"Claire Danes"- Venus Magazine, 11/1/05

750-word feature on actress Claire Danes, focusing on the release of her 2005 film "Shopgirl." Originally published in Venus Zine.

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"DJ Krush"- Chord Magazine, 10/06

800-word feature on Tokyo hip-hop icon DJ Krush, in response to his latest album release. Published in Chord Magazine for October/November 2006.

It’s 1983. DJ Kool Herc, now known as the “God-father” of hip-hop, is still spinning house parties in New York. Run-DMC isn’t even on the map; their breakthrough album, "Raising Hell," is still three years off. In short, hip-hop is in its infancy. Finding an audience for hip-hop is nearly impossible outside of New York. And yet, this is the year DJ Krush would begin his career—in Tokyo, halfway across the world.

That year Krush, born Hideaki Ashii, witnessed the Wild Style world tour, which featured many of the seminal hip-hop film’s stars, including break dancers, graffiti artists, and of course, DJs. Krush left the show determined to become a DJ, but Japan wasn’t ready to respond as quickly as he did.

“It was completely alien, there were only a handful of people who knew of hip-hop at the time,” Krush said. “There was no audience.”

No hip-hop-specific audience, at least. But in a city as crowded as Tokyo, finding a crowd of people is never a problem, and in the early days, Krush wasn’t picky about he performed for.

“I still wanted to perform in front of people, so I went to the streets of Harajuku [one of Tokyo’s famous shopping and entertainment districts],” he said. “They close the streets on Sundays, and there are a lot of street performers, so I’d go there and play.”

According to Krush, DJ contests soon began popping up, and after winning a few, he started seeing offers from professional venues, and his career was born. Over 20 years later, he is the undisputed king of Japanese hip-hop, having been in the game longer than most rappers on American radio, and yet he still flies under the radar of many American fans. The artists, however, have taken note. On his latest release, Stepping Stones: The Self-Remixed Best, their contributions to Krush’s work serve to frame what has been an epic career in hip-hop, whether or not American kids care to acknowledge it.

The new album provides a nice retrospective, neatly divided between two discs with typically stoic titles—disc one is Lyricism; the second is Soundscapes. Long time Krush fans will find the separation convenient, as vocals tend to completely change the mood of his work. Instrumental, it’s dark and introspective, but as soon as an MC steps in, the mood lightens, and his love for hip-hop becomes more evident.

Spread out over the course of eight albums and nearly two decades, Krush’s collaborative efforts seem to be few and far between, but Stepping Stones lines them up nicely, and makes for an impressive list of friends. Black Thought and Malik B from The Roots are here; Company Flow, Mos Def, Aesop Rock and Mr. Lif are all on board as well—and that’s only the Lyricism disc. On the producer-oriented Soundscapes, The Roots are represented again, this time by ?uestlove, alongside notable appearances by Chicago production team The Opus and of course, Krush’s American counterpart, DJ Shadow.

Despite the fact that he can’t converse freely with his American collaborators (he regrets never having learned English), Krush has managed to build lasting relationships that produce great musical results.


“Once I get into the studio with them, language isn’t really a barrier,” he said. “You can understand each other through music.”

Some artists might panic with their albums’ vocals being spoken in an alien tongue, but for Krush, it’s all part of the creative process.

“Before I start working with the MCs, I convey the overall concept of the album,” he said. “But I never tell them to write specific things. When collaborating with other artists, I put the water in the pool, and let the artists swim in it any way they want. I don’t tell them how to swim.”

As Japan’s hip-hop scene is finding its own voice, Krush is finding more artists that speak his language, literally. MC Kan of the Japanese group MSC makes an appearance on Stepping Stones, but Krush seems equally excited about the latest MSC release, which he describes as “kind of hard core, but really cool.”

Japanese hip-hop has been somewhat notorious in the past for trying to emulate American trends (with predictably cheesy results), although it could be argued that most American hip-hop acts today are also based on impersonation. Having been there from the start, though, Krush has been able to see his scene build from the ground up, and is excited about the future.

“I think the scene in Japan is the same as in the U.S.,” Krush said. “The scene is really divided between the mainstream and underground. And the artists in the Japanese underground are really trying to bring up their individuality through their sound and lyrics. They’re not singing about money and girls anymore.”

Stepping Stones: The Self-Remixed Best is available now on Sony/Red Ink.

"The Hold Steady"- Chord Magazine, 10/06

750-word feature on Brooklyn-based indie-rock group The Hold Steady, in anticipation of their upcoming album. Published in Chord Magazine for October/November 2006.

“Do you have anything special planned for the tour this fall?”

“No, not really. Just to rock.”

With an abrupt answer to one (admittedly lame) question, The Hold Steady front man Craig Finn has essentially written this entire story.

Like Finn’s demeanor, The Hold Steady’s music is defined by its honesty— In the past year, the band has weathered a storm of critical acclaim, a move to Vagrant records, and a recording session with A-list producer John Agnello (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr.). And yet, in the face of so much change, The band has managed to produce the most straightforward example of rock and roll this year, with Boys and Girls in America.

