A Song For Ourselves Blog

A Song For Ourselves Mixtape is back up

2011-08-10T12:21:00.001-07:00

DJ Phatrick's A Song For Ourselves Mixtape is back online to download:

A Grain of Sand in Smithsonian Folkways Magazine

2011-05-27T02:20:00.001-07:00

Sojin Kim recently wrote an excellent, in-depth article on the legendary A Grain of Sand album by Chris Iijima, Nobuko Miyamoto and Charlie Chin. Progressive Asian American music pretty much starts with this album. In the Smithsonian Folkways Magazine cover story, Sojin provides a background on all three artists as well as the movement that inspired them. A must read! Read it here.

Discover Nikkei Article

2011-01-15T13:20:00.001-08:00

Here's an article (part 1 of 2) on Discover Nikkei about my film Pilgrimage and the connection I try to make with the JA community through my work. I got a chance to sit down and talk with writer Mia Nakaji Monnier at JANM last year and I thought she did an excellent job with article.

Interview for Fancast.com

2011-01-15T13:19:00.001-08:00

My blogging skills are the worst! I forgot to post this interview I did for Fancast.com in December. The article was written by Chi-hui Yang, the curator of Comcast's Cinema Asian America. I owe a lot to Chi-hui. As the director of the San Francisco Asian American International Film Festival, he picked my first film, Yellow Brotherhood, to screen at the festival and has been really supportive of my work ever since. It's also because of him that A Song For Ourselves was part of last month's Cinema Asian America line-up.

Read the interview here.

Review of A Song For Ourselves in Anthropology Review

2011-01-04T09:47:00.000-08:00

Here's a recent review of A Song For Ourselves published on the Anthropology Review Database site. Click here to read.

Here's another review posted last year on Educational Media Reviews Online.

If you would like to get A Song For Ourselves into you school's library please contact Third World Majority or Center For Asian American Media.

A Song For Ourselves available on Comcast's On Demand in December!

2010-12-01T18:06:00.000-08:00

I'm excited to announce that A Song For Ourselves is now available to Comcast digital cable subscribers with On-Demand for $.99! Comcast just launched Cinema Asian America, a ground-breaking new video-on demand offering, which will feature Asian American films. It's a huge honor to have my film included in a list of Asian American Cinema heavy hitters like Saving Face, Treeless Mountain, and Planet B-Boy.

Cinema Asian America will offer a new curated line-up of films each month, which means A Song For Ourselves will only be available from Dec. 1 - Jan. 3. This is a really significant opportunity to show corporations like Comcast that there is indeed an audience for relevant Asian American film, so please order (it's only a buck!) and spread the word!
If you have Comcast this is what you do:

1) Click on the “On Demand” button
2) Look under the “Movies” folder
3) Select the “Movie Collections” folder
4) Select the “Cinema Asian America” folder to see the list of films

Feature article in Evil Monito by Terry Hwang

2010-11-11T16:26:00.001-08:00

A couple months back my friend Terry Hwang was kind enough to write a feature on me for Evil Monito. It's one of the most insightful articles that have been written on me (like all three of them) and I know that Terry really spent a lot of time working on it. I went to school with her at UCLA and it's been inspiring to watch her chase her dreams as a writer. You can read the article here.

A Song For Ourselves at Minneapolis/St. Paul Asian Film Festival - 11/10

2010-11-02T21:50:00.000-07:00

A Song For Ourselves is coming to the land of Purple Rain! The first annual Minneapolis/St. Paul Asian Film Festival kicks off on Nov. 3rd and runs until the 13th. Song will be playing in the "Asian American Shorts Program" on 11/10 at 7pm. Much respect to all the organizers of the festival for making Asian American cinema a little more accessible to their communities!

A Song For Ourselves at the Pacific Rim Film Festival

2010-10-03T10:36:00.001-07:00

A Song For Ourselves returns to Santa Cruz for the Pacific Rim Film Festival. Wish I could make it up for the screening. Fall in the Cruz is beautiful.

PACIFIC RIM FILM FESTIVAL
Sunday, Oct. 17th at 10p
Del Mar Theatre
Santa Cruz, CA.

A Song For Ourselves Wins at RiverRun!

2010-05-02T23:26:00.001-07:00

A Song For Ourselves was awarded both Best Documentary Short and Best Student Documentary Short at last week's RiverRun Film Festival!

