The music of Rory Ferreira has seen quite the
evolution since his debut mixtape in 2012. Under
the moniker milo, he’s transitioned from a style of
hip-hop tinged with nerdiness to now embracing
art and jazz rap.
His side project Scallops Hotel was created
to develop his more abstruse side, lyrically and
in terms of production. He has made the leap
from independent artist to founder of his own
record label. Throughout his increasing success,
he’s never sold out. In truth, it doesn’t even seem
possible for him to sell out, for Rory has so firmly
ingrained himself in his own niche. It hasn’t failed
him yet. Recently, he’s given up the milo name
and replaced it with R.A.P. Ferreira (literally
Rory Allen Phillip Ferreira). Now he’s released his
second album under this name, Purple Moonlight
Pages, which only further solidifies his presence
in the underground rap scene.
The album is profoundly mature, even for
Rory’s standards. At his most nerdy, he always
used immaturity as a tool. Now, his insertion
of obscure references doesn’t oversaturate the
project. The last few albums have seen him
approach rap from a more philosophical and
poetic angle, but Pages feels different. Whereas
before, it seemed as though Ferreira was forcing
himself to come to profound conclusions, this
album lets the epiphanies arise through his
experiences. This is apparent in how the songs
are structured in relation to each other. The
album doesn’t have any real overlying narrative
to it. Each song is its own collection of ideas that
comes and goes for the next collection of ideas to
appear.
But make no mistake: The album is very
cohesive. It’s akin to that one junk drawer we all
have in the kitchen, where all the items have their
own story, and the drawer itself is representative
of these stories. A prime example of this is the
track “LAUNDRY,” whose entire runtime is
devoted to the process of doing laundry. As a
result, he expresses his life at home. We get an
understanding of the relationship he has with
his family and how it affects his outlook. The
song has a domestic charm. It stands alone, but
it makes hearing the next story all the more
enjoyable.
The cohesion of Purple Moonlight Pages is also
largely thanks to the production of the Jefferson
Park Boys, whose members include Carmack,
Mike Parvizi and Kenny Segal. Their brilliant
mix of esoteric and organic beats functions
perfectly alongside Ferreira’s poetry. Often, it
feels like being inside a hazy jazz club. There’s
a diverse set of sounds being explored on the
project: A song like “DUST UP” that could easily
be an ambient track without the presence of Rory
is paired close to the latin guitar-flavored beats on
“ABSOLUTES.” Then there’s “U.D.I.G (UNITED
DEFENDS
OF
INTERNATIONAL
GOOD
WILL),” a banger that has a Laurel Canyon sound
but with twice as much acid involved. Nothing
is off the table for them, which lends a sense of
momentum.
If there is one thing Rory seems to be promoting
on Purple Moonlight Pages, it’s his idea of what
art should be. No better is this expressed than
on the track “CYCLES,” where he talks about
the difference between the underground and
the mainstream, highlighting their respective
priorities and how, at times, it feels like an uphill
battle financially and in gaining the same amount
of respect. With any other artist this would come
across as bitter, but with Rory it’s sincere, as he
says: “Swear I just know my worth, swear I just
know my worth.” If anything, Rory seems happy
with where he’s at. Sure, being underground
versus mainstream means he has to fight a
little more to keep going, but he’s also working
to understand himself and the world more.
The image of the struggling artist has become
sensationalized at this point. Rory even admits
to being a part of this trend. As he’s matured, he’s
come to understand that struggling for the sake of
struggling doesn’t produce better art. To him, art
is about gaining knowledge. “No starvin’ artists,
just artists starvin’ to know.”
Wednesday, April 8, 2020 — 6A
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
ALPHA PUP RECORDS, BMI & ASCAP
DREW GADBOIS
Daily Arts Writer
R.A.P. Ferreira returns: this time more mature, meditative
ALBUM REVIEW
Some Internet users claim “The Simpsons”
predicted the coronavirus pandemic in two
episodes: a 1993 episode titled “Marge in Chains”
and a 1999 episode titled “Wild Barts Can’t Be
Broken.”