Kids today need a more focused genre than rock and roll, though, and fans of The Hold Steady have been happy to label the group a bar band, a vaguely endearing term that Finn and guitarist Tad Kubler seem content with, even if they’re unsure of its meaning.

“I don’t know what they mean, other than that we’re just beer-drinking, Mid-western, good-time dudes hammering out rock and roll,” Kubler said. “I’m hoping it’s just their way of saying that what we do is genuine.”

Finn seems to agree that “bar band” is simply a synonym for “rock band,” with no sub-genre attached.

“I don’t want to say that The Hold Steady is a reaction against indie-rock, because that’s certainly part of the crowd we play to,” Finn said. “But the aesthetic we wanted to convey was just having some drinks, and maybe in some way more dangerous. With indie-rock, when you go see a band, they look more like grad-students than a rock band. So that was the idea that we’re trying to get away from.”

According to Finn and Kubler, each is eager to get back on the road this fall— Good news for their fans, who all seem to agree that the group sounds best on stage.

Having said that, Boys and Girls could be the album that finally changes their reputation. The presence of Agnello in the studio marks the first time the group has worked with an established producer, and his influence on the record is apparent.

The songs are still unmistakably Hold Steady, but have a studio polish that serves to highlight their rough edges, rather than smooth them away. Agnello, who had in fact approached the group about producing Separation Sunday, agrees that the band’s live sound is their strength, and strived to capture it in the studio.

“I love the way Separation Sunday sounds, I love the way it was mixed, but one thing that [Agnello] pointed out was that it sounds like a studio album,” Kubler said. “He was like, ‘You guys are such a live band … One thing I want to facilitate is getting performances out of you guys together as a band, rather than doing a lot of overdubs and tracking.’
“He was great at getting us physically and mentally comfortable to where we were allowed to play like we do in our practice space,” Kubler said.

He got the result he was looking for. Like Phrenology did for The Roots, Boys and Girls manages to capture the energy of The Hold Steady’s live show. But unlike Phrenology, it’s also likely to become their most successful album to date. According to Finn, keyboard player Franz Nicolay played a larger role in the songwriting process, adding depth to the songs.

Of course, Agnello also had an impact on Finn’s songwriting.

“There was an air of authority and respect that existed going into it,” Finn said. “It was very easy for me to take advice from him. If he said ‘The chorus is a little too long,’ I felt that he had more authority on that matter than I did. So it wasn’t hard to take that feedback.”

When it comes to feedback, the group hears mostly positive from critics these days. Everyone from Pitchfork to Rolling Stone have had early praise for Boys and Girls. But despite their past accolades and early acclaim for the new record, Kubler is hesitant to take anything for granted.

“We’ll see what happens,” said Kubler. “Maybe all the critics like it, and the people will decide they don’t want to buy it. Having said that, we’re super happy with the way the record turned out. We’re really proud of it. We all believe it’s the best thing we’ve ever done as a band, or even as musicians.”

"In Games We Trust"- Columbia Chronicle, 12/13/05

1400-word feature on the life of a professional gamer. Published in print and online on 12/13/05. Due to minor formatting issues on the web version, I've included the text below.

Kyle Miller began his career as a professional athlete while still in high school. His hours of practice between classes and after school were rewarded with endorsement contracts, paid trips to Europe and a five-figure salary—All before he was old enough to drink. His sport? Counter Strike, a videogame. Welcome to the world of e-sports.

Miller, now 21, is a member of the United States’ most prominent team of professional gamers, Team 3D. The team’s bills are paid by technology giants Intel and Nvidia, the gaming equivalent of landing endorsements by Nike or Reebok. Nvidia, known for creating high-end graphics processors favored by gamers, first noticed the team after its appearance in the World Cyber Games in 2002. Commonly referred to as “the Olympics of gaming,” the WCG is an international tournament in which national teams are formed through regional qualifying matches, then compete for national pride—And huge paychecks.

Team 3D’s founder, Craig Levine, was pleasantly surprised with the deal Nvidia offered the team in 2002.

“At that time, getting sponsored meant getting a company to pay your travel expenses,” Levine said. “When we signed our first sponsorship deal with Nvidia, it was much more than we had hoped. It meant salaries, travel and hardware—all these perks that, a year before, had seemed unbelievable.”

The young team members found their new income relieving; it allowed them to forgo jobs and devote more time to gaming, which is exactly what their sponsors hoped for.

“The salaries are designed to give the players stability,” Levine said. “They know they can pay their rent and their car insurance, but it’s like, ‘Hey, if you want to go on that week-long vacation to Jamaica, you’ve got to win this event.’”

Indeed, the big money in pro gaming is in tournament winnings. According to Levine, Team 3D has earned an estimated $350,000 from tournament play since 2002, a nice supplement to their endorsement contracts. And the tournaments are only getting bigger. At the first WCG Challenge in 2000, the total purse for the event was $200,000, an amount that has more than doubled since, swelling to $435,000 in 2005. 3D’s Counter Strike team took home $50,000 for its gold-winning effort; their teammates who specialize in Halo 2 took home an additional $20,000, for a total of $70,000. According to Levine, 3D will be attending a tournament in Dallas next summer with a $90,000 prize for first place in Counter Strike.

