8A - Monday, April 11, 2011 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com _________________________________________________ ARTIST INTERVIEW INNOVATION IN ANN ARBOR IS " K.R.I.T. critical on - life and his success ERIN.KIRKLAND/Daily Darshan Karwat spoke about his attempt to live with little personal waste at the TEDxUofM conference on Friday. TEDx inspires crazy Idea-sharing conference finds its Ann Arbor audience ByJULIA SMITH-EPPSTEINER DailyArts Writer "Who here is skipping class or work to be here?" asked TEDx- UofM openingspeaker and Public Policy junior Alex O'Dell. Hands of all ages shot into the highly charged air of the Michigan The- ater. All 21 speakers, dispersed throughout a rainy April 8, were affiliated with the University and were enthusiastic in sharing their wild ideas with an exceedingly welcoming audience. TED is a nonprofit organiza- tion formed in 1984 as a confer- ence aimed to bring together people who have ideas worth spreading from the worlds of technology, entertainment and design. This is the second year an independently organized TED event has taken place on the University's campus. The first year's theme was "Do You Realize" and- this time a And, "Encouraging Crazy Ideas" set the tone for the conference. All 1,700 attendees who made it to their red plush seats had filled out a short application not- ing a crazy idea of theirs in six words. My smartest peers sur- rounded me, all there to engage and be provoked to do. The the- aiefwas dud-less. "Session one was focused on "Exploration & Discovery." It was serious and seriously inspi- rational. Neurosurgeon and 'U' professor Parag G. Patil started the morning off by discussing the power to bridge the com- munication gap for people with Parkinson's through deep brain stimulation. This straightfor- ward, well-dressed man got the crowd sitting forward in their seats when he introduced the idea of "self-talk," the voice we're always hearing in our head that we too easily accept as our gut feeling. I jerked my head in agreement at Patil's proposal that bettering understanding our self-talk is the key to bet- tering communication between the two dimensions of the mind, intuition and analysis. Mawuli Gyakobo, a doctor from Ghana and a scholar of the African Presidential Scholars Program, filled the room with guilt as he discussed the gap in quality of medical care in third- world countries. This developed into his dream of more people joining him to be "the voice of the dying." Social entrepreneur Kathleen Sienko tagged on to Gyakobo's somber reality check with an explanation of her medi- cal research in India, selling her idea establishing sustainable, mutually beneficial relation- ships in the field of health care. A lunch break refueled inspired cells. Those who hadn't bought the lunch-packaged tick- et were encouraged to indulge in local Indian cuisine at Suvai or organic pizza at Silvio's, helping out small businesses that spon- sored the TEDx event. I selfishly opted for Earthen Jar - a deli- cious vegan buffet with no lines. Upon return, I noticed a TV screen in the lobby on which excited Twitter posts about the event appeared in rapid fire. Once the theater had its buzz back, the second session became even more relatable to college students when Jameson Toole, who graduated from the Univer- sity and is now a Ph.D. in MIT's Engineering Systems Division, showed a slide with a digitalized image of his relationship with his girlfriend - the frequencies of their emails, texts, Facebook communication and instant mes- sages expressing their transi- tion from friendship to romance through data. His idea of using now to change tomorrow was embodied when he quoted a speaker from a former TED talk, Hans Rosling - "Let my dataset change your mindset." All I can say is, I wouldn't want to be that girlfriend. Session two of the event was titled "Invention" and rolled blithely on to Rackham Ph.D. Darshan Karwat's story of his project of not producing any personal waste. Walking out on to the decorative stage, he car- ried two trash bags full of the only trash he had dispensed in the past 376 days. Karwat admitted that toilet waste and soap use cannot be avoided, but he concluded with an inspiring statement about finding beauty in making simple choices and trying to subside our compulsion for the new and the next. As I trash a Coca-Cola can and move on to check Facebook, I would say he imparts some wise ideas well worth adopting. SAC senior Jacob Mendel showed his intriguing black- and-white 3-D film "Train of Shadows," allowing the attend- ees to wear shades inside the theater, the impressive surre- alist film noir sinking into the perceptions of many. The length of the "short" film cut away a bit of the magic and caused it to teeter toward confusion, yet everyone's eyes were glazed over with imagination. I felt like we were the kids (and adults) of the future. Donia Jarrar, a Masters stu- dent in musical composition