Last year when news surfaced that Paul Canales, formerly chef at Oliveto, along with Rocco Somazzi would be opening their new Uptown district  (468 19th St.) eatery DUENDE anticipation has been high for this latest addition to the ever evolving hot Oakland nightlife area in the vicinity of the Fox Theater And justifiably so for DUENDE, which opened last month, is more than simply an enticing new East Bay dining destination; it is a many faceted, ambitious new nightlife addition that is also a music venue, art gallery, and wine store.

And as for the food - its primary draw - DUENDE offers a refreshing original cuisine by the renowned East Bay chef whose Basque heritage plays a subtle yet distinct influence in his approach to cooking.  Described as "Spanish based" but with a broad blend of flavors (drawing from African, French, & Italian) Canales told the San Francisco Chronicle that for DUENDE, "I really wanted a flexible food concept. I didn't want to be stuck in a style of food." promising that he will never settle for traditional Spanish fare (or "Spanish museum food" as he dismisses it).

Originally expected to open last summer DUENDE, following many months of hard work   and adhering to building codes and various city codes, finally officially opened in January. Its location is at 468 19th Street in historic Floral Depot building in the short block between Broadway and Telegraph Aves. a stones throw from the Fox Theater and round the corner from The Uptown nightclub and the various other clubs, restaurants, and art spaces that have filled this revitalized, vibrant, once dormant part of Oakland over the past several years. Inside the high-ceilinged, exposed brick and beam, large but cozy space - the work of Arcsine Architecture - seats up to 84 diners, while a wide iron stairway leads upstairs to the live music area where a black and gold emblazoned grand piano (pictured below) is the centerpiece.  Recently I caught up with Rocco Somazzi who handles the music end of things at DUENDE to ask him about the new space and his own rich history which anyone from Los Angeles already likely knows about (LA Magazine once wrote of Rocco that, "The best jazz club in L.A. is wherever Rocco Somazzi handles the booking on a given night...He is the rare local booker who keeps jazz fans wondering what he’s going to do next.")

More than any other popular musical genre hip-hop seems to be the one that artists frequently and effortlessly transition from music into acting. The long list of those hip-hop artists who have successfully done so includes (to name but a few) Ice Cube, Will Smith, Queen Latifah, 50 Cent, Mos Def/Yasiin Bey, Common, LL Cool J, Ice T, Ludacris, Eminem,  Snoop Dogg, and of course the late great 2Pac/Tupac Shakur. Add to that list Slaine of rap super group La Coka Nostra. The Boston rapper, born George Carroll, is in the recently released Andrew Dominik directed film Killing Them Softly (starring Brad Pitt and James Gandolfini) and has also recently completed his second solo album, The Boston Project on Suburban Noize/Commonwealth Records, which will arrive in Amoeba Music in March, 2013.

Slaine considers his forthcoming album (the follow up to 2011's World With No Skies 2.0) his way of giving a little bit back to the city that he loves and that has given him so much over the years. He says that, "When most people think of Boston, hip-hop usually isn't the first thing that comes to mind, but the level of talent that is coming out of this city is insane. I wanted to create a record that highlights what this city has to offer musically and show how diverse the talent is. This record embodies something much larger than just a Slaine record." To further prove that point he enlisted many of Beantown's finest talents on the The Boston Project including Termanology, Reks, Esoteric, Ed O.G., Smoke Bulga, Lou Armstrong, Jaysaun, and Millyz along with Boston based producer Lu Balz.

Unfortunately due to his ongoing Deltron 3030 tour date commitments it seems like Del may not be able to make it on Monday for Hiero Day but (fingers crossed) reportedly there is a slim chance he may be able to make it. Regardless all of his other Hiero brethren will be there Labor Day in Downtown Oakland for Hiero Day which goes from 11am to 6pm and happens on San Pablo Ave. between 17th + 18th Streets (near the New Parish). "Members of Hieroglyphics performing Monday will include Opio, DJ Toure, A-Plus, Tajai, Pep Love, Casual, and Souls of Mischief," said  Walasia Al-Noor Shabazz - the General Manager at the Hieros' Clear Label Media company. And in addition to the Hieroglyphics first family of hip-hop there will be some of the very best of the Bay Area on stage too including Blackalicious, Planet Asia (technically from Fresno), Equipto, Moe Green, and Z-Man (who is still an honorary member of the Hiero camp since he put out a release via the Hieros a few years ago). Also performing will be the Kev Choice Ensemble and Honor Roll, plus DJ D Sharp.

If recently you've either been on BART near in the vicinity of the Fruitvale station or driven along 880 in East Oakland odds are you've already spotted the big wide bright new mural bearing the word "DECOLONIZE" that takes up a wide wall at 12th Street and 16th Ave. The monumental mural is the latest politically charged artwork by the Community Rejuvenation Project (CRP). To catch the eyes of  the thousands of daily commuters that pass by the piece is strategically positioned near both the freeway and the BART tracks to get the message of the monumental mural to as many people as possible. “Decolonize is a universal message to all people of the earth to reconnect to their ancestry, the earth, to their traditional medicines and knowledge, and to a global consciousness that we are all related. Everyone on the planet has indigenous roots to somewhere,” said artist Lavie Raven - one of the ten contributors to the large scale mural that is 200 feet wide and 30 feet high and took two and half days of concentrated work to complete. The other artists are CRP regulars Mike 360, Release, Beats 737, Desi, Rate, Abacus, Pancho, Yesenia, and Dora.

       

If the response to the trash-talking, dank smoking, young white, Bay Area female rapper Kreayshawn's hotly buzzed, self-directed & edited music video above for her latest catchy track "Gucci Gucci," which has racked up over 1.1 million views since it was uploaded on YouTube eleven days ago, is anything to go by then the video maker turned rapper's White Girl Mob show tonight (with Lil Debbie & V Nasty) at the modest sized SF  SOM Bar on 16th Street will certainly be a sold-out affair.

But for all the accolades that Kreayshawn, who counts Diplo, Das Racist, and Soulja Boy as among her biggest fans, has accumulated during her relatively short rise to fame, the diminutive but far from meek white female artist has also been attracting a lot of hate. An awful lot of hate in fact. "LOL ignorant ass hood rat bitch turned ignorant hipster hood rat bitch. What is hip-hop nowadays?" wrote one non-fan in response to one of her online video interviews, while another wrote, in response to the "Gucci Gucci" video, "Jesus Christ this is atrocious."

As for the haters out there, Kreayshawn appears to be taking it all in her stride; even with a seemingly mischievous sense of delight. It's almost like she knows how to press peoples' buttons (especially older hip-hop heads) and gets a real kick out of it. She is to staid rigid hip-hop ("the four elements man" school of thought) what the Sex Pistols were to established 70's rock. In one interview she rightfully ranks herself in the don't-give-a-fuck new school of rap alongside such other young buzz-worthy acts of this digital age as Odd Future (who she's "homies with") and Lil B (who she's produced videos for). But with each interview she gives and with each music video she unveils Kreayshawn manages to simultaneously win new fans and alienate many hip-hop heads.