Breaking Through Walls; The Essence Of Being Unstoppable - An Interview With Musician Roni Bryant

Sometimes we find a talented musician who is like a breath of fresh air,someone who you can see yourself being friends with, someone that you can sit and have a few drinks with while laughing the night away. Roni Bryant is that musician.  She grew up in a small town in Indiana, but had her dreams of doing something bigger. She has paved the way for herself, never gave up on her dreams, and at the young age of 23, she has come a long way. She is like a star that will keep on getting brighter.

Roni, how would you personally define your music as?

Original, yet familiar. Personal yet interpreted by many. Different shades of life thrown into a cluster fuck.

Who or what influences you to write?  What is your inspiration?

Those who came before me. A wise man once said “you are only as good as your record collection” The first album was inspired by my fave musician, pain my mother went through, pain I went though, sacrifices my family made for me, my patriotism- it was like holding a mirror up and looking at what makes me who I am

Are you on tour right now, and can you tell us where you will be playing?

Not at the moment, but I intend to be in the near future.

You are originally from the Midwest, a small town girl, (knowing how hard it is for us country folk getting noticed) how hard was it to get your music out there?

Well, back then I didn’t let anyone listen to what I wrote. I did covers of other artists and won the local fair county fair; all that jazz. Where I’m from; a rural area where there just aren’t any resources outside of school for would-be musicians. I didn’t start putting out my own music till I was 21- about 2 years after I left the Midwest.

I really like “Indebted”, can you tell me a little more about the song?

Indebted is about first love. I think that no matter who we are with when we are mature enough to actually love someone, the innocence of our first love stays with us and keeps a shred of our hearts.

How do you overcome adversity?

I do what I want and I don’t care what anyone else thinks or how they react. I live my life to please myself, not others. People tried to bring me down before and they failed, quite miserably I might add. I’m unstoppable.

When did you first start singing? Did you always get support from others?

I started singing when I was 2. I always had support from my family and close friends but I didn’t get much support growing up from peers outside my inner circle. I faced a ton of adversity in that respect.

Tell us something exciting that happened for your singing career!

I signed a promotional contract with Paste Magazine and they featured “Remain” on the Coke website.

What is a “normal” day like for you?

I’m a normal person. I get up and I go to class at UT El Paso. I come home and study, then I work on my music alone or I meet up with other musicians.

What do you like to do besides singing?

I love going to shows, networking, and pampering my kitties.

Can you give any advice for other aspiring musicians out there?

Do what you want and don’t ever let anyone discourage you. It is possible to live a normal life and be a successful musician. Everyone’s definition of success is different. Don’t let our pop culture define it for you. Define your own success.

Can you tell us one quirky aspect about yourself?
I’ll always be “MAD FER IT!!!”

If you want to order her album, please visit her website: http://ronibryant.com/

You can also buy her tracks on iTunes!

Please visit Roni’s Myspace page here:  http://www.myspace.com/ronibryant

Follow Roni on Twitter!  http://twitter.com/RoniBryantMusic

Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroeconomics - day 1

This is the second annual meeting of the SfN that I attend, and this time I am there to do interviews and publicize an online survey on interdisciplinarity which I designed for neuroeconomists (are you a neuroeconomist? Drop me an email at clevallois@rsm.nl, and I will send you the link to it).

The program is remarkably different from the last year. Much less rat studies, and a lot of papers and posters on social interactions in humans. I am not sure whether it reflects an inflexion in the selection process by the organizing committee, or a new direction in neuroeconomics. A participant at the diner hinted that it merely reflects the changes in priorities laid out by funding agencies.

A few labs are overrepresented – Duke and CalTech; and the usual big names are all around. I could interview Peter Bossaerts, Colin Camerer and Paul Gimcher, and I should continue this series tomorrow.

For this evening, I hesitate between catching up with some sleep and fight the jetlag, or join the conference-sponsored dart-and-pool evening at the pub around the corner. Hm.

Minskyrone, un talent à découvrir

Minskyrone, un talent à découvrir Durant ce mois de décembre, la scène du Mozika Vaovao (au CCAC) a fait découvrir encore une fois un talent sûr du rap au pays. En effet, Minskyrone, même si le gamin rappe en français, a convaincu plus d’un, surtout les grands noms du Rapy Gasy. Voici donc un petit entretien qu’on a fait juste avant qu’il monte en scène.