who was forced to flee Kuwait at a young age, let the thou- sand listeners in on her emo- tional tale of aiding the recent Egyptian revolution. Jarrar founded a blog, Speak-to-Tweet, in which she translated voice- mails from Egyptians who were being repressed and left with no communication because of the policies of dictator Hosni Mum- barak. Three violinists and one cel- list sweetly closed the event with an acoustic version of "Do You Realize??" by The Flaming Lips. The song's name is not just the title from the first Universi- ty's TED event, but is a question that evokes action, too. Another admirable speaker, Chris Van Allsburg, made a statement that resonated with me above all others: "The pos- sessor of the crazy idea does not By CASSIE BALFOUR DailyArts Writer Like most rappers, Big K.R.I.T. surrounds himself with the typi- cal entourage. But as his large posse emerged from a nonde- script white conversion van, it was obvious this isn't the ride of a big pimpin' rap star. The humble van seems fitting for a talented poet putting introspective prose to a dope beat. Mississippi rapper BigK.R.I.T. performed last night at the Blind Pig, building excitement by jumping into the crowd dur- ing his hit song "Country Shit." Known for his southern swagger and extra crispy flow, .R.L.T. cites Scarface, UGK and Oukast among his influences, as well as the politicallyconsciousgrandfa- ther of funk, Curtis Mayfield. Big K.R.I.T. hasn't cracked the Top 40 yet, but he's been hailed as a young talent in the underground rap scene, and his self-produced mixtape, Reurnof4eva, featured big names like Chamillionaire and Ludacris. But the deep southern roots of this self-proclaimed "King Remembered in Time" (K.R.I.T. - get it?) go a lot deeper than his persona. And he has no interest in producing pop-tart singles at the expense of his creative free- dom and strong morals. "I was raised by my grand- mother - after my parents split apart, my grandma really showed me the way," Big K.R.I.T. said in an interview with The Michigan Daily. "As far as how you treat people, you treat people how you want to be treated. And I try to put that in my music, the honesty is a big part as far as my music is concerned." K.R.I.T. grew up in the deep South without much money to his name, but he draws on his upbringing to craft introspec- tive, politically charged and innovative cuts like the haunt- ing "Hometown Hero," which samples the British songstress Adele's "Hometown Glory." "Life is my subjectcmatter, con- tent, it all derives from experi- ences throughout my life - I just really want to give other people morals that I was taught when I was raised," K.R.I.T. said, speak- ing with the same rhythm and diction as his raps. "I'm human, I go through different things in life. Some days I'm spiritual and other days you just wanna hard- core get money, you're struggling through something, you're deal- ing with relationships, and I'm just kind of talking about it all." On his latest release, Return- of4eva, K.R.I.T. deals with rac- ism, politics and the rap game with tracks like the socially con- scious and horn-infused "Anoth- er Naive Individual Glorifying Greed and Encouraging Racism." K.R.I.T. may glorify the hip-hop lifestyle, but he questions it with 0 COURTESY OF RIG KI.T. Big K.R.I.T. dove into the crowd during his Blind Pig show last night. equal fervor. And when asked alcohol," he said. about sexism in hip-hop lyrics (a K.R.I.T. has struggled with the subject he grapples with on the music-industrial complex, and track "Children of the World"), says the most important factor in he is quick to say that sexism succeeding in the hip-hop world may be reflected in the hip-hop without compromising one's universe, but its something that music is to surround oneself with comes from the real world. people who believe in one's work "Sometimes I deal with the and to take an active part in the player-pimp side of my mind- business side. After his critically frame, and how, yeah, it might heralded mix K.R.I.T. Wuz Here not be right, but that's what I was dropped last summer, he signed surrounded by, that type of envi- with Def Jam Records. Despite ronment," he said. joining a major label, he still Onthe beginningofthe soulful flashes his creative license. "Children of the World" K.R.I.T. "It's been up and down, I've deadpans, "Just in case you were been slammed once or twice, I've wondering, I did make the beat." dealt with a lot of people, I don't He prides himself on nurturing want to say shady people, but each song himself, from a couple people who didn't see the vision of scattered ideas and rhymes to like I saw it," K.R.I.T. said. "I'm the final cut. an artist who raps about real life. Not necessarily your typical sin- gle from a pop artist, I'm taking Big 9R.JI.T . the road less traveled and making music that really meansasome- honors his thing to me." Though he's taking a break Southern moral from writing to tour with his