A Song For Ourselves at RiverRun Film Festival - April 23, 24,25

2010-04-21T23:38:00.001-07:00

A Song For Ourselves will be playing at the RiverRun Film Festival in Winston-Salem, NC this weekend. It will be playing in the Documentary Shorts #1 program on the following days:

April 23rd @ 5p at Aperture Cinema 2
April 24th @ 2p at UNCSA Campus - Gold Theater
April 25th @ 11:30a at Aperture Cinema 2

And You Say Chi City

2010-04-21T23:37:00.001-07:00

The Chicago trip was too quick, didn't get to see or taste much of the city but I did kick it with good folks and saw some old friends. The Nakamura Trifecta event went well, Goh is always great to see/hear live and Eric schooled me on the hu$tle game and called me a leach during the panel.

Before I got there, Eric, Goh and Tim were guests on a local radio station (listen to the show here).

Before our presentation at Columbia College, Tim found himself surrounded by Nakamuras and a whole lot of aaaaaahhyeaaaaaahh!

First thing I had to do in Chicago was get a hot dog, and it lived up to all the hype. As much as I love LA dirty dogs, I would rather have one of these any day.

Giant Robot X FAAIM

Two groups that made the Nakamura Trifecta possible was the Columbia College Office of Asian-American Cultural Affairs and the Multi-Cultural Youth Project (MCYP). I met a lot of dope students who are already making an impact in their area.

Before jumping on the plane home I caught up with the good homie Steve from MCYP over some Italian beef sandwiches. We talked about The Chi's fading connection to it's local Asian American history, hip hop, weddings, and he hipped me to the amazing things his youth are doing.

Check out Eric's report back here which includes photos of some of the best sushi I've ever had.

Trilogy Screening in Austin

2010-04-07T15:34:00.001-07:00

All three of my films will be screened together for the first time at the Association for Asian American Studies Conference tomorrow in Austin, TX! It'll be my first time in Texas, so of course I'm going to surround myself with a hotel full of Asians.

Thanks For The Love Claremont!

2010-03-10T01:18:00.000-08:00

I've presented at the Claremont Colleges three times now and each trip has been worth that long ass drive. Last week I presented a workshop on "API Youth Cultures and Empowerment" at their Asian American Students Spring Conference. I got to build with a room full of students as we watched and listened to the evolution of API cultural workers from Chris Iijima to Faith Santilla to Hari Kondabolu. After the conference we all met up at Bambu's album release party.

The homies from the Claremont Colleges (and a couple of alumni who still think they are students):

Thanks USC Nikkei

2010-02-22T23:28:00.002-08:00

I had the privilege of screening Pilgrimage at USC Nikkei's Week of Remembrance last Tuesday. I participated two years ago at the same event and was so impressed by the students at SC that I couldn't pass up another opportunity to come back, even though it was at the other school in LA.

The USC Nikkei crew:

After the film I sat on a panel with Sumi Pendakur, the director of Asian Pacific American Student Services on campus and USC Sociology Prof. Leland Saito, and discussed multiple reasons why it's important to connect the American WWII concentration camps to present day abuses of power and human rights violations. Big ups to Mika and Sean for organizing the week of events!

206 Rock Rock On!

2010-02-11T00:07:00.001-08:00

A newly formed organization of young Japanese Americans in Seattle who call themselves The YoGos (Yonsei-Gosei) had their first event last Saturday and asked me to be a part of it. My favorite type of screenings are the ones that take place in the middle of a community with the people who built it. And of course, there is just a special kinda feeling when it's with my people. It was a true pleasure to show my films in Seattle's International District and build with a group of JA's who are active in shaping their community.

The YoGos

It was ironic that I left a rainy LA for a sunny Seattle. It was a gorgeous day in the 206!

I even got some ink in the International Examiner!

Song Wins Special Jury Award at the San Diego Asian Film Festival!

2009-10-19T23:17:00.000-07:00

A Song For Ourselves won the Short Film Special Jury Award last weekend at the San Diego Asian Film Fest. SDAFF has a super official awards gala that Eric Tandoc and I were lucky enough to attend. "Lucky" meaning that the San Diego JACL generously sponsored our tickets and let us sit at their table. Eric made the most of the free beer while I popped an anti-anxiety pill.

There was a gala after-party which was "cool, but it's not what i'm use too" so i celebrated the night with the homies from AnakBayan LA & SD over some late night carne asada fries:

Mass Movement in the building! Eric's film Sounds Of A New Hope screened to a packed house.

