Posts Tagged ‘dont mean a thing’

Casting Call for Music Video

Posted by Beko in Blog, News, video | May 5th, 2010


Date: SATURDAY, MAY 22

Time: 10A (music scene) or 4PM (club scene)

Location: ENGINE 11 FIREHOUSE TAVERN, 30 North Ave. NE (next to North Ave Marta Station)

Please save the date for this exciting music video opportunity! Beat Studies has recorded a song that blends the genres of hip-hop and swing in the hottest of manners. The next logical step is to recreate that vibe in the form of a music video. It takes place in an early 1930’s style venue with some subtle modern touches.

Flux, SIMP, and Q-San are the artists. They came by and tracked their verses last week and they are FANTASTIC! Mike Moore and his crew at Studio 8 are doing the production so you already know it’s going to look professional. Atlanta’s Burn Unit and Down South Swing are the dancers The blending of their distinct styles on the floor is going to be monumental. G.P.W.F.L.Y. is to act as the band. Now all we need is the cool kitties and finger poppin’ daddies to come out and fill the club. 2 dollar beers and 4 dollar cocktails will be available!

We are asking everybody to dress in something that could be considered “period attire”, but with this aforementioned modern touch. We have attached some photos as examples. Draw influences from the likes of Janelle Monae and Andre Benjamin, while showcasing your own personal style. Think “Idlewild” meets “The Sartorialist”.

There will be 2 distinct scenes we need extras for: the music scene at 10am (dancers, band & emcees) and the club scene at 4pm. Please RSVP via email to beko@beatstudies.com or leave a comment here to confirm your time slot and availability. Space is limited.

Please come show your love and get some face time on the camera for this video that is going to go completely VIRAL!

Swing My Way

Posted by Beko in Blog, News, music videos, studio | April 19th, 2010

Our music video project for the song “Don’t Mean a Thing” has taken some more key steps this week toward our scheduled shoot date of May 22. We have locked in the dancers and are thrilled to announce Atlanta’s Burn Unit and Down South Swing will be driving the movement in this exciting project. Now we have break dancers AND swing dancers, and both are respected performance groups that are SURE to bring the heat!

We also had an exciting session with the artists on this song to re-track vocals. On the first mix, SIMP, Flux and Q-San all tracked at different times and stages of the project. We thought it would be great to get them all in at once to vibe off each other and record more cohesively. Boy, did that turn out to be a worthwhile move. The song went from really dope, to OH MY GOODNESS  - THIS IS AMAZING. The fellas came with it like they have been in a group together for years. Each artist dropped ad-libs on the others’ verses and they they also tracked all the hooks together. There is a real chemistry in the song now that didn’t fully exist before. I couldn’t have picked 3 better rappers to get on this beat. Now it’s time for me to put a final mix on this bad boy.

Here are some pics of this historic recording session.

The Big Shake Up

Posted by Beko in News | April 14th, 2010

REVAMPING THE BEATS

Some things are changing here at Beat Studies, as is very clear from the lack of posts from the past few weeks. We are in a state of redefining what Beat Studies is, who we are and what is to be our focus moving forward.

SIMP has been a focal point of our company for quite some time now. He signed on with us in 2008 and we have seen him grow from hungry emerging artist into famished emerging artist. It has become clear that he is now more interested in developing himself as an independent brand as his career continues to progress. He will always have our support and encouragement even as his role in Beat Studies diminishes.

Q-San and I are currently working on his album. Its production has been slow, but steady, as this pace seems to suit our collaborative style. We have no projected release date and no recording contract, but we will continue to update readers and fans on its progress. He is a brilliant emcee and we are going to take our time to be sure his talents are properly showcased and that his record is one to be proud of.

Steve Bannow, Kristen Alden, Mike Moore and the people of Studio 8 have agreed to help me realize a vision for a music video that I have had for a while now. It is for a song that I produced called “Don’t mean a Thing”. It was inspired when SIMP told me I should try to combine the swing era with hip-hop. The video’s production is coming together nicely with the help of the entire team. It has the potential to be a monumental video. We are working hard to make it exceptional.

DJ Dainja and I plan on putting out another “16 Bars of Gold” this year. We’re up to Volume 3. These mix tapes are always a lot of fun and it is my continuing contribution to the ATL music scene. Dainja basically drops all the beats from vinyl, and I assign and record the verses of local talent until we have a seamless mixtape featuring dozens of THE BEST artists in Atlanta. We recreated Vol. 2 live on stage last year and it was a blast! We plan on doing that again for this one.

I am also collaborating with an illustrator and artist by the name of Dan Hagerty. We have formed the Department of Animation and I expect big things from this start-up. He creates the scenes and characters with traditional pen and ink, scans them, and puts them into layers using Adobe Illustrator. I then animate the elements with After Effects and add sound effects and voice. The result is a sensational, staggering, smashing display of art coming to life. I will continue to keep you updated on our projects.

Let’s face it. I am a musician at heart. The reason I created Beat Studies is because I love to make beats. I plan on devoting more energy to simply doing that. I had put beat making on the back burner for a while, and it is time to get back at it. I am always open to collaborations and currently looking for a turntablist/producer to work with on the regular. And for all you fans of the Beat Studies podcasts… expect more episodes coming soon.

It is imperative that we occasionally step back, reassess and adjust our approach to creative undertakings. That’s what is going on right now with Beat Studies. I have always aspired for it to succeed as an independent label, but it has become clear that it is something different. It is a creative outlet for me, BJ Alden, and anybody with whom I have the pleasure to work.

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