Performing View By Kaye Osborn

Merry New Year! It’s time to welcome in 2012 with a theatrical performance. I hope you were able to catch Prospect Theater’s musical Jacques Brel is Alive and Living in Paris! It was simply mesmerizing! The staging, the performers, the musicians and the songs were captivating. Sure do miss having a critic in the Bee, don’t you? Get involved and comment on the local performances and check the ModestoView Calendar to get the most up to date info on local stage performances. There are lots of good events for kids coming in 2012 and January starts off great.

January Children’s Theater at the Gallo Center for the Arts Tickets available at the Gallo box office or on-line.

The Stinky Cheeseman: Jan. 26, 7 PM, tickets $8-$15 A children’s favorite story comes to life. The characters bounce in and out of fairy tales for preschool through third grade. How cool to see preschool included. Great show for a child’s first theatrical experience.

PeterRabbit and Friends: Jan. 29 2PM and 4PM, tickets $8-$15 WatchBeatrice Potter’s story come alive! For grades K-2.

Many local theater groups are in rehearsal including:

Lakewood Youth Theater: How the West Was Wild, On stage March 9 and 10 at Lakewood School

Stanislaus Literacy Center Fundraiser: All I Ever Needed to Know, I Learned in Kindergarten at the Martin Peterson Event Center, Feb. 17 and 18

Prospect Theater Project: Dinner at Prospect Theater Feb. 3-26

Beyer High and Johansen joint production of Grease coming in March.

Check out your local high schools and colleges for more theatrical opportunities. Our local talent will amaze and entertain you!

Checkwww.modestoview.com for all of the performance info.

RIVERDANCE, the thunderous celebration of Irish music, song and dance that has
tapped its way onto the world stage thrilling millions of people throughout the
globe, will play 5 performances at the Gallo Center for the Arts on November 11-13.

Tickets range
from $39 to $99. A 15% discount is available for groups of 15 or more.
For tickets and more information, visit www.galloarts.org or call (209)
338-2100.

Composed by Bill Whelan, produced by Moya
Doherty and directed by John McColgan, to date, has played over 10,000
performances, been seen live by more than 22 million people in over 350 venues
throughout 40 countries across 4 continents. They have traveled well over
600,000 miles, played to a worldwide television audience of 2 billion, sold over
3 million copies of Grammy-award winning CD (certified platinum in the United
States) and over 10 million videos making it one of the best-selling
entertainment videos in the world. RIVERDANCE had its world premier at the Point
Theatre, Dublin , in February 1995 where it opened to
unanimous critical acclaim.

Of all the
performances to emerge from Ireland in the past decade, nothing can compare to the
energy, the sensuality and the spectacle of RIVERDANCE. An innovative and
exciting blend of dance, music, and song, RIVERDANCE draws on Irish traditions
of the performers propel Irish dancing and music to the present day capturing
the imagination of audiences across all ages and cultures. This extraordinary
unique show features an international company all performing to the magic of
Bill Whelan’s music.

RIVERDANCE is a
part of the Boyett Petroleum Broadway Series and is also sponsored by Foods of
Del Monte and U.S. Bank. The Gallo Center for the Arts’ 2011-12 Premier Partner
is Boyett Petroleum.

When you talk entertainment in the central valley, the average person begins by naming clubs, DJs, bands & artists. Allow us to make you think bigger. Who brings the biggest fest to the central valley California?  If you’re anyone in the entertainment business in central valley, this name may sound familiar “Chris Ricci”. Chris is the General Manager of one of the original night clubs in Modesto Fat Cat Music House and Lounge. He is a member of the Entertainment Commission in Modesto and this man brings you X Fest every year, he is a partner in the MAMA awards, and VP of Big Time records and President of Chris Ricci presents and a parter in the Producing Group. This man has his hands in just about anything to do with music & entertainment. Fiesta Boyz had the opportunity to meet up with one busy man and here’s what he had to say.

FiestaBoyz: Thank you very much for taking time off your busy schedule to allow us to Interview you. I understand this is one of your biggest months when you bring X-Fest to town.  Tell the readers the story how X-Fest came about and how many years it has been running?