tight circle of compatriots and upbringing, bask in the praise from his hip hop-savvy fans, K.R.I.T. has big plans to break into the main- stream while still holding onto "I normally start with the his musical integrity. beat and I go from there - I try "Lord willing, I catch a couple to start with a concept, usually of platinum albums, a couple come up with a title," he said. "I of platinum songs," he said. "I try to take my time, I produce want to continue branding my my own music, so at the end of label, branding my sound and the day, I can sit in the studio as just living up to my name, 'King long as I want to ... You know, it's Remembered in Time." really about quality over quantity Though his ambitions are vast for me, so I'm gonna make sure and he is anticipating the drop of before a song ever hits the web his first album with Def Jam, Big and before anyone ever hears it K.R.I.T. is in awe of the critical- that it's gonna be perfect." ly acclaimed name he's already Like many artists before him, made for himself. Big K.R.I.T. also cites other fac- "I feel like I'm successful tors as vital components in the already because I'm from a place creative process. where nobody would have imag- "Alcohol and just chilling at ined this would have happenedto the crib, but definitely a lot of anyone," he said. 0 0 0 FILM REVIEW 'Hanna' revels in blended innocence and violence By WILL DEFEBAUGH DailyArts Writer "I just missed your heart," says the little blond girl before shooting her prey, an elk nearly twice her size. The abrupt shot* triggers the screen to turn Hanna blood red - save the word At Quality 16 "Hanna" writ- and Rave ten across it ina child-like font. Focus This juxtaposi- tion of innocence and startling violence perfectly represents all of the things that make Joe Wright's ("Atonement") new thriller so downright cool. Hanna (Saoirse Ronan, "The Lovely Bones"), the girl in ques- tion, is a killer on the run from terrifying government agent Marissa (Cate Blanchett, "The Curious Case of Benjamin But- ton"). After being raised and trained in the Arctic wilderness by her father, Erik (Eric Bana, fa "The Time Traveler's Wife"), Hanna must outrun Marissa and kill everyone that stands in her way in order to rejoin her father in Berlin. Entirely out of her ele- ment in the real world, Hanna's choice is simple: adapt or die. While this may sound intrigu- ing, it's not actually the plot of "Hanna" that makes the film so worthwhile. In fact, the predict- able storyline and unsurprising twists may be the film's weak- est points. When the mysteries surrounding Hanna's origin are explained, viewers are left think- ing: "Really? That's it?" Rather, the film's true strength lies in its direction. Wright takes a fairly basic narrative and makes it both suspenseful and thought provok- ing. One way in which Wright does this is through the soundtrack, exclusively scored by the Chemi- cal Brothers. The heavy, pulsing beats give life to the standard chase scenes and fight montages. One sweet lullaby communicates the rarity of friendship in Han- na's bi - a sr (newc in the est ch henchi not by certait but ra that pl evokin and ce E Sa in rief moment with Sophie that make the film interesting poiled American teenager - providing comic relief in her omer Jessica Barden) - inability to work modern tech- ir tent. The film's creepi- nology and tenderness in her aracter, one of Marissa's discovery of humanity. Both are men, is made terrifying found in the one friend Hanna his actions or words (and is able to make, Sophie, who sly not by his tracksuits), provides limitless one-liners ther by the carnival tune while simultaneously remind- ays whenever he is near - ing the viewer of the normality g creepy images of clowns that Hanna has been so brutally rtain pedophilia. deprived of for unknown rea- sons. Wright makes expert use of lks ain't t minimalistic cinematography to capture this journey of Hanna's nothin' on into the real world. Spinning cameras and shadows convey .oirse Ronan her disorientation, while the sharp angle changes evoke the this m ovie. instinctual level on which her mind functions. Audience mem- bers will feel as though they are right there with Hanna, fighting ugh the seemingly never- alongside her in a confusing bat- chase scenes are saved tle for freedom and understand- music and do keep view- ing. Rather than relying on the the edge of their seats, it lackluster writing to tell viewers forced adjustment into the what they need to know, Wright n worlds of Hanna's travels uses these elements of subtlety to I Tho ending by the ers on is the f foreign "Look, if you like it, then you should have put a ring on it. OK?" show them instead. story of a teenage girl has been This minimalistic approach used to tackle issues as large seen in the camerawork can be - and possibly as real - as the applied to the movie as a whole, price of childhood and the costs where the fantastically simple of playing God.