Party Fun Action Committee
Encyclopedia
Party Fun Action Committee is a music group whose first and only album, Let's Get Serious, is a satirical, comic hip hop album.
and Jer. Blockhead is a renowned producer who has produced songs for Aesop Rock
as well as Cage.
when criticizing some aspect of it. The album is a satire
of modern major label music, specifically modern rap genres, and of the out of touch record producers who make the decisions of what artists should be signed.
In the fictional narrative of the animated videos, the duo receive a CD of Yameen's new album in the mail and discuss to comedic effect the artists featured on the album including Mike Ladd
, Reef The Lost Cauze
, Georgia Anne Muldrow
, Casual
, DLX and Maylay Sparks.
The video series was also released as a free, un-cut audio "podcast" MP3 at Yameen's website.
Members
The group's members are BlockheadBlockhead (music)
Blockhead is an American Hip hop producer based in Manhattan, New York. Aside from his solo efforts released on the Ninja Tune label, he is most associated with producing for Aesop Rock, a rapper for the Definitive Jux independent hip hop label. He has also previously worked with rappers C-Rayz...
and Jer. Blockhead is a renowned producer who has produced songs for Aesop Rock
Aesop Rock
Ian Matthias Bavitz , better known by his stage name Aesop Rock, is an American hip hop artist and producer. He was at the forefront of the new wave of underground and alternative hip hop acts that emerged during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was signed to El-P's Definitive Jux label until it...
as well as Cage.
Discography
Let's Get Serious (2003). The album is framed by two white record executives listening to a box of demo tapes and rating each one. They fawn over each selection, evenwhen criticizing some aspect of it. The album is a satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
of modern major label music, specifically modern rap genres, and of the out of touch record producers who make the decisions of what artists should be signed.
Track Listing (with fictitious artist listing)
(+ denotes non-musical interlude)- Intro – 2:20
- Mental Storm by The Mystical Knights of the Vizual Roundtable – 2:22
- Whatchu Know Now by Kornhole – 4:14
- Be My Lady Intro+ – 0:44
- Be My Lady by Flohamed Ali featuring Ja Mellow – 1:55
- I Shoulda Known by A.B.C.D.E.F.Gee – 5:08
- Word Up? Intro+ – 1:13
- Word Up? by Andrew Q and the Free Jazz Crusaders – 1:55
- Beer by The Brothers of the Alpha Pi Kappa Fraternity – 5:17
- Chapstick Intro+ – 1:03
- Chapstick by Sweet Pickles and MC Noel Weissman – 2:12
- I am... by Das Jinglehorse – 5:19
- Peter Pan Intro+ – 0:39
- Peter Pan by The Captain Gowns – 3:27
- Back N Da Daiz by Tony Simon and Jeremy Gibson – 4:18
- Outro / Here Comes the Rock – 2:19
Analysis and targets
Each song on the album attacks a particular genre or subculture.- Track 2: Mental Storm imitates abstract rappers such as AnticonAnticonAnticon is an Oakland based independent record label founded in 1997. It is collectively owned among six founding artists and one manager...
and BusdriverBusdriverBusdriver is a rapper from Los Angeles currently signed to Epitaph Records and Fake Four Inc-History:...
, co-opting a verbose, highly conceptual, sometimes nonsensical rapid-fire flow. The track also parodies Sir Menalik and other rappers who seem derivative of Dr Octagon era Kool KeithKool KeithKeith Matthew Thornton, better known by his stage name Kool Keith, is an American rapper from The Bronx, New York. A founding member of Ultramagnetic MCs, Kool Keith has recorded prolifically both as a solo artist and in group collaborations. Kool Keith is the self-proclaimed inventor of...
who utilize science fiction and mysticism for their subject matter. - Track 3: Whatchu Know Now is an assault on rap metalRap metalRap metal is a subgenre of rap rock which fuses vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop music with heavy metal.-History:Rap metal originated from rap rock, a genre fusing vocal and instrumental elements of hip hop with rock...
or rapcoreRapcoreRapcore is a subgenre of rap rock fusing vocal and sometimes instrumental elements of hip hop with punk rock .-History:...
bands such as KornKornKorn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
, Linkin ParkLinkin ParkLinkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. Formed in 1996, the band rose to international fame with their debut album, Hybrid Theory, which was certified Diamond by the RIAA in 2005 and multi-platinum in several other countries...
and Limp BizkitLimp BizkitLimp Bizkit is an American rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1995, the group's lineup consists of Fred Durst , Wes Borland , Sam Rivers , John Otto and DJ Lethal . The band achieved mainstream success with their second studio album Significant Other, released in 1999...
. - Track 5: Be My Lady mocks R&B-inflected hip hop songs, as it seemingly targets the gravelly voice of Ja RuleJa RuleJeffrey Atkins , better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper, singer, and actor.Born in Hollis, Queens, he began his career in the group Cash Money Click and debuted in 1999 with Venni Vetti Vecci and its single "Holla Holla"...
