1.3 million books in a single day?
And what about all of those who agree with me? They aren’t allowed to dislike the books either if their own work hasn’t yet spawned “millions” of fan-sites.
I decided that it was only right for me (as the author of the original article) to try and help out all those people who would love to engage in literary criticism but don’t yet have that right to freedom of thought. So, here it is:
‘Twilight’ Sucks… And Not In A Good Way
August 16th, 2008Written by Phoenix native Stephenie Meyer, the popularity of the young-adult series comprised of Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and the newly-released Breaking Dawn has reached critical mass. With a Twilight film adaptation coming to theaters this winter and an opening day’s sales of 1.3 million books for her latest installment, Meyer can be left with no doubt of her success. From a first-time novelist to a mainstay on the best sellers list, she has risen through the ranks like a veritable juggernaut.
But why? To figure out why the books were inspiring legions of fans and a dozen fan-sites (including the recently hacked Twilight Lexicon), I read the books myself to see what’s what.
To put it simply, dear reader, I was horrified. Not just by the sickeningly purple prose or the lack of general writing quality, but the books themselves are insulting on every level-as a woman, as a teenager, as a literature student, and as a graduate of the Harry Potter craze. What’s worse is that so few seem to realize it.
Slick Hilly: Is She Really the President America Needs?
March 28th, 2008Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) began her 2008 campaign by announcing a Presidential Exploratory Committee on January 20, 2007. Even after her defeat in
Recently, Senator Clinton has even suggested that pledged delegates can switch their political allegiances at whim and that super-delegates should not pay attention to who has the popular vote and the most pledged delegates—effectively, she is arguing that the will of the voters should have no bearing on the nomination process. Unfortunately, this arrogant and self-serving line of thinking is hardly the first dirty tactic that voters have seen.
Senator Clinton has run her campaign on a graceless foundation of hot air and hyperbole, on deceit and duplicity, and on secret handshakes with the party elite behind closed doors. She has introduced damaging rhetoric to political discourse through the sacrifice of her surrogates (recall Geraldine Ferraro) and she has herself been no stranger to the deceptive doubletalk which has dominated American politics since FDR (“There’s nothing to base that on, as far as I know” [on Senator Obama being some kind of Muslim Manchurian candidate]).
Senator Clinton has run her campaign on the basis of her “35 years” of experience in politics. What is this experience, exactly?
“I helped bring peace to
What actually happened, as Nobel Peace Prize winner (for bringing peace to
“I don’t know there was much she did apart from accompanying Bill [
Well, okay. It’s great that Senator Clinton was vocal in her encouragement for peace. Yeah, she exaggerated a little. So what? The problem is that her tactics aren’t limited to exaggeration—they are dependent also on downright fabrication of events.
“I remember landing under sniper fire. There was supposed to be some kind of greeting ceremony at the airport, but instead we just ran with our heads down to get into the vehicles to get to our base.”
If by “ran with our heads down” she means “took a leisurely stroll across the tarmac” and if by “sniper fire” she means “cute little Bosnian girl”, then her statement isn’t false at all. Unfortunately, this time semantics aren’t on her side and Senator Clinton now says she “misspoke”. Really? Twice? When pressed for elaboration, she held that she had a “different memory” of her one and only landing in
Days before the
“Oh, I think everybody is in favor of free and fair trade, and I think that NAFTA is proving its worth.” (1996)
Additionally, MSNBC broke down some White House documents which show that Hillary held five strategy meetings on how to win congressional approval for NAFTA, and that her support was helpful in blocking labor and environmental unions’ protests against the agreement. (link)
Is this another “different memory” of events? Even if she says she didn’t agree with NAFTA at the time, as MSNBC says, the facts remain that she helped to get it passed. Remember, Hillary cares about actions, not rhetoric:
“[McCain has] never been the president, but he will put forth his lifetime of experience. I will put forth my lifetime of experience. Senator Obama will put forth a speech he made in 2002.”
So in addition to her actions to pass NAFTA, what other actions has she taken? What kind of judgment has her “35 years of experience” given her? Well, here’s one answer, from a floor speech in 2002:
“This is a very difficult vote. This is probably the hardest decision I have ever had to make — any vote that may lead to war should be hard — but I cast it with conviction.”
The vote she’s talking about is the one that authorized the war in
So is this what Americans can look forward to should Hillary become the Democratic nominee, or even President? Do Americans—and the rest of the world—deserve this lack of judgment and flat-out flagrant disregard for democratic principles, for truth, and for honesty in the Leader of the Free World?