Chris Ricci: This is our 12th year of X Fest.  We started it in 2000 right after City Hall was rebuilt and Brenden Theater was finished. We thought the redevelopment was a green light for a new kind of entertainment downtown, so we rolled the dice. Aces!

FBZ: Who are the selected head liners for X Fest?

CR: I think that really depends who you are.  Many think that Panic! At the Disco is the headliner, others would pick Jeremih, and some might say Mr. Big, Dead Kennedys, Frankie J or DJ Vice.  Needless to say we have plenty.  You can see a full list of the bands at xfestmodesto.com (and on Page XX)

FBZ: Now let’s talk more about you.  Currently you are VP of Big Time Records, tell us about your position on the label?

CR: I mainly work with the label on the strategic and creative sides.  We have several acts currently signed including Seven Day Sonnet from Chicago, Princess Die, and Dazeafter.  Seven Day Sonnet is being actively promoted on Active rock with a current chart position of #42 and touring with Sick Puppies, Sevendust and Pop Evil.

FBZ: Has being a major part of Modesto History driven you to continue your work?  Who are your inspirations?

CR: 
I think that the thing that drives me the most is a fear of failure.  I really hate to lose.  Ask my wife when we play Gin Rummy.  I will continue working until things work.  If I work hard and fail I know I gave it all I had and then I can relax easier.   Probably my biggest inspiration in the music business is Ken Phebus.  He was my boss when I worked my first real music business job at the Coach House down in San Juan Capistrano.  I remember waiting the whole day just to try to get a few minutes with him to talk about booking bands.  It seemed like he had booked everyone, Bob Dylan, Dave Matthews, Johnny Cash, Tina Turner, nearly every icon I could think of had played for Ken one time or another.  I really wanted to do that.   Today I work with Ken on my other company The Producing Group, LLC.  We are currently producing some festival events at the Queen Mary in Long Beach.  You can check it out at http://www.shorelinejamqm.com.

FBZ: Do you see our city growing or going backward in 2011 when it comes to entertainment & music?

CR: I think it is hard to give it a direction.  The good news is that the Modesto music scene is truly established.  You have different genres and support systems for the bands that have formed over the past 15 years.  You have promoters that have specialized like Mike Vanek and his hard rock shows at Spinnakers and Greg Edward’s Off the Air Shows at Deva.  The Gallo Center is really embracing the community with events like Valley’s Got Talent.  The Mama Awards have never been stronger.  We also can’t forget that Chris Murphy brought ModestoView back.

The challenge that faces the music community is no different than the challenge facing the public schools and local government.  Our community needs to put people back to work and focus on educating the people that live here.  When that happens there will be the opportunity for more people to explore their passions like music.  If you are a musician that is trying to live your dream, it’s easier to do when you can afford guitar strings and gas.

FBZ: Do you have any advice for the readers and up and coming acts in the music business?

CR: If your dream is to be in the music business then get in the music business. Pick a job you like and start doing it.  Manage a band, book bands at a coffee house or bar, write about bands, make music videos, or if you play an instrument, take a run at starting a group.  Once you have taken that first step keep at it.  It takes years to develop the skills that it takes to really get into the business.  If you take the first 3 years of my career my total income was less than $10K a year and I worked 60-80 hours a week.  I wanted experience.  Once I had it I was able to spin it into jobs that generated a more reasonable income.  If you have a job or go to school, do it in your spare time until you can make the jump.  If you really want to be in the business, the key is to invest time, effort, and passion.  When you start seeing achievement, it begins to get easier to take the next step.  No band or music executive gains success in 18 months, it’s a many year investment.  However, once you get there you’ll never have to sit in a cubicle again.

