Okayplayer.com is an online hip-hop and alternative music website and community, described by Rolling Stone as a "tastemaker", the magazine also describing it as "an antidote to dull promotional Web sites used by most artists".[1][2] The group was co-founded by The Roots' drummer Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson as a loose musical collective in 1987, and evolved into an online community in 1999.[3] In 2004, Questlove launched Okayplayer Records as a spin-off of the community, in partnership with Decon.[4][5]
This community is made up of recording artists (who keep their official internet homes there), visitors to the site, and individuals who post on the site's messageboard, the most popular feature of the site. All of the artists and staff, as well as those who post to the site's messageboard, are considered "okayplayers," or "OKPs" for short.
Okayplayer has been identified as an online community that allows people to bypass traditional media and network with each other.[6] An example of such a collaboration fostered by the site is the Foreign Exchange project, with Little Brother's vocalist Phonte Coleman and Dutch producer named Nicolay meeting on Okayplayer, and making an album together by sending tracks and verses back and forth over the Internet. The album, Connected, was released before the pair had met in real life.[6]
Okayplayer organize regular tours and an annual "Roots Picnic" all day event.[7][8][9]
Okayplayer artists
- The Roots
- Little Brother
- Mos Def
- Lupe Fiasco
- Danny!
- Jean Grae
- Jill Scott
- Common
- Talib Kweli
- Hi-Tek
- Dilated Peoples
- J Dilla
- Erykah Badu
- Meshell Ndegeocello
- D'Angelo
- Sa-Ra
- Jaguar Wright
- Blackalicious
- Jazzyfatnastees
- Skillz
- Aceyalone
- DangerDoom
- The Coup
- Leela James
- M-1 (of dead prez)
- Mr. Lif
- Scratch (formerly of the Roots)
- India.Arie
- K-os
- RJD2
- Grandmaster Melle Mel
- Pharoahe Monch
- Amy Winehouse
- D.J. Jazzy Jeff
- Solange Knowles
- Esperanza Spalding
- Q-Tip
References
- ^ "Wiz Khalifa: Globe-trotting Pittsburgh rapper takes independent route to the top", Rolling Stone, 29 November 2006
- ^ Binelli, Mark (2000) "Hip-Hop Alive and Well on the Web: A primer of six hip-hop Web sites", Rolling Stone, 16 November 2000
- ^ Wiltz, Theresa (2000) "Taking The Rap Online And Off; With a 44-City Tour, Okayplayer Links Its Web Site to a New Generation of Fans", Washington Post, 9 October 2000
- ^ Strickman, Andrew (2004) "The Roots Make Their "Point"", Rolling Stone, 30 January 2004
- ^ "The Roots Launch Okayplayer Records", Glide, 23 January 2004
- ^ a b Menconi, David (2006) "Metropolis now: Halfway through the first decade of the 21st century, we've entered a new techno-cultural age", The News & Observer, 1 January 2006
- ^ Schafer, Gabrielle (2000) "Tour Dates Set for Okayplayer Tour", Rolling Stone, 5 October 2000
- ^ "Okayplayer Tour featuring Dead Prez, Talib Kweli", NME, 3 November 2000
- ^ Paine, Jake (2009) "The Roots Bring Public Enemy To Annual Picnic", HipHopDX, 17 March 2009
External links
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