Category Archives: Commentary

RIP Eddie Van Halen 1955 – 2020

Text by Dawoud Kringle

On Tuesday, October 6th, 2020, Edward Lodewijk “Eddie” Van Halen died of cancer at the age of 65.

In 1978, I was listening to the radio, and the DJ of the local rock station announced that he was going to play something from the debut album of a band named Van Halen. Then Eruption came on. As Van Halen’s jaw dropping display of chops smashed through the speakers and seared itself into my ears, I stared at the radio, unable to believe what I was hearing.

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Covid 19 – A Moment of Crisis and Opportunity

It’s up to us to steer things in a direction of fairness and balance for all people and an unprecedented evolution of musical and artistic expression. 

By Dawoud Kringle

As I write this beginning paragraph, I just finished watching a documentary about New York City between 1977 and 1981. It hit home with me because I moved to New York City in 1983 and experienced (survived) the latter part of this era.

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TikTok: A Blessing or a Curse for the Professional Musician?

TikTokBy Dawoud Kringle

Blink your eyes, and a new social media platform pops up. And with it, a new set of questions for the professional musician, and a new set of variables to complicate an already treacherous territory of the music business.

TikTok is a video-sharing social networking service owned by ByteDance, a Beijing-based company founded in 2012 by Zhang Yiming (ByteDance also owns Toutiao, Xigua Video, TopBuzz and BuzzVideo).

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Bipolar Syndrome and the Arts

The Fine Line Between Genius and Madness: High Functioning Bipolar Syndrome and the Arts

By Dawoud Kringle

(AUTHOR’S NOTE: This article is for general information purposes only, and is NOT intended to diagnose or cure any illness or condition. The author invites the reader to further research. If you suspect yourself to suffer in any way described herein, you are urged to seek professional help.)

Bipolar Syndrome“There is no great genius without a mixture of madness.” – Aristotle

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