Open Secret: The 3 Reasons Haters Don't Matter

by PC Muñoz

Creators and leaders will always attract haters at all levels. It comes with the position. In a recent professional development session I co-facilitated with another artist/educator, I had a chance to communicate a few ideas about how to deal with the hostile negativity and/or purposely feigned indifference that often comes our way when we create, innovate, and lead. It has to do with clarity, mission and action. Especially now, with tensions high and life-and-death stakes even higher, it’s easy to fall prey to some loudmouth’s verbal or attitudinal toxins. But you needn’t. Below are the three reasons haters don’t matter.

1. You Have Things to Do.

   That’s right. You have things to create, skills to sharpen, concepts to develop, collaborators to meet, actual constructive criticism from trusted peers to consider. Every second you spend dwelling on a hater’s attempt to discredit you is a waste of your time. And you don’t have time to waste. Take action. Stay focused. Keep working.

2. Haters Don’t Know.

   Haters don't actually know how to do what you do. In fact, typically all they know how to do is be negative. They are not experts or masters of your domain. They can be lurky, jealous bystanders or full-on parasites; either way their current focus is to bring reactive negativity to the world. Be clear about that, and keep working.

3. You Serve Your Mission, Not Theirs.

   Your mission as a leader, as an artist, is a life-giving one. You literally will things into existence —where there was once nothing—-then sustain those things. A hater brings only useless destruction, unhelpful chaos, and sabotage. No need to join with that. Steady your mission, and keep working.

A hater’s words are easily discernible from a mentor’s critique or an instructor’s reproach. The next time you feel someone’s input might be coming from a destructive place, keep these three things in mind.

Then, keep working.

Photo by PCM

Golden Gate Park, SF, 2020

Proximity to greatness

by PC Muñoz

I ran into an old friend at the post office. From 6 feet apart amidst a long row of PO Boxes we offered catch-up capsules in pithy statements: work is good, family is good, we’re hanging in there, this whole thing is rough on everyone. Then we got specific.

She works in television/online content, and casually mentioned an upcoming project with a major film star. “Awesome,” I said, genuinely happy for her. She’s always been smart, talented, hard-working. In fact, she’s pretty great. 

In the entertainment industry,  casually dropping well-known names into a conversation is a fine art. On a practical and subliminal level it indicates a co-sign of your project or work. At the very least it telegraphs something I call a proximity to greatness.

Proximity to greatness is the reason we have autograph hounds, fan conferences, paid meet-and-greets, “influencers”, and selfies with celebrities. It’s the reason people flip out when their favorite musician, actor, writer, thinker, or general internet gadfly interacts with them on social media. 

What are we seeking in this proximity to greatness? That part can be fuzzy. Certainly, entertainers and ambitious business folks have strategic and even soulful reasons to seek out well-regarded or deeply admired connections and trumpet their proximities to them. Others may be hoping to absorb a particular way of working, thinking, or being from a specifically admired person. It’s only natural to want to spend time with and learn from individuals we find supremely impressive.

But as I was leaving the post office I found myself saying to my friend, “(Famous Actor) should be happy to work with you.” I meant it. She’s already very impressive, even without this new project under her belt. Who’s to say her particular greatness is any less great than (Famous Actor)?  

We sometimes forget about the greatness within ourselves. The proximity is so close, we take it for granted. Or maybe we’ve allowed ourselves to become disconnected from it in some way. While you’re sheltering-in-place, take a moment to get in touch with the greatness that resides within you.

It’s closer than you think.

Photo by Danny Zingarelli, I think.

It’s the trainhoPper!

by PC Muñoz

For the past 6 years or so, the centerpiece of my percussion rig has been a vintage Samsonite suitcase adorned with various objects. It’s by far the most attention-grabbing piece of gear I’ve ever had; people are constantly asking questions about it. 

I call it the Trainhopper. All of the objects that are mounted on it (some pro drum gear, some “found” objects) also fit snugly inside of the suitcase for storage when the gig is over. Big sound, little footprint. The idea, I always say, is that in a pinch I can pack up the Samsonite, hop on or off some rollicking boxcar, and play with anybody at anytime.