Screenings in New Orleans, DC and Philly This Weekend

2009-10-09T11:49:00.000-07:00

Three big screenings this weekend! All the films that are playing with A Song For Ourselves in these festivals are excellent, please try and catch one in your city. Unfortunately, I'll be stuck in my room working on film school applications.

DC APA Film Festival
Saturday, Oct. 10th @ 12p

Playing with Manilatown Is In The Heart This screening is FREE!

Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival
Sunday, Oct. 11th @ 1p Playing with Sounds of a New Hope by Mass Movement's own Eric Tandoc

New Orleans Film Festival
Sunday, Oct. 11th @ 5p Playing with A Village Called Versailles (I've heard this film is amazing. This will definitely be a special screening since it will be in New Orleans)

Taiyo Na performs "War of the Flea" with Nobuko Miyamoto and Charlie Chin in NY

2009-10-06T00:10:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday at the Basement Workshop Reunion in New York the homie Taiyo Na performed "War of the Flea" alongside Nobuko Miyamoto and Charlie Chin. Taiyo has always mentioned Chris Iijima as one of his biggest influences and inspirations as an artist so I can't imagine how amazing it must have been for him to sing Chris' lyrics with his old music partners.

Listen and download the original "War of the Flea"

Here's the filthy Senz of Depth Remix featuring Bambu off the A Song For Ourselves Mixtape:

Honolulu Weekly Cover Story

2009-10-03T22:35:00.000-07:00

One of the coolest parts of the Hawai'i trip was going to Boots & Kimo's to eat this (banana pancakes swimming in macadamia nut sauce)... ...and then walking over to Foodland and seeing this:
The small print along the yellow fist reads "Long Live Chris Iijima"!
Read the whole article here.

Flicks from Hawai'i Premiere on Honozooloo

2009-10-01T02:16:00.000-07:00

I had the privilege of meeting a grip of inspiring and talented people while in Hawai'i and photographer Aaron Yoshino was one of them. I became a fan of his photos earlier this year through his website honozooloo.com. After hanging out with all these filipinos, it was really good to see a fellow buddhahead making a name for himself and doin it big! SEE ALL THE PHOTOS AT HONOZOOLOO.COM

Hawai'i Premiere/Concert on Sept. 24th!

2009-09-16T14:07:00.000-07:00

The Hawai'i Premiere & Concert of A Song For Ourselves is going down on Sept. 24th at NEXTDOOR in Honolulu!

It's gonna be a full-blown Cali invasion with performances by Bambu & DJ Phatrick, Power Struggle, and EyeASage. But most importantly, the event is a fundraiser for the Chris Iijima Scholarship Fund at the University of Hawai'i Law School.

For more info and to purchase tickets or donate to the fund, please go here.

Screening at New York's Asian American International Film Festival

2009-07-15T22:59:00.001-07:00

Song will be playing at the Asian American International Film Festival in New York on July 25th and 26th.

Sat. July 25th - 4:45p
Museum of Chinese in America
*Part of "Life on the Edge" shorts program

Sat. July 26th - 12 noon
Chelsea Cinemas
*Precedes Manilatown is in the Heart: Time Travel with Al Robles

Fatgums X Bambu Release Party Video

2009-05-22T00:43:00.000-07:00

i finally cut some of the footage eric and i shot at last month's release party for fatgums and bambu's "a peaceful riot" ep. as you can see and hear, it was an amazing day at the beatrock store, one of those events that really makes you thankful for the community we've created down here:

Under The Influence

2009-05-20T12:29:00.001-07:00

someone made the mistake of nominating me for angry asian man's 30 most influential asian americans under 30, and the angry guy picked me! it's a huge honor to make this list which includes karen o from yeah yeah yeahs and the co-founder of youtube. i really have to thank phil yu (aka. angry asian man) for always covering my back, his blog is phenomenal and continues to inform and unite asian americans across the country. speaking of karen o, "zero" is one of my favorite songs this year:

Visual Communications Interview

2009-05-16T11:32:00.000-07:00

during their film festival, visual communications (vc) posted an interview with me on their website. i literally grew up at vc as both my parents were working there when i was born and had to take me to the office with them.

