They call him “The MC” and he wore the crown well on a late summer’s night in NYC. Wale, the wordsmith known for somethin’ about Nothing, assailed a hyped crowd that included die-hard hip hop heads (cameraphone lights all a-glo), girls looking for a glimpse, and none other than his comrade-in-arms J.Cole. With UCB, his go-go band, behind him, Wale brought a heavy dose of DC wordplay to an enraptured NYC crowd. As he gets ready to release the follow-up to Attention Deficit, we’re hanging on every word.

Born into a family that sounds like something straight out of a Wes Anderson movie, it’s no wonder where Ferraby Lionheart gets his inspiration. “My grandmother was a professional gambler and music manager,” says Ferraby. “She named me after the Baha’i author John Ferraby. We left Los Angeles when I was 3 and ended up in Nashville after living in Mexico for a couple years. In Tennessee, my uncle had a recording studio where he made country records, but my folks weren’t in the music biz. My father sold computer parts. When I was 15 or so I started trying to sing and write songs.” Ferraby goes on to explain that the name Lionheart came from a one-handed drummer that his former roommate had befriended (naturally!) named Lionheart. Ask Ferraby what inspires him, and he responds with something that sounds closer to words from the Fonz than from a man of the 21st century: “I go through spells of listening to very little music because my ears need a break. Most ladies I drive around with in cars always want the radio on. I enjoy watching movies a lot. Whenever I decide to flip on some music I get inspired pretty easily. It can come from anywhere.” Ferraby has a certain old-school cool that is impossible to deny.

Directed by The Focus Creeps, (who also gave us The Morning Benders’ video for “Promises”) the video for “Harry and Bess” is stunning. Focus Creeps managed to capture the witty chemistry between Ferraby and Rainn Wilson while preserving the calm romanticism of Annakim’s home.  Ben Chappel and Aaron Brown make up Focus Creeps’ two-man operation. We talked to the duo about the music video industry, where it has been and where they think its going: “It’s good and not as good [right now.] It’s fun because you can mess with the rules, see what’s allowed and what’s not, what the public’s tolerance is. Unfortunately, what’s ‘not allowed,’ the public never gets to see, but it’s getting more lenient on the Internet, which changes what videos can be. The bad side is, videos have become more dependent on a gag.  It’s harder to just make a meaningless video for the sake of beauty these days, like they did in the 90s.”

Ferraby also added his two cents, saying, “It used to bum me out that music video TV doesn’t exist anymore; I grew up with that stuff. But dang, we’re in modern times and it’s all available to us all the time on our little hand computers. The fidelity isn’t so good, but the possibilities for small and independent musicians is tremendous, so I’d say it’s a neat time.” When asked about the day of the shoot, Ferraby reflected like an older man fondly remembering the past, “I had a great time,” he said “making movies is terrific fun.”

—Annick Mayer

As a lifelong music head, when was the moment when you knew you had to make music your career?

I fell in love with hip hop as soon as I heard “Walk This Way, “ and NWA and the Posse Tape.  I have always loved music, but hip hop just seemed to grab me like no other music could.  My step cousin was in a little DJ Crew in the early 90s and I think that is what put the seed in my head about DJing, but it wasn’t until I saw and heard DJ Qbert and Mix Master Mike that I wanted to be a DJ.  I wasn’t able to purchase equipment until I was 20, and its been a roller coaster ride ever since.

After going on my first tour DJing for rapper Mic King I was bit by a bug, and I knew then that this is what I was meant to do, and that I needed find a way to keep doing that.  There was no way I could go back to working at a high school.

What’s got you excited about music right now?

It’s sad to say that we are in time where it is hard to find anything exciting about music.  The true music lover is not what is driving music right now, but that means when I can find something exciting, it makes it special.  There are some dudes I featured on this mix that are exciting, like Gotham Green. Damaged Good$ are out of Dallas and they just make good party rap music. Mic King, the rapper I DJ for, keeps me excited for music.  What really has me excited to is finding older music that I can sneak into sets that will still keep the crowd dancing, and DJs like Rich Medina, Z-Trip, and Kon & Amir are dudes that keep me wanting to go digging for old school gems.

How did you get your DJ name?

Like many DJs who started before the technological outburst, I practiced for years before ever going out in public and DJing. I remember just recording tapes of myself mixing instrumentals (because I was scared to mix in vocals) and then listening to them to see where I messed up and just seeing where I still needed work.  When I recorded the first tape that I was happy with, I gave it to my boy to listen to, and as a play off the old Fisher Price “my first…” toys I wrote “My First Mix Tape by Fisher Price” on the tape.  My boy took the tape and was like, “Yo, Fisher Price? Man that shit is dope—that’s your name.” I too thought it was kinda cool, then changed the spelling so that I wouldn’t be sued.

