Ozomatli is a seven to ten piece band playing primarily Latin, hip hop, and rock music, formed in 1995 in Los Angeles. They are known both for their vocal activist viewpoints and their wide array of musical styles - including salsa, jazz, funk, reggae, rap, and others.

In a 2007 NPR interview, band members Jiro Yamaguchi and Ulises Bella describe Ozomatli:

History

The band has experienced many member changes, having had as many as ten members, and as few as seven. A core of six members has featured in all of its lineups: Asdru Sierra (lead vocals, trumpet), Raul Pacheco (lead vocals, guitar, tres, jarana), Justin Poree (rap vocals, percussion), Wil-dog Abers (bass, backing vocals), Jiro Yamaguchi (tabla, percussion, backing vocals) and Ulises Bella (sax, clarinet, requinto jarocho, keyboards, backing vocals).

The members of the band met through their affiliation with the Peace and Justice Center of Los Angeles, and their first performance was for picketers during a strike. They began their career in the Los Angeles and San Diego/Mexico border-area club scene, and added MC Chali 2na, turntablist Cut Chemist, drummer William Marrufo, and sax player Jose Espinoza (DOB Unknown – January 5, 2011). Following an appearance in ''Vibe'' magazine, the group broke into the mainstream, releasing ''Ozomatli'', their eponymous debut album, in June 1998 under the Almo Sounds label.

Between their first and second albums, the band experienced a number of member changes, with four of the ten members leaving the band. First the band added drummer Andy Mendoza replacing William Marrufo. Then DJ Cut Chemist left shortly after the release of the first album and was replaced by Kid.W.I.K. Later on Chali 2na left to concentrate on hip-hop outfit Jurassic 5 (which also included Cut Chemist). Chali 2na hand-picked his own replacement as Kanetic Source. While making the second album, Kanetic Source, Kid.W.I.K. and Jose Espinoza all left. Kanetic Source currently does underground music. He also does work with Chali 2na.

Ozomatli's second album, ''Embrace the Chaos'', was released on the inauspicious date of September 11, 2001. Although many American bands cancelled their concerts, Ozomatli gained some recognition for continuing to play their concerts, all the while continuing their commitment to social justice and progressive politics, in addition to the rising anti-war movement. Kanetic Source appeared as a guest in some songs on the album, and continued to tour with the band as a guest. Chali 2na also appears, along with Kanetic Source, in the song "Vocal Artillery" but goes uncredited.

The band released "Coming Up," a limited edition EP with drummer Mario Calire replacing Andy Mendoza, and the additions of trombone player Sheffer Bruton and turntablist DJ Spinobi (who had appeared on some tracks on "Embrace The Chaos"). Kanetic Source is listed as an official member on this release although there are very few rap vocal parts.

Afterwards, the band made a further commitment to a new direction in music, embracing North African and Arab musical styles in addition to their own. There were more member changes as well, with rapper MC Jabu replacing Kanetic Source. This lineup of the original six plus Calire, Bruton, Spinobi, and Jabu would be Ozomatli's longest lasting lineup and would record three albums together (''Street Signs'', ''Live at the Fillmore'', and ''Don't Mess With the Dragon'').

The musical styles of many cultures are blended on 2004's ''Street Signs'', and also features another guest appearance by former MC Chali 2na, this time credited, in the song "Whos To Blame". In 2005, ''Street Signs'' won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Rock/Alternative Album.

In late 2006, shortly before the release of ''Don't Mess With the Dragon'', DJ Spinobi left the band to pursue personal projects (but stuck around until the album's release, as he appears in the photos and is credited as a member). This was the end of the longest lasting Ozomatli lineup, and the first of many lineup changes that would occur over the next year and a half. April 3, 2007, saw the release of their fourth studio album ''Don't Mess With The Dragon'', which was co-produced by K. C. Porter. On September 20, 2007, Ozomatli announced that MC Jabu was leaving the group on amicable terms. He was replaced with Tre Hardson.