LA Asian Pacific Film Festival Part 2

2009-05-10T14:44:00.000-07:00

here's more from the LA asian american film festival that ended last thursday. song screened in a very strong shorts program at the festival. from left to right; director of no joke burma li-anne huang, director of parallel adele adele pham and festival director abe ferrer:

eric answering questions after the world premiere of his film sounds of the new hope:
eric and his mom:

cindy, aj from xylophone films, eric and anna at the after-party:
thanks to everyone who came out to the "what's the matter with asian american film?" panel. i hope me and spencer didn't offend anyone too much:
some heavy hitters like scholar oliver wang (talking below) attended and participated in the panel. others who came out were asian american film legends robert nakamura, renee tajima-pena and curtis choy:
after the panel - from left to right: jeff liu from vc, spencer, me, lou nakasako, alex tse (writer of watchmen) and dustin nguyen (the asian guy from 21 jump street!):

LA Asian Pacific Film Festival Part 1

2009-05-06T14:11:00.000-07:00

mass movement tv invaded opening night of the LA asian pacific film festival last week. none of the photographers wanted to take our picture in front of the backdrop so we had to ask someone to take one with my camera.

eric nakamura felt sorry for us so he interviewed me for the directors chair site

dj phatrick and o-dub on the 1's and 2's

beau sia lookin hecka hard in a shimmery green scarf

e.t. with michael chen the star of the opening night film children of invention directed by tze chun

sometimes there's a lot of hollywood bullshit at these kinda things, it is LA. but i can always depend on a handful of down-to-earth filmmakers have fun with. from left to right: michael velasquez (who did all the photo effects in song), patrick epino, phuong tang and tim jieh.

-tadillac

Al Robles Rest In Power

2009-05-05T10:38:00.000-07:00

we lost a true community treasure on saturday. that night, while i was seeing his face and hearing his voice, al robles passed away. i was at the LA asian pacific film festival, eric had just premiered his film and we were watching manilatown is in the heart: time travel with al robles. the film ended with al reading a poem as photos from his life were projected on screen. when the film was over, the lights went on and director curtis choy walked up to the front of the theater and announced that al had just died.

please visit alrobles.manilatown.org to learn more about this wonderful man and the work and art he brought to his community.

i had the privilege of talking with al a couple of times. the most memorable was when me, eric and my dad were filming at manzanar and al (in plaid shirt) and bill sorro (far left) along with a couple of friends walked up and started taking with us. it was a surreal experience talking to two legends in the middle of the desert. two years later bill sorro passed away and now al is gone.

rest in power al. thank you for all the inspiration.

SONG Gets Mention in LA Weekly

2009-05-01T15:55:00.000-07:00

song got at really dope write-up by ernest hardy in the la weekly this week! peep game:

"Also recommended is Tadashi Nakamura’s hugely moving short A Song for Ourselves, which celebrates the life and legacy of the late Asian-American musician-activist Chris Iijima, an unsung hero of America’s progressive political movement. The film illuminates the roles Asians played in the 1960s civil rights movement, forging political alliances while asserting their own identities, while the portrait of Iijima himself — his oldest son’s anguish at not having his father around; his wife’s teary confession that the world makes no sense without him; his own words on how he came to create himself — will make your heart ache."

Thank You Claremont!

2009-05-01T08:52:00.000-07:00

had a lot of fun screening the film and building with the students of asian american 187 at the claremont colleges. shouts to soon-to-be prof. nancy park (standing to the right of me) for inviting me to her student initiated course on asian american arts & activism:

note to any students who plan to bring guest speakers to campus, a spiderman gift bag goes a long way!

SONG screening at LA Asian Pacific Film Festival on 5/2

2009-04-26T22:26:00.000-07:00

a song for ourselves will be screening at the LA asian pacific film festival on may 2nd, 2:30p at laemmle's sunset 5 theater. song will be part of the shorts program titled "passion for the people". four other films will be screened including academy-award winning director jessica yu's latest film!

for tickets and more information on the program please go to here. this show has a very good chance of selling out so please get your tickets now!

SONG Mixtape Mentioned in District

2009-04-24T09:55:00.000-07:00

a song for ourselves and the mixtape got mentioned in this article about bambu in district. don't forget to come out to the a peaceful riot release party tomorrow at beatrock!

I'm an Uncle...Again!

2009-04-21T23:23:00.000-07:00

my niece mina and her new baby brother gus.

Giant Nakamura

2009-04-16T18:00:00.000-07:00

"i heard your dad couldn't get you into ucla film school? yeah, he didn't let me in either..." that was one of the first things that eric nakamura, creator & president of giant robot, said to me when we sat down for lunch at his restaurant gr/eats. those were comforting words coming from someone who has been able to shape an entire culture through his magazine, 4 stores, and restaurant.

you gotta respect eric's entrepreneurial vision and execution. i mean dude built 3 businesses right in the middle of his community (he grew up blocks away from sawtelle). as big and busy as he is, eric still found time to help another nakamura from the westside navigate through his quarter life crisis!

check out the "papershapers" show that eric curated at the scion gallery in...that's right culver fuckin city! (the show ends may 2)

Channel APA Interview

2009-04-12T20:20:00.000-07:00

this berry embarrassing interview was done during the sf international asian american film festival last month for channel ap a. the interview was so weak i don't think they even posted it. oh well, at least the new era and my hundreds tee look clean!