With money comes fame, a lesson 3D is beginning to learn. Last month, Intel featured them in a full-page ad in Blender magazine, which replaced the traditional “Intel Inside” logo with profiles of 3D players. It’s an obvious attempt to market toward a youthful audience and exactly the reason Intel’s relationship with 3D is so successful.

Magazine ads aside, the notoriety of American gamers is eclipsed by their counterparts in South Korea, where gamers are recognized as pop celebrities.

“It’s always nice going to Korea; it’s like heaven,” Levine said. “These [Korean gamers] are like rock stars and have hair dressers and are making six figures just off endorsements.”

Even in Korea, the level of gamers’ fame depends highly on which game they play. In general, American gamers prefer first-person shooter games like Counter Strike and Halo 2, while Asian gamers, especially in Korea, tend to prefer real-time strategy games such as Starcraft and Warcraft 3. As a Counter Strike player, Miller believes his career is flourishing in America more than it would in Asia.

“I don’t think the Counter Strike scene is as big over there,” Miller said. “There are a lot of players over there, but I don’t think the sponsorships are even close to what we have. We probably have the best deal in the world. If you were a Warcraft player, yeah, maybe Korea would be better for you.”

Levine founded Team 3D while still enrolled at New York University’s prestigious Stern School of Business, and encouraged by his team’s quick success, devoted his life to it after graduating. He has certainly chosen a different path from the average NYU grad, something that he says is often a cause of envy from his former classmates.

“When they first started their jobs, I was traveling around the world to different competitions,” Levine said. “I was in Turkey, Brazil, Spain and Singapore, and [former classmates were] working 100 hours a week as an investment banker. So there’s definitely a bit of jealously, I think.”

Having a background in business, Levine looks at the team like he would any other entrepreneurial venture, although he enjoys the relaxed schedule and freedom to work from home. Unsurprisingly, Levine sounds like a businessman when describing his average day at work.

“Like with any startup, there’s no start time or end time,” Levine said. “I work from home, start at 10 a.m. and work until about 10 p.m., with breaks for dinner and lunch.”

According to Levine, he spends much of that time working on sponsor relations, concocting new marketing strategies such as the Intel Blender ad.

When it comes to recruiting members, Levine said he first considers what games will be featured in upcoming tournaments, then pursues the best players he can find in the online communities for each game. Miller caught his attention after winning $25,000 in a Counter Strike tournament. Miller’s team disbanded soon after, but he was soon messaged by Levine, who explained his intentions of forming a national team of elite gamers. Miller soon signed on as 3D’s first official member.

Like any sport, discipline plays a huge part in staying on top. According to Miller, 3D organizes practices three or four nights a week. Unlike NBA coaches, Levine isn’t forced to punish players for missing practice—the team’s friendly spirit is enough to ensure everyone shows up on time.

“We’re just friends, so you respect everyone,” Miller said. “If practice is at 7 p.m. Eastern time, you just do your best to show up on time. If it’s important to everyone else, it’s important to you.”

Levine also thinks that the friendly nature of his team is key.

“That’s one of the great things about Team 3D—everyone’s really close-knit,” he said. “At WCG, everyone was there cheering each other on. When we’re not at an event, we talk online. Everyone has a good time.”

Their cohesiveness helps 3D to survive in a world where most gaming teams don’t. When asked if they have any rivals, Miller couldn’t name one—not necessarily because his team’s skill has given him an ego, but because teams form and break up so quickly.

“You see some of the same faces, but teams come and go,” Miller said, laughing. “So, I’d give you a rival, but he probably wouldn’t exist by the time this runs.”

With team members in their teens, parental support is also important for 3D, though Levine and Miller both say they have never had problems with it.

“When I started, [my parents] might have thought I was a little bit crazy, but now they see that you can make a living off of it if you’re successful,” Miller said. “They’ve always been really supportive, but they might’ve been skeptical at first."

The large paychecks surely helped end that skepticism, and Columbia Artist in Residence Janell Baxter agrees with Miller and Levine that the prizes and visibility for professional gaming have nearly unlimited potential for growth. Baxter, who is currently developing simulation and training software for the Office of Army Research, thinks that gaming has only begun to penetrate American culture.

“I think that gaming is on the edge of really taking off,” Baxter said. “To a certain extent, it’s pretty mainstream now, but it will be more ubiquitous at our schools and in areas of our lives that we didn’t think of.”

With the U.S. team waving giant checks (and American flags) on the gold podium at the 2005 WCG before a crowd of 55,000 spectators, it’s hard not to be optimistic. According to Levine, MTV recently aired a special on competitive gaming, and more stations are looking to follow suit.

“It’s like poker; you’ve got to have the right formula [for television],” Levine said. “It’s only a matter of time. Someone’s going to figure this out.”