Truthfully, I’ve never been crazy about standard rock or jazz drumsets. I was initially trained on a standard jazz kit, and I of course have willingly played tons of rock and jazz kits in studios and on stages. I’ve also owned a good number of standard kits over the years. It just took me years to realize that those sets don’t typically provide the sonic palette I prefer.

I started experimenting with customizing my own kits in the 90s. At that point, I would just buy unique individual drums and percussion devices (often from outside the Western tradition, with I suppose the subconscious goal of decolonizing the kit) and find ways to integrate them into a standard kit. I didn’t really go full rogue with my set up until I started putting together the first Trainhopper kit in 2014.

I had seen a bunch of folks using a suitcase as a kickdrum, but I wasn’t interested in that. I wanted something that offered an array of sounds that could distinctively cut through and add flavor to an ensemble situation without overpowering it.

I first tried out the Trainhopper while working on the Owl Country album with Dan Imhoff and Yvette Cornelia (David Grisman and Charlie Musselwhite are also on the album). We all thought it was a fun idea but the in-house kit at the studio where we did the basic tracking sounded very nice (and formerly belonged to Tommy Tutone’s drummer, apparently), so I just used that on the album. It was a little early for full deployment of the Trainhopper, but I didn’t let the concept go. I kept tinkering with different objects to mount on the kit. Eventually I landed on a combination of sounds that worked well: a small Chinese gu/tom, a cowbell, a Meinl “wood side” snare (originally meant for mounting on a cajón), a tin ashtray I found at Salvation Army which produced pleasing sustained tones, and a flattened-out splash cymbal. I used the strongest Velcro I could find in the hardware store to mount everything.

At first, I would bring along a cymbal stand, mount an extra splash or crash/ride on it and place it next to the Trainhopper. But during one tracking session, Studio Trilogy recording engineer Willie Samuels suggested I just mount whatever cymbal I wanted into the hole in the cowbell, and the kit would be completely self-contained. A crucial suggestion!

I started bringing the Trainhopper to recording and performing situations with my contemporary classical colleagues, like Joan Jeanrenaud, Van-Anh Vo, and Alex Kelly. They all loved the tasty but unobtrusive sounds the Trainhopper provides in the service of sensitive string instruments. I also started using it with Black Quarterback, a dub/jazz/electro side project featuring my friends Kevin Carnes and David Boyce (from Broun Fellinis) and Michael Cavaseno (from Bang Data). It’s most definitely a big part of the live RIGHTSTARTER sound. Versatility noted, I decided to make it a permanent part of my rig.

Now it’s pretty much the mainstay piece in my kit, along with the Trilok Gurtu kick-conga, which I finally acquired two years ago after years of hunting. I also put together a Trainhopper II kit as a second option; that kit now lives in Seattle with the producer/filmmaker Paper Son. And yes, I will build Trainhopper kits for people for a fee, though I really just recommend folks to dive in and do it themselves.

Below is a photo gallery plus a few links to hear/see the Trainhopper in action in various contexts....enjoy!

There’s this video of a live Black Quarterback set at the Ivy Room in Albany, CA; I’m on the Trainhopper the entire time and you can catch glimpses of it.

This special version of composer/cellist Joan Jeanrenaud’s “Vermont Rules”, recorded just for the choreographer KT Nelson’s “Dead Reckoning” project for the ODC Dance Company, features the Trainhopper.

My twang-funk song “Ain’t Love Grand” has Trainhopper all over it!

Though it’s not visible in the video, I played Trainhopper all over this track “Moving Train” by Blood Moon Orchestra, which was a RIGHTSTARTER project initially.

Lots of Trainhopper on this RIGHTSTARTER track, “Betrayed”, featuring Bryan Dyer.

I’m playing Trainhopper in this video with the criminally under-heralded acoustic pop-folk group Love, Isabel.