New York New York - Big City of Dreams

2009-04-06T01:00:00.000-07:00

The Shack

my dood kori (also a close friend of the iijima's) came out from "the a" for the new york premiere. here he is in the 40 min. line that you'll always see infront of shake shack:

but it's so fuckin worth the wait! kori went with the double stack. that ball of fried goodness in the middle is really a portobello mushroom and cheese, all battered and fried together: when the previously described shroom burger explodes in your mouth...this is the result...

The Premiere at Manhattan Country School

MCS was so packed they had to open two other classrooms to accommodate everyone who showed up. the screening was a huge success! chris iijima's family, friends, former students and new fans all gathered in the school where chris taught for many years.

the women responsible for the event: chris' former student and now active parent and staff at MCS akemi kochiyama (left) and director of the school Michele Sola

Lunch at the historical Iijima apartment

chris' sister lynne invited me, kori and miya to visit their father tak iijima, a 442 vet and one of the OG's of the early asian american movement. this is the same washington heights apartment where chris was rasied and also where one of the first progressive asian american organizations in the country, asian americans for action (AAA), held their meetings.

Kickin' it

it wouldn't be a new york trip if i didn't see the old CAPSA crew. its been a minute since our bandana and bullhorn days, here we are all sold out and booshie:

also got a chance to hang out with the homie aliwong.com, new york's newest comic sensation:

Chicago Screening at Asian American Showcase - 4/11 & 4/14

2009-04-03T15:34:00.000-07:00

song will make it's midwest premiere next weekend at the 14th asian american showcase in chicago! the film will be playing with the feature documentary you don't know jack: the jack soo story on 4/12 at 3pm and on 4/14 at 6pm. both screenings will be held at the gene siskel film center.

New York Premiere This Friday 3/27

2009-03-25T19:25:00.000-07:00

New York Premiere of A Song For Ourselves Friday, March 27th at 7pm Manhattan Country School 7 East 96th Street (Between Madison & 5th Ave.) New York, NY 10128

(tickets sold out) i'm really excited about this weeks new york premiere. not only is it the first screening in chris iijima's hometown, but its also happening at place that meant a lot to chris and his family, manhattan country school. m.c.s. where chris spent many years (1975-85) as a teacher, the place where he met his wife jane (who was also a teacher at the school) and where his sister lynne currently works. here's chris with his 6th grade class at m.c.s. back in '82 akemi kochiyama (front row, middle) now works for m.c.s and is one of the main organizers of the friday's event!

all proceeds of the screening will go to the chris iijima fund, an endowment fund to support the unique sliding scale tuition policy that makes m.c.s. accessible to more students.

Asian Pacific Arts Video and Article on LA Premiere

2009-03-24T23:07:00.000-07:00

asian pacific arts recently posted an article and video of the some of the highlights of last months LA premiere of song. read and watch them here. big ups to liann, ada, warren, and the rest of the apa staff for covering the event!

why does this photo look like geo, bam, kiwi and phat are starring in a filipino re-make of barbershop?

speaking of barbershop scenes...

Bay Area Premiere at SFIAAFF

2009-03-23T12:48:00.000-07:00

last week song had its yay area premiere at the san francisco international asian american film festival. i went up for the fest and had one of the best festival experiences ever! i made it up to the city just in time to hit the opening night "gala" where ellen from caam somehow talked me into doing a short interview. sarah started off the interview by doing the robot while holding the biggest gotdamn microphone in all of sf:

"production manager" roger, at least that's what his badge said, enjoyed the wine and cheese:

the best part of caam's festival is that people from all over the country come out for it. i got a chance to build with folks like corrine (ny), heather (tee dot), and kevin (hawai'i) all in one bar:

corrine (front left) screened her documentary short excuse my gangsta ways. watch the trailer and interview with corrine here.

my good friend aram (in the blue jays hat) came from toronto to screen his latest film the others, which was one of the best shorts i saw at the festival. after the screening we went to an after-prom like hotel party where musician goh nakamura (far right) and friends performed.

why am i always stuck with the filipinos? reppin' the better half of the state; aj (xylophone films), patricio (kid heroes), abe (vc film fest) and julius:

aj, pat and julius screened their music video for "crooks and rooks" by bambu.

many of chris iijima's friends threw a very nice reception for the film the night before the screening.

the renown film scholar and my old professor b.ruby rich:

the infamous spencer nakasako, award-winning filmmaker, teacher and my mentor. be on the lookout for an official shit-talking session with me and spence at the upcoming la asian pacific film fest, no seriously.