UrbanView

This month the Fiesta Boyz interview Latin Hip Hop Legend Mellow Man Ace… 

 Born in Cuba, Mellow Man Ace has the occasional bilingual delivery and a heady gift for novelty rhymes. Born Ulpiano Sergio Reyez in 1967, he left Cuba with his family at the age of four and resettled in Los Angeles. With production from the Dust Brothers and Def Jef, Mellow Man Ace recorded his debut album Escape from Havana, releasing it in 1989 on Capitol. Almost one year later, the single “Mentirosa” became a Top 20 hit with Ace rapping over a crafty hook from Santana’s “Evil Ways.” Also a part of the Latin Alliance project (and the brother of Cypress Hill’s Sen Dog), Mellow Man Ace recorded one additional album, The Brother with Two Tongues, then virtually retired from the field, but 2000 brought forth the release From Darkness Into Light. 2011 and Mellow Man Ace still brings the heat with his new music video. “MR. Excuses”

 FBZ: When did you first step into the hip-hop scene?

MMA: I started my hands on days in hip hop culture in 1983 as a b-boy practicing and learning moves by watching New York City

Breaker video footage.

 FBZ: Everyone knows your worldwide hit “Mentirosa”, how did that song concept come about?

MMA: The lyrical side of my song Mentirosa came from real life and from a girl I wasdating at that time.

 FBZ: How did “Mentirosa” change your music career?

MMA: The song Mentirosa opened many doors not just for me but for Latinos as a whole. For me it gave me an exit visa to travel the world many times. I’ve been fortunate to have met thousands of good, and not so good characters who either live, or pretend to live this as a culture. The song also type-casted me much like a child actor at times, but I have learned to take the good with the bad over the years. But over-all I give the song credit for giving me a great life on and off the field.

 FBZ: What are some of the new projects your working on and with for 2011?

MMA: The project that takes up most of my time is the Zzyzzx project with my son Cazal. The project is signed to Delicious Vinyl Records and its become one of hip hop’s first father/son releases. Look for us to be on TV, internet radio and at a show near you in 2011.

 FBZ: In your opinion, has Hip-Hop music changed for the better or the worse?

MMA: In my professional opinion hip hop has changed for the worst. Here’s how- in this modern era hip hop, the underground scene is still amazing and has many different flavors. I listen to groups like Odd Future, Flying Lotus, Dam Funk, Mayor Hawhorne, as well as some new works from seasoned vets that still make new material such as Masta Ace, Dres of Black Sheep, Mike G  of the Jungle Brothers and many others. Now when it comes to Pop radio artists, I don’t listen to it because of how mindless and childish it has become in an over-all direction. It’s cool for my kids under 10, but not so much for my 15 year old who is well schooled in the arts or me for that matter. I’m in my 40′s and yearn to grow from what I listen to.

 FBZ: Any advice for new artists?

 MMA: My advice for new artists is simple: Make sure you absolutely love music if you plan on making a living from it. It cannot just be a hobby, and if it is, then please leave it to the pros and find something else to do for work. We mustremember that the word “artist” has been turned into a bad joke and very lightly used these days. Adding on, I say respect your craft by adding a price of integrity to it as it makes no sense to spend your hard earned money on equipment, computers and software, microphones or studio time only to then give your craft away for free. You will never eat from hip hop or any music of any kind if you do not learn this basic law of the arts. Lastly I would say to have a strong heart as we don’t have medical, dental of life insurance plans, in these record contracts, so you better do it from the heart because when the curtain comes down there will be nobody there to help you in your final days.

 FBZ: Any shows coming up in our area?

MMA: My next show in the Modesto area will be May 7th, and I’m looking forward to hittin’ the road again. I hope to see all of Modesto come out and represent the Godfather of Latino based hip hop, and show support by coming out.

 FBZ: Where can Music Lovers, DJ’s and Artists go to get more Mellow Man Ace?

MMA: The best place to get new Mellow Man Ace projects right now is my personal artist website at www.mellowmanace.bandcamp.com  It’s like having my own personal Mellow Man Ace record store where I receive all the proceeds, not some greedy record executive lol. You can also

find all of my new music videos at Youtube/officialmellowmanace . In order to chat with me daily find me on Facebook/ulpianoreyes, or on Twitter/mellowmanacezzyzzx .

 Thank you Modesto, Ca

Light and balance,

Mellow Man Ace.

 Listen to and watch the Fiesta Boyz at www.fiestaboyzlive.com