Trainhopper mic’d up in the live room at Studio Trilogy in San Francisco, CA, 2015

Trainhopper tracking in the live room at 25th St. Recording, Oakland, CA, 2017

Trainhopper mic’d up at Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, CA, 2018

On the Trainhopper with Black Quarterback, Ivy Room, Albany, CA, 2018

Photo by Tony Brooke

On the Trainhopper for a live painting event with Leon Loucheur and rapper DEM ONE, Artillery Art Gallery, San Francisco, CA, 2017

Photo by Marco Magsaysay

Trainhopper set up for live on-air performance on KALW, San Francisco, CA, 2018

On Trainhopper at Red Poppy Art House, San Francisco, CA w/ Alex Kelly, Bryan Dean, and DEM ONE, 2018

On Trainhopper with Black Quarterback, Ivy Room, Albany, CA, 2018

Photo by Andrea Kash

On Trainhopper in Los Angeles, CA with Brian Walsh, 2018

Photo by Bob Jenkis

On Trainhopper with Miguel in Los Angeles, CA, 2018

Photo by Bob Jenkis

Trainhopper set up for RIGHTSTARTER live event at San José Museum of Art, 2018

Trainhopper was part of my rig for RIGHTSTARTER’s performance at the flagship Apple Store in San Francisco, CA with cellist Alex Kelly, 2018

Photo by Aengus McGiffin

Nice shot of the Frankenkit at BAMPFA in Berkeley, CA with Trilok Gurtu Kick-Conga, the LP RAW series snare, a POPercussion cajón, the lowboy, and Trainhopper, 2018

Photo by Aengus McGiffin

On Trainhopper with Ben Goldberg at BAMPFA, Berkeley, CA, 2018

Photo by Waffle Howse

Early version of Trainhopper on the left for Owl Country rehearsals in an old schoolhouse in Sonoma County, CA, 2014

On Trainhopper for RIGHTSTARTER performance at Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA, 2019

Photo by Ray Furuta

On Trainhopper at Tone Freq Studios in San José, CA for RIGHTSTARTER session, 2019

Photo by Jerry da Hermit

On Trainhopper with Eamonn Flynn at Plough & Stars, SF, CA, 2019

Photo by Cormac Gannon

On Trainhopper at BAMPFA with DEM ONE, Bryan Dean, and Michael Cavaseno, Berkeley, CA, 2020

Photo by Belinda Muñoz

Trainhopper II currently lives in my office in Berkeley

On the Trainhopper at SFJAZZ with Bryan Dean, Alex Kelly, Demone Carter, and Kymberly Jackson, San Francisco, CA, 2017

Photo by Belinda Muñoz

On the Trainhopper with the jazz bassist/composer Aaron Germain — live on KAWL in San Francisco, 2018. Photo by Devon Strolovitch.

Farewell, CApt. draw

Rest In Peace Pedro Bell aka Capt. Draw aka Sir Lleb, whose influential album covers for Funkadelic ignited the imaginations of music fans worldwide and helped cohere George Clinton’s Black Psychedelic vision into a powerful gestalt.

I hadn’t spoken to him in a bit, but I’ll always remember he was good to me when he didn’t have to be. As a young and clue-deficient whippersnapper, I sent him some 4-track cassette demos and asked him if he would make some art for a cassette release.

“I DON’T DO MICRO-PROJECTS SON, BUT KEEP SENDING ME STUFF,” came the reply via mail, complete with an elaborately decorated envelope.

After that, years of correspondence and support — once I started releasing music professionally he often turned people on to my albums and made sure I connected with key, like-minded folks. He also continued to send me custom art and cassettes of his own music (pictured below).

The legacy of his unique optics and slanguage — whipsmart, unapologetically Black, subversive— lives on in other art forms, detectable in Greg Tate’s writings, movies like “Sorry to Bother You”, thousands of indie music releases and more.

RIP Dro, and thank you.

By PC Muñoz

PAPER SON'S FOUR YEAR STORM

Both RIGHTSTARTER principals are featured on The Four Year Storm, the debut solo release from Seattle producer and filmmaker Paper Son. A striking mix of contemporary hip-hop production and darkwave electronics with touches of jazz, The Four Year Storm is available on all streaming and online services.

Check it out on bandcamp here.

THe Super-Powers of Andraé crouch

By PC Muñoz

I’d been a fan of gospel legend Andraé Crouch (who passed in 2015) for years before I met him. As a kid I heard his contemporary-sounding songs on the Sunday morning gospel program on KSOL, a Bay Area soul station. Later, as a gospel drummer in the 90s, I played his songs with a choir.

