ROPEADOPE RECORDS Fostering Widespread Collaboration ZACH GROSS SAMANTHA J
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INDIE LIFE ROPEADOPE RECORDS Fostering Widespread Collaboration ZACH GROSS SAMANTHA J The Pollyseeds includes Chachi (left), Rose Gold, Terrace Martin and Wyann Vaughn, as well as other musicians. Shayna Steele RIPPY AUSTIN COURTESY OF THE ARTIST Trevor Lawrence Jr. Maurice Brown opeadope Records was founded in 1999 tastemaker is attributable to an eclectic, diverse Forthcoming Ropeadope releases include two Ras a feisty Philadelphia-based upstart array of artists. In the past Ropeadope worked albums from pianist Richard X Bennett—the that created a seminal music blog to pro- with The Philadelphia Experiment (featur- quintet disc Experiments With Truth and a trio mote its artists while also establishing a stylish ing drummer Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, effort,What Is Now—both out Oct. 6. merchandising presence. Today Ropeadope has keyboardist Uri Caine and bassist Christian Ropeadope’s artists share resources and audi- evolved into something much larger, joining myr- McBride), which released an acclaimed self-titled ences via Bandcamp and SoundCloud web pages. iad artists and their fans across the globe in a true album in 2001, and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band Ropeadope’s extensive website—which lists 13 community environment. (which recruited New Orleans icon Dr. John and labels, including Sounds of Crenshaw, Mobetta “We think of ourselves as a distributed collab- a little-known singer named Norah Jones for its Music and Paytone—has a Rad TV page that orative network,” Ropeadope owner Louis Marks 2002 album, Medicated Magic). compiles video webisodes and a store that sells said. “It’s a reflection that today people are con- Ropeadope’s current roster includes pianist vinyl. nected through the Internet. We want Ropeadope Eddie Palmieri; trumpeters Nicholas Payton, Ropeadope’s motto, “Music Culture to mirror the culture that its musicians share. Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah and David Weiss; Clothing,” bears explaining: “It’s a holdover from Many are connected, and each has their local vocalists Malika Tirolien and Shayna Steele; the early days of Ropeadope, but it still applies,” and global online networks. We try to plug those drummer Nate Smith; guitarists Matthew Stevens Marks said. “We were one of the first labels to together so they can share resources instead of and Grant Green Jr.; pianist Mark de Clive-Lowe; maintain a full blog, from 1999 to the mid-2000s. going it alone.” and the bands Slavic Soul Party and Fresh Cut That’s where the culture comes in. We used to Ropeadope’s success as a music company and Orchestra. write about happenings in the market and the 48 DOWNBEAT SEPTEMBER 2017 SAMANTHA J STEPHEN TAYLOR Adam Turchin Eddie Palmieri AYANO HISA Mark de Clive-Lowe (left) with Nia Andrews, who appeared on his album Church world. And our T-shirts and hats have become most labels, Ropeadope has a stronger sense of Washington. The collective also features a cou- collector’s items.” (At press time, the Ropeadope community and camaraderie among its art- ple of musicians who have their own new lead- store offered six T-shirts, including the “Renew ists,” he said. “We all support each other and play er projects on Ropeadope: saxophonist Adam Orleans” design, with its clever shout-out to the on each other’s projects and share our fan bases. Turchin, who plays 10 different instruments Crescent City.) Often, musicians can be standoffish if they share on his album Manifest Destiny, and a drum- In an ever-shifting marketplace, Ropeadope a label. But not at Ropeadope. Everyone is cool.” mer Trevor Lawrence Jr., who has more than has managed to successfully navigate the Marks is optimistic about the company’s 70 recording credits and who recruited Brown, demands of a decentralized record industry. That future. “It’s a ridiculous challenge, but we’re scale- Martin, Payton and Washington to play on his includes partnering with many imprints. able to weather the storm,” he said. “People used album Relationships. “The relationship with our imprints is more to ask, ‘Where is your office?’ I said, ‘We’re in a Sounds Of Crenshaw Vol. 1 opens with the complex than simply distribution,” Marks said. small store behind the railroad tracks. We’re not atmospheric “Tapestry,” and then The Pollyseeds “We release and distribute their records, but we anywhere.’ Today we pay close attention to chang- get down to business with “Chef E Dubble.” also collaborate on their marketing; we coach the es with social media, the Internet and the stream- Offering a relaxed groove with Glasper’s swelling labels as they grow. Snarky Puppy’s Ground Up ing model. We approach social media different- Rhodes keyboard and Searight’s pulsing rums, label was our first imprint. There are entire com- ly: Rather than a broadcast medium, we have “Chef E Dubble” also incorporates a low-end munities [built] around a single artist.” a chain of tastemakers—like old-school radio hum, Williams’ guitar and Washington’s blus- Trumpeter Maurice “Mobetta” Brown, who DJs—who talk directly to fans and music lovers to tery tenor, creating an ethereal ride. That quick- enjoyed an acclaimed weekly residency at create a dialog. Our goal is to carve out a micro- ly changes with the distorted Linn LM-1 drum New York’s Jazz Standard in April, is one of business inside the current environment—like a machine beat of “Intentions,” which has got a big Roepadope’s rising stars. His diverse resume microbrewery.” dose of P-Funk ladled with contemporary rap- reflects his musical versatility: Brown has record- ping from Chachi. ed and/or toured with Aretha Franklin, John INVENTIVE POLLYSEEDS Gold takes the spotlight for the hip-hop/quiet Legend, George Freeman and Lalah Hathaway. Ropeadope is championing one of the most storm ballad “You And Me,” followed by the twin- He wrote horn arrangements for Tedeschi Trucks anticipated albums of the year, Sounds Of kling keyboard merriment of “Believe,” which Band and appeared on its Grammy-winning Crenshaw Vol. 1, the debut from The Pollyseeds. features keyboardist Chris Cadenhead, drum- album, Revelator (Sony Masterworks). Brown’s The band consists of what Marks called “a rotat- mer Curly Martin, bassist Brandon Eugene new album, The Mood (Ropeadope/Mobetta), fea- ing cast of producers and musicians.” The group Owens, and the percussion, alto saxophone and tures rapper Talib Kweli and and an ensemble that is fronted by multi-instrumentalist Terrace Minimoog of Martin, with a tenor solo courte- recalls both The Headhunters and A Tribe Called Martin, who earned rave reviews for his 2016 stu- sy of Washington. “Don’t Trip” closes the record Quest. dio album, Velvet Portraits (Ropeadope/Sounds with yet more Rhodes plushness, ethereal vocals “My goal to create jazz that is contemporary,” of Crenshaw). Martin and other members of and Lawrence’s big beat. Brown said. “I love the classics but why regurgitate The Pollyseeds appeared on Kendrick Lamar’s Mixing elements from old-school r&b and the music? I took my experiences producing hip- Grammy-winning album To Pimp A Butterfly 21st-century hip-hop, Sounds of Crenshaw Vol. hop and r&b, rock and blues and jazz, and put it (Top Dawg/Aftermath). 1 showcases a bevy of West Coast talent crafting together. It’s an honest sound. I wasn’t pulling out The Pollyseeds include vocalists Chachi, Rose compelling art for a 2017 audience. It's yet anoth- my hair to get it to sound smooth; that’s the way I Gold and Wyann Vaughn, guitarist Marlon er example of Ropeadope’s skillful way of identi- hear music.” Williams, drummer Robert “Sput” Searight, key- fying intriguing artists and helping them flourish. Brown feels at home on Ropeadope. “Unlike boardist Robert Glasper and saxophonist Kamasi —Ken Micallef SEPTEMBER 2017 DOWNBEAT 49 INDIE LIFE YOKO MIWA CAROLINE ALDEN Yoko Miwa’s new release is a trio album titled Pathways. One Fan at a Time n May, when pianist Yoko Miwa played to a sities with her day job as assistant professor of That album showcased Miwa’s impressive Isold-out house at the Regattabar jazz club in piano at Berklee College of Music and perform- technique and a tuneful lyricism that com- Cambridge, Massachusetts, with her trio, she ing. “People ask me, ‘How do you do it?’” said bines an Oscar Peterson-ish hard swing with looked out at an enthusiastic audience she had Miwa. “I tell them, ‘Because we have to.’” Bill Evans-like introspection. Following her first meticulously built, one fan at a time. By any standard, Miwa is decidedly accom- three albums (originally released on the Japanese The Japanese-born Miwa, 47, has been work- plished. A child prodigy with perfect pitch, she Polystar label), she has mixed her originals with ing in the Boston music scene for years—teaching, seemed destined for a classical career when she inventively arranged covers. performing as an accompanist and then leading entered Koyo Conservatory in Kobe. But then a Pathways includes two songs by bassist Marc her own trio. At the Regattabar, she was celebrat- chance encounter at the movies with the standard Johnson, a rendition of The Beatles’ “Dear ing the independent release of Pathways, her sev- “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes” (which appears twice Prudence” and an epic, exploratory take on Joni enth album as a leader, and her first in five years. in the soundtrack to the 1989 Steven Spielberg Mitchell’s “Court And Spark.” At 11 minutes long, A recent feature in The Boston Globe and a spot romantic comedy Always) put her on a path to it’s the kind of track Miwa says is frustrating for on JazzWeek’s radio chart had created demand for jazz. She got a job at a jazz club owned by musi- her radio-promo man, who’s desperate for short- the new album.