Backstage With Marian: MercuryNews.com Podcasts

Karaoke Ice at Zero One in Downtown San Jose: extended version

2006-08-08T18:26:00.000-07:00

An extended version of Karaoke ice podcast with artists Katie Salen and Marina Zurkow, plus Zero One chair Joel Slayton, graphic designer Corrie Tse, composer Lem Jay Ignacio and lighting designer Marcus Doshi.

12:47 minutes
5.9 MB

MTV DJ Skribble coming to San Jose

2006-08-03T17:38:00.000-07:00

MTV DJ Skribble, up for America's Best DJ, comes to San Jose to perform.

5:37 minutes
2.6 MB

On the come-up: Oakland's DJ Bella

2006-08-01T14:52:00.000-07:00

DJ Bella is as eclectic as the 5,000 records she spins: seven years of violin under her belt, a decades worth of deejaying at UC Berkeley's radio station and speaking for Amnesty International, spearheading female only bills at concerts, not to mention working as an environmental engineer by day. This is a part of the series about Bay Area hip-hop movers and shakers.

11 minutes
5 MB

Ex-Cisco engineer Vienna Teng

2006-07-25T17:27:00.000-07:00

Vienna Teng is switching keyboards from being a software engineer at Cisco, to following her dream as a blossoming singer-songwriter.

18:45 minutes
8.59 MB

Teen hearthrob Teddy Geiger

2006-06-14T18:55:00.000-07:00

Seventeen-year-old Teddy Geiger launched into fame after trying out as Keith Partridge for reality show "In Search Of The Partridge Family." He didn't get the part but he did land a recording contract with Columbia Records.

9:23 minutes
4.3 MB

On the come-up: San Jose emcee Tyson Amir-Mustafa

2006-06-12T14:16:00.000-07:00

San Jose emcee Tyson Amir-Mustafa writes rhymes, teaches algebra in jail and has been on Oprah. This is part of the series about Bay Area hip-hop movers and shakers.

21:57 minutes
10.1 MB

Pussycat Dolls in person

2006-05-19T15:40:00.000-07:00

Pop phenom Pussycat Dolls are a sextet of ladies that guys want to be with and girls want to be.

Marian Liu caught up with the group at San Leandro's Verizon store where they greeted a gaggle of fans, many who cut class to catch a glimpse of their idols.

8:20 minutes
3.82 MB

Georgian rapper Bubba Sparxxx

2006-05-02T20:39:00.000-07:00

Bubba Sparxxx elaborates on his hit, "Ms. New Booty."

9:07 minutes
3.14 MB

Droop-E lays it down

2006-05-02T20:34:00.000-07:00

Son of the Ambassador of the Bay Droop-E talks about his family's legacy and developing his own talent.

18:24 minutes
6.32 MB

On the cellie with E-40

2006-05-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

Chopping it up with the Ambassador of the Bay E-40.

20:36 minutes
7.08 MB

Hong Kong star Andy Lau talks "All About Love"

2006-04-27T19:23:00.000-07:00

Hong Kong heartthrob Andy Lau describes himself, his take on love and his latest movie "All About Love."

25:56 minutes
8.91 MB

Fusion band Indian Ocean

2006-04-11T15:37:00.000-07:00

Imagine Indian music swirled in with jazz, classical and rock, summed to a peaceful sentimentality. And interview with bass player Rahul Ram.

12:24 minutes
5.68 MB

Florida pop punk band Yellowcard

2006-04-11T15:30:00.000-07:00

Yellowcard violinist Sean Mackin talks about the string infused pop punk band and how he's gone from uber-nerd to idol.

12:58 minutes
5.94 MB

Hip-hop Impresario Tommy Aguilar

2006-04-10T14:43:00.000-07:00

The hip-hop go-to-guy of San Jose breaks it down for us: part of the Bay Area hip-hop movers and shakers series.

12:02 minutes
3.45 MB

Old Skool hip-hop artist LL Cool J brings us back

2006-04-06T17:08:00.000-07:00

LL Cool J talks about being in the game for more than two decades.

