BSKi
Playing NYC’s Rockwood Music Hall stage 2 June 13 at 9:30pm; we have the pleasure & privilege of presenting the following live in-studio performance of “Say Hello”featured off BSKi’s debut EP Keep it Light. Fusing together an earnest & eclectic blend of cultures that draw from his Puerto Rican heritage & local NYC inspirations & vibrations; Collazo continues to carry the torch for a style he has branded sancochofunk. Designing an enlightened & expressive aesthetic that takes cues from work in Élan & familial inspirations from Buscabulla—BSKi brings an inclusive & expansive approach to musical craft that encourages an entire globe to tune into a genuine celebration of being alive in a world that is both wonderful & more often than not outright weird & illogical.
Presenting a view of performing over at GnM Studios; Brian & the BSKi crew craft together a unique blend of super smooth rhythm & blues that are seen created in real time. Brian’s own vocal range encourages all rhythm & chord cadence progressions to shine in a fusion of Caribbean & Nuyorican components that comment on the various jazz, r & b & funk movements enjoyed throughout the generations. BSKi brings in a barrage of instrumental elements & inspired attributes that abide by something akin to the everything & the kitchen sink methodology but everything is done with an adept sense & style of pizazz & studied skill. A salutation that seeks something outside of the regressive cycles that pushes for something better & greater with global jazz schooled sensibility that pens a musical love note for the future era to appreciate & apply in their own lives. “Say Hello” incorporates guitars, keyboards, rhythmic measures, vibes & Collazo’s delivery that moves from harmonic song to spoken word that shines some enlightened sun into the ears & eyes of their audience. BSKi boasts a body moving approach to music that will have your entire being moving from morning rise all the way to late night retirements into the moon’s arms of replenishing rest.
Brian Collazo of BSKi provided us with the following reflective insights:
About Keep It Light EP:
The music on Keep It Light evokes a 70s Stevie Wonder meets 90s New Jack Swing vibe while Collazo adds his own, at times, sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek lyrical approach for a uniquely personal record. BSKi explains,“Both musically and lyrically, these songs sound and feel more like me than anything I’ve ever done.
About “Say Hello”:
“Say Hello” was a song that I originally started, literally, eight years ago, shortly after Barack Obama’s inauguration. All I had were the lines: Say Hello, we’ve got a new team in this year / and so you know, we’ll do things differently round here / go to your homes await our orders, guard your wallets and your daughters…
I didn’t come back to finish it until years later but the thinking was that the conservative politicians and pundits were lamenting this supposed loss of American Values and a takeover by some sort of despotic ruler. So, the dystopian-type lyric was my tongue-in-cheek way of thumbing my nose at the obstinate old guard longing for the old way of doing things, (when the meteor lands the tyrannosaur dies). Ironically, by the time we released the record, these lyrics took on a whole new meaning and relevance as we, literally, had a new team in this year.
My parents are from Puerto Rico, making me a first generation “Nuyorican”. I liked the ideal of building this song around tumbao rhythm and guitar riff that almost could be a montuno line on a salsa record.
About “Say Hello” video:
The video was shot at musical director and producer Greg Mayo’s (son of legendary musician, Bob Mayo — of Peter Frampton, Hall and Oates, Foreigner and others) GnM Studios in White Plains, NY and filmed by Jackson Hoffman and team.The track was recorded live with the following lineup: Mayo (guitar, vocals), Patrick Firth (keys), Eric Brown (drums), Bryan Ladd (bass) & Anthony Almonte Leon (percussion). The track was mixed and produced by Mayo.
Experience BSKi’s debut EP Keep it Light available now.
