Faheem Najm, better known by his stage name T-Pain, is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer and actor. His discography includes Rappa Ternt Sanga (2005), Epiphany (2007) and Thr33 Ringz (2008). T-Pain has earned two Grammy Awards alongside artists Kanye West and Jamie Foxx. T-Pain is the founder of the record label Nappy Boy Entertainment, established in 2005. He is known for using and popularizing the Auto-Tune pitch shift effect. From 2006 to 2010, T-Pain was featured on more than 50 chart-topping singles, including Flo Rida’s “Low” and The Lonely Island’s “I’m on a Boat.” T-Pain was born on September 30, 1985.
Robert Diggs, better known by his stage names RZA and Bobby Digital, is an American music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, rapper, actor, director, composer and screenwriter. A prominent figure in hip-hop, RZA is a founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan and its de facto leader. He is a cousin of GZA and late band-mate Ol’ Dirty Bastard. RZA has produced almost all of Wu-Tang Clan’s albums as well as many Wu-Tang solo and affiliate projects. In addition to the Wu-Tang Clan and his solo releases, RZA was also a founding member of the horrorcore hip-hop group Gravediggaz where he used the name the RZArector. He has acted in numerous movies and TV series, including Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999), Coffee and Cigarettes (2003) and American Gangster (2007). He has also written, arranged and/or produced music for more than 40 film soundtracks. RZA directed, co-wrote and starred in The Man with the Iron Fists (2012). He was born on July 5, 1969.
Awesome Baby is the unholy combination of a baby’s head on the body of an octopus—plus the baby has a mohawk, a Fu Manchu mustache and sunglasses. It’s difficult to explain exactly how this character arose in my household, but I can say that it was created piecemeal over many days by my two-year-old daughter Ramona. My wife Heidi and I regularly draw pictures for Ramona at her request, often on her Fisher-Price magnetic doodler. We have drawn countless sea creatures, including octopuses and squids, as well as human babies and many other things. At some point, and in some order, my daughter became very interested in mustaches, sunglasses and different hairstyles. Eventually, her combined requests consistently guided us to create the monstrous creature she refers to as Awesome Baby, who is mostly orange (pronounced “ohn-mo” by Ramona, despite her linguistic advances). She loves him so much.
Update: Heidi posted pen-and-ink illustrations of Awesome Baby and Baby Margot on her Tumblr blog.
Stanley Burrell, known professionally as M.C. Hammer, is an American rapper, dancer and entrepreneur. Widely considered the first “mainstream” rapper, he has sold more than 50 million records worldwide. Hammer had his greatest commercial success and popularity from the late 1980s until the late 1990s. Remembered for his rapid rise to fame, Hammer is known for hit records (such as “U Can’t Touch This” and “2 Legit 2 Quit“), flashy dance movements, choreography and parachute-like Hammer pants. Hammer’s superstar-status and entertaining showmanship made him a household name and hip-hop icon. In 1995, Hammer signed with Suge Knight’s Death Row Records, but filed for bankruptcy one year later due to dwindling album sales and a lavish lifestyle. In 1997, Hammer became an ordained minister and hosted a Christian ministry program called M.C. Hammer and Friends. He was born on March 30, 1962.
Elton John (born Reginald Dwight) is an English singer, songwriter, composer, pianist and record producer. He has worked with lyricist Bernie Taupin as his songwriter partner since 1967; they have collaborated on more than 30 albums to date. In his five-decade career Elton John has sold more than 300 million records, making him one of the bestselling music artists in the world. He released seven consecutive No. 1 U.S. albums and 58 Billboard Top 40 singles. For 31 consecutive years (1970-2000) John had at least one song in the Billboard Hot 100. He has been heavily involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s. John champions LGBT social movements worldwide and same-sex marriage. John was born on March 25, 1947.
Note: This is NCAA Division I mascot #1 of 5 in celebration of the first week of the 2015 NCAA Tournament. The No. 11-seeded Dayton Flyers play the Boise State Broncos tomorrow, in Dayton, in one of the “First Four” play-in games. Can Dayton do it again?
Yoko Ono is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer and peace activist. She is the widow and second wife of John Lennon and is also known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo, and studied at Gakushuin University while her family moved to the U.S. to escape the war. They reunited in 1953, and she became involved in New York City’s downtown artists scene, including the Fluxus group. Ono first met Lennon in 1966 at her own art exhibition in London, and they became a couple in 1968. She achieved commercial and critical acclaim in 1980 with the chart-topping album Double Fantasy, released with Lennon three weeks before his death. Since 2003, 11 of her songs, mostly remixes of her older work, have hit No. 1 on the U.S. dance chart. Ono was born on February 18, 1933.