In “Marge in Chains,” a disease called the
Osaka
Flu,
featuring
two
stereotypically-
portrayed and sick Japanese workers, creates a
chaotic domino-effect scenario that affects the
Simpson household and Springfield at large. In
“Wild Barts Can’t Be Broken,” Homer’s acts of
vandalism cause Police Chief Wiggum to institute
a nightly curfew for anyone under the age of
seventy.
In response to these
claims, Bill Oakley, one of
the writers of “Marge in
Chains,” spoke out against
the
misappropriation
of these episodes, citing
that these episodes were
meant to be innocuous
and those utilizing the
episodes
for
nefarious
purposes are “gross.”
Perhaps
the
more
important
foretelling
taking place in these
episodes, however, is the
ongoing
normalization
of racism that is targeted
towards
Asians
and
Asian Americans. This
normalization, in turn,
skews overarching public
perceptions towards Asian immigrants and Asian
Americans.
It’s hard to denigrate “Marge in Chains” when
you compare the episode to other contemporary,
more visible instances of racism against PoC
communities. “All American Girl,” which aired in
1994, was guilty of demanding Korean-American
actress Margaret Cho to “act more Asian,” while
also hiring an “expert” to help her act in that
caricature. As early as 1986, when “The Simpsons”
was still a short on “The Tracey Ullman Show,”
the show introduced Apu Nahasapeemapetilon,
a caricature based on another racist caricature
portrayed by Peter Sellers in the ’60s and
one of the only few South Asian character
representations in its time period. As recently
as 2016, Chris Rock hired East Asian children
to
portray
prevalent
East-Asian-American
stereotypes for the Academy Awards. The gag of
sick Japanese workers in “Marge in Chains” may
seem innocent in comparison, though the comedic
portrayal of East Asian workers as hardworking
but unhygienic individuals provides a context
of othering for
those living in
a
Westernized
society such as
the United States.
Through
the
span of multiple
generations,
comedic
television
portrays
non-
white characters
and actors, and
people of color
by extension, as
different
from
their
white
counterparts
—
they,
including
those of Asian
descent,
are
considered
the
other and the foreign even if these portrayals and
stereotypes may seem benign.
But suppose you take the intentions of these
problematic portrayals, including those in
“Marge in Chains,” as innocuous. “The Osaka
Flu,” inspired by the Hong Kong Flu of 1968,
was portrayed outlandishly by the writers as
an attempt to create an innocuous comedic plot
device. The fact remains that there are current
coronavirus conspiracy theories that originated
from a supposed innocent joke about sick East
Asians and an East Asian disease. In other words,
there
are
those
within
anglophone
countries who are
eager to create racist
fear-mongering in the
midst of a pandemic
by
appropriating
seemingly
innocent
comedic
content.
This
content
goes
viral and is widely
shared
on
social
media
platforms.
Xenophobic content
is being consumed
by many others as
a
result,
whether
voluntarily or involuntarily.
East and Southeast Asian Americans have
long experienced verbal and physical assaults as
a result of xenophobia, a trend that has only been
exacerbated through the coronavirus pandemic.
Such racist attacks and xenophobic actions by
both the public and the government are not new
either: The 2009 swine flu outbreak saw a spike
in discrimination towards Latinx Americans,
the 2003 SARS outbreak unleashed a wave of
bigotry towards Asian
Americans and the
1892 typhus outbreak
and cholera epidemics
saw a governmental
quarantine
and
public
prejudice
directed
towards
Eastern
European
Jewish
immigrants.
Outbreaks
of
disease
within
the
United
States
have
historically
seen the American
public attempt to tie
disease
outbreaks
and pandemics to often marginalized groups in
society.
“The Simpsons,” more than it predicts
the future, suggests the long history of racist
narratives, both on and off the screen.
TV NOTEBOOK
The troubling prediction ‘The Simpsons’ did seem to make
BRENDON CHO
Daily Arts Writer
Perhaps the more
important foretelling
taking place in these
episodes, however, is the
ongoing normalization
of racism that is targeted
toward Asians and Asian
Americans.
PXFUEL
Purple Moonlight
Pages
R.A.P. Ferreira
Ruby Yacht
But suppose you take
the intentions of these
problematic portrayals,
including those in “Marge
in Chains,” as innocuous.