In January ‘03 or ‘04 I was at the NAMM show (a music industry trade show) with my friends from Little Kids Rock. I had already met Stevie Wonder,  Bootsy, and Maurice White on that trip. I wasn’t expecting to encounter another legend, let alone have a mind-boggling exchange with him.

I saw Mr. Crouch near the Yamaha piano exhibit and introduced myself; we chatted a bit. He was friendly, with a piercing intelligence and intensity. He listened closely when I was speaking and suddenly turned to me and said “Your voice. You either use it professionally or you should. You’re a...poet? A rapper?” 

Stunned, I told him I do use my voice professionally in the music that I make, in poetry and spoken-word, and as an educator.

Assured, he nodded and tilted his ear towards me as I replied. Then he said “You’re also Asian, Native American...something like that, though you don’t look it.” 

Not sure if my jaw actually dropped but I’m sure my body performed some sort of involuntary demonstration of flabbergast. I am a multiracial person with indigenous, Asian-Pacific Islander roots from my father’s side, but mostly (and understandably), I present to people as Latino or just ethnically ambiguous. To have someone —let alone this musical giant— identify my occupation and family background via the sound of my voice was, to say the least, a trip. I looked at him and told him he was correct, again. He sighed and said, “Yeahhh, I hear it. I hear it all in the voice.”

He gave me his address on the reverse side of a postcard with his headshot on it (pictured) and told me to keep in touch. I think I sent him a CD a few weeks later. I never heard back, which was kind of a relief: I wasn’t sure if I was ready for whatever else Andraé Crouch the seer was going to tell me about myself, my life, my future. 

Sometimes, meeting your heroes far exceeds expectations.

17 Inspirational Prince Songs

By PC Muñoz

Three years ago this month, I learned of Prince’s passing the 21st century way: first via inquisitive texts from close friends, then halting and dubious social media reports, then the dreaded onslaught of official confirmations. As a Gen-Xer who was a teenager during Prince’s first major pop breakthroughs and then a young professional musician when the Minneapolis maverick began his fight against unjust music industry practices, it is difficult to overstate his influence on me and my cohorts. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with a number of his friends and colleagues, who all still hold him in the highest regard. He was an artist’s artist, a musician’s musician, an unrelenting example of the potential for the sublime in popular music, and the greatest live performer of this generation.

When I logged into my social media accounts after the news was official I saw jazz cats, classical music stalwarts, Boomers, Gen X-ers, Millennials, avant-garde folks, headbangers, funkateers, country crooners, indie hipsters, laptop kids, hip-hop heads, banjo pickers, pop aficionados, performance artists, singer-songwriters, classic rockers, and everybody else from all around the world sharing their thoughts, memories, and favorite songs. We all loved him — especially artists of all kinds — because in addition to his famous charisma he also oozed integrity. We noticed that his live ensembles were made of women and men of different races. We heard about his donations to people like Marva Collins. We watched when he changed his name to a symbol and took all kinds of mockery and heat for it. We perked up when he was one of the first artists to offer downloads via his own website. We witnessed with envy and admiration when he racked up platinum status for his Musicology album partially by including a free CD with every concert ticket sold in 2004. We were not surprised when he turned up in Baltimore in 2015, offering a song and a “Rally 4 Peace" in the midst of upheaval and heartbreaking events. Like the similarly idolized and gone-too-soon Bruce Lee, Prince also held a special place in the hearts and minds of people of color, as someone who intently asserted his independence and identity in the face of misguided preconceptions and prejudice, and who staunchly held his ground in menacing David vs. Goliath industry matches. 

We have now lived in a world without Prince for three years. It’s tough to imagine, since he so thoroughly helped to shape contemporary pop music production. The influence of his drum machine work, singular guitar stylings, funk-face synthesizer sounds, and penchant for sonic experimentation can be heard in multiple pop, R&B, hip-hop, and EDM tracks daily. His fearless stare-downs with behemoth entities attempting to exploit musicians are legendary, and referenced virtually every time a contemporary recording artist takes a principled stand for the rights of artists. From the control room to the board room, Prince left no aspect of the music business untouched by his genius.

