VZ Navigator from Verizon

I've been with Verizon for a long time. We've had our ups and downs. Finally it seems they are getting their act together. Their advertising is on the verge of being good, they offer cooler phones and now this:the VZ Navigator. It sounds kind of like a bootleg GPS that works with some Verizon Phone models. The VZ Navigator service gives directions and lets you search 14 million locations. Unfortunately it's only available on three models of phones right now, none of which happen to be mine. But you can bet this technology will be available to everyone sooner or later. It costs $2.99 a day or $9.99 a month. Read more HERE

Artstar!

In March 2005, the NYTimes reported that hundreds of people had camped out on Wooster Street in SOHO for a chance to win a spot on a new reality TV show that would chronicle the lives of contemporary artists as they attempt to become successful in the industry. The show is called 'Artstar' and it premiers this Thursday on Gallery HD (Available to Dish Network subscribers only). Read an article about the show in today's NYTimes.

Nike Football...

I'm getting siked for the World Cup. In anticipation of this event, here is a cool Nike Football ad.

Some Classic Shit for Friday

Jay-Z "Where I'm From"

Next Week...

I'll be working on this event next week. If you're in NYC definitely check for it.

Jonathan's Studies For New Posture

Shoutout to Kip, Jonathan and Lizzie. This was a really good time. The idea was executed really well. Cheerio!

Erupto is everywhere...

I've seen ERUPTO tags in NYC, Boston, Portland (Maine), and San Francisco. This guy is a beast. He has been crushing out NY the past few weeks and recently made a trip to boston where he caught a white-out tag in front of EMF. This dude puts in work. Respect.

ICONS!

I saw this post about Young-Dro's cover art on Fader.com today and it made me remember to write something here that I wanted to write a while back. Marketing people should realize that the public generally can identify and remember an icon more than a phrase or a written word. If you think about it in graffiti terms, people like KAWS, DALEK, SHEPARD FAIREY, MISS VAN and a host of others are famous not for their "graffiti", but more so for their image. They each have a character that they have made famous and can now be associated with them as artists.

When getting the word out/spreading buzz about a new artist, it helps to have a catchy logo or image that can be associated with whoever is being marketed. Think about the "Angry Snowman" from Young Jeezy's last album that found its way onto every kid's shirt in the hood. When you see the Wu-Tang clan "W" you immediately think of the group. Here are some great images that have been used over the years to push hip-hop artists. Holler if I forgot anyone.

Vitra Opening...

These are some flicks of the new collection for Vitra by Dutch designer Hella Jongerius . They were on display at the Vitra party on Saturday night. I just took pictures of the sofa-which I think is pretty fresh. But check out the rest of her stuff on her website. It's not really my style, but I kind of dig the sofa and I could totally see my mom wanting all of this for her house.

It look like a leprachan!

I found this video a bunch of months ago, but it's so funny I had to post it on this thing.

Nike + Apple

Today Nike and Apple announced a partnership to create shoes that are outfitted for use with the ipod nano. Sounds fresh. Read the press release or check out the website.

ICFF

My dad and I did the ICFF yesterday. It was really fun. My dad is a gangster and a gentleman. We looked at a bunch of lights and furniture. I chopped it up with some friends showing cool stuff. Overall a really nice time. Pops treated me to some good eats and in return I took him to the Moss party last night!

The Theme For Next Week...

Everyday!

ICFF::Rugged Art

I am getting excited for the ICFF which jumps off tomorrow. My friend Rita put me on to this-which I find pretty interesting. Rugged Art takes artwork from some leading contemporary street artists and creates rugs out of their work. Featured artists include Doze Green, Jose Parla and Ryan Mcginnis among others. They will have a booth at the event tomorrow. Check out their website or check the flyer above for more info.

New Apple Store...

...on 5th Avenue in NYC opens TODAY .
Sounds incredible.

