Dude, I cannot WAITTTT for this new Janelle Monáe jawn to drop!  With this, Badu, and NERD all dropping in the same season (aaaaand touring together!!) it’s difficult for me to believe that music’s going down the drain.  If anything, we’re reaching a point where all the highs are higher and the lows are lower.  And isn’t today a day to be hiiiiiiigher?

And since I love smart synopses, click the jump for Wondaland’s description of the ArchAndroid Crown.

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How happy is this boy that he gets a Dâm-Funk AAAAAAND Janelle Monáe video within 24 hours???? (Answer: VERY)

Maybe I just love artists with little accents over their names.  Or maybe I love the Funk.  Regardless, this little morsel of joy is the only imaginable thing that would keep me indoors during this gloriously beautiful sunny warm Brooklyn day.  I gotta get out and get some Vitamin D, but not without sharing with you the other light of my life that is Jane.  Oh, alas.  Alas.

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It’s no secret that I’m quite into this Janelle Monáe lady.  Back in ’07 it was her EP Metropolis: The Chase that soundtracked iLL-Lit’s first “tour” (which consisted of like 4 dates in a row in Southern California so we were like “6 hours away for more than one night? TOUR!” And besides her music displaying a sound that was fresh and much-needed, I was quickly drawn in by the philosophy held by her and her crew, the Wondaland Arts Society. “Imagination Inspires Nations,” read the hundreds of campaign posters wildly waved around at her first shows.  And like a good campaign, the word spread and two years later she returns with Metropolis: The ArchAngel, now armed with a Grammy nomination, major label support, a much richer live show, and an exponentially larger fanbase. Even still, what I admire most is her steadfast commitment to her message, in spite of the dramatic changes that have occurred around her.  Shortly after she was signed to Bad Boy, her Wondaland colleague Mitchell A. Martian told me that it was only after being sure that she maintained full creative control over her work that she agreed to the record deal – Wondaland takes care of virtually everything artistic, even down to the mastering and marketing ideas.  And so last week with the release of not one but two new tracks, I was pleased to be greeted by my inbox with a familiar piece from Wondaland that serves more as a call to action than a commercial:

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And nary other earthly maiden shall I hanker after.

Janelle Monáe ft. Big Boi “Tightrope”

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Yo the footage for her rehearsals looks hellllllllllllllla tight!  I’ve always admired Janelle for pushing the limits on everything she touches.  The year she blows up all the awards shows will be a good one.

Via Wondaland

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IT’S A GREAT WEEK FOR FUNK!!  The fantastic Janelle Monáe and Wondaland Arts Society have cooked up this piece of ridiculousness that left us all with our jaws dropped in this here kitchen.  Almost burnt the tofu!  The TOFU, I say!!

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[Janelle Monáe "Come Alive (The War of the Roses)"]

Just keeps getting better.  I can pretty much just go to sleep now, nothing better than this could possibly happen today.

EXCEPT!! Video of her studio session and her covering Diana Ross with Of Montreal after le jumpé.

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so last night ms. onandon badu changed my life (again).  seeing her AND janelle monae together is like being raised by hamsters, finding out you’re human and realizing you don’t have to eat hamster pellets anymore.  it’s difficult to see how anything could top janelle monae moonwalking.  but then badu comes on, and it’s like…damn.  daaaammn.  and they both do new material.  and you think: saving the world is possible…and maybe: being yourself can be a good thing…and you get higher, and happier…or to quote part of new amerykah’s aphorism for the night, you can’t help but “be out of your mind” and in the herenow.

SO in the spirit of being yourself and out of your mind, i thought i’d post an incisive look at the theory of technological advance as it relates to being yourself through the lens of pornography via our favorite british sitcom, coupling. werds. happy sunday!

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Tonight Nico and I will be going nucking futs at the Erykah Badu show at the Warfield!  The emaculate Janelle Monae is opening, which means the show is going to be quite bonkers.  If you’re coming too, come say wadduuuuuh.  If you’re finna go, cop a ticket here.

If you’re not going, worry not.  Download this compilation of live Erykah performances, courtesy of our folkers at Blind I.

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We met the good people of Deep Cotton a few months back when they were on tour with the lovely Janelle Monáe, and rest assured that they’re continuing that Wondaland Arts Society tradition of great muzaks!  Here’s their new track, “SYDM,” that sticks it to the man (and by “man” we mean the men and women of Fox News), while paying tribute to the man (and by “man” we mean James Brown).  Watch yourself!

[Deep Cotton - SYDM]

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On Wednesday Oakland’s own Raphael Saadiq returns to the Bay! Wait, you mean “lay your head on my pillow” Raphael Saadiq? Like “it’s our anniversary,” “I wanna dance tonight” Raphael Saadiq? The “you should be here” Raphael Saadiq??? Yes, dammit, yes.

And to make it even more ridiculous, he’s touring with Janelle Monáe, the dopest person to exist, ever (that’s not an overstatement).

The show’s this Wednesday at Bimbo’s 365 in San Francisco. We’re all going, and you should too. Cop your tix here.

And here’s a tasty rarity for y’all Raphael fans…Dilla’s remix of Lucy Pearl’s “Without You.”

[Courtesy of Jon Reyes from Verbal Acupuncture]

Previously: Janelle Monáe – Mr. President

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