Minskyrone, est-ce que tu peux nous raconter un peu tes débuts ?
J’aimerai dire que je suis ici depuis 98, et puis j’étais dans un groupe avec un vieux poto et le gars il est plus ici à Madagascar. C’était un groupe de deux gars qui rappaient en français et à l’époque c’était encore du rap de chambre quoi, c’est à dire studio puis maison et c’est tout. Et puis on avait un autre groupe avec des gars qui bossaient avec nous, on bossait ensemble quoi, on aimait le rap et on a fait un groupe. On était huit gars dont j’étais le seul à raper en français.
A l’origine tu vois, je savais pas parler malgache, j’ai essayé de raper gachemal mais c’était comique donc j’ai continué à raper en français. Après notre groupe, SLK, je sais pas si tu connais, a participé à des trucs genre rapline et tout et on a eu le premier prix déjà.
J’ai entamé une carrière solo de puis 2003, 2003-04. a l’origine tu vois j’ai fait juste des morceaux comme ça, donc c’était toujours studio-maison … et puis en 2005, il y avait Toky qui passait à la maison et je l’ai fait écouter mes sons et c’était lui le premier qui a envoyé mes sons à la radio (rire). Depuis ce jour, je ne sais pas comment ça s’est fait mais plein de gens avaient mes sons à la radio. Et je me suis dit que je fais des bons sons quand même et on m’a demandé de sortir mes sons …j’ai commencé à écrire mon album en fin 2005 et je suis encore là (rire) et là je fais Mozika Vaovao.

On a remarqué que dans tes titres il y avait des featuring avec X-tah, Karnazy, Taga. Pourquoi ce choix ?
Pourquoi ce choix, parce que c’est tous des gens quand j’étais gamin tu vois par rapport à eux, c’était tous des gens que j’écoutais quand j’étais jeune et que je kiffais. Et puis je me suis dit qu’un jour si je sors mon album il y aura eux.

Qui fait tes instruments et c’est quoi ton genre de rap, tu aimes le hardcore, la bounce … ?
Je sais pas le genre mais j’ai jamais touché au bounce par contre. Je sais pas le genre mais je reste basique rap et puis ça dépend du thème, de l’humeur. C’est moi qui fait les instrus d’habitude et de temps en temps je tape avec un gars qui ne me quitte jamais, NayG (désolé pour le nom s’il y a une faute), et puis la majorité c’était à Valimad avec Andry et beaucoup de gars. On voulait faire quelque chose hors que … hors que d’habitude (rire).

T’as parlé là de ton premier album, je ne sais pas quand il va sortir mais y aura-il d’autres featurings ?
L’album, je te cite déjà qui sont les guests dans mon album, il y a Taga, il y a Karnazy … il y a X-tah, Fy aussi. Et puis il y aura d’autres gens mais en interlude.
Ben, déjà y aura Tolo et d’autres, je préfère pas encore te le dire tu vois (rire).

Ça va sortir quand et c’est quoi le titre ?
C’est quand que ça va sortir … je peux pas te répondre tu vois car je suis pas un gars riche. Je ne suis pas kamikaze, ne sors pas un truc si voilà … je prévois un truc alors que je ne sais même pas si c’est vendable tu vois. J’attends qu’il y ait des gens qui demandent et si je sens que ça mérite de sortir ben ça sortira sinon je le garderai pour moi et mes potes.

Est-ce que tu projettes de faire des clips et tout ça ?
Ouai, c’est tout à fait un projet là en ce moment. Je vais pas en faire un seul ou deux mais c’est que je vais m’y mettre, je vais en faire plein. Et puis quand ce sera le moment ben ça va passer à la télé.

Combien de titres à peu près composeront ton album ?
Normalement il y aura 20 titres.

Tu parles de quoi généralement dans tes morceaux ?
Tu vois comme disait booba, certains parlent d’amour mais moi je parle de ce que je connais et je suis de son avis tu vois. L’amour euh … franchement je sais pas trop tu vois … mais jusqu’à maintenant je parle de ce qui me touche personnellement. Mais dans l’album je parle de la vie de tous les jours d’un … comment on va dire ça … d’un petit banlieusard quoi.

