Arlington’s own Remy Munasifi may have another viral YouTube hit on his hands. Timed to coincide with the release of his new album, Remy’s new music video, “The Metro Song”, pokes fun at — you guessed it — the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.
Enjoy.
Sun Gazette editor Scott McCaffrey has been waiting for tonight for months.
According to his blog, McCaffrey has been waiting six months to cover something that’s “likely to happen tonight.” But he’s not saying what it is, so as to not alert “what passes for the competition.”
Since we have some of the smartest readers in town — witness the corrections that go into the comments section the minute we get something wrong — I figured it would be a piece of cake to figure out what story Scotty has been salivating over.
McCaffrey posted an link to a Rod Stewart video to symbolize his infatuation with tonight’s could-be story-of-the-century. In a case of blatant one-upsmanship, we’re posting our own music link: this much more entertaining-with-the-sound-down (you’re at work, right?) Jennifer Lopez video.
So, dear readers, help us out. What’s happening tonight that Scotty doesn’t want us to know about?
Just don’t tell him we’re asking. It’s better if Scotty doesn’t know.
Fire Works Pizza Opens in Courthouse — The much-anticipated Fire Works Pizza has finally opened its doors and its large outdoor patio. A “healthy” crowd showed up for the first night, writes TBD’s Rebecca Cooper.
New APS Teachers and Staff Getting Ready For New School Year — This week, all new Arlington Public Schools employees are undergoing a comprehensive training program to prepare them for the fast-approaching school year. School starts on Tuesday, Sept. 7.
Arlingtones Looking for a Few Good Men — The Arlingtones Barbershop Chorus is looking for new members. The a cappella group meets weekly at Gunston Middle School. More from the Ode Street Tribune.
Police Investigate Disturbance at Windsor Apartments in Shirlington — After a 2:00 a.m. call from a resident who had just returned home to find his neighbor’s apartment trashed, Arlington police responded to the Windsor apartment complex at 3000 South Randolph Street. In the trashed apartment, they found a chair that had been apparently thrown through a window, a handgun and a possible shell casing lying on the floor, and a very drunk middle-aged man on a couch. The man was taken to a local hospital. No word on whether the gun had been fired in the apartment, but curiously nobody had called to complain about noise in the area.
Flickr pool photo by Christopher Doorley.
The Portofino Restaurants Celebrates 40th Anniversary — Portofino, the family-owned Italian restaurant on 23rd Street in Crystal City, is celebrating 40 years in Arlington this month. The restaurant opened its doors on August 17, 1970. Since then, three generations of the Micheli family have been cooking up authentic Italian dishes for thousands of patrons. Current and former employees and restaurant regulars will gather to celebrate the anniversary at an invitation-only bash later this month.
Arlington Library Director Rocks Out With Summer Tunes — Arlington Public Library Director Diane Kresh has compiled a list of her favorite summer songs. “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper, “Hot Fun in the Summer Time” by Sly and the Family Stone and “Stoned Soul Picnic” by Laura Nyro round out the top three. Also on the list: the David Lee Roth cover of “California Girls.” See all 20 selection on the Library Blog. Just don’t sing along if you happen to be listening in a library.
WaPo Reveals Secret Tenant in Clarendon Office Building — Ever wonder why there always seems to be security standing outside the office tower at 3100 Clarendon Boulevard? The address, which houses Pacers Running Store and SoBe Bar & Bistro, is also home to the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Washington Post reports. But DIA will soon be moving from its Clarendon and Crystal City offices as a result of BRAC.
Flickr pool photo by Philliefan99.
Remy Munasifi, a.k.a. the Arlington Rap guy, is releasing a new comedy album in September. The first music video from the album hit YouTube yesterday and has already amassed thousands of views.
The video is for a track called the “Falafel Song,” and features Habib Abdul-Habib, Remy’s comic alter ego. Enjoy.
Reporting and photos by Charlotte Gorman.
Dressed in a vest and jeans, Arlington native Struan Shields, 18, steps out to join his four-man backup band while an enthusiastic audience jumps up and down. Singing to an crowd of primarily teenage girls, Struan repeatedly thanks his fans and holds out the microphone to allow them a turn to sing along. They already know all the words, even though this concert is meant to to celebrate the release of his debut EP.
Shields, who will graduate from H-B Woodlawn on Wednesday, isn’t your typical high school singer-songwriter. While others may have their popularity peak with a win at the school talent show, Shields has seen his debut EP hit the top singer/songwriter spot on iTunes. He recently claimed the number one song download on PureVolume, a website for rising artists. And he has already amassed more than 3,000 Facebook fans.
On the eve of his EP release show at Jammin’ Java in Vienna, Shields seems calm and remarkably humble for a teenager who has won over legions of adoring fans.
“I would never consider myself famous… Fame is such a difficult thing to measure. I have enjoyed the fact that more people are hearing about my music. It is a very cool feeling when people take the time to learn to play my songs, or when an audience knows all the lyrics. That in and of itself is something I still haven’t gotten used to,” Shields said.
