Just Get Up And Go

To: Ray, Adonis, Lance
From: Nazer
Re: BAROCK the peoples champ OBAMA

Yeah I'd be down for doing the sort of "person of the month/day/week" thing. It'd give us more to write about, and it'd be cool to see what each writer throws to the table, perspective is key.

So I just got back from a concert/clinic held at my school by Bobby McFerrin. He is a ten-time Grammy Award winner who has made so many innovations in the vocal world. He's well educated in all areas of music, ranging from classical, to jazz, and much more.

Punk Ass Bitch (PAB): "WtF MayN, cLaSiCaL and JaaZZZJZ???? ThAz OLd PeepZ MuZIK."

I guess he's right in a way, classical composers and jazz originated way back when, but all the music you hear today is influenced from those previous ideas, and if you automatically brush something off just because it doesn't fit into your everyday routine, then that's just ignorance.

Anyways, the night began with him sitting in a chair with a microphone, and then he began to sing. His vocal range is ridiculous, and not only can he hit notes as high as the sky and deep as the ocean, but the pitch is absolutely on point. He added a ton of rhythm to his performance, and if you think youtube beat-boxing videos are dope then you have to see this.

After that he took a lot of questions from the students, providing a lot of insightful information on technique and different styles of learning, but he was also to show examples right on the spot. He had volunteers come up and sing along with him, which was one of the most impressive aspects of the entire night because everything he sang during those sessions was improvised, right from the heart and mind.

To tell you the truth, I wasn't sure if I was going to go to this or not. I mean I've heard his music before and everything, but seeing everything right in my face, and all the improvisation being so organic was really something unmatched. When he'd sing everyone in the crowd would join along, probably a Berklee thing. I'm glad I got on my feet and went to this.

He made a point saying that you can learn something from every single type of music. Every individual has a voice, and if you take the time to listen, then you can really find something amazing. So what I'm stressing is go out listen to something new. Turn off the T-pain for a minute and just grab a random CD in your house and just give it a listen. But most of all, go see live music. It doesn't have to be a stadium wide concert or anything, but even just going to a local venue to hear someone play is a truly unique experience. There's talent everywhere in this world, so do yourself a favor and expose yourself to it.