Killa Season Sucks

Let me preface this by saying that I'm a pretty big Dipset fan. I've been fucking with Cam for a long time (no homo), so naturally I was curious to check out his new movie, Killa Season, and find out what all the hype was about. I'm sad to report that the movie is horrible. It's perhaps the strongest evidence against rappers trying to act since Get Rich or Die Trying and I bet Cam is probably a worse actor than Fif. Camron and fellow dipsetters Hell Rell and Juelz pretty much hang out and or kill people for a full 2 hours and 2 minutes. It's all terrible with the exception of two parts. The first is the intro to the film, where the audience is treated to vintage footage of Camron and Mase playing high school ball together in Harlem. That's cool. The other part is the seemingly amateur video type footage of Cam and the rest of Dipset on a trip to Magic City in Atlanta. I think I'm the only Jewish kid from Charlestown to have ever set foot in Magic City so that scene really resonated with me. And then of course there is the scene where Cam beats a dood with a bottle and proceeds to urinate on him. And of course the scene where he spits on a 12 year old girl's face and calls her a "bitch." Anyway, if you don't believe me, check what the good people at the Village Voice thought of the film. I'm definitely dumber for having sat through the entire thing.

Happy BDay Janet...

You're 40!

Dear Sugar Momma...

...I'll take one in black. New stuff from Apple.

Google Trends

Google is official. New Google Blog for trend forcasting and culture crap.

ICFF This Weekend...

The ICFF -New York's International Contemporary Furniture Fair-opens this weekend at the Javitts Center. Shout out to my dad who will be coming down for the event-and who was cool enough to get me tickets and everything! There are a bunch of events that jump off in conjunction with the ICFF-way too many to list here. I will post the events that I think are cool on here later. In the meantime check the website to get a taste of what's happening.

Get Aphilliated: DJ DRAMA

Check out DJ Drama's blog on XXL.com. DJ Drama is one of my favorite DJ's. Drama, Along with Don Cannon, have really turned the entire mixtape game around. I really started feeling these guys last October when I spent a month down in the South and realized they had the entire game locked up. Then I found out that Drama is a Philly OG and used to tour with Bahamadia, which makes him infinitely more interesting. Drama's now working with TI exclusively, but he's been doing mixtapes with everyone including Little Brother, Young Jeezy, and Skateboard P. Check out his blog and keep up with dude.

The Black Donnellys

Today are the NBC up-fronts, when advertisers check out the new shows on the network and decide which ones they want to put money behind. I'm especially excited for the stuntastic new show-The Black Donnellys-which stars my dood Jonathan Tucker . NBC's new lineup gets a writeup in the NYTimes today. Check it out HERE

Buffmonster gets buffed.

I really don't like this buffmonster guy. I guess neither do Revok and Rime.

Bear Falls on Trampoline

What happens when you tranquilize a bear and he falls from a tree onto a trampoline.

Phonte on Blood Money

Did anyone get the new Mobb Deep album yet? I downloaded it off Guerillarms a month ago and was pretty disappointed. But I wasn't that surprised. They have gotten progressively worse since Jay dissed Prodigy at Summer Jam when I was in college. Apparently Phonte of hip hop group Little Brother agrees with me. He posted a message on his website about the new Mobb album and it's really good. It's nice to get another rapper's perspective. Check it out HERE

Jason Kendall vs. John Lackey

Look how dood just looses it all of a sudden and charges the mound. I love fighting in baseball. It's so silly.

Britney Spears::Straight Out The Trailer

The sleaziest chick ever. This is too funny. She continues to play herself in front of millions of people. And her husband is such a shithead. It's really hilarious. I don't like to comment on celebrities (unless they are rappers) but she deserves her own post.

Clipse vs. Cassidy: Who is telling the truth?

My dude Gabe and I have been beefing today. He likes Cassidy ("The Hustler" as he puts it) and I like The Clipse.

Judd's Opinion: Cassidy is the most fake "fake thug" of all time. His raps are corny and he just strikes me as a bitch. That "I'm a hustler" song has a good beat, then Cassidy comes on and ruins it. I like The Clipse because they find the most innovative and clever ways to rap about selling drugs and various other ignorant shit. They are so fun to listen to and their production is almost always good.

Gabe's Opinion: Cassidy is a way more talented rapper. I don't understand why Judd (and others) think Cassidy is faking but the Clipse are telling the truth. I don't see proof one way or the other (except Cassidy did just get out of jail for manslaughter). The Clipse remind me of Mobb Weak, are not original, and ride Pharell's coattails, plus they did a song with Justin Timberlake. Even though they are all ignorant, Cassidy is less ignorant.