Shields writes and records his own music at home, without the help of a record label. In an ambitious attempt at grassroots marketing, he even offered a personal phone call to anyone who pre-ordered his EP.
Columbia Pike Blues Festival Nine Days Away — The annual Columbia Pike Blues Festival is just over a week away, but now’s the time to get excited. We Love DC has come out with their top five reasons to check out the festivities. Number 4: the performance by 16-year-old jazz wunderkind Matt Wigler, dubbed “the blues version of Stephen Strasburg.”
Bike Sharing System Named, Minor Controversy Ensues — It’s like the 2000 election all over again. After asking the public to vote on a new name for the recently-announced Arlington-D.C. bike sharing system, Arlington County and DDOT decided to ignore the name that got the most first place votes — “George” — and go with the name that got the most first, second and third place votes — “Capital Bikeshare.” Some blog commenters have been bemoaning the choice of a generic, non-interesting name, but hey, at least officials took the time to explain why Capital Bikeshare is a better name than George, right?
Combat-Ready Tech Coming Back to Marine Corps Marathon — FLIR Systems, the company that develops the infrared cameras you’ve probably seen if you’ve ever watched one of those car chase shows, is going to showcase some of its military tech at the Marine Corps Marathon in October. The technology, which is also helping to keep Marines safe in war zones, will be placed throughout the course. It will allow authorities to track any “situation” during the long race. It will also provide a live video feed of the race leaders.
Flickr pool photo by Knascar.
It’s a weekly summer tradition in Arlington, and it’s starting tonight.
The Marine Corps’ first Sunset Parade of the year starts tonight at 7:00 p.m. at the Iwo Jima Memorial. The hour-long performance features the music of “The Commandant’s Own” Marine Corps Band and a silent precision drill team.
The parade is free and open to the public. Plus there’s plenty of room on the grounds to lay out a blanket for a picnic before or even during the performance.
The Sunset Parades began in 1956, two years after the unveiling of the memorial. The parades are meant as a “tribute to those whose ‘Uncommon valor was a common virtue.'”
The performances will continue every Tuesday though August 17.
Marine Corps photo.
On Sunday, the soccer field at Barcroft Park served as the stage for what some area residents hope will be an official music video of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
You wouldn’t know a production with lofty international goals was taking place by the look of things. The catering consisted of a folding table and some Domino’s pizza boxes. The primary camera was an aging standard def digital camcorder. A wheelchair was being used as a dolly. There were no lights set up, no technicians running cables. The director’s mother was one of the dozen or so extras.
But the modest production values didn’t seem to limit the imagination of the producers, most of whom emigrated to the DC area from various parts of Africa. They are on a quest — perhaps a bit quixotic, but a quest nonetheless — to have their catchy dance song, “Twenty Ten In Africa,” played at the World Cup (listen to it here).
“I want this to be the people’s song,” said Nkeng “Mr. Cole” Alemanji, the song’s writer, producer and video director. He said the first pick for the official 2010 World Cup song was a unpopular with Africans because it was performed by pop star Shakira, who is South American. FIFA, the World Cup’s governing body, should adopt his song because it’s written and performed by Africans, he said.
Alemanji, who runs the Alexandria-based production company Songs From Above, says he was personally inspired to write “Twenty Ten In Africa” after seeing soccer’s “ability to bring people together” during Cameroon’s run for the World Cup in 1990, a time of economic and political upheaval in his native country.
“If people like the song, they’re going to demand it,” said Ajua “A.J.” Alemanji, Nkeng’s brother. Together, the brothers are working to get the song played on radio stations in eastern, western and southern Africa. They say it should begin playing in Johannesburg within a week.
Around 12:30 this afternoon, outside the Courthouse Metro, it was a springtime scene to delight the senses.
The warmth of the sun reflecting off the sidewalk. The smell of Cubano sandwiches wafting over from the Rebel Heroes truck. The sight of smiling, sunglasses-clad people, taking in the perfect weather after an extra-dreary start to the week.
Then, there was faint wail of Amazing Grace playing on the bagpipes.
It was coming from the small park across the street from the Jerry’s Subs shop. Eric Rice-Johnston, an employee in the Arlington County community planning office, was practicing.
Rice-Johnston has been a piper since the early 70s, when he was working as student firefighter at the University of Alaska.
He began practicing during his lunch hour last year, and has just started up again now that the weather is warmer.
Rice-Johnston’s practice session today — he’s getting ready to participate in some bagpiping competitions — included Amazing Grace and the other classic bagpipe tunes, which are usually known for being played at parades and funerals. But there were also a few unfamiliar and upbeat melodies in his repertoire.
Rice-Johnston was not fazed by the confused glances from passersby. He did, however, acknowledge the one individual who applauded.
Mark Linkous, of the alt-rock-slash-country band Sparklehorse, committed suicide in Tennessee over the weekend. Linkous, 47, was born in Arlington. More from the New York Times.