Song Gets Write-Up In LA Times!

2009-03-03T10:57:00.000-08:00

robert ito wrote a really nice article on song that ran in the la times on saturday.

"The film is at turns celebratory and wistful, a paean to Iijima and the L.A. that, despite its rap as a town without a center or a sense of community, nurtured the artist like no other."

read article here

i sat down with robert a couple of weeks ago. being japanese american himself, he really understood the history and significance of the asian american movement and the relevance of chris iijima's story. another reminder why we need more people from our respective communities with access to mainstream media outlets like the times.

LA Premiere After-Party at Oiwake in Little Tokyo!

2009-02-27T09:29:00.000-08:00

for everyone who's going to the LA premiere OR for those who were't able to get tickets, there will be an official after-party at oiwake restaurant just a block away from the theater. the after-party is hosted by the tuesday night project/tn kat family and will be going down from 10p-2a. only $2 cover with your ticket stub from the premiere and $5 without. dj's will be spinning all night, the line-up includes: dj phatrick (devil's pie) dj et (mass movement) +he op+imis+ (tuesday night cafe)

here are walking directions from the JACCC theater (premiere) to Oiwake (afterparty).

Kogi Korean BBQ Taco Truck Will Be At The LA Premiere!

2009-02-26T21:55:00.000-08:00

it's official, the ridiculously popular kogi korean bbq taco truck will be at the JACCC following the song premiere this saturday night starting at 10pm. the truck is gonna pull up right in front of the theater so people can go straight from the show to truck! for all of you who will be at the show from out of town you NEED to experience the korean bbq taco...

you can read more about the kogi truck here.

Asian Pacific Arts Interview

2009-02-25T00:46:00.000-08:00

asian pacific arts, an online magazine published by the ucla asia institute, asked me to sit-down with them to talk about Song and the premiere and concert this sat (2/28). the way they posted the interview is dope because they have both the audio from the interview and the transcript so you can pick and choose what you want to hear rather than having to hear my dumb-ass ramble. you can check it out here.

shouts to my cuzzo liann for setting this up!

A Song For Ourselves MIXTAPE!!!

2009-02-16T00:29:00.000-08:00

The much anticipated A Song For Ourselves Mixtape is finally here! Produced and mixed by DJ Phatrick this compilation includes exclusive tracks from Bambu, Kiwi and Geologic of Blue Scholars who will all be performing live at the film's premiere on 2/28. The mixtape also includes songs off the historic A Grain of Sand album by Chris Iijima, Nobuko Miyamoto and Charlie Chin.

DOWNLOAD MIXTAPE HERE FOR FREE!

Download directions:

1. Click on link above
2. When zshare page opens, click on "Download Now!" button at bottom of page
3. Wait until "Download link will appear in 45 sec" turns into "Click here to start your download
4. Click highlighted "here" link and you will automatically start downloading zip file
5. Once the download is complete double-click on zip file on your desktop to "unzip" file
6. A folder named "ASongForOurselves Mixtape" should appear on you desktop where you will find all the mp3's and mixtape cover

Tracklist:
1. Iijima, Miyamoto, Chin - "We Are The Children" (Intro)
2. Blue Scholars - "Cornerstone"
3. Native Guns - "Slave Thinking"
4. Native Guns feat. Geologic - "Agitation Propaganda"
5. Iijima, Miyamoto, Chin - "Jonathan Jackson"
6. Bambu - "When Will The Time Come?" prod. by Will Bracy
7. Kiwi - "Gaza 2 Oakland" prod. by DJ Phatrick
8. Blue Scholars - "Back Home"
9. Chris Iijima - "Vietnamese Lament"
10. Iijima, Miyamoto, Chin - "War Of The Flea" (Senz of Depth Remix feat. Bambu)
11. Bambu - "Chairman Mao" (Paper Planes edit)
12. Blue Scholars - "Fire For The People"
13. Kiwi - "Cause"
14. Native Guns feat. Geologic - "Said It" (Asi Remix)
15. Iijima, Miyamoto, Chin - Divide & Conquer (Fatgums Remix feat. Geologic, Kiwi, & Bambu)
16. Chris Iijima Soliloquy
17. Kiwi - "Imagine"
18. Bambu - "Seven Months"
19. Blue Scholars - "Life and Debt"

Meet Kiwi

2009-02-07T23:10:00.000-08:00

looking back, one of the most influential stages of my life was the time i spent as an undergrad at ucla. not because of the classes i took, but because of the people i met and the inspiration they hit me with. one of the people who had a huge impact on me was this brotha they called kiwi.