In early 2008, the group did a song for the Los Angeles Dodgers called "Can't Stop The Blue," their first recording with Tre Hardson. In the video, LA drummer Chris Cano is seen in place of Calire. Shortly thereafter, Sheffer Bruton and Tre Hardson were no longer seen playing with the group, and Mario Calire appeared to be back on the drumseat. On July 18, 2008, Ozomatli did a show with original MC Chali 2na, and announced that he had re-joined the group. In August, they traveled to Africa, without Chali 2na. That year the band also became official cultural ambassadors at the invitation of the United States State Department, the culmination of a yearlong process initiated at the behest of a Nepalese diplomatic worker who heard the band discuss its mission and philosophy on National Public Radio (NPR); the group's first year of ambassadorship took them to Nepal, India, Myanmar, Madagascar, Jordan, Tunisia, South Africa, and Egypt. In Madagascar, Raul Pacheco was nearly electrocuted on stage, an event that inspired their song "Malagasy Shock."

On April 20, 2010, the band released their fifth studio album, ''Fire Away''.

In 2010, Ozomatli performed the original song "Never Again" with the Agahoza Shalom Youth Village for the Enough Project and Downtown Records' Raise Hope for Congo compilation. Proceeds from the compilation fund efforts to make the protection and empowerment of Congo’s women a priority, as well as inspire individuals around the world to raise their voice for peace in Congo.

Notable performances

Members

Current members

Past/Guest members

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

EP

Other contributions

Collaborations

References

External links

Category:American rock music groups Category:American hip hop groups Category:Latin music Category:Musical groups from Los Angeles, California Category:Musical collectives Category:Rock en Español musicians Category:Real World artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Latin Grammy Award winners Category:Chicano rock musicians

Lucas MacFadden (born October 4, 1972), better known as Cut Chemist, is an American DJ and record producer. He is a former member of the funk Latin band Ozomatli, and of hip hop group Jurassic 5. He has collaborated with fellow turntablist DJ Shadow on a number of projects.

Career

Preceding the vinyl release, Unity Committee formed Jurassic 5, along with another group, Rebels of Rhythm. Cut Chemist contributed avidly to the group, adding "Lesson 6: The Lecture" to Jurassic 5's eponymous EP, and co-producing the entirety of the record. Between then and other releases, he explored remixing alongside DJ Shadow and Liquid Liquid, and performed doing outside work (sampling and scratching for Less Than Jake, and appearing with Ozomatli). From late 1996 to early 1997, Cut Chemist recorded his album debut, ''Live at Future Primitive Sound Session'', with Shortkut of Invisibl Skratch Piklz.

Cut Chemist did not appear on their latest album ''Feedback''. In May 2006, he indicated to ''Billboard'' that he had left the group.

Cut Chemist's first full-length solo album, ''The Audience's Listening'', was released on July 11, 2006. The album includes the pre-released song "The Garden", which features a bossa nova style, vocals from Astrud Gilberto's Brazilian song "Berimbau", and berimbau instrumentals.

The song "The Audience Is Listening Theme Song" from ''The Audience's Listening'' has been featured in a 2G Apple iPod nano advertisement.

More recently, Cut Chemist has opened for Shakira in 2007 on the European leg of her Oral Fixation Tour, and at the press conference held by car-maker SEAT to promote their sponsorship of the shows.

Cut Chemist made an appearance in the 2007 comedy ''Juno'', playing a high school chemistry teacher, playing on his "chemist" stage-name. His logo, an opened pair of scissors over a beaker, is drawn on the whiteboard behind him in the movie.

Cut Chemist joined DJ Shadow on a world wide tour to support their new mix ''The Hard Sell'' beginning in early 2008. Kid Koala opened for them. Dates included Dallas, New York, San Francisco, Melbourne, Toronto, Vancouver, London, Hamburg and Paris among others.

In October 2008, Cut Chemist's video for the song "What's the Altitude" featuring Hymnal was removed for violating a WMG copyright.

Cut Chemist is featured in the award-winning documentary ''This is the Life'', chronicling the music movement which was birthed at The Good Life Cafe in South Central Los Angeles. The Good Life is the open-mic workshop where he first performed with Unity Committee in the early 1990s and launched Jurassic 5.

Most recently, Cut Chemist was featured in the film ''Up In The Air'' under his name Cut Chemist as the conference DJ who introduces Young MC.

Discography

Releases

Remixes

Scratches

Production

DJ mixes

Appears on

Tracks appear on

References

External links

Category:American electronic musicians Category:Hip hop DJs Category:1972 births Category:Living people

Julian Miles "Jools" Holland OBE, DL (born 24 January 1958) is an English pianist, bandleader, singer, composer, and television presenter. He was a founder of the band Squeeze (1974-1980 & 1985-1990) and his work has involved him with many artists including Sting, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, The Who, David Gilmour, Magazine and Bono.