Le titre de l’album ?
… le titre de l’album c’est ” Lexique du bitume “.

j’ai entendu dire que durant le Mozika Vaovao tu vas tout faire en acoustique ?tout ?
euh non pas tout mais j’ai entendu qu’il va y avoir des sons acoustiques.
On va pas dire tout mais il y aura des sons faits à l’ancienne tu vois, basés sur des samplings … l’acoustique c’est aussi de l’expérimental alors on ne sais pas si ça va marcher ou pas, il y aura trois ou quatre sons qu’on va faire en acoustique.

Tes derniers mots ?
C’est surtout un truc que je voudrais dire … pour les générations surtout quoi, faites les choses bien.

Mozika vaovao 2006

greeeen kiseki(wish),ai uta(Love song)lyrics

Lyrics

nee, daisuki na kimi he’ warawa naide kiite kure
aishiteru’ danante kusai kedone
Dakedo kono kotoba igai tsutaeru koto ga dekinai
Hora ne! mata baka nishite waratta yone

Kimi no eran da (michi) wa (koko) de yokatta no ka
Nante wakaranai kedo…

Tada nai te waratte sugosu hibi ni
Tonari ni tatte yureru koto de
Boku ga ikiru imi ni natte
Kimi ni sasagu kono ai no uta

‘nee, ano hi no bokura nanno hanashi wo shiteta?’
Hajimete atta nichi ni yosoyososhiku
Arekara iroiro atte toki ni wa kenka mo shite
Wakari autameno toki sugo shitane

Kono hiroi bokura sora no shita deatte koi woshite itsumademo

Tada nai te waratte sugo su hibi ni
Tonari ni tatte yureru koto de
Kimi to iki ru imi ni natte
Kimi ni sasagu kono ai no uta

Itsumo meiwaku wokakete gomenne
Mitsudo koi ji

Kiseki lyrics

ashita, kyou yori mo suki ni nareru afureru omoi ga tomaranai
ima mo konna ni suki de iru no ni kotoba ni dekinai

kimi no kureta hibi ga tsumikasanari sugisatta hibi futari aruita “kiseki”
bokura no deai ga moshi guuzen naraba? unmei naraba?
kimi ni meguri aeta sore tte “kiseki”

futari yorisotte aruite towa no ai wo katachi ni shite
itsumademo kimi no yoko de waratte itakute
ARIGATOU ya Ah aishiteru ja mada tarinai kedo
semete iwasete “shiawase desu” to

itsumo kimi no migi no te no hira wo tada boku no hidari no te no hira ga
sotto tsutsundeku soredake de tada ai wo kanjiteita

hibi no naka de chiisana shiawase mitsuke kasane yukkuri aruita “kiseki”
bokura no deai wa ookina sekai de chiisana dekigoto
meguri aeta sore tte “kiseki”

umaku ikanai hi datte futari de ireba

Lieberman Says Obama Must Get Tougher on Iran

Senator Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) said yesterday that the “Obama administration needs to get tougher on Iran if it wants to broker peace in the Middle East,” The Hill reports.

"The original Obama administration position seemed to suggest the biggest obstacle to peace in the Middle East was the Israeli policy of building on territory [believed to be Palestinian]," Lieberman told MSNBC. "The real threat to peace in the Middle East is Iran."

"If you look at our policy, which is a global policy, to stop the Iranians from building nuclear weapons, everything we have done thus far has failed," Lieberman added, noting that he was preparing a bill that would levy new economic sanctions on the country. "I think the only way we’re going to stop this development… is for us to make it clear to the Iranians that if they don’t stop, they’ll suffer."

An Interview with Mathieu Santos of Ra Ra Riot

Ra Ra Riot: from the left, Ali Lawn, Mathieu Santos, Wes Miles, Milo Bonacci and Beck Zeller. Photo by Alanna Romeo

On Wednesday, July 29, I had the pleasure of talking with Ra Ra Riot bassist Mathieu Santos. We discussed the band’s role in New York City’s All Points West Festival (a muddy orgy of rock, hippies and sewage) as well as RRR’s plans for a follow-up album to their debut: The Rhumb Line.

If you haven’t listened to this to band, do so immediately. It sounds like they’re putting in the hours necessary to make a great follow-up album.

1)      Can you explain the basic differences between doing a festival as opposed to your own show?

Festivals are just about mass exposure. You go in with the idea that people aren’t familiar with your songs, and you just want to convert as many fans as possible. Nothing really compares to the club show or your own headlining tours.

2)      What’s strange about concert advertisements is the difference between the so-called headliners, and other acts.  Headliners get the gigantic lettering and other acts simply don’t.  Who decides the pecking order for these shows? And does that put less or more pressure on your band?

