X Marks The Spot
March 11, 2010
I posted the link below last night to the first ever BGC Open Mic (which I hosted at my job), but I wanted to give my boy Xavier Simmons his proper shine, because he especially went in with the spoken word. Xavier has transformed in the past six months from a rapper to a full fledged musician and writer, focusing more on poetry and writing songs on the piano than just murdering instrumentals (which trust me he can do with ease). Here’s his performance from the BGC Open Mic, titled “The Mechanics Of Life”….
Crazy, right? My G is gifted with it. More videos and pics from the open mic HERE. Please check it out, there were some great performances by some really talented kids. And before I go, I gotta throw the video up of my dudes the Gym Lawyer Band, two of my best friends who performed together live for the first time in over a year at the event (you might recognize Matty B from “Hammer”). How raw are these guys?
Lots of talent in Westchester County. Who else is out there? Holler at your boy and let me know so I can check them out. Uno.
DJ Diapers
March 8, 2010
Baby Season is creeping up slowly here in Westcheddar, and I am taking notes from some of my close pals who already have seeds, trying to make sense of what it is going to be like to raise my son, and what I want to teach him to at an early age. Of course, many people ask me already, “are you going to teach him how to rap?” We shall see about that, but yeah, that’s my son, he’s gonna be spitting fire regardless if I teach him or not because IT’S IN HIS BLOOD. Well my dude DJ Destro (above left with Uncle Mack) has already taught his two year old son how to work the turntables. At a recent community hip hop event hosted by Lord Judah (what up my G) at Manhattanville College, DJ Destro let his son, DJ Diapers, show off his skills on the 1s and 2s. Check the video…
As my wife would say, “OH MY GOD HE’S SOOOO CUTE”. Keep doing your thing DJ Diapers, I’m gonna have a rapper for you to team up with very soon. Cheah!
New Look Knicks
February 21, 2010
Big game last night, and the whole Isenberg Fam was in the building for it. Shout to my pops, Jimmy I, for coming through with the tickets. We’d been talking about going to a Knicks game for a while, and I told him the Oklahoma City Thunder was the team to check for right now. Durant is a scoring machine, and Westbrook is a problem. Turns out with Tracy McGrady and the rest of the new Knicks making their debut last night after some hyped up trades, we picked the right game to attend.
The Garden was definitely rocking and filled to capacity. I saw John Starks as we were walking to our seats in the hallway (ironic because McGrady is sporting his #3 now see below), and all I could think to do was yell right in his face “LEGEND”. He appreciated it. My wife, who supposedly “loved John Starks” as a teenage girl because she felt bad that he had to wear that mask on his face when he broke his nose back in the day, missed the Starks sighting. She was too busy talking to my sister about baby furniture or some shit.
It was a great game, neck and neck until the last buzzer, went into overtime, and I gotta say the new Knicks looked good even though they lost. McGrady had a productive game, making lots of high energy shots and nice passes, but he missed two clutch free throws down the stretch which kinda cost them the win. And I like Eddie House, he’s a nice addition to the club and brings some personality to the rotation. For a bunch of guys who’ve never played together, it was a better than decent showing. I see potential. But I still think there’s some more guys to get rid of. And of course, we gotta get Lebron. Come on Bron Bron, what superstar athlete wouldn’t want to play in New York? Check the highlights from last night’s game below…
By the way, Durant really is sick with it. He made some huge shots last night. He’s my favorite player in the NBA right now. Check Tommy Dee (who we chilled with at halftime) at The Knicks Blog for more commentary on last night’s game HERE. Scream.
Get Him To The Greek
February 12, 2010
Get Him To The Greek, the highly anticipated Forgetting Sarah Marshall spin-off starring Russell Brand and Jonah Hill (see above), finally released its official trailer. Looks like quite an adventure. I’m very excited about this movie for a few reasons. One, I’m a big fan of Judd Apatow movies, and FSM is a classic. Two, my boy Nick Kroll is in it, as is his boy Aziz Ansari (they popped up together briefly in I Love You, Man too). Check them both out in the first couple seconds of the trailer with Diddy. Yes!
My third and final reason why I’m excited about Get Him To The Greek is because I’ve performed there! Ahh, the summer of 2006. Check the pic of me rocking with Matisyahu at the Greek Theatre…
Finally, a movie I’m looking forward to seeing. Anything else good coming out?
