Adam Sandler during his SNL years with a sick crew of White Plains 8th graders (and my little sister) outside the Hard Rock Cafe in Manhattan, circa 1992. Very vintage.
Cosby, Candy, and Charles
The Good Old DaysI grew up in the 80’s, and if there was one television program that shaped my moral views during my childhood it was The Cosby Show. My father Jim Isenberg, who at 62 years old just got his PHD from University of California at Berkeley, is the jewish Cliff Huxtable. There are too many similarities, from his humor to his love of music to the way he takes such pride in his family, the comparisons are endless. Here is a classic Cosby Show clip I dedicate to my father in celebration of his PHD, the Huxtable’s performance of the Ray Charles classic “Night and Day”…
BONUS CLIP…..
My Dad’s favorite movie of all time is Plains, Trains, and Automobiles with John Candy and Steve Martin. John Candy cracks him up. I’ve never seen my Dad laugh harder than when he watches that movie. Here’s one of his favorite scenes, featuring a hilarious John Candy driving, smoking, and air-playing Ray Charles’ “Mess Around” while Steve Martin tries to sleep in the passenger seat. Watching this movie with my father was my first introduction to Ray Charles’ music…
Detlef Schrempf
Sports
Band of Horses is responsible for arguably my favorite song in the history of recorded music. I’m not the biggest fan of their first album EVERYTHING ALL THE TIME (though it made me like them), but I dig their second album CEASE TO BEGIN alot, and when I say alot I mean it’s got a few good songs on it, which is more than I can say for most albums nowadays.
Detlef Schrempf, my vote for best song on the album (and of all eternity), is so beautiful that no matter how many times I listen to it, I never get sick of it. I’ve definitely listened to it more than any other song in the past year. I think I’m going to dance with my mother to it at my upcoming wedding FRIENDS HONOR. Still I was wondering why it was named after a former Supersonics forward. Is it the band’s Seattle roots? Not sure. I checked out one of my new favorite websites, songmeanings.net, in my attempt to figure out why they would name such a beautiful song after such an ugly, NBA whiteboy (see picture below). Here is what I found out…
Here’s a couple more gems not found on either of their two official SUBPOP releases. The first is a slow version of my favorite song from their first album, “Wicked Gil”, the video below is of them performing it live in Seattle. The second is from the O.C. television show soundtrack, called “The End’s Not Near”.
Band of Horses Live at SXSW music festival in Austin, Texas, 2006.
Filter magazine did a dope cover story on Band of Horses last fall when they’re album dropped, sort of a road log of the west coast wing of their tour. Of course, I’ve got the issue tucked away in my collection, but you can check it out online here.
BGC Photo Booth
YouthDefinitely one of the coolest features for kids on the new I Macs is the Photo Booth. With a built in camera on the top of the monitor and lots of special effects, it makes for a great way to spend time alone or with your friends inside. I recently went through each computer in the lab to find the most innovative pics taken using the photo booth to display in our spring Image Makers exhibit. Here are my favorites from the exhibit…
Weird and Weirder.
That’s the same girl in both pics.
Barry Bonds.
In real life this kid’s arms are like a set of chopsticks.
If you knew how annoying this kid was you’d understand why this pic is a staff favorite.
This might be my favorite out of the bunch. How sick is that?
Same girl as camera eyes in the above three shots. She’s obviously nice with the mirror effect. 4th grade.
The girl in this pic listens to Santogold and The Raconteurs. How cool is she? 8th grade.
The colors in this are ill…
…but sometimes black and white says it the best.
Oh yeah, that’s me son! And my dude above Jim Crim. Hey, the staff’s gotta have fun too!
Holla…
No Mas NYC
My Dudes, SportsMy first and only cousin Christopher Isenberg, my elder of five years and childhood idol, is the brain behind No Mas NYC, a brand of clothing, art, and writing that focuses on the fallen sports hero and much much more in the wide world of competitive athletics. His t-shirts are genius. His designs are crisp and colorful. He basically has cornered the urban boutique market with his brand so successfully that him teaming up with Puma to create No Mas sneakers seems like small potatoes at this point. Here’s some of my favorites from the No Mas collection…
The 1st ever No Mas NYC t-shirt…
For all the brothers…
Out of all my No Mas t-shirts, I’ve worn this one the most…
Classic.
Another classic.
