Music...According to Misha

Long before any musical icon dreamt of crossing genres, Misha Segal was known in his native Israel as the guy who could write a hit pop song and compose for the Philharmonic. He’s evolved this tradition in the States, marrying ingredients that have no usual place beside one another, celebrating them as parts of the same whole:

1996 marked the JVC release of Misha’s Connected to the Unexpected. Jazziz magazine described it as an “ultra-inventive fusion of traditional and modern jazz, rock, pop…orchestral…with an aggressive rap-spiced street vibe…an infectious blend with stylistic homages to rhythms from around the globe.” Misha won Jazziz’ Critics Choice of the Year award.

2003 launched Misha’s piano solo CD, Female, pieces he’d played for his mother to soothe her spirit during her fight with lung cancer. Female has been likened to a cross between giants Eric Sati and Keith Jarrett. The music is featured in Misha’s concert series, Beauty Found in Unlikely PlacesTM, performed for cancer-fighters nationwide.

During his years in Hollywood, Misha’s kept his gig composing for feature films (his Phantom of the Opera is preferred by many over Webber’s) and TV (Emmy winner and nominee). Misha recently scored Hallmark’s The Colt, his 89th movie.

Despite his experimentation with hip-hop beats on Connected, as a white man Misha never felt he possessed the birthright to fully permeate Hip Hop. That changed upon developing a friendship with a black family from Flint, Michigan. Through intimate conversation and an earnest study of the genre, he realized his own people—Jews that survived slavery, the Holocaust, and fights for their homeland—and his friends’ people—stripped of their roots so violently, generations past, present and future know nothing but diaspora—have more in common than has been sufficiently acknowledged.

Misha’s newfound respect and understanding of the genre shines through in his Hip Hop debut single, “Out From Under”. The track features Flint native, Scooda, and reflects the marriage of two very different worlds. As Frederich von Schiller’s “All men will become brothers…” (Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”) roars against Scooda’s Flinttown lament, one can’t help but consider Misha’s words:

“Music can’t go on as a mere shake-your-ass kind of thing. It’s okay for people to have fun; indeed, they should, and I believe ‘Out From Under’ satisfies that urge. Yet we musn’t forget the impetus behind music, itself: To express profound celebration, relief from oppression and aspiration towards greatness.”

Amen.

For more information, stay tuned here to the home of Misha’s label, PrimaVista Records, www.primavistarecords.com or email info@mishasegal.com.

“Out from Under”
Music: Misha Segal/Words: Andre Williams

Verse 1
World-class thriller
From ‘hoods to villas
For err body—people with rags to chinchillas
I ain’t create this, I’m a product of it all
Some walked the school halls, others basketball
Get so far just to hear “You too small!”
Back to what you know: Pushin’ weight and breakin’ laws
Not just the States but around the globe,
People steady dyin’ from things that they don’t know
Oh, no! It’s a lack of info
And until you find out, you don’t know what you in fo’
They got people in jail, they don’t know what they in fo’
Don’t matter who you is you friends or kinfolk
What you tell a man that’s hungry and been broke—
“Don’t eat that‘s”?! Slow death, like burnin’ or being choked

Chorus
Got that fire new song, boy, beat it in your trunk
Shawty, play it loud, man, make that thang bump!
We gone make it Krunk from the States, around the globe
Man, this track hot, don’t act like ye ain’t know, ye ain’t know….

Verse 2
Eh, yo! It’s not enough earth to express my hurt
I mean, It’s not enough dirt to bury my worth
Black in America is a gift and a curse
We so damned lost, we makin’ business out of church
I ain’t sayin’ I’m perfect; I ain’t spreadin’ no hate
I put my pants on like you, shit, I make mistakes
I pimp a lot thangs religion takes the cake
I drown myself for I lead you to a lake
And them ‘hood niggas hustle, like Oakley and Rodman
See a nigga slippin’, they stick ‘em and then they rob him
Now they got money, drugs, and a car to ride in
Ain’t no wonder why the crime rate risin’
Through all this, I just stand here with a smirk
I’m too smooth, I’m too cool, I eat food and won’t burp
You can see my heart beatin’ through a jogging shirt
Ain’t no fear; I believe it’ll work, hey!!!

Chorus
Got that fire new song, boy, beat it in your trunk
Shawty, play it loud, man, make that thang bump!
We gone make it Krunk from the States, around the globe
Man, this track hot, don’t act like ye ain’t know, ye ain’t know, ye ain't know….

Verse 3
You need somebody real? You can send for me
I leave hater leanin’ like Coke and Hennessey
Make a masterpiece like Misha’s symphony
I can’t stand no man that’s weak and finicky
I’m a soldier, I’m bolder, I told ya
I’m focused, I spread like locust
And jam for ya toast, trick
Yeeeaaaahhhh, now you a believa:
Me and Misha, high achievers
Eatin’ pizza in Costa Rica
On the beach, no sneakers
Just shorts and ‘wifebeaters’
Ridin’ ‘around the cities in a coupe/two seater

Chant
If you feel that
Stand up
Jump buck
Get Krunk
Don’t let ‘em hold you up....