"I felt like there were many parallels of his experience that I could relate to myself, in terms of reclaiming our culture, finding identity and purpose through music, and standing by the idea of art for the people (as opposed to art for art’s sake)."

--- Kiwi on Chris Iijima

having seen him spit on stage and featured in the classic film beats, rhymes, and resistance, kiwi was one of the first superstars of the community that i really looked up. along with artisits like faith santilla and wendell pascual, kiwi really opened me up to the power of creativity combined with grounded political expression. i can honestly say that i would not be making films today if it were not for this dude...

kiwi was one of the first people to see a cut of a song for ourselves and has been supportive of the project ever since. i'm so honored that kiwi will be performing at the premiere of Song on the 28th!

"War Of The Flea" (Senz of Depth Remix Feat. Bambu)

2009-02-05T01:37:00.000-08:00

here's another leak from the upcoming a song for ourselves mixtape (slated to drop next week!). this track is a remix of "war of the flea" (a grain of sand) by the phenomenal producer senz of depth. bambu insightfully draws the parallels between the political climate of chris iijima's era and now...

senz of depth is just one of the many projects of the talented musician miles senzaki. i've been lucky enough to have been able to collaborate with miles on all three of my films. for a song for ourselves he flawlessly re-created the instrumentals of some of chris iijima's songs, miles explains the evolution of the remix here.

his debut album under the senz of depth alias titled "boundary waters" will blow your mind! here's just a sample of what i'm talking about:

Review on BeyondChron

2009-02-02T00:41:00.000-08:00

earlier this month a fine cut of A Song For Ourselves was screened in the sco by the center for asian american media as a sneak peak of their film festival coming this march. peter wong of attended the screening and wrote a dope review of the film on beyondchron.

“A Song For Ourselves reminds viewers that Asian-American progressivism is not a rarity. It is a strain of activism that’s not acknowledged often enough."

wong called the screening a "sobering wake-up call to the white progressive community." daymn, like that! read the whole review here.

Trailer For 2.28.09 Premiere

2009-01-28T23:24:00.000-08:00

in the final stretch! final sound mix session tomorrow and color correcting on saturday. in the meantime here's the trailer for the big LA premiere:

if this video is taking too long to load you can watch the trailer on youtube.

after a month of mainly meetings, e-mails and phone calls this trailer was hella fun to cut!

Bambu Exclusive- "When Will The Time Come"

2009-01-18T00:13:00.000-08:00

since starting this film, the parallels between the political climate of the late 1960's and today have become more and more apparent. as long as america's foreign policy continues to bully and devastate other countries in order to protect it's economic interests...there will also be voices to protest it.

"When Will The Time Come?" by BAMBU

DOWNLOAD SONG

for the upcoming a song for ourselves mixtape, bambu dropped an exclusive titled "when will the time come?" which samples "jonathan jackson" by chris iijima, nobuko miyamoto and charlie chin. just as chris wrote about the human emotions behind the death of a young black panter on "jonathan jackson", bambu spits the truth about the horror and destruction of the recent attack of the gaza strip by the u.s. funded israeli military.

look out for the whole mixtape produced by dj phatrick to drop at the end of the month.

"Song" Premiere Gets Love On Angry Asian Man

2009-01-08T00:43:00.000-08:00

angry asian man was probably the first blog i ever got into...and now look at me. the premiere for a song for ourselves got a big shout on angry asian man last week! if you wanna keep up with any kinda asian american anything in the media, this is the place to go.

good looks phil for always having my back!

