Tag Archives: Music

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Hamilton (2020) – Review

Hamilton review

Hype for a certain piece of entertainment can be dangerous. There may come a time when your expectations are so high that something can only disappoint. The play Hamilton, which is about one of the “founding fathers” of America, is something I had heard a lot of praise for in several podcasts. The play was always sold out and ticket prices were astronomical. And considering the subject, I had reservations. When the soundtrack was released I may have played it, but didn’t give it my full attention and that was it. I couldn’t imagine that this play was really that special. When Hamilton appeared on Disney+ last week, I had to see it, however, to finally give this piece my full attention and to form an opinion for myself about this historic musical. And I’m glad I did. Continue reading →

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Beastie Boys Story (2020) – Review

Beastie Boys Story review

It is a huge challenge to remain relevant as a music artist. You only have to look at the number of one hit wonders (Big Shaq, PSY etc) who enjoyed very short and extreme success, but did not manage to turn that into a lasting career. Even big artists are only as good as their last album and have to keep trying to stay relevant. If you look at hip hop, the number of real stars is very small. Well-known groups and artists from the 80s and 90s have disappeared or have been mostly forgotten. One of the exceptions to this were the Beastie Boys. A group that started as a punk group in the 80s, made the switch to hip hop and evolved into proper musicians who made what they wanted, even if they were all instrumental songs. After Adam Yauch (MCA) died of cancer in 2012, the other members decided to stop making music. They previously released a book and now there is this documentary, directed by Spike Jonze. Continue reading →

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Rapture (2018) – Review

Review Rapture netflix
When it comes to hiphop, Netflix has a pretty solid offering of interesting documentaries (Bad Rap, Hip Hop Evolution, The Defiant Ones, Fresh Dressed, Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives, The Art of Organized Noize, Sample This) and movies/series (Roxanne Roxanne, The Get Down) about this music genre. I’ve watched all of them and although some of them are disappointing, in general they provide a lot of interesting information/entertainement. The latest addition is Rapture. According to the Netflix description hip-hop stars describe what defines them as artists and the effect they’ve had on culture beyond music. During (almost) each of the episodes the focus is on one artist. These are a mix of old and new artists: Logic, Nas & Dave East, G-Eazy, 2 Chainz, T.I., Rapsody, Just Blaze and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie. As I’ve been listening to hip hop less the last couple of years I didn’t know anything about Logic, Dave East, G-Eazy, Rapsody or A Boogie, so I was interested to learn more about them. Continue reading →

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The Art of Organized Noize (2016) – Review

Recensie The Art of Organized Noise

Organized Noize will not be a name everyone will recognize immediately. But if you are familiar with the early work of Outkast, Goodie Mob or the songs “Waterfalls” by TLC or “Do not Let Go (Love)” by En Vogue, you will know their work. It is the production team behind the music that put Atlanta on the map as a music city. This documentary, which can be found on Netflix, shows their history and how they managed to reach the top, but also how they eventually lost that position. Continue reading →

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The Defiant Ones (2017) – Review

Recensie The Defiant Ones

Dr.Dre and Jimmy Iovine, who both started their music careers producing music and having a lot of succes with it, sold the company which they started together, Beats Electronics, to Apple in 2014. Their company, which sells headphones and speakers and also had its own music streaming service, sold for 3 billion dollars. It was a deal which could have fallen through though. While the negotiations were still going on Dr.Dre, while drunk in the studio with Tyrese Gibson, made a video boasting about the fact he would become the first hip hop billionaire. This four-part documentary opens with that moment and shows how the son of an Italian immigrant and a boy who grew up in Compton became successful together. Despite their, sometimes controversial, but also influential past. Continue reading →

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Hip Hop Evolution: Season 1 – Review

Review Hip Hop Evolution

My favorite music genre has been hip hop for years. Since I started listening at the beginning of the nineties I’ve read a lot about it and seen various documentaries (with a lot of them of pretty bad quality). So I’m not afraid to admit that I know quite a bit about it. When this documentary series showed up on Netflix I was curious if it would have to offer something I didn’t know yet. Continue reading →

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Alive Inside (2014)

Recensie Alive Inside
That in many countries the average age is rising, isn’t surprising. After the second world war there was a “babyboom” and the people born then are all reaching their seventies. Getting older unfortunately also means that the body can start funcitoning less than optimal which for some results in dementia. This doesn’t only impact the person, but also the people around him/her. Those who don’t have anyone (or where others can’t take care of them anymore) end up in nursing homes. Because of limited budgets this often means that those people don’t get the attention they need. Their memory slowly disappears and what is left is only the shell of a human. The documentary Alive Inside take a look at the effect music can have on them, with surprising results. Continue reading →

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Begin Again (2013)

Review Begin Again

Although I really like going to the cinema there are some aspects I do not like. I decided to go watch it at one of the cinemas pretty close to home, but as I am not a fan of football I didn’t know that there was a game on near the cinema. It meant it was almost impossible to find a parking spot and grab a quick bite to eat because of the long lines. I managed to walk into the theater with food in my stomach, right at the moment the trailers had ended (and as that is usually a huge frustration I didn’t have to endure them). I was ready to enjoy the movie, until a woman in the right corner of my eye decided it was a good time to send some whatsapp messages. Don’t know if it was about the film, but that bright screen (she did set the brightness lower, because you know it would be rude not to) was a distraction. I didn’t immediately want to say something about it, but it took a bit longer before I felt I was fully engaged by the movie. Enough about my cinema experience of that day though. How was the movie itself? Continue reading →

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10 Music videos inspired by movies (Hip Hop/R&B)

Rap videos inspired by movies

Music videos often try to tell a compelling story, trying to keep the viewer interested. They are basically short movies, some even trying to be cinematic. Sometimes that cinematic look is heavily inspired by the movies. I’ve collected 10 examples of hip hop/R&B videos (in another post I will look at other examples) where that inspiration is very obvious. It actually is so obvious that I started wondering if this can be seen as a tribute or just a lazy remake of the original work.

What is your opinion about music videos based on movies? How far can a music video go in replicating something from a film? Continue reading →

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Beyoncé: Life Is But a Dream (2013)

Review of the documentary Beyoncé: Life Is But a Dream (TV 2013)

Beyoncé Knowles has been a steady star in the music universe. Ever since she jumped on the scene with Destiny’s Child she has been on the charts and the public eye. She’s known for her big entertaining shows, the issues she had with the group and her father and her relationship with rapper Jay-Z. In this documentary, which she has co directed, she allows the viewer a look into her life and talks about some of those things. Continue reading →