As we reflect on the past three years without Prince, it is important to see past the obvious--- our grief---and locate the ways in which his example as an artist and humanitarian can continue to inspire and bring joy to our lives and our work. Prince himself once said that “inspirational music” was probably the most appropriate category he could think of for his work. With that in mind, I’ve put together a 17-track list which highlights a few particularly inspirational moments in Prince’s very inspired career.

 1. “Uptown” from Dirty Mind

The first of Prince’s many rallying cries for inclusivity and freedom.

2. “Free” from 1999

Piano-drenched reminder to not take one’s liberated state lightly.

3. "God” (B-side to the “Purple Rain” single) 

Like many artists who grew up in a religious milieu, there was a fierce push-and-pull in Prince’s work between the carnal and the spiritual. This striking track is an example of one of the first times he went straight for the latter.

4. “Dance Electric” from the André Cymone album AC 

Prince wrote this devastatingly funky and apocalypse-obsessed track for his childhood friend and former bass player, spreading the love after the massive success of Purple Rain. This link is to the released version by Cymone.

6. “Sometimes it Snows in April” from Parade.

Though cryptic and forlorn, imparts a home truth that can’t be denied.

7. “The Cross” from Sign ‘o’ the Times

Unabashed testifying accompanied by hypnotic guitars and drums.

8. The entire Lovesexy album

A joy-filled, energetic set espousing his beliefs and philosophies at the time. Prince designed this album to render as one long track on CD, so including it here is not cheating...

9. “Stand Would Stand All Time” from Small Club (unofficial)

Riveting live version of a gospel-ish track that would end up on the Graffiti Bridge soundtrack.

10. “The Sacrifice of Victor” from Love Symbol

Funky, surprisingly revealing and ultimately uplifting tale about some of his childhood experiences.

11. “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World” (single)

Women were clearly an important muse to Prince. This single is inspirational on a couple of levels: as a deeply felt love song, and as his first (and very successful) single as an “indie artist”, without Warner Brothers support.

12. "Gold” from The Gold Experience

Though most people associate Prince with that other color, this powerful track from his last Warner Brothers album is sterling in its own right.

13.  ”Comeback” from The Truth

Loving and hopeful reincarnation reflection, dedicated to his son who was born with Pfeiffer Syndrome and died shortly after birth.

14.  “Everywhere” from The Rainbow Children

Frenetic drums and rousing choir parts frame this track from this Jehovah’s Witness-informed album.

15. “Colonized Mind” from LotusFlow3r

Challenging, deep-thinking stuff from an often overlooked guitar-based album.

16. “Beginning Endlessly” from 20Ten

Serious metaphysics over an industrial synth-funk groove.

17.  “Way Back Home” from Art Official Age

Poignant (even more so now) about the ultimate journey.

Black History Month in San José

By DEM ONE

To be Black in San José is to be a minority amongst minorities. As our numbers have declined, spaces where we can see ourselves and each other have also become scarce. That is why I was excited to perform at the 4th annual Black History Month Spoken Word Festival with my RIGHTSTARTER co-conspirator PC Muñoz.

We always say that RIGHTSTARTER aims to present a guttural artistic response to the current political moment. The historic First AME Zion church in downtown San José, its walls clad with African-American historical artifacts, provided the perfect backdrop for presenting some of our newest work. Our set included the spoken word piece “Physical Science” which deals with the enduring legacy of segregationist ideas, and “Betrayed”, an edgy screed in the style of our musical forbearers Public Enemy. In a synthesis of past, present, and future my son Ellis Marcel sat in with us and played bass for a couple of tunes.

We closed the evening with a jam session featuring all of the incredible poets and musicians who performed that night: breakbeat poet McTate Stroman, the vocalist duo Consonance, and performance poet Venus Jones. Props to Venus Jones, Al Farley, the African American Heritage House, and First AME Zion church for providing such a welcoming platform for Black artistic expression.  

Finale

w/DEM ONE, Venus Jones, Consonance, and McTate Stroman

Starting it Right

RIGHTSTARTER w/Ellis Marcel and Venus Jones

The son

Ellis Marcel guesting on bass

4th Annual African-American Spoken Word Festival, 2019

RIGHTSTARTER, Venus Jones, Al Farley, Consonance, McTate Stroman.

Photo courtesy Venus Jones