TRACKLIST //

1. Summer Madness – Kool N The Gang
2. Tell Me Something – Gotham Green & DJ Quickie Mart  Ft. Jes Hudak and Freddie Gibbs
3. Walkie Talkie – DJ Shadow
4. 6 Underground – Sneaker Pimps
5. Computer Love – Zapp
6. Mr. Loverman – Shabba Ranks
7. Bonita Applebum (Hootie Mix) – A Tribe Called Quest
8. Dear Summer – Jay Z
9. No Diggity – Blackstreet
10. Lean on Me – Club Nouveau
11. ABC – BKIDZ
12. Hey Ma – Cam’ron
13. So Close So Far  Bun B ft. Colin Munroe
14. Sky is the Limit – Notorious BIG
15. Paris Tokyo – Lupe Fiasco
16. Everyday People – Arrested Devlopment
17. Sitting on The Dock of the Bay (Fishr Edit) – Bob Marley
18. Don’t Feel Right – The Roots
19. Airplanes – B.O.B. ft. Hayley Williams
20. My Sneakers – A-Trak Ft. Lupe Fiasco
21. I’m Your Puppet (Fishr Edit) – Bobby and James  Purify
22. Krispy – Kia Shine
23. Music Makes Me High – Lost Boyz
24. Murder She Wrote – Chakka Demus
25. The Life – Mystic
26. Dirty Harry – Gorillaz
27. ATLiens – Outkast
28. Nothin – NORE
29. She’s Crafty – Beastie Boys
30. This DJ – Crooklyn Clan
31. Outstanding – Gap Band
32. Juicy Fruit – MTUME
33. Fly Robin Fly – Silver Connection
34. Shutterbug – Big Boi
35. Cutie Pie – One Way
36. Just Buggin – Whistle
37. I Can’t Wait – Nu Shooz
38. Electric Sky (Mash Up) – Kanye West
39. Across the World – Pitbull
40. Back in Love Again – L.T.D.
41. Dopest Flyest – Damaged Good$ Ft. Johnny Moog
42. Love Come Down – Evelyn Champagne King
43. Cool It Now – New Edition
44. Rock Steady – The Whispers
45. Peg – Steely Dan
46. Off The Wall – Michael Jackson
47. Canned Heat – Jamiroquai
48. Got to Give it Up – Marvin Gaye(Junkie XL Remix)

The LA-based duo struck a chord when we went bowling with them on the afternoon before the show. Seeing the inimitable Briana Cartwright (Miss Jack Davey, if you’re nasty) and Brook D’Leau playfully tear up the lanes at Brooklyn Bowl gave us a glimpse into their sweet dynamic (they’ve been friends since high school). Be it Brook’s uncanny ability to craft beats so ahead we don’t yet have the vocab for them, or Jack’s otherworldy confidence, the pair can often seem as if as if they have dropped in on the rest of us from some point in the not-too-distant future. As they prepare to re-emerge this year with a new album on their major label debut with Warner Brothers Records, J*Davey are redefining the sound of modern soul music by simply being who they are—a sexy songstress with smarts, and a producer who puts the infinity in 808. You say you want a revolution? Well this one just might be televised.

Molly and Jason met during college, and she describes Jason’s band at the time as an “infamous all-Sagittarius scrappy punk band. [I] knew that he could make my songs come alive. We work very well together and have fun playing off each other’s ideas.” Natives of Philadelphia and New York, the band now calls Brooklyn home. “Brooklyn is the backdrop for a lot of social stuff and we enjoy being part of a community of musicians. Location informs the kind of music you write, whether it’s because of the sounds you hear on a daily basis or sounds that you wish you were hearing.”

Acrylic’s video for “Lil Ivy” boasts some generous fog machine action and consequently some pretty amazing visuals. “My friend Ross had to dance around holding a live fish in a fishbowl in a crowded room filled with smoke,” Molly says, recalling the day of the shoot. “Most of the time we were already completely swimming in fog from the machines and then one of the directors would shout, ‘Smoke! Smoke! More smoke!’ and it would suddenly get even more intense. At its worst, you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face. Everyone was coughing and laughing and sipping brandy to stay warm. It was amazing and hilarious at the same time.”

Keep your eyes and ears peeled, Acrylics will be releasing their first full-length record in the upcoming months. NYC Players can catch them live at Cake Shop tomorrow night.

—Annick Mayer

We recently tagged along with two of the hottest (and hardest-working) designers in New York, discovering two very different approaches to fashion, even as they have both captured a new spirit in American menswear. We caught up with Timo Weiland and Simon Spurr during a blazing summer’s week when they were readying their Spring 11 collections for the (capsule) menswear show in New York.

We found Alan Eckstein and Timo Weiland of Timo Weiland at their Garment District studio, a small but well-loved space with a vibrant, communal approach to design. The guys walked us through their collection of oddities and art—all to better conjure the evolving dandy aesthetic that has won them praise from T: The New York Times’ Style Magazine, Elle, and GQ, who called them a “designer to watch.” Meanwhile, in a loft overlooking the Hudson River, Simon Spurr was readying his SPURR by Simon Spurr presentation. The recent CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund nominee has a confident, elegant approach to dressing the modern man.