Tecmo Bo…
I used to have this in pink…
Though I love the t-shirts, my favorite product No Mas ever released was its Frank 151 magazine sports issue. Chris put the whole thing together, and it features great articles on classic sports video games, a baseball card battle between my cousin and legendary photographer Ricky Powell, a history of recreational drug use in sports, and a story written by my uncle Steve about New York’s former Mayor Lindsey’s relationship with the NY Mets. Check it out…
buy No Mas X Frank 151 Sports Issue here
I’m still trying to get a pair of these kicks…Yo CI, what’s good??!?!?!
Oh, and these too cuz…
Here’s a few of the No Mas posters, they’re awesome…
And finally, two classic No Mas related shots….
White Plains Firefighters model No Mas t-shirts (and Dirty Jax too) during a hilarious fashion show at the Thirsty Turtle before a summer 2007 No Mas league member Stan Ipcus performance…
A young CI with George Steinbrenner…
Get Light
YouthThe teen population at the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester is infatuated with GETTING LIGHT. This new dance craze, based around the same rhythm used in Lil Mama’s hit song “Lip Gloss”, seems to be sweeping through New York City and has made it way as far north as Mt. Kisco. A few of the teens who frequent my Cultural Arts Center can actually do the dance. And when they are not busy practicing routines for upcoming talent shows and club events, they are in our Mac lab watching youtube videos of NYC’s finest GETTING LIGHT.
I was immediately drawn to the dance, simply because it looks cool and it’s performed by street kids no older than their early teens. Me, I would never even attempt to try the dance style myself. Sure, I always could do a mean RUNNING MAN, but I never could master anything tougher than that. The ROGER RABBIT was always too complicated for me.
GETTING LIGHT is like a combination of the HARLEM SHAKE and BREAKDANCING. The kids seen in the youtube videos are like skinny jeaned superstars in our Mac lab, as we all watch the clips over and over debating who’s nicer. And their names are crazy, like DOOFIE BABY and GOYA BEAN. It seems like a very cool after-school scene to be a part of in NYC, where the onlookers provide the beat with hand claps and chants of enthusiasm for the opponents. And there’s lots of videos all over youtube, which means these kids are creative enough to invent the dances as well as tech savvy enough to spread the culture virally. Here’s one of the more competitive battles, MR. STYLES vs. KID PATT…
Hot 97’s Token Jewboy
My DudesIt’s always great to see dudes you came up with make it big. Peter Rosenberg went to school with me at the University of Maryland. He had a radio show called “From Dusk ‘Til Dawn” on WMUC, and he was always up on his underground hip-hop. He was younger than me but we had mutual friends and I would always see him at campus hip-hop events where I was performing. We had a mutual respect for one another as jewish hip-hop heads.
Last summer I was driving home from a John Mayer show in Saratoga Springs on a Sunday night. It was pretty late, and my girl was passed out. As I made my way over the Tappan Zee Bridge, I flipped on Hot 97 and whose voice do I hear? Peter Rosenberg. Wow. My dude got his own show on the biggest radio station in NYC.
Since then I’ve been checking for him steadily because I love to support my fellow Terp alumni. Plus he plays real hip-hop on his show which is refreshing in this day and age of fluffy radio content. And his youtube video interviews are all over the hip-hop blogs weekly. This one is my favorite, from behind the scenes at Summer Jam 2008. Check it out….
For more Peter Rosenberg content, check out his blog…
He’s also got a funny hip-hop heavy podcast with fellow Hot 97 DJ Cipha Sounds called JUAN EPSTEIN, available on Itunes, Rosenberg Radio, and Cipha Sounds blog dontgetgassed.com. Here’s one of their more entertaining episodes, featuring one of Westchester County’s finest producers, Mount Vernon’s own Pete Rock…
Piggy Wiggy
Uncategorized
I first heard of Ticklah on the Sharon Jones- How Long Do I Have To Wait For You? TICKLAH REMIX
I’m a big fan of Sharon Jones, The Dap Kings, and of course Amy Winehouse. Turns out Ticklah is Winehouse’s keyboardist and an ill dub reggae producer. I picked up his album recently at the FYE in the Palisades Mall (which actually has a really sick reggae section). The album is all dub reggae music, with about half instrumentals and half songs with vocals. The whole thing is dope, but this one song definitely stands out. It features some dude by the name of Rob Symeonn, who sings about fake rastafarians who smoke herb but still eat swine. The hook is crazy…
“You’s a pork eater, a piggy wiggy…” Ha!
check it out:
Ticklah featuring Rob Symeonn- Pork Eater
I sent the track to my dude Matisyahu yesterday for him to check out since he’s the one who introduced me to dub reggae music in the first place, and he just hit me back with his reaction. Here’s his email response..
