Current Music Blog

On “Universal Mind Control,” Common tried out more “futuristic” and otherworldly ideas, beats, and imagery to push himself and take his music to places he hadn’t previously explored. Working with Pharrell Williams of producing duo The Neptunes played a huge part, since Pharrell is no stranger to enthusiasm for outer space themes and ideas. From his music label Star Trak, to his clothing lines, Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream featuring an astronaut as its mascot, and even citing scientist Carl Sagan as someone he really admires, Pharrell is often pushing creativity toward an interplanetary future. (Watch Pharrell talk to Current about his creative community ARTST here.) The first single and title track from Common’s “Universal Mind Control” is a perfect example of that.

But Pharrell and Common aren’t the only artists in hip-hop to focus attentions on off-world conquest. It’s been a source of inspiration and a big topic for a lot of emcees and producers in recent years especially. Since the beginning of his mainstream career, Kanye West has talked about escaping in a “Spaceship”, and his entire 2008 Glow In The Dark tour hinged on a plot line where he’d been traveling the unknown to find the meaning and inspiration that Earth had failed to provide.

A 2008 Slate magazine article suggested that the black “Afronaut” has roots all the way in the earlier 1900s. But young music fans and bloggers have suggested that what it makes appealing in most recent history—though even that extends back to Afrika Bambaataaa’s “Planet Rock” in the 1980s—is being able to identify with “the alien Superman.” There’s something relatable in the isolation of outer space existence, and then using that same “otherness” to present ordinary Earth with material that’s both unique and heroic, thanks to the grandness that comes along with huge spacecrafts delivering lifesaving resources that people need.

New artist Kid Cudi fits right into that idea with his debut, “Man on the Moon: End of the Day” (narrated by none other than…Common). The isolation of the space agent is crux of the album, and Cudi says that space as a concept appealed to him even as a child—going from traveling to his own world in his imagination to placing himself there more definitely as an artist.

And while popular hip-hop artists may not have their songs blasted in space like McFly, if that time N.A.S.A commissioned a hip-hop song about astrobiology and Snoop Doog and Talib Kweli working with Buzz Aldrin to create Funny or Die’s “Rocket Experience” are any indication, the fascination still seems pretty mutual.

Watch this exclusive Embedded Outtake where Common talks about Kanye’s influence on his music:

And tune into Embedded tonight at 11/10c to hear Common talk about all the influences in his work.

UPDATE: Hear Common and Pharrell talk about creating a new sound for Common’s album, Universal Mind Control.

Happy Earth day everybody! Instead of bringing you a list of flannel and sandal-clad songs about saving the Earth, we’ve decided to go the opposite route, and bring you a list of the top 5 music video threats to the Earth—plus one good guy at the end.

5. “Chattahoochee” Alan Jackson

This video is like a checklist of how to screw the planet while having a good time. The song opens with the sound of a car revving while Alan Jackson water skis. I don’t know why—maybe there’s a car on shore towing the boat that’s pulling Alan. Either way, he’s wasting gas. But if dragging a mustachioed redneck in blue jeans around a river isn’t a big enough waste of oil, Alan’s buddies start tearin’ through the river in their pickup truck, destroying the beaches, banks, and whatever dead creatures are under their tires.

Plus there’s the lyric about “a pyramid of cans in the pale moonlight.” Granted, I can’t prove that he left the cans there instead of recycling them, but I’ve spent enough time down on the ‘Hooch to know: he left them there.

However, I should probably give the guys credit for not running over that turtle with their car towards the end, but I think the video would seem more consistent if they did.

If you want to read more about the Chattahoochee click here, or click here to help clean it up.

4. “Ain’t Nothin’ But a G Thang” Dr. Dre featuring Snoop Dogg

If I could live in one music video for the rest of my life, it would probably be this one, but that doesn’t mean it’s good for anybody. By the time Dre gets to the picnic, the park is surrounded by enough hoopties running on leaded gasoline to overthrow Portugal. Even when they’re up on their hydraulics, the cars have more wheels on the road than MPGs.

Then once the guys hit the house party, the fridge that’s holding all the 40’s is older than Sears itself, and the dude that opens the fridge keeps the door open, letting all the cold air out. What are you doing, trying to cool off the whole ‘hood, son? It’s all 40’s of malt liquor, it’s not like you have a choice to make. Plus let’s not forget the amount of water they waste when they douse that chick in malt liquor.

If you’d like to read about the future of biodiesel, here’s a link. And if you’d like to learn how to convert your car to biodeisel, try this link. 

3. “Drill Here, Drill Now” Aaron Tippin

“Drill Here, Drill Now” was released by Aaron “just the” Tippin and Newt Gingrich last November. Yup, Newt’s a producer now… well I guess he’s always produced a lot of bullshit, so really I should say “Newt’s still producin’ y’all!”

Technically. this isn’t actually a music video, but rather a live performance on Huckabee, featuring Mike Huckabee on bass, and even Joe the Plumber is in the studio. I guess that’s because when you pipe out this much horse shit, you need to keep a plumber handy.

If you would like to read how every lyric in this song is factually wrong, here is a report from the Energy Information Administration. And here’s a story about how no one is drilling in the places they are already allowed to.

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