Blue Scholars - "Coffee And Snow" Video

2009-01-05T00:08:00.000-08:00

daymn, and you thought you got your grustle on over the holidays! blue scholars started off '09 by droppin a new track and video: like all the scholars' videos, this one was directed and cut by zia mohajerjasbi. i've become a big fan of zia over the last couple of years. his cinematography and production value can't be touched. i've always been up on his music videos but I was blown away when i saw his film manoj. this mockumentary is not only hella funny, but its really smart in the way it unfolds the issue at hand... manoj - directed by zia mohajerjasbi:

"Song" Gets Write-Up in the Rafu Shimpo

2009-01-03T21:54:00.000-08:00

for those who don't know, the rafu shimpo is the main japanese american newspaper here in LA. getting ink in the rafu is huge for me personally because i know my grandma and bachan are gonna see it! i don't know if they really understand what i do, but if my name's in the rafu it's all gravy to them. "I think it's important to know that there have been successful artists and musicians in our community who have come before. My parallel with what Chris was doing back then is my relationship to hip-hop now."

large up to jordan ikeda from the rafu for the interview and doing a great job of connecting the film with the musicians who are gonna perform at the premiere.

UPDATE: the rafu article is now online.

Bambu's "Crooks & Rooks" Video on OkayPlayer!

2008-12-22T21:21:00.000-08:00

my dood bambu is doin' it big! his new music video for "crooks & rooks" premiered today on okayplayer! please click on the link and leave a comment, let okayplayer know that politically focused artists like bambu need to be supported. big ups to the homie a.j. calomay of xylophone films for cutting and producing the video.

"Jonathan Jackson" by Chris Iijima, Nobuko Miyamoto & Charlie Chin

2008-12-17T00:29:00.000-08:00

growing up listening to my mom's "a grain of sand" LP i always played the same 3 songs and "jonathan jackson" was not one of them. it wasn't until i got schooled on the black panther party, george jackson and his brother jonathan that i realized the meaning behind the song. during her interview for the film, nobuko explained how "jonathan jackson" was created: Listen to the entire song here:

Premiere Shout on Prometheus Brown

2008-12-14T13:24:00.000-08:00

geologic (one half of blue scholars) mentioned the premiere of a song for ourselves on his blog. between touring, recording music and raising a kid, geo aka prometheus brown somehow finds time to watch and review a gang of flicks (almost one a day)! peep the blog for articulate and socially conscious reviews of films both new and old, hollywood and indie, local and foreign.

earlier this year he reviewed my film pilgrimage. good looks geo!

"Like Us" by Bambu

2008-12-13T08:41:00.000-08:00

one of the good things about making films is that i'm able to build with other creative people. over the last 3 years i've been able to work with bambu, one of my favorite hip-hop artists. when his street classic self untitled album dropped i was an undergrad at ucla hungry for anything community-oriented in hip-hop. that album had such an impact on me that i used "rear view" for the opening song of my first film yellow brotherhood. in grad school me and fellow filmmaker eric tandoc followed bambu, kiwi and dj phatrick (at the time they were still together as the legendary native guns) on their westcoast tour. that footage was used for bambu's first video off his new album exact change: Bambu "Like Us" from Xylophone Films on Vimeo. don't miss your chance to see bambu perform live at the premiere of a song for ourselves!

Blue Scholars - Bumbershoot '06

2008-12-08T16:01:00.000-08:00

i first saw blue scholars perform in '05 at fais do-do in LA. since then, geologic (mc) and sabzi (dj) have become one of the strongest forces in hip-hop today. the only thing bigger than their hustle is their dedication to their community and the creation of music that inspires others to do the same. here they are performing on of my favorite joints "sagaba" when they opened up for kanye west: blue scholars generously allowed me to use some of their music for my last film pilgrimage. after 2 years of trying to do a show together, they'll finally be performing with on of my films at the premiere for a song for ourselves! more from bumbershoot 2006:

For Chris by Marley

2008-12-07T19:16:00.000-08:00

even though chris iijima loved to visit the westcoast and eventually relocated to hawaii, there is no denying that he was new york city to the core. having been born and bred in manhattan it was only necessary to go out there to shoot for the film.

while shooting some b-roll in union square, a street artist named marley stepped to me to see if i was from the local news. after i explained to him i was doing a documentary on the singer chris iijima he offered to spit a couple of verses for the film...

the next time your in union square you should check marley out on the corner of 14th street & 4th ave in front of the virgin megastore.

About The Film

2008-12-06T16:09:00.000-08:00

A Blog For Ourselves

2008-12-05T23:05:00.001-08:00

wadup urrrbody! welcome to the blog for A Song For Ourselves. here i'll be keeping you updated on my new film as well as info, photos, music and videos about the big premiere and concert on 2/28/08 at the japanese american cultural and community center. please mark your calenders!