“Last night we finished a show in KC and everyone in my band was eating pork ribs in the dressing room. I then proceeded to blast the pork song from my speakers. It was awesome. Thanks”
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile
For more info on Ticklah, go here:
My Ferris Buellers
Stan Ipcus
These are the first pair of exclusive sneakers I ever bought on ebay. The Nike SB Ferris Bueller High Top Dunks. Inspired by the leopard pattern sweater Ferris wears throughout the movie. They’re so fresh. I only wear them like once a week, and I keep them in the box, which is something I’ve never done. I’m far from your traditional “sneakerhead”. I’ve always been one of those dudes who wears the same kicks every day until they’re all scuffed up. Not these though. I love them so much I wrote a song about them.
When I was done with my verses, the lyrics had a real old school flow to them, and they matched up perfectly with my clever idea to use the Run-DMC “My Adidas” beat as the instrumental track. I also flipped the classic Nas line from THE WORLD IS YOURS remix “…and the Nikes on my feet keep my cipher complete” and added it to my playful chorus. And since the song had that superfresh 80’s vibe, I even added a little Slick Rick interpolation at the end. Oh, and of course the famous Ben Stein monotone “Bueller, Bueller, Bueller”.
Check it out…
Stan Ipcus- My Ferris Buellers
Here’s the lyrics…
“oh ipcus those nike sb ferris buellers are sick!”
“bueller, bueller, bueller”
1st verse
this song is dedicated to my brand new dunks
i copped ’em on ebay for less than a buck/
three days later they got dropped off the truck
when i slid ’em on the kid they looked fly as fuck/
took the leopard laces off had to opt for the white
but the leopard on the inside it looks so tight/
and the colors match my dutch so i’m feeling so right
word to mother i’m a smash me a model tonight/
now all the girlies love ip for the way that i spit
and all the fellas show me love when they see the fresh kicks/
got my dirty jax shirt and a date with big tits
and she plays for both teams man ain’t that a bitch/
i’m up in the vip with a bottle of something
rolling l after l with some new shit pumping/
thought i’d step to the porch to go blow me a boge
when this bad bitch was like “what kind of kicks is those?”/
chorus
my ferris buellers my ferris buellers
my ferris buellers my ferris buellers/
my ferris buellers my sb ferris beullers
the nike’s on my feet keep my cipher complete/
repeat once
“bueller, bueller, bueller”
2nd verse
they call ’em ferris beullers cuz they match that dudes sweater
yeah the movie from the 80’s baby get it together/
got the ill earthy colors and the egg shell leather
and of course on the tongue they got a little bit of leopard/
the high top westchester boy stan ippy
at the gansevort sporting that shit so crispy/
got a crew half thugged out and half of ’em hippie
so we mix in the purple with the california crippie/
when ip’s on the mic i can rock all night
i’m so nice that ya wife is gonna want me to pipe/
but i got my own chicks so no worries aiight
just enjoy the way i spit and admire the nikes/
i don’t need an instrumental when i’m out on the block
i got my dog max b with the ill beat box/
i’m just a fly white boy with that real hip hop
and a pair of ferris beuller’s that’ll knock you out ya socks/
knock ’em out the box ip knock ’em out ip
knock ’em out the box ip knock ’em out ip/
knock ’em out the box knock knock ’em out the box
knock knock ’em out the box ip knock ’em out ip/
chorus
“umm, he’s sick.”
The Making of a Mosaic
YouthI was hired in September 2007 by the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester as the Cultural Arts Director. With that position came the duty of designing the club’s first ever Cultural Arts Center. So to help make our mark and add some flare to the freshly painted white walls in our main art room, I hired Haifa Bint-Kadi, a locally acclaimed mosaic artist based out of Yonkers, to work with our club members to design and create our very own mosaic.
One of our 8th graders Londell Nugent, an amazing talent for his age, ended up designing the layout of the wall with the help of his peers in a brainstorming session. Everyone agreed that bringing the BGC to life on the wall and showing all the activities that happen under our roof would make for an awesome mosaic. And after six weeks of hard work, our mark was made. Check it out.
Here’s a look behind the scenes…
Our 8th Grade designer Londell Nugent hard at work…
For more info on Haifa Bint-Kadi, check out her website:
Westcheddar 
