This summer I really was following the show “The Voice” and was impressed by many of the contestants. Tyler Robinson was one of them and was impressed with his short-lived stint on the show.
Since I wont be able to track him down to share some studio time, I decided to make a homemade version of his “Hey Soul Sister” by Train. I added 2 harmonies to the record.
Hope you guys like it
Arriving to Japan
May 3rd, 2011
My first glimpse of Japanese soil was Nagoya airport. I would catch my last connecting flight to what I would call home for 15 days: Fukuoka City.
The terminal was as a ghost town and though the signage and characteristically goofy shows on the big screen tvs indicated I was again deep into the unknown, I still knew that the great Nippon Adventure had yet to begin.
Skipping the conveyer belt and past my suitcases I tried to steal a quick glance past the sliding doors. There he was. There stood my boy Keesh. His big smile and arms wide open with his signature hip-hopish stance relaying his unspoken “whaaaaat! my boy is here!”. Just like that, 20 hours of planes later and losing a whole day according to a guy named Greenwich one thing was certain: I’d arrived.
As we took on a couple blocks rolling my luggage to the subway station we both would just look at each other and kept laughing in disbelief. How in the world did we both end up reconnecting in Japan? The thought was crazy! Four years is quite some time for two dudes who used to hang out daily almost.
It if wasn’t soccer, we’d be cruising in his 4runner listening to underground hip-hop he’d unearthed. Windows down and the hot beats blaring, sometimes in silence and sometimes discussing the issues, all the same we were boys.
I can appreciate what I call “true hip hop” because of him and have given my ears and heart permission to get lost in the oh-so-catchy genres of “drum-and-bass”, “trance”, and my favorite “brakes”. All in moderation, of course, all in moderation. When you land the perfect jam that captures the moment best you have to put in on repeat. I have Keesh to blame for expanding my music palette and have been exploring all kinds of different genres since!
But I digress …
From subway cars to a couple of local bars, I was introduced to where I would meet “like-minded” friends and what would be the hubs where we could catch a soccer game or some NBA playoffs. The idea of these establishments is not necessarily a “party” scene as we understand them in the western world. It is more understood as a hangout and talk locale (much like US’ idea of a coffee shop) with TVs as the backdrop.
It’s 11:30pm of day one and I literally just got here this evening. I need some sleep. Jetlag will take care of itself, there are too many adventures to be had …
Next Entry: Abunai
Todo madridista deberia escuchar estra version de nuestro queridisimo himno. con sorpresita al final incluido.
Straight no Chaser featuring special guest Juan Ruiz!
