Blue Scholars
Hometown: Seattle, WA
Since 2002, Blue Scholars have been based in the 98118, decreed the most ethnically diverse zip code in America by the 2010 Census. Like the greater Seattle region, that neighborhood embodies the multi-cultural miasma that spawned Blue Scholars, the joining of forces between an Iranian DJ/producer and a Filipino rapper. These are dudes who nourish their bodies with Vietnamese coffee, Ethiopian injera, and steaming bowls of ph?. Thanks to music, they have mingled with guests at a party hosted by renown glass artist Dale Cihuly, and conducted workshops at a Colorado juvenile detention center.
“I feel very lucky,” admits Sabzi. “So many people are in their own fishbowl, thinking they know what the world is, but never get the opportunity to see anything beyond their immediate environment. We’ve been fortunate to have had the opportunity to establish real human connections with people we’ve discovered aren’t really any different from us, because music has broken down the superficial barriers that would otherwise keep us apart.”
Blue Scholars actively contribute to the global community of artists and freethinkers in myriad ways. Drawing on Jamaican dancehall culture and the increasingly popular medium of artist mix tapes, Sabzi makes the instrumental foundations of all their songs available as individual riddims, to be adopted and adapted by whomever cares to use his beats. Meanwhile, every time they hook up with another artist, be it Seattle rapper Macklemore (Sabzi’s reworking of his Emerald City celebration “The Town” extended the shelf life of an already hugely popular joint) or Los Angeles’ Bambu, their network expands. New fans find Blue Scholars via new points of entry, and in turn, Blue Scholars discover more fodder for their imaginations.
Towards that end, and meeting more kindred spirits in the real world, Sabzi currently divides his time between New York and Seattle. How has that impacted Blue Scholars’ creative process? Not at all. Even as students at the University of Washington, where they first met and began making music together, Sabzi and Geologic were using the Internet as an integral part of their routine. The former would make a beat, upload it to the server, his partner would download it and write rhymes… and then they’d record together. They do the same thing today, just across bigger geographical distances.
Since 2002, the duo has become renowned live show veterans, rocking over 400 shows with the likes of Kanye West, De La Soul, Nas, Common, and supporting such acts on tour Zion-I, Hieroglyphics, and the Coup on tour. They’ve also played labor organizing conferences and youth-run community center shows, the main stage at Sasquatch! (2006 & ‘08) and Bumbershoot (2006), and in 2007 headlined their own Northwest Hip Hop festival, “The Program,” which sold out five nights in a row. Their discography includes the albums Blue Scholars (2004) and Biyani (2007), as well as the EPs The Long March (2005), Joe Metro (2007), BUTTER&GUN$ (2008), and OOF! (2009).
But enough about the past. What are Blue Scholars doing right now? Find out for yourself at www.bluescholars.com.
Blue Scholars
Info
Tracks: 14
Length: 55:49
itunesLink
AmazonLink
Tracks
1 Solstice Reintroduction2 Blue School
1 Solstice Reintroduction
3 Bruise Brothers
4 Motion Movement
5 selfPortrait
6 Freewheelin
7 The Inkwell
8 Burnt Offering
9 Evening Chai
10 Blink
11 Sagaba
12 The Ave
13 Life & Debt
14 No Rest For The Weary
Bayani
Info
Tracks: 15
Length: 59:43
itunesLink
AmazonLink
Tracks
1 Bahá'í Healing Prayer2 Second Chapter
1 Bahá'í Healing Prayer
2 Second Chapter
3 Opening Salvo
3 Opening Salvo
4 North by Northwest
5 Ordinary Guys
5 Ordinary Guys
6 Still Got Love
6 Still Got Love
7 Bayani
7 Bayani
8 Loyalty
8 Loyalty
9 Fire for the People
10 Xenophobia
11 The Distance
12 Back Home
13 50K Deep
14 Morning of America
15 Joe Metro
Cinemetropolis
Info
Tracks: 15
Length: 60:00
itunesLink
AmazonLink
Tracks
1 Cinemetropolis2 Hussein
3 Fou Lee
4 Lalo Schifrin
1 Cinemetropolis
2 Hussein
3 Fou Lee
4 Lalo Schifrin
5 Seijun Suzuki
6 Anna Karina
7 Marion Sunshine
8 Slick Watts
9 George Jackson
10 Oskar Barnack ? Oscar Grant
11 Yuri Kochiyama
12 Rani Mukerji
13 Tommy Chong
14 Chief Sealth
15 Fin
No concerts match your criteria
Blue Scholars- Lumiere- Music Video
Music Video for Lumiere by Blue Scholars
Blue Scholars- Sagaba- Music Video
Music Video for Sagaba by Blue Scholars
Blue Scholars-50 Thousand Deep - Music Video
Music Video for 50 Thousand Deep by Blue Scholars
Blue Scholars- North By Northwest- Music Video
Music Video for North By Northwest by Blue Scholars
Since 2002, Blue Scholars have been based in the 98118, decreed the most ethnically diverse zip code in America by the 2010 Census. Like the greater Seattle region, that neighborhood embodies the multi-cultural miasma that spawned Blue Scholars, the joining of forces between an Iranian DJ/producer and a Filipino rapper. These are dudes who nourish their bodies with Vietnamese coffee, Ethiopian injera, and steaming bowls of ph?. Thanks to music, they have mingled with guests at a party hosted by renown glass artist Dale Cihuly, and conducted workshops at a Colorado juvenile detention center.