Both share a commitment to fine tailoring and explore new angles in menswear, even as the clothing they create is inherently wearable. Still, we couldn’t help but thrill in the different approaches. While the Weiland duo debuted their line in 2009 after “brief fashion internships,” Spurr developed his craft at Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Yves Saint Laurent before launching his label in 2006. Team Weiland finishes a long day at work with DJ gigs around the city, while Spurr was just married (to a pediatrician, no less). Eckstein and Weiland glean inspiration from the “originality” of their native New York, while the British-born Spurr lends a touch of Savile Row to his wares. Either way, both lines are shaking up the sartorial aesthetic of the American Man, and that’s a beautiful thing.

Los Angeles indie trio Pollyn provides the tunes for this clip. Keep an eye out for their new EP, featuring songs from the album This Little Night, on August 31.

The worlds created by Dax’s still and moving images are certainly psychedelic, and are nothing short of magical. As both a painter and animator, he says that the two mediums “used to compete, but now they feed off of each other to grow stronger. When I began learning animation, I considered myself a painter who did animation on the side. My paintings and animations are growing together, in a sense. Sometimes I base a painting off of something I had done in a prior animation, and vice versa.” Dax confesses that he sometimes “finds the real world to be a bit daunting, so I like creating my own worlds where everything makes sense to me, even if no one else can decipher it.”

With Dax’s previous video for Rafter in mind (the equally trippy “Juicy”), he hoped the two clips would be cohesive, even as they each stand on their own. The completely hand-drawn video for “Fruit” contains “many visual transitions, but it is not as transition-heavy,” says Dax. “There is a mustached cowboy wizard that creates two headless dancing lovers out of the palm of his hand, so I wanted to incorporate lots of dancing in the video,” and, as we can also attest, “many other magical things occur as well.”

Look out for Dax’s animated short Peerless, which will be scored by Rafter, as well as his first feature film, Symphony in Sweeatch.

—Annick Mayer

“The song came through me,” explains Imani Uzuri of her single “Sun Moon Child.” “I was doing a walking meditation in Northern California… the breeze was blowing, the sun was setting and I could see hills in the distance. A voice spoke to me and said ‘I believe in your destiny.’”

The song and video for “Sun Moon Child” are nothing short of a spiritual journey through what inspires Imani day-to-day. Growing up in rural North Carolina, Imani’s musical style and lyrics echo her life story. “I grew up running and playing in dirt fields, drinking water from the well, falling asleep while reading under pecan trees, dreaming…”

As an artist, Imani explains that her “exploration of world cultures, art, philosophies and spirituality is central” to her aesthetic. “I am committed to invoking a cathartic experience for myself, my collaborators, and the audience.” The music video for “Sun Moon Child”, directed by Pierre Bennu, provides the viewer with a perfect reflection of Imani’s philosophy. “When I heard Imani’s song I couldn’t get it out of my head,” says Pierre. “I listened to it on loop for weeks and the piece built itself in my mind… By the time I sat down to edit, it took just under a week to find additional footage and assemble the piece.”

Pierre Bennu is no stranger to the relationship between music and film. “I’m a DJ and tend to see musically and listen visually.” He explains, “I love silent films and have been known to watch movies with the sound off to see what it’s like as a purely visual experience, but I really respect the power of the connection between music and film.”

Like Imani, Pierre has a great love and respect for his art form. He refers to the video for “Sun Moon Child” as a “digital altar piece.” It’s certainly an offering that captivates the viewer.

—Annick Mayer

Uncannily tuned in to what’s next, Camilla and Rand continue to support the community that has naturally blossomed around their store. When we asked them to curate a group of some of the designers they’re most excited about lately, we knew we’d be in for a sparkling conversation. What we didn’t necessarily expect, however, was to hear such an honest conversation about what it’s like to maintain an independent business during a time when the entire industry is in flux, staying true to yourself as a creative spirit, and as a woman designer.

Thus, we found ourselves traversing the borough in pursuit of three of Brooklyn’s finest: We found Caitlin Mociun, a former textile designer for whom sustainability is both the means and the muse, at her sunny studio in Park Slope. Ellen Dusen of Dusen Dusen creates her arresting graphic prints (no doubt inspired by her background, studying the brain’s response to imagery) in Bushwick. And at home in Williamsburg, we found Sarah Seilbach of Edelweiss by Sarah working on new patterns for her effortlessly feminine frocks. It’s all in a day’s work for these Brooklyn designers.

look one:
Lacoste jacket
Raf Simons t-shirt + shorts
Corgi socks

look two:
vintage jacket
Ben Sherman shirt + shorts

look three:
Adidas hoodie + shorts
Fred Perry t-shirt
J.Crew socks
Converse sneakers

look four:
Fred Perry sweater
Ben Sherman shorts
J.Crew hat
Florsheim by Duckie shoes

Alex,  18 // Long Island, NY // Fusion

Leo, 19 // San Diego, CA // APM