Sean John Combs, also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, actor and entrepreneur. Born in Harlem, Combs founded Bad Boy Records in 1993 and rapidly profited from the successes of The Notorious B.I.G. and other artists on his label. Combs played a prominent role in the feud with Suge Knight’s Los Angeles-based Death Row Records. Following the shooting deaths of Tupac and Biggie, Combs released his debut album No Way Out in 1997. Combs has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards. His non-music business ventures include the clothing lines Sean John and “Sean by Sean Combs,” a movie production company, and two restaurants. In 2014, Forbes estimated Combs’ net worth at $700 million, making him the richest figure in hip-hop at the time (Dr. Dre was second and Jay-Z was third). Combs was born on this day in 1969.
If you live in ‘Merica, I hope you vote before the polls close today. If you’re not planning to vote, watch this important message from @iamdiddy. Why? Because “democracy is founded on one simple rule.” In related news, Oregon’s vote-by-mail system is the best. I completed my ballot for today’s election over two weeks ago. (Washington and Colorado just started holding elections by mail too.)
Vladimir Putin is the current President of Russia. He won a third term in 2012 amid an unprecedented wave of street protests stemming from allegations of widespread vote-rigging in the parliamentary election. Putin previously served as President (2000-2008) and Prime Minister (1999-2000, 2008-2012) of Russia. He served as an officer in the KGB for 16 years, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before retiring to enter politics. Putin joined the administration of President Boris Yeltsin in 1996, and was named Acting President in 1999 when Yeltsin unexpectedly resigned. Many of Putin’s actions are regarded by the domestic opposition and foreign observers as undemocratic. He has cultivated a strongman image (including black belts in Taekwondo and judo) and is a pop icon in Russia with many commercial products named after him. Putin was born on this day in 1952.
Note: In 2014, Russia was excluded from the G8 group as a result of its annexation of Crimea, Ukraine. Earlier in the year, the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, proved to be the most expensive Olympic Games ever, with a wildly overrun budget of $51 billion. The lead-up to the Olympics was marked by controversies over Russia’s problems, including organized crime, state corruption, embezzlement, kickbacks, Putin’s anti-gay campaign, and terrorist threats tied to the insurgency in the North Caucasus. Thank goodness for Putinka vodka, I guess.
Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski is the protagonist of The Big Lebowski, a 1998 crime comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The Dude, played by Jeff Bridges, is a single, unemployed slacker living in Venice, California who enjoys marijuana, White Russians and bowling. The Dude is mostly inspired by Jeff Dowd, a member of the anti-war radical group the Seattle Liberation Front (The Dude tells Maude Lebowski during the film that he was one of the Seattle Seven, who were members of the SLF). A friend of the Coen brothers, Vietnam War veteran Pete Exline, also inspired aspects of the character.
Lou Reed was an American musician, singer and songwriter. After serving as guitarist, vocalist and principal songwriter of the Velvet Underground, his solo career spanned several decades. The Velvet Underground was a commercial failure in the late 1960s, but the group gained a considerable cult following and has become one of the most widely cited and influential bands of the era. After his departure from the group, Reed began a solo career in 1972. He had a hit the following year with “Walk on the Wild Side,” a song describing fixtures at The Factory, the New York studio of Andy Warhol, in the 1960s. Reed was known for his distinctive deadpan voice, poetic lyrics and for pioneering ostrich guitar tuning. He was born on this day in 1942 and died on October 27, 2013.
Since I wasn’t able to create pixel art of Lou Reed in a timely fashion after his death last year, I figured I’d wait until his birthday. He would have turned 72 years old today. I am currently staying at the Georgetown Inn in Seattle, my favorite city, with my wife and almost-seven-month-old daughter. We have been visiting friends. Tomorrow is my 35th birthday. It seems like only yesterday that I created myself and my wife as pixel art characters.
Shawn Carter, known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer and entrepreneur. He is one of the most financially successful hip-hop artists and entrepreneurs in America. He has sold approximately 50 million albums worldwide, while receiving 17 Grammys for his musical work. Three of his albums, Reasonable Doubt (1996), The Blueprint (2001) and The Black Album (2003), are considered landmarks in the genre. As an artist, he holds the record for most number one albums by a solo artist on the Billboard 200 with 13. As an entrepreneur and investor, Jay-Z is the former CEO of Def Jam Recordings and the founder of Roc-A-Fella Records, Roc Nation, Rocawear and Roc Nation Sports. He also co-owns the sports bar chain 40/40 Club and is a certified NBA and MLB sports agent. Jay-Z is married to American R&B singer Beyoncé Knowles. He was born on this day in 1969, unless you believe he is immortal, or Illuminati.
Over the past four months, I have played my baby daughter Ramona a wide variety of music to see what she likes. Azure Ray’s “Don’t Leave My Mind” was an early comfort, as were some Simon & Garfunkel classics. But to the surprise of my wife and me, no song has been received with greater enthusiasm and joy than Jay-Z’s 1998 hit “Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem).” Ramona loves that song so much and breaks into a big smile each time. We’ve listened to it dozens, if not hundreds, of times at this point. The great bassline and high-pitched voices sampled from the Broadway musical Annie apparently elevate “Hard Knock Life” to perfect children’s song (well, aside from the lyrics).
