Having already earned himself both fan and critical acclaim thanks to his albums ‘The World Is Blown’, