[6 vids] From Stephe’s desk: Great minds… “Where are you going, Oppa?” and that Middle Eastern flava.
Images credit: R.A.I.N. Company, CLRIDE.N, and Cube Entertainment.
I’ve been into Egyptian percussion, Hindi wind instruments, and Middle Eastern rhythms for a long time, so I adored the undercurrents of “Where Are You Going, Oppa?” right out of the gate, y’all. My favorite artist in that realm is Hossam Ramzy, and back when I dabbled in belly dancing, his amazing wife Serena was who I looked to for technique.
“Oppa” pours that hot Middle Eastern flava into my ear, but with a layer of ambient techno and a hip-hop base. Rain’s and HyunA’s voices are the gravy on top. How many times have you heard Rain not sing a note of an entire song? Not many. Yet that’s what we get here — the pleasure of his soulful voice rapping and that’s it. HyunA, too.
No way there was ever going to be an “Oppa” MV, but that didn’t stop me from wanting one. Ah, well. That’s what fan mades are for, right? ↓
There are plenty of other examples out there in the music world, but check out these five great minds thinking alike. Let’s have some fun.
Stephe @ cloudusa.blog / CloudUSA.org
“어디가요 오빠 ?” (eodigayo oppa?) — Rain feat. HyunA, Rain Effect. This song is f-u-n and it gives you some really useful Korean phrases, ha! Everything doesn’t have to be Golden Disc material, for pete’s sake. Some folks think it’s godawful, I suppose, but to each his own! ^@@^
“Red” (Practice/MV) — HyunA. She went deep into Egyptian flava for the bridge (2:00/2:20). Who was that chocolate hunk with the dreads?! Cute choreography throughout. And in the beginning, she sounds like a female G-Dragon. Yaass ^@@^
“Raise Up” — Petey Pablo. Just listen to those wind and string instruments, and that Ramzy flair. I always pretend (briefly) that I’m from North Carolina whenever this comes on. Don’t tell anyone or they might make me turn in my ATL card! LOL ^@@^
“Buttons” — Pussycat Dolls feat. Snoop. Those finger cymbals are talkin’ in the background, yo. ^@@^
“Addictive” — Truth Hurts feat. Rakim. That sample is fire as far as Middle Eastern percussion goes. ^@@^
You can also add to this list “Just a Lil Bit” by 50 Cent, and “Big Pimpin” by Jay Z. As a matter of fact, “Big Pimpin” and “Raise Up” both sample Hossam Ramzy’s music, so there you go. Full circle! ^@@^
» [MVs] From Stephe’s desk: Great minds… “Free Way” and “Rock Your Body.” (7/8/2015)
» [posters] From Stephe’s desk: Great minds… R2B and San Andreas. (6/17/2015)
» [MVs] From Stephe’s desk: Great minds… “In My Bed.” (4/10/2015)
» [images] Great minds think alike: Rain and the Black Eyed Peas. Boom, boom, boom! (11/22/2011)
Cloud USA 
that song was pretty weird but addictive.
LikeLike
I gave up listing to main steam music in the 80s. There is so much incredible music out there. I am always looking for music that can move me and touch my soul. I have found it in all kinds of music but fusion is always a delight for me. Thank you for sharing these artists they are on my must hear list.
LikeLike
More stuff like this please! You can make me like any song, even such that I turn off after just a few seconds 🙂 (probably because I basically don’t know anything about pop music…). Only today I bothered to listen to it and go through the lyrics – and found out how funny it is. But it fits perfectly into the general picture of Rain’s personality. That’s why I like his style – always on top of things 🙂 Great article. It’s good to know that there are always new things to discover and that it is never too late to change some basic attitudes, like my 25 years old prejudices against pop, which have been already considerably shaken by Rain himself 😉
LikeLike
Thanks for your comments, Karinina. 🙂
Stephe ^@@^
LikeLike
Truth Hurts’ “Addictive” still one of my faves and the Pussycat Doll’s “Buttons” and “Big Pimpin” as well (although, I’m not a huge hip-hopper SMILES). Actually it was when I was following Ricky Martin during his La Vida Loca days, who made me really think more and more about cultural fusion (if you will). He was the one who said during an interview, that it was always a desire of his to “fuse” different sounds into his music (culturally speaking). Even in his most recent album, you can hear that he still does this with his songs.
It can be a tricky thing too, as some people get butt hurt (all up in their feelings) when it comes to mixing sounds and even genres. Case in point (Beyonce’s “Daddy”….mixing pop with C&W). C&W purists lost their country minds when she performed the song on the most recent CMAs with the Dixie Chicks. *Newflash*….the country music genre itself is derived from Southern gospel (at its core). Don’t even get me started about how “pop/rock-ish” C&W music is sounding these days. Nevermind, that some of the very country artists bitching about “keeping their C&W pure” made albums with R&B artists before Bey’s song even came along.
Yes….talking to you Travis Tritt…..*I digress* (that’s a whole “nother” issue)….SMILES.
Anyway, I think the idea of musical fusion is an awesome one. It keeps songs from having the same ole, same ole “cookie cutter” sound, keeps them fresh. Also (and this is the most important thing) when you are an artist who has an international fan base, it doesn’t hurt for those following your music to “hear, see and feel” a little bit of themselves in your music. Familiarity is the key, it’s what draws people in. It’s no wonder that black people are drawn to K-Pop and K-R&B. It’s because it “feels” like home. If that makes sense. Anyway…..*my two cents*…..SMILES.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I always liked Ricky when it came to his feelings on cultural fusion, yeah! I hope he never stops doing that.
Mixing stuff together, even C&W, has always appealed to me.
Stephe ^@@^
LikeLike