The answer, of course, is no. Too long have American politics been dominated by the selfish desperation for reelection that leads to such underhanded tactics and disrespect as we have seen throughout Senator Clinton’s tenure in the public eye. Senator Clinton ought to be considered a relic of the past—the time for change has finally come.
Liveblogging the Democratic Debate
January 31st, 20089:52 Hills: “hahahahahahah!” She so scary when she do that!
9:48 “Would you consider a Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton ticket?” Finally! The question we’ve been waiting for! “Presumptuous” says Obama. “Part of what I’d like to do is restore a sense of what is possible in government… no more yes-men or -women in the White House… whether it’s my cabinet or the lowest civil servant out there, I want them to realize that they’re working for the American people…”
9:47 “It’s a lonely job being the prez” so why are you touting your “experience” in the White House as First Lady?
9:45 Could a Hillary Clinton White house “control” former Prez Clinton?
9:44 Stevie Wonder? WTF? And why are they gratuitously talking about Hollywood censorship? Since when has that had equal weight with Iraq?
9:37 Are they still talking about Iraq?
9:35 Hillary’s getting madd boos!
9:23 Iraq. “I want to end the mindset that got us into the war in the first place.” Wolf says: “And that’s a clear swipe at you.” Whoa, Wolf-man, where did that come from?
9:11 “Can you be an agent of change when we have had the same two families in the White House for 30 years?” Hillary’s response: “We’re judged on our own merit… it did take a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush, and it might take another one to clean up after this Bush.” How are you being judged on your own merit, then, Hillary, if you’re just another Clinton?
9:08 “We are bringing in a whole new generation of voters.” More like, you are, but still, a nice sentiment, Barack.
9:06 Tori says: “This debate is funnier than Scientology.”
9: 04 “Mitt Romney hasn’t gotten a very good return on his investment so far in this presidential campaign” LOLZ! (Obama)
9:01 (Hillary) “I was appointed in the Carter administration…” 1) How old are you? 2) Tori says: “They only appointed you because you were a piece of ass back then.”
8:58 “I have spent my entire adult life trying to bring about change in this country…the leadership that’s needed is the ability to bring people together… to overcome the special interests… talking straight to the American people…” [on why Obama is equally, or more prepared to be Prez than Hillary]
8:49 “Demagoguery?” WTF? “making use of popular prejudices and false claims and promises in order to gain power” nice vocab, Hills!
8:48 “Actually, I co-sponsored immigration reform…back in 2004 when Barack had to come to the Senate…” (Tori says: Back when Barack was a wee babe!)
8:44 I’m getting lost amidst Hills’ 4353263 Commandments for Immigration Reform.
8:37 “People did really well during that time period…” Wait, are you talking about Bill Clinton’s administration? Oooh… And her last name is Clinton! I get it now!
8:34 Whoa! It’s Jason Alexander! (Not the one that Brit married)
8:32 “It’s pretty hard for the Republicans to argue fiscal responsibility when they’ve added 3 trillion dollars in debt…” haha, BURN! (Obama)
8:30 “The health care industry is extremely well-funded.” No way, for real? (Hills)
8:27 “Enlist the American people” in government, versus leaving politics in the hands of special interests and lobbyists. (Obama)
8:22 Tori says: “If if I were sitting there, I would slap her. You can see Barack, he keeps touching his chin to keep himself from punching her in the face.”
8:20 “You can mandate it [health care], but there will still be people who can’t afford it.” (Obama)
8:14 My roommate (Tori) notices that neither candidate is wearing a flag pin. “Who do they think they are? Not Americans, huh?”
8:11 “What is the most important policy distinction between you two?” Great question! In response, Hillary lists more stuff that’s going badly.
8:09 Hillary also lists all the stuff that’s going badly. (Is Barack doodling?)
8:08 “How do we take the country in a new direction?” Barack questions, after listing all the stuff that is going badly. “It is the past versus the future”, not gender, race, or anything else. “Change that brings the country together… I have confidence that we can solve any problem…” Yes!
8:05 “There are no rules!” and Hillary cackles. What is she going to do?
8:02 Hillary’s suit really clashes with Barack’s. Why did she think mud brown would be a good idea?
8:00 I wish there had been a red carpet for this. Is Jack Nicholson there?
2008! What is it good for? Part I: Albums
January 30th, 2008Part I
2007 was a fantastic year. We will all miss it. However, there is hope on the horizon! Leading sources tell me that we have plenty of Brit meltdowns on the menu to spice up our lives in the coming year. Also, Uggs will be in. Still.