10:56 minutes
3.13 MB

Pop punkers Fall Out Boy

2006-03-31T13:04:00.000-08:00

Chicago emo band Fall Out Boy talk about their literary lyrics and about being all different kinds of nerds put together.

9:53 minutes
2.83 MB

DJ Backside, a leader in Bay hip-hop

2006-03-27T19:55:00.000-08:00

On the Come-Up: DJ Backside sets it straight: being a female in hip-hop is not its b-side.

9:17 minutes
2.66 MB

Chopping it up with San Jose's own Traxxamillion

2006-03-13T18:00:00.000-08:00

On the Come-Up: The first of the Bay Area hip-hop movers and shakers series.

15:12 minutes
4.53 MB

Interview with Adam of She Wants Revenge

2006-03-08T16:49:00.000-08:00

The entire Q&A with Adam of 80s inspired band She Wants Revenge

14:46 minutes
8.68 MB

Word with Ne-Yo

2006-03-03T15:43:00.000-08:00

An interview with Las Vegas artist Ne-Yo, about his break-up song "So Sick" and trying to be a rapper before going back to R&B.

13:45 minutes
3.94 MB

Getting To Know North Carolina's Little Brother

2006-02-22T13:26:00.000-08:00

The hip-hop trio has been getting rave reviews from both the indie and the mainstream.

8:32 minutes
2.4 MB

Breaking down Fort Minor

2006-02-17T17:20:00.000-08:00

An interview with Linkin Park member Mike Shinoda about his side project, Fort Minor.

10:09 minutes
3 MB

Talking with Christian rapper Pigeon John

2006-02-17T17:17:00.000-08:00

He talks about balancing his faith with his music. Pigeon John performs Saturday, Feb. 18th at 10 p.m. at 111 Minna in San Francisco.

14 minutes
4 MB

Up in Chamillionaire's Grill

2006-02-17T17:16:00.000-08:00

Interviewing Houston hot hip-hop artist Chamillionaire - he talks about the Bay Area being next behind Houston as a hip-hop hot spot and about his own rise to fame.

18:49 minutes
5.4 MB

Columbian rockstar Juanes

2006-02-08T19:01:00.000-08:00

He looks like a young Antonio Banderas and rocks out like Bruce Springsteen. Juanes' sultry look, music, and social commentary will pull you in.

5:52 minutes
1.7 MB

Taiwanese pop music

2006-01-17T14:51:00.000-08:00

Sampling the sounds of Taiwan with Wang LeeHom, Cyndi and Jolin

10:40 minutes
3.1 MB

New Year's Musical Forecast

2005-12-29T18:54:00.000-08:00

7:57 minutes
2.2 MB

A Conversation with George Kahumoku

2005-12-22T12:12:00.000-08:00

Grammy nominated Hawaiian slack key guitar artist

13:02 minutes
3.7 MB

Tookie Williams: Hip-hop remembers

2005-12-16T08:44:00.000-08:00

Mercury News pop music critic Marian Liu talks to Jon Fortt about the legacy of Tookie Williams.

15 minutes
4 MB

A conversation with DJ Muggs of Cypress Hill

2005-12-08T20:27:00.000-08:00

10:55 minutes
3.13 MB

Dancehall-reggae-rap artist Sean Paul talks with Marian Liu

2005-11-25T18:53:00.000-08:00

21.58 minutes
6.29 MB

Apl of Black Eyed Peas with Marian Liu

2005-11-18T00:00:00.000-08:00

12 minutes
3 MB

Conversation with Lyrics Born: A rapper with Asian heritage and Bay Area cred

2005-11-11T00:00:00.000-08:00

Mercury News music critic Marian Liu talks with Lyrics Born.

7 minutes
3 MB

Kevin Federline rapping? Ew. Yeah. Listen.

2005-11-04T00:00:00.001-08:00

Marian Liu and Jon Fortt talk about the partial Kevin Federline track that his producer apparently released onto the Internet.

