Bellow the Heavens – Above the expectations

Who is Dieter Rams?

Doesn’t ring a bell? Well, most certainly not.
Maybe it should though, because he’s the one who inspired all of our beloved Apple designs.

It seems that Jonathan Ive was influenced by Rams’ philosophy and design, recycled his theories and gave us a series of the most successful and renowned industrial products.

I can’t wait to see what those inspired by Ive will do in a few years…

More on the subject

The Art of Hip Hop Music Videos

Believe it or not, hip hop videos are not just about bling, groupies and liquor.

Here’s a selection of Black and White videos.

Blackstar ft. Common – Respiration
Rakim – When I B On The Mic
Jay-Z – 99 Problems
Kanye West – Diamonds From Sierra Leone
Snoop Dogg – Drop it like it’s hot

She is – Chrisette Michele

You might have heard her on Jay-Z’s ‘Lost One‘ or Nas’ ‘Can’t forget about you‘ and thought it was a sample. Chrisette herself claims ‘I’ve been studying Miss Billy, Miss Ella, Miss Sarah Vaughan and Miss Natalie Cole’ and that’s more than obvious because her voice has a classic and mature quality that the music scene has been lacking for decades.

Erykah Badu – Honey

For those of you who don’t know, Erykah Badu will release her 4th album ‘The Kabah’ on February 26, 2008. As a big fan of Miss Badu I was ecstatic to hear the news, but a bit sceptic too. I was afraid it would be one of those things you wait for so long that in the end you get disappointed anyway.

Fortunately, today I heard something on Okayplayer that ‘eased my pain’. The first single from the Kabah called ‘Honey’ produced by 9th Wonder (you can listen to it there or find it on YouTube).

The track is everything you’d expect from Erykah. It’s fresh but still has a familiar atmosphere about it, like reminiscing on good times when you used to listen to Badu (think ‘Back in the Day’ ). It’s funky and organic (reflected by the cover art) and in my opinion a great opening for the new album.

I still can’t wait to hear the whole thing, especially the song with Bilal – that’s going to be the best collabo e.v.e.r.

Edit: Erykah Badu on ‘Honey’

Hello world!

Well, this is just an intro post… so basically I’ll try to write about something that interests me, concerning design, music or something like that.