Tom Robbins is a bestselling American author. He has written nine novels, and one collection, since 1971. His novels are “seriocomedies,” featuring complex, often wild stories with strong social and philosophical undercurrents, a satirical bent, and scenes extrapolated from carefully researched obscure facts. His 1976 novel Even Cowgirls Get the Blues was made into a movie in 1993 by Gus Van Sant. The Library of Congress states that Robbins was born on this day in 1936, though he claims he was born in 1932.
M.I.A. is the stage name of Mathangi “Maya” Arulpragasam, an English recording artist, songwriter and visual artist of Tamil descent. Her compositions combine elements of electronic, dance, rock, hip-hop and world music. She has released three albums to universal critical acclaim: Arular (2005), Kala (2007) and Maya (2010). M.I.A.’s fourth album, Matangi, is due out this year. She is perhaps best known for her singles “Paper Planes” and “Bad Girls.” M.I.A. is the only artist in history to be nominated for an Academy Award, Grammy Award, Brit Award, Mercury Prize and Alternative Turner Prize. She was born on this day in 1975.
Note: This 8-bit outfit is the sheer polka-dot dress that a very pregnant M.I.A. wore while performing at the 2009 Grammy Awards on her baby’s due date. Also in 2009, People wanted to place her on their annual list of the world’s most beautiful people but she was the first person in the magazine’s history to decline, stating “Mother Teresa was never on the list.”
Sixto Rodríguez (also known as Rodríguez or Jesús Rodríguez) is an American folk musician based in Detroit, Michigan. His music career initially proved short-lived with two little-sold albums in the early 1970s and some brief touring in Australia. Unbeknownst to Rodríguez, however, his work became extremely successful and influential in South Africa, where some of his songs served as anti-apartheid anthems. In the 1990s, determined South African fans managed to find and contact him. Their story is told in the 2012 Academy Award winning documentary film Searching for Sugar Man, which helped revive Rodríguez’s career and gave him a measure of fame in his own country, at 70 years old.
Both Cold Fact (1970) and Coming from Reality (1971) are fantastic studio albums with beautiful, poetic lyrics. I can’t believe they weren’t hits among the folks who bought records by Bob Dylan, Neil Young and the Beatles in the 1970s. Both Rodríguez albums were re-released in 2012. I think Rodríguez’s “Cause” is one of the greatest songs of all time. And Searching for Sugar Man is a heartwarming movie that tells the incredible true story of Rodríguez, a remarkably humble man and the greatest 1970s rock icon who never was.
Akira Kurosawa was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, producer and editor. Regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema, Kurosawa directed 30 films in a career spanning 57 years. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, Kurosawa directed approximately one film per year, including a number of highly regarded films such as Rashomon (1950), Ikiru (1952), Seven Samurai (1954) and Yojimbo (1961). In 1990, he accepted the Academy Award for Lifetime Achievement. He was born on March 23, 1910.
Wong Kar-wai’s Chungking Express, which consists of stories about two different lovesick Hong Kong policemen, is one of my three favorite post-1980s films. (The other two are David Lynch’s Lost Highway and Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s The City of Lost Children.)
Janis Joplin was an American singer-songwriter. She first rose to prominence in the late 1960s as the lead singer of the psychedelic-acid rock band Big Brother and the Holding Company, and later as a solo artist. Joplin was a popular act at the Monterey Pop Festival and became one of the major attractions at Woodstock. Her fans referred to her stage presence as “electric.” At the height of her career, Joplin was known as “The Queen of Rock and Roll” as well as “The Queen of Psychedelic Soul.” She was born on January 19, 1943 and died of a drug overdose in 1970 (just 16 days after Jimi Hendrix died, also at age 27).
I’ve done easier things in life than attempt to reproduce Woodstock-era tie-dyed clothing as primitive pixel art.
Awesome Baby – No. 908
Awesome Baby is the unholy combination of a baby’s head on the body of an octopus—plus the baby has a mohawk, a Fu Manchu mustache and sunglasses. It’s difficult to explain exactly how this character arose in my household, but I can say that it was created piecemeal over many days by my two-year-old daughter Ramona. My wife Heidi and I regularly draw pictures for Ramona at her request, often on her Fisher-Price magnetic doodler. We have drawn countless sea creatures, including octopuses and squids, as well as human babies and many other things. At some point, and in some order, my daughter became very interested in mustaches, sunglasses and different hairstyles. Eventually, her combined requests consistently guided us to create the monstrous creature she refers to as Awesome Baby, who is mostly orange (pronounced “ohn-mo” by Ramona, despite her linguistic advances). She loves him so much.
Update: Heidi posted pen-and-ink illustrations of Awesome Baby and Baby Margot on her Tumblr blog.