Tear the Roof Off That Sucker!

    Something that really stuck out to my while watching both George Clinton: Tales of Dr. Funkenstein  and The Last Angel of History is the interconnectedness of the space theme throughout different black artists from different times who, in most cases, never has contact or influence from each other's work. I had to add Starchild to the post because he stuck out to me in both interviews and when watching due to incredible music ability all the while maintaining his eccentric appearance.  On top of the artists that we focused on, it is also pretty crazy how much of modern music today is influenced by these artists, and one of the the most influential is George Clintion. I was surprised to see the magnetude of incredible artists, and commentators in George Clinton: Tales of Dr. Funkenstein.  I believe George Clinton quoted Ice Cube who had told him something like, "Your have to keep making your music, so we can make out music." I think this sums up the evolutionary power of funk and its ability to be completely "out there" while sending a clear message that reaches many. 

    In The Last Angel of History there was a large connection made between Sun Ra and George Clinton which we talked a lot about in class, and Sun Ra is even considered George Clinton's mentor which makes a lot of sense. They both refer to the idea of not being from this world both literally and metaphorically, and they further relate this back to the displacement that black people have had to face due to colonization and extreme prejudice. Another really interesting part of The Last Angel of History is the interview with Nichelle Nichols who described her experience visiting Nasa and how on every level, the staff included multiple races and genders. This is how she thought the future may be like, and did not understand why this was not being shown to the world or put into action in other institutions.