Holland is a published author and appears on television shows besides his own and contributes to radio shows. In 2004, he collaborated with Tom Jones on an album of traditional R&B; music. He currently hosts ''Later... with Jools Holland'', a music-based show aired on BBC2, on which his annual show the Hootenanny, is based.

Life and career

Holland played as a session musician before finding fame, and his first studio session was with Wayne County & the Electric Chairs in 1976 on their track "F*ck Off."

Holland was a founding member of the British pop band Squeeze, formed in March 1974, in which he played keyboards until 1981 and helped the band to achieve millions of record sales, before pursuing his solo career.

Holland began issuing solo records in 1978, his first EP being ''Boogie Woogie '78''. He continued his solo career through the early 1980s, releasing an album and several singles between 1981 and 1984. He branched out into TV, co-presenting the Newcastle-based TV music show ''The Tube'' with Paula Yates. Holland achieved notoriety by inadvertently using the phrase "groovy fuckers" in a live, early evening TV trailer for the show, causing it to be suspended for six weeks. He referred to this in his sitcom "The Groovy Fellers" with Rowland Rivron.

thumb|right|Holland at the Tsunami Relief concert in Cardiff's Millennium Stadium, 22 January 2005In 1983 Holland played an extended piano solo on The The's re-recording of "Uncertain Smile" for the album ''Soul Mining''. In 1985, Squeeze (which had continued in Holland's absence through to 1982) unexpectedly regrouped including Jools Holland as their keyboard player. Holland remained in the band until 1990, at which point, he again departed Squeeze on amicable terms to resume his solo career as a musician and a TV host.

In 1987, Holland formed The ''Jools Holland Big Band'' which consisted of himself and Gilson Lavis from Squeeze. This gradually became his 18-piece Rhythm & Blues Orchestra.

Between 1988 and 1990 he performed and co-hosted along with David Sanborn during the two seasons of the music performance program Sunday Night on NBC late-night television. Since 1992 he has presented the eclectic music program ''Later... with Jools Holland'', plus an annual New Year's Eve "Hootenanny".

In 1996 Holland signed a record deal with Warner Bros. Records and his records are now marketed through Rhino Records.

Holland has a touring band, The Rhythm And Blues Orchestra, which often includes singers Sam Brown and Ruby Turner. In January 2005 Holland and his band performed with Eric Clapton as the headline act of the Tsunami Relief Cardiff. He also headlined the Skegness SO Festival in July 2010.

Personal

Holland was an interviewer for The Beatles Anthology TV project, and appeared in the 1997 film ''Spiceworld'' as a musical director.

He received an OBE in 2003 in the Queen's Birthday Honours list, for services to the British music industry as a television presenter and musician. In September 2006 Holland was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant for Kent. He is also known for his charity work: in June 2006 he performed in Southend for HIV/AIDS charity Mildmay, and in early 2007 he performed at Wells and Rochester Cathedrals to raise money for maintaining cathedral buildings. He is also patron of the Drake Music Project and has raised many thousands of pounds for the charity.

Jools Holland was appointed an Honorary Fellow of Canterbury Christ Church University at a ceremony held at Canterbury Cathedral on 30 January 2009.

On 29 August 2005 Holland married Christabel McEwen, his girlfriend of 15 years (between 1983 and 1995 she had been married to Edward Lambton, 7th Earl of Durham, but they divorced). The wedding, at St James's Church, Cooling near Rochester, was attended by many celebrities, including Ringo Starr, Robbie Coltrane, Stephen Fry, Lenny Henry, Noel Gallagher, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders.

Holland is also a patron for The Milton Rooms, a new Arts centre in Malton, North Yorkshire, along with Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton and Kathy Burke.

Writing

Discography

Albums that have charted and gained Certifications

Releases

Film and television

Current television programmes

Books

References

External links

Category:1958 births Category:Living people Category:Boogie-woogie pianists Category:English rock pianists Category:English television presenters Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire Category:Bandleaders Category:Squeeze (band) members Category:I.R.S. Records artists Category:People from Blackheath, London Category:BBC Radio 2 presenters Category:Deputy Lieutenants of Kent Category:British people of Irish descent Category:English people of Irish descent