, and NellyNellyCornell Iral Haynes, Jr. , better known by his stage name Nelly, is an Grammy Award winning American rapper and actor. He has performed with the rap group St. Lunatics since 1993 and signed to Universal Records in 1999. Under Universal, Nelly began his solo career in 2000 with his debut album...
and a robotic instrumental track indicative of R&B of the late 1990s. - Track 6: I Shoulda Known not only copies the style of R. KellyR. KellyRobert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
, but also references his legal problems with underage girls, first telling the story of having a sexual encounter with a man in drag, and later of sleeping with a teenage girl. The instrumental is a slow R&B sound that sounds like any number of R&B artists. - Track 8: Word Up? is a mock-slam poetry track, only extremely simplistic in both content and rhyme scheme, in the style of Sarah Jones, Saul WilliamsSaul WilliamsSaul Stacey Williams is an American poet, writer, actor and musician known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop and for his leading role in the 1998 independent film Slam.-Biography:...
and other performance poets. - Track 9: Beer is not so much an indictment of any particular rap genre, but rather the "frat-boyFraternities and sororitiesFraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
mentality," including the often homosexually-tinged ritual of hazingHazingHazing is a term used to describe various ritual and other activities involving harassment, abuse or humiliation used as a way of initiating a person into a group....
. It references frat-house favorites House of PainHouse of PainHouse of Pain is an American hip hop group who released three albums in the 1990s before lead rapper Everlast left to pursue his solo career again. The group's name is a reference to the H.G. Wells novel The Island of Dr...
and DMXDMX (rapper)Earl Simmons , better known by his stage name DMX, is a multiplatinum American rapper and actor who rose to fame in the late 1990s. His stage name pays tribute to the Oberheim DMX drum machine, an instrument he used when he made his own rap beats in the 80's...
. This track parodies and is done in the style of 7L and Esoteric and the High and MightyHigh and Mighty (band)The High & Mighty are an underground hip hop duo from Philadelphia consisting of rapper Mr. Eon and DJ Mighty Mi...
. - Track 11: Chapstick addresses Nerdcore hip hopNerdcore hip hopNerdcore hip hop, is a sub-genre of hip hop music characterized by themes and subject matter considered to be of general interest to nerds, though it can appeal to others as well. Self-described nerdcore musician MC Frontalot has the earliest known recorded use of the term in the 2000 song...
artists and "back pack rap", particularly MC Paul BarmanMC Paul BarmanPaul Nathaniel Barman better known as MC Paul Barman is a Jewish- American emcee from Ridgewood, New Jersey, who attended Brown University....
, imitating Barman's multi-syllabic rhyme scheme. - Track 12: I Am is a spoof of Depeche ModeDepeche ModeDepeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
and synth-pop in general, and mocks men that are weak ("I am a pussy...") and selfish people who have no regard for others ("I am an asshole..."). - Track 13: Peter Pan is the one song on the album that has very little to do with rap at all. It is an a cappellaA cappellaA cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
song with several vocal tracks about a man who wishes he could be friends with Peter PanPeter PanPeter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie . A mischievous boy who can fly and magically refuses to grow up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood adventuring on the small island of Neverland as the leader of his gang the Lost Boys, interacting with...
, Robin HoodRobin HoodRobin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
and The Little PrinceThe Little PrinceThe Little Prince , first published in 1943, is a novella and the most famous work of the French aristocrat writer, poet and pioneering aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry ....
.This is a vague reference to Michael Jackson, and his child-like obsession with Peter Pan as there is no genre of hip-hop music that this song could target. In fact, the two faux-record executives discussing the song at the end of the track acknowledge that this song was probably added in error however this track can also be construed as an ironic metaphor for a majority of rap artists. - Track 15: Back N Da Daiz mocks the common urge for hip hop artists to make nostalgic songs about the past. The song starts out nostaglic (if insipid) before devolving into a litany of horrible acts the rappers have committed.
- Track 16: Outro/Here Comes the Rock is not a hip hopHip hop musicHip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
song but is rather a heavy metal spoof to end the album.
The Return of Party Fun Action Committee
In April 2009, Philadelphia-based producer Yameen released a three-part animated video series online entitled, "The Return of Party Fun Action Committee" featuring PFAC in their roles as A&R representatives Stephen Richardson & Lars Haighmael.In the fictional narrative of the animated videos, the duo receive a CD of Yameen's new album in the mail and discuss to comedic effect the artists featured on the album including Mike Ladd
Mike Ladd
Mike Ladd is a hip-hop MC and producer. As an MC, he practices spoken-word and is known for his poetic lyrics. As a producer, he is known as the owner of the Likemadd label.-Biography:...
, Reef The Lost Cauze
Reef the Lost Cauze
Sharif Talib Lacey, better known as Reef The Lost Cauze, is a prominent underground hip hop artist based in Philadelphia. Aside from being a solo artist, Reef is a member of the hip hop group The JuJu Mob as well as the hip-hop collective, Army of the Pharaohs.-Career:Reef started battling other...
, Georgia Anne Muldrow
Georgia Anne Muldrow
Georgia Anne Muldrow is an American singer and musician signed to Stones Throw Records. She is the first female artist signed to the label and seems to be a close friend of fellow label artist Dudley Perkins...
, Casual
Casual (rapper)
Jon Owens , known by his stage name Casual, is an American rapper from Oakland, California and one of the founding members of the alternative hip hop collective Hieroglyphics...
, DLX and Maylay Sparks.
The video series was also released as a free, un-cut audio "podcast" MP3 at Yameen's website.