Exclusive Download: Colossus, "Ladies and Gentlemen"

2005-11-04T00:00:00.000-08:00

The Oakland hip-hop collective offers this last track to Mercury News podcast listeners.

The Experiment: Exclusive Track #2 from Colossus

2005-10-28T12:00:00.000-07:00

Oakland hip hop collective brings another fresh track exclusive to Mercury News readers

Homohop: Yeah, what it sounds like -- a new direction in hip hop

2005-10-28T00:00:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu talks about hip hop from a fresh community's perspective.

Colossus: The interview with Marian Liu

2005-10-21T00:00:00.001-07:00

Marian Liu interviews Charlie and Gunnar of Colossus, an Oakland-based hip-hop collective. Also this week: An exclusive clip from Colossus.

Charlie, Gunnar and Azeem bring the real with this, the first of three Mercury News exclusive tracks with a sound that that will blow your mind back to the old school days when "Leaders of the New School" were new, beats reigned supreme, and hip-hop was about rhyming skills.

Subscribe to the Backstage With Marian podcast to get the next two exclusive tracks from Colossus.

Exclusive Track # 1 of 3: Colossus (Oakland) brings raw underground hip-hop

2005-10-21T00:00:00.000-07:00

Charlie, Gunnar and Azeem bring the real with this, the first of three Mercury News exclusive tracks with a sound that that will blow your mind back to the old school days when "Leaders of the New School" were new, beats reigned supreme, and hip-hop was about rhyming skills.

Subscribe to the Backstage With Marian podcast to get the next two exclusive tracks from Colossus.

Speed It Up, Slow It Down

2005-10-14T00:00:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu talks to Jon Fortt about that trend in today's hip hop -- speeding up and slowing down voices. With clips from Akon, Mike Jones.

6 minutes

4 MB

Danger Doom: Mashing up DJs

2005-10-07T00:00:00.000-07:00

San Jose Mercury News music critic Marian Liu talks to Jon Fortt about the new Danger Doom album.

10 minutes

6 MB

Miri Ben Ari: The Hip Hop Violinist

2005-09-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu of the San Jose Mercury News chats with Jon Fortt about her interview with Miri Ben Ari, and introduces us to tracks off Ben Ari's new album.

10 minutes

6 MB

Kool Herc Wants Some Respect

2005-09-16T01:25:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu, pop music critic for the San Jose Mercury News, sits down with Jon Fortt to discuss her interview with hip hop legend DJ Kool Herc.

8 minutes

4MB

The Rapper Formerly Known as Jin: Say hello to The Emcee

2005-09-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu talks to Jon Fortt about her interview with Jin, the Chinese-American rapper. He's changed his name and his subject matter, and Marian's not sure it will work.

13 minutes

4 MB

Spirit West Coast: An archive podcast from Marian Liu

2005-08-26T11:48:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu of the San Jose Mercury News talks with Jon Fortt about the Spirit West Coast Christian music festival.

7:30 minutes

4 MB

Bobby Valentino: Marian's interview

2005-08-26T00:00:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu, pop music critic for the San Jose Mercury News, talks about her interview with R&B crooner Bobby Valentino, and plays parts of her phone interview.

6 minutes
3.5 MB

Andre 3000 from Outkast: Marian's interview

2005-08-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

Marian Liu, pop music critic for the San Jose Mercury News, interviews Andre 3000 of hitmaker Outkast.

It turns out Andre's not always the crazy, flamboyant personality you see in music videos. When he's strolling the streets of San Francisco with Marian, he waxes calm and philosophical.

9:30 minutes
5.4 MB

For more Mercury News podcasts, search iTunes for "Mercury News," or go to mercextra.com/listen for instructions on how to subscribe.

Critic's picks: Marian talks about her favorite music

2005-08-11T21:43:00.000-07:00

In this inaugural Backstage With Marian podcast, pop music critic Marian Liu talks about her favorite music, and how she landed a job where she goes to concerts and interviews the stars.