…
So, what should you be on the lookout for in ’08 the Great? Here are 10 albums that will excite your cochlea in all the right ways.
2008: Potentially Good Albums
29 February 2008: The Mars Volta released yesterday The Bedlam in Goliath. Admittedly TMV is something of an acquired taste (for me, at least), but after Frances the Mute, I’m def willing to give their latest a listen (as I’m writing this, in fact). The first track hits you pretty hard with in-your-face vocals and drums, and settles into an interesting bass- and guitar-focused verse. All in all, “Aberinkula” has some great chords and guitar riffs (With a minute left, the guitarist goes into some funky Arabian-inspired sound that definitely catches the ear)
5 February 2008: Jack Johnson’s “Sleep Through the Static” hits stores. Most likely, it will be more of the same. But hey! that’s not so bad. His other stuff is def listenable, and if he hits us with another Flake or The News, I will be satisfied.
26 February 2008: Beach House comes out with “Devotion”. This is a pretty obscure pick, but their self-titled debut was an incredibly textured and musically-intriguing album—enough so that I’m eager to see what they come out with next. (Apparently the album was leaked in December ‘07… If I resolve my moral dilemma on the side of downloading it illegally or not, I’ll let you know what I think.)
May 2008: Death Cab for Cutie will release “Narrow Stairs”. And if that sentence doesn’t make your heart go a-flutter, then I don’t know if there’s anything that can be done for you. Transatlanticism is probably in my Top 5 Albums, period.
Early 2008: As of late 2007 (according to their blog) Coldplay was in the studio working on their latest. Since they haven’t made a musical misstep once in the past 10 years, it’s fair to say that their newest will blow our collective mind.
Fall 2008: Although they recently came out with the B-Sides Sawdust, which has some great tracks (Shadowplay is probably the best), The Killers are expected to release a third studio album this autumn. They received some criticism over their sophomore album Sam’s Town, but in all honesty, I thought that “Sam’s Town” certainly equaled Hot Fuss and might have even outshone it a bit. The key with The Killers, for me at least, is to listen to their stuff twice through before making a judgment. Invariably I have been a little doubtful after the first listen, and then found myself obsessively looping the album.
2008:
“Title TBA” – The Postal Service. Though the Ben Gibbard & Jimmy Tamborello (Dntel) collab was originally a one-shot deal, it appears that another album is in the works. If it has half the musical genius of the first one, I will definitely be at least on Cloud 3 or 4.
“Title TBA” – The Raconteurs. Jack White rocks, and I want more of his music.
“Title TBA” – Muse. Like The Killers, their got some flack for Black Holes & Revelations, and again I’ve found that the album is a lot better than most think. Map of the Problematique has one of the best hooks in recent memory, and quite a few of the other songs exhibited classic Muse badassedness. That said, I have full confidence in their forthcoming effort.
And now, for the big finish:
“Title TBA” U2.
Enough said.
True Life: I’m an SP
January 26th, 2008The furor against the “Church” of Scientology is radiating all throughout the interwebz in the wake of Tom Cruise’s frighteningly bizarre KSW video (And he’d been doing so well since the “Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, MATT! AAAAAARGGGGGHHH” fiasco!) and the church’s subsequent attempts to have the video removed from Youtube and Gawker. By now (and thousands of Diggs later), we’ve all heard the news about the hacker coalition Anonymous having declared war on Scientology. Despite Anonymous’ dubious morality, there can be no doubt that continuous blackfaxing is effin’ hilarious. It’s Phase I of Operation El-Ron Takedown; slowly but surely, them Scientologists will be feelin’ the inflated prices of printer ink. Also, the SECRET DOX are entertaining in the sense of 1) suspension of disbelief and 2) you’re legitimately filled with terror when you read them. Like The Grudge 2 or The Hills Have Eyes 2, only way less realistic.
In all seriousness, however, I’m not joking when I say that Scientology really freaks me out. The gray (or downright EVIL) aspects of the organization like the horrifying Lisa McPherson and Elli and Jeremy Perkins stories have been well documented. The seemingly disingenuous and ludicrous origins of some of Scientology’s less popular beliefs (the intergalactic warlord alien Xenu, the died-by-volcano Thetans, and so on and so forth) are fairly well-ridiculed and about on par with Pastafarianism. Thanks to Tom, we are all quite well aware of Scientologists’ complete condescension for and persecution of psychiatry. They call the subject a pseudoscience. I haven’t researched and studied the history of psychiatry, though, so I’ll leave that one alone for now.
Let’s go straight to the big issue.
Scientology: Cult or Religion?
See, here’s the thing. Scientology claims to offer help to people who need help. They tell you they’re gonna help you feel good and understand yourself good and remember stuff good, too.
Religions say that also. Christian sects and denominations, by and large, try to help people. We’re not talking about the Crusades and the Westboro Baptist Churches of the world. We’re talking your everyday community church–the one that sends youth groups to soup kitchens and New Orleans and raises money for starving children in Africa with the 30-Hour Famine Project. This isn’t just the case for Christianity, either. The Bible teaches both Christians and Jews to live moral lives and to treat others as they would be treated. In Buddhism, the end goal is nirvana, for pity’s sake. I’d talk about Islam, too, but I’m not informed enough.
If someone is interested in Christianity, in Mormonism, in Judaism, or even Jehovah’s Witnesses (that’s a whole ‘nother post), what’s the first thing a representative gives you?
Their literature. Whether it be the Bible, the Book of Mormon, the Qu’ran, or whatever else, they want to inform you about their beliefs. Not only that, but they are willing and happy to listen and talk to you for free. And if you do join a church/mosque/temple, talking to and getting advice from your pastor or priest or imam or rabbi is free. In Christianity, churches want to connect you to your families. They urge you to forge relationships and to treat others–including non-Christians–with respect and kindness. In Scientology? “Auditing” comes for a price. El-Ron’s books and “sacred” documents and lectures come for a price. If your family members aren’t fellow believers, you’re urged to disconnect yourself from these so-called Suppressive Persons (”SP”).
The fact is, it doesn’t cost you anything to be a Christian, a Jew, a Muslim, or whatever. Yeah, there are tithes, but those are certainly optional–they’re not required to elevate you to a higher “Thetan” status. In the world’s major religions, teachings are offered freely. Not so in Scientology.
So, cult or religion? I’ve got to come down on the side of Cult. Scientology is a group which encourages isolation away from non-Scientologists and attaches a hefty price tag to the “enlightenment” and “self-improvement” that they promise. Basically, I’m not a fan.
True Life: I’m an SP, and proud of it.
P.S.: While I was writing this, my roommate told me, “K., I am a Scientologist.”
Hah. Had you for a minute. No, but seriously.
Best of…2007
January 14th, 2008Well, the big 0-0-7 is over and done with and studio execs are giving the awards season a kick-start. I was all set to experience some glorious Red Carpet action last night and lo! do my eyes deceive? for the scrumptilescent ball gowns and tuxedos I had expected to see were replaced by two of those ‘Access Hollywood’ and ‘Entertainment Tonight’ voices. ["And you'll never believe who was seen in this swanky film... Up next, the nominees for Best Supporting Actress!"]
The depth of my disappointment goes without saying. I knew I had to do something! So, to help you (and myself) to fill the void, I created an off-the-cuff “Best of” list that will give you a taste of the smiles, tears, and fellowship that we missed out on at the Golden Globes.
Best Film
JUNO I know it’s a predictable pick for the young, hip, enlightened blogger [like myself 
], but it’s nonetheless one of the best films I’ve seen in a good while. Fab acting, even fab-er script, and a Fat Man-sized hit to Jason Reitman’s Arsenal of Awesomeness.
Best Album
IN RAINBOWS – Radiohead. It was a close race with Alicia Keys’s AS I AM, but in the end I had to pick the aural-gasm that is IN RAINBOWS. This album even beats out KID A, my previous fave from Thom Yorke & co. Plus, props for the cool way they distributed it.
Worst Thing To Happen on the Internet
FACEBOOK APPLICATIONS with the exception of Graffiti, my personal fave, no, I do not want to play Jetman or Speed Racer or get bitten by a vampire or pretend that I am a zombie. Seriously. Close Second: Google buying Youtube. Thanks a lot. Now they’re actually paying attention to those pesky copyright laws.
Best Film I Won’t See
SICKO The thing is, I’ve heard enough John Edwards speeches that it’s kind of moot.
BEST (Or Worst, Depending How You Look At It) BUSH QUOTE
‘”There are some similarities, of course (between Iraq and Vietnam). Death is terrible.” –Tipp City, Ohio, April 19, 2007′
He goes on to say, “So, y’all understand the similarities between the War on Terror and the Revolutionary War, too. We’re fightin’ for freedom.”*
Damn. That last one depressed me.
*I made that up. Funny how you believed he said it, though, isn’t it?
Obama’s reception
January 9th, 2008
Video by Ryan Rice.
The Senator proceeded to give another fantastically inspirational speech to the fired up! and ready to go crowd.
Pictures to come.