It’s kind of interesting to see how a band’s credibility is determined by a font size.  A lot of different factors and a lot of people are working at this: album sales, chart positions, sometimes a band just shoots up out of nowhere. All that stuff.  Being lower on the bill never bothered us.  It’s all a part of a long uphill battle. We wanted to take the longer, more steady, very calculated approach.  So far it’s working out.

3)      Festivals, I’ve found, can offer extreme audiences: they either love you or hate you and let you know it.  Is RRR changing anything up for the festival, or would that be counter-productive?

The thought is to just keep your head down and focus on performing well  But our performances are more inhibited than during a club show, and the stages are usually really big, which can throw you off a bit.

It’s also hard when you’re performing in the daytime because you can clearly see that there are just hundreds of people walking around and they’re either going to check you out or completely ignore you. So, it gets a little competitive when you know there are other bands performing at the same time as you, and you’re just trying to get a crowd forming.

5)      Which bands are you going to check out?

Vampire Weekend and the Fleetboxes.  Wes and I saw them perform on SNL. They were just so, so tight, so passionate.

It was exciting to see that the  Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs are performing the day we’re playing. I was also pretty excited when our manager told us that was the Jay-Z was the new headliner.

6)      What I think is truly interesting about RRR are your arrangements.  Some songs are cello driven, others guitar based, one even revolved around a synthesizer.  Would you mind explaining RRR’s recording process?

It’s a really fun process, it’s also a very long process since there’s a lot of giving and taking, but you have to be aware and compromising enough to not only write your own part but recognize when an instrument should take the lead.

7)      Is RRR currently working on a new album?

Yeah, actually we’re doing APW then a festival in Boston , then we’re heading to upstate NY in our homeland and staying on a peach orchard where we’ll start working on the next album. We’ve been looking forward to it for over a year.

On [The Rhumb Line] we just recorded every song we knew, there wasn’t any true direction. But this time around we’ve been touring so much that everyone’s been writing on their own, so we have a ton of demos. As far as the direction, I guess it sort of remains to be determined. But everyone’s been getting into some new influences. I thinks we’re going to experiment with more instrument space. Milo’s been playing a lot less guitar and his ideas are more synth based this time around.

To read all of Matt Thomas’s published works, visit his homepage at: www.thevillagetotheleft.net

Free Thinking - Fighting Capitalism from Within

Posted by Cila Warncke

I just finished Peter Chapman’s excellent expose Jungle Capitalists about ruthless banana baron United Fruit Corporation which ran Central America as its private fiefdom for most of a century – casually killing off unruly workers, uncooperative heads of state, uncharted jungle and anything else that got in its way. It got me thinking about the antidote to brute free market economics. Given that we live in an anxiety-riddled, security obsessed, paranoid late-capitalist society there are limited alternatives. You can’t drop out and live off the land anymore unless you’re rich enough to buy the land in the first place, and our high-tech culture makes it difficult to live a private life. It isn’t easy to shape your own existence, given the physical, legal and ideological constraints on personal freedom. There are people, however, who take on the challenge and look for creative ways to address the ever-present imperative to pay the rent while doing something that is personally meaningful and socially beneficial. These unsung freedom fighters fuck with the system by surviving within it while doing what they want to do – and by using their skills in constructive, cooperative ways. In a perfect world, it’s what everyone would do.

This is the first instalment of what I hope will become a long series of blogs profiling individuals and businesses that operate outside the prevailing paradigm. First up, Algo Mas – a 100% Fair Trade shop in Ibiza.

Thursday evening in the tiny village of Sant Miquel and the plaza below the Iglesia is full of children, music and the scent of home baking. On the corner, door and sky-blue shutters flung open, sits Algo Mas. This small Fair Trade shop has just celebrated its second anniversary and judging by the stream of locals who stop to say hello, it is firmly cemented in the community. Italian expats Valeria Cova and Aurietta Sala run the shop, along with Blanca Llosent. Aurietta and Valeria are Italian, but have each lived in Ibiza for more than 30 years and have fond memories of the days when visiting friends meant half a day’s walk through the countryside and dinner by candlelight. They are not hippie dilettantes, however, or airy fairy idealists. Algo Mas is the product of hard work, common sense and a firm commitment to the principles of Fair Trade. Click here to continue reading