Band of Horses

My roommate, sensitive Matt, put me on to this band. This track isn't even my favorite. I like the first song on the album called, "The First Song." Anyway, they are playing NYC next month and the show has been sold out for a minute. Definitely check for them. As Matty K put it: "They are like the Shins, just not afraid to rock out." Well I don't really feel the Shins, and I'm not a big indie rock fan, but these guys are good. Trust me.

New York Magazine::The Influentials

Some people to check for: Murray Moss, Richard Prince, Jay-Z, and Anna Wintour. Check the whole list HERE or go cop the magazine.

Print Advertising: Upper Playground

Upper Playground has been doing print ads in magazines like While You Were Sleeping, Mass Appeal, and others for years. They have been around for a long time. Check out this link to see a retrospective of their print advertising over the last bunch of years.

Google Earth: SABER

I love google earth. It's the most fun way to waste time next to doing this blog. Anyway...I spent a long time searching for it, but I finally found the Saber LA River piece that took him over a year and a half to paint with rollers. He claims you can see it from space and here is proof that it's definitely viewable from very far away. Check out more of Saber's work at The Seventh Letter.

Adult Contemporary: Phoenix!

Phoenix is one of my favorite bands. Without a doubt my favorite French group. I saw them a year or so ago at Bowery Ballroom and they killed it. This is their new single-Long Distance Call. It's really good. Kind of soft, but that's what I love about them. They are on tour right now. Check for them tomorrow at TT the Bears in Cambridge and in NYC on Weds. Also they were on BBC Radio yesterday. Check the show Here

Kylie Minogue & Towa Tei - Sometime Samurai -Featuring GREY and GKAE?

I found this video on 12oz. The song is pretty good because Kylie always comes correct. But the meat and potatoes of this video are the artiststhat are featured in it. Looks like some of my favorites in San Francisco writing on walls and riding on vespas. Cool but very strange. Who paid for this? It's actually shot really well. So many questions...

Swindle in the NYTimes!

Congrats to the folks at Swindle . They were featured today in an article about the changing face of pop culture magazines. Included in the article are quotes from Roger Gastman and Shepard Fairey . Thanks to the lovely and multi-talented Alex Lee for putting me on to this article.

Check out the article Here

And as promised, here is the mural that Caleb painted today in Boston for Helio:

If You're in LA Check For This:

I don't know Jim Houser personally, but I'm a fan of his work. He was a founding member of Space 1026 in Philly and he's gone on to do some really great work. If his stuff looks familiar, it might be because he's done designs for Toy Machine Skateboards. His stuff is poppy, but in the best way possible. It's clean and it has it's own identity. A book of Jim's stuff was recently published, which is really nice and worth owning.

More Info about the show here and more about Jim here

Allianz Arena in Munich

Getting excited for World Cup 2006. This stadium is amazing. Created by Herzog and De Mueron, it's something incredible.

Video from Buenos Aires

My brother David made this video and sent it my way. It's from a soccer game in Buenos Aires he went to a while back. Check it out. Truly bonkers. Thanks Daver!

Colette + La MJC = $old Out

Colette is one of the coolest stores in Paris. For years they have been the leader in specialty goodies and really fresh collaborations. A while back they teamed up with French cool people La MJC and created $old Out . The site is really good and features limited edition clothes and kicks. Really good stuff and definitely worth checking out.

HELIO!

Helio is a new cell phone company that I'm definitely interested in. They are teaming up with Myspace to create phones that will allow you to access the website from your phone. That's kind of cool. What's even cooler is that Helio has been supporting my artist friends in a big way. They sponsored Spothunters a few months back and have continued to work closely with Greg Lamarche and Caleb Neelon and a bunch of other good artists. People in Boston can check for a new Helio mural, courtesy of Caleb, somewhere in central Allston tomorrow. Should have flicks next week. Cool.

Go WIZ!

Some of the best young dudes playing basketball right now are playing in this game. I hope Gilbert gets it done tonight. I'm loving the playoffs so far. Did anyone see Kobe and Steve Nash going at it last night. Incredible!