“I feel very lucky,” admits Sabzi. “So many people are in their own fishbowl, thinking they know what the world is, but never get the opportunity to see anything beyond their immediate environment. We’ve been fortunate to have had the opportunity to establish real human connections with people we’ve discovered aren’t really any different from us, because music has broken down the superficial barriers that would otherwise keep us apart.”
Blue Scholars actively contribute to the global community of artists and freethinkers in myriad ways. Drawing on Jamaican dancehall culture and the increasingly popular medium of artist mix tapes, Sabzi makes the instrumental foundations of all their songs available as individual riddims, to be adopted and adapted by whomever cares to use his beats. Meanwhile, every time they hook up with another artist, be it Seattle rapper Macklemore (Sabzi’s reworking of his Emerald City celebration “The Town” extended the shelf life of an already hugely popular joint) or Los Angeles’ Bambu, their network expands. New fans find Blue Scholars via new points of entry, and in turn, Blue Scholars discover more fodder for their imaginations.
Towards that end, and meeting more kindred spirits in the real world, Sabzi currently divides his time between New York and Seattle. How has that impacted Blue Scholars’ creative process? Not at all. Even as students at the University of Washington, where they first met and began making music together, Sabzi and Geologic were using the Internet as an integral part of their routine. The former would make a beat, upload it to the server, his partner would download it and write rhymes… and then they’d record together. They do the same thing today, just across bigger geographical distances.
Since 2002, the duo has become renowned live show veterans, rocking over 400 shows with the likes of Kanye West, De La Soul, Nas, Common, and supporting such acts on tour Zion-I, Hieroglyphics, and the Coup on tour. They’ve also played labor organizing conferences and youth-run community center shows, the main stage at Sasquatch! (2006 & ‘08) and Bumbershoot (2006), and in 2007 headlined their own Northwest Hip Hop festival, “The Program,” which sold out five nights in a row. Their discography includes the albums Blue Scholars (2004) and Biyani (2007), as well as the EPs The Long March (2005), Joe Metro (2007), BUTTER&GUN$ (2008), and OOF! (2009).
But enough about the past. What are Blue Scholars doing right now? Find out for yourself at www.bluescholars.com.
ArtistImage: http://nugato.com/assets/blue-scholars/profile-images/BlueScholars2.jpeg
ArtistTwitter: http://twitter.com/#!/bluescholars
Artist Link Data: LinkID: 19
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Link: Blue Scholars- Lumiere- Music Video - Music Video for Lumiere by Blue Scholars
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Link: Blue Scholars- Sagaba- Music Video - Music Video for Sagaba by Blue Scholars
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LinkDesc: Music Video for 50 Thousand Deep by Blue Scholars
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Link: Blue Scholars-50 Thousand Deep - Music Video - Music Video for 50 Thousand Deep by Blue Scholars
LinkID: 22
LinkTypeID: 1
LinkTypeName: Video
LinkName: Blue Scholars- North By Northwest- Music Video
LinkNameURL: blue-scholars-north-by-northwest-music-video (used for url rewriter)
LinkURL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKLgaLBhx68
LinkDesc: Music Video for North By Northwest by Blue Scholars
isFeatured: 0
Link: Blue Scholars- North By Northwest- Music Video - Music Video for North By Northwest by Blue Scholars