Presidential Moments
January 21, 2010
It’s been one year since President Barack Obama took the oath of office. His approval rating is down, but I still think he has the potential to help our country (and the world) be a better place to live. My sister Becca sent me over this “pretty incredible” photo gallery by the White House photographer, capturing some great presidential moments from his first year in office, the last shot which is posted above. Yes, Obama called on his predecessors to help him with the Haiti earthquake relief efforts last week, and this historic photo was taken at the White House after their press conference. Check out the rest of the pictures in the link below, which includes lots of intimate shots of Obama at the White House and around the world with his staff and family. They are excellent.
Pictures from President Obama’s First Year
As for some lighter presidential moments, well this speech that George W. Bush made in Miami a few years ago always cracks me up, no matter how many times I watch it. ”Dan Marino and his, uh, really dynamic wife…” Hahahahaha!!!!
And finally, watch comedian Don Rickles roast President Reagan. Wow…
Keep going President Obama. Westcheddar supports you…
Hammer Heads
January 19, 2010
That’s a young Wedding Crashers shot right there. Stan Ipcus and Matty B. Pause. I’m not exactly sure what we’re doing! I think we’re dancing crazy for some field hockey girls (shout out to Chrissy Castro I’m pretty sure that’s her room). Anyway, I found some old footage of us performing our hard body duet “Hammer” from the first Stan Ipcus and Friends White Plains Thirsty Turtle show in November of 2006, and I finally got around to uploading it. This was a great night…
“Hammer”, which is actually a love song if you do the knowledge to it, first appeared on my mixtape Bachelor Party, which also features our other collaboration “Highlands To Hollywood”. This is my personal favorite body of work. Download it HERE. And for more Thirsty Turtle moments, CLICK HERE. Shout out to my dude Matty B!!!! And special birthday shout out to my dog Killa Kam aka K-Wet out in California!!!!
Center Court
January 14, 2010
Matisyahu paid a visit to the Knicks vs. Sixers game in Philadelphia last night to perform the “Star Spangled Banner” with Philly native bandmate Aaron Dugan (above right), and also a set after the last buzzer in celebration of Jewish Heritage Night. Check the pic..
Here’s some fan footage of his National Anthem rendition…
And earlier in the day, the pair performed a stripped down version of “Thunder”, a song off Matisyahu’s latest album Light, live on Philly’s Preston and Steve radio show (stream full audio from interview and performance HERE thanks Ariel!!!!)…
You’ve come along way from those Highlands basketball courts Matis. Westcheddar salutes you. Cheah!!!!!
*Bonus*
Download/Stream Matisyahu’s brand new Daytrotter performance HERE…
Olympic Gold
November 18, 2009
NBC is using Matisyahu’s “One Day” as part of their promotion for the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics. Very cool. Check the commercial above for a taste. I hope they give him a chance to perform this at the opening ceremony or something. And yo, Matis just told me the other day that he recorded a “One Day” remix with Akon. Wow. Keep your ears open for that.
Empire State Of Mind
October 30, 2009
Unless you’ve been under a rock, you should know by now that Jay-Z and Alicia Keys performed “Empire State Of Mind” before the start of game two of the World Series last night in Yankee Stadium. Hov just keeps getting bigger and bigger huh? Well today, they finally dropped the highly anticipated, Hype Williams directed video for everyone’s favorite new NYC anthem. Check it out, it’s awesome…
On a side note, it sounds like Beanie Sigel and Jay-Z have some issues to iron out. Beans released this diss track of sorts last night (timed perfectly with the Turnpike Series in full swing), and whether you like the message behind it or not, it’s hot. I love the Prodigy sample on the hook. But I gotta say, it’s sad when these rap crews fall apart and start beefing with each other. Anyway, check the song out, it’s called “What You Talkin’ Bout”…
T.G.I.F…I’ll holla…
A Milli
October 26, 2009
Damn, my boy Matisyahu has over one million followers on Twitter! That’s crazy. Check out this article Pollstar published online about his use of the ever so popular social networking site…
Also, if you’re in the New York City area for the holidays, def try to make it out to this year’s Festival of Light (see poster above)….
