Last Sunday Nancy Pelosi scoffed at the idea that our government has a spending problem. Well, as long as our tax dollars are being used to fund this kind of nonsense I'd say she's dead wrong about that.
Via the Weekly Standard:
This morning, the State Department announced, "Hip Hop Group Audiopharmacy to Tour Southeast Asia and the Pacific with American Music Abroad."
"The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs is pleased to announce that San Francisco-based hip hop group Audiopharmacy will tour Southeast Asia and the Pacific as part of the American Music Abroad program," the State Department announced.
"With roots in hip hop, Audiopharmacy fuses live instrumentation and global musical styles, making for an eclectic and evolving sound.
"The quartet will tour Indonesia (February 14-26), Fiji (February 27-March 4), New Zealand (March 5-7), Samoa (March 8-11) and the Solomon Islands (March 12-16).
Keep reading…The short biographies of the quartet are hilarious.
TEAO (producer/guitar/turntablist) hails from San Francisco, California. As a DJ/music producer and multi-instrumentalist, he founded an international art/music collective in 2002 called Audiopharmacy Prescriptions to raise a consciousness and global awareness of humanity’s ability to build prosperous and harmonious communities through art and music.
RAS K’DEE (vocals/keyboard) is a Native California (Pomo)/African musician, community educator, and renowned lyricist, producer, & lead vocalist/keyboardist for San Francisco-based live world hip-hop ensemble, Audiopharmacy. For K’dee, his musical inspiration is deeply rooted from his experience as a Pomo/African artist. Translating artistically through hip-hop rhymes and soulful melodies, K’dee invokes the songs and dances from traditional ceremonies of his native people, and tells stories of resistance, healing, community & empowerment that can be understood and felt universally by all people.
KWOME GUSTAVE (drums) was born into a family where music was as essential to life as food, water, air, and spirituality. Ras Kwome learned early that his destiny was to continue the musical work that his father, Ras Ibeshee, began with one of the most treasured bands from the US Virgin Islands – The Zioneers. Playing drums at an early age, he worked hard to emulate Carlton Barret – the drummer for Bob Marley & the Wailers. After a few years, Ras Kwome’s skills became apparent to his father, who then groomed him to become a future member of their band.
And my personal favorite:
KEEPYAHJOY (bass/bucket drums) born Christopher Romanelli, and raised in New York, he now lives in San Francisco. He is known in the streets from San Francisco to Tokyo as “The Bucketman,” whose inspiring and infectious rhythms can have anyone within earshot to break out in dance. Keepyahjoy is an original member of Audiopharmacy and has toured the world with the band since 2004.
If I didn't know any better, I'd swear this was like something out of a Saturday Night Live sketch. Which reminds me...
The irony of Nancy Pelosi saying we don't have a spending problem when this 'refined' group hail from her home district of San Francisco! What she means is we don't have a problem spending in her area...she's bringing home the bacon!
ReplyDeleteWhat's suckening (ha, meant to type 'sickening' but I think I'll coin 'suckening'!) is that you multiply this kind of waste of OUR MONEY thousands of times over with dumbass ideas across the country and world. Why must we always turn to govt (us) for financing? If the project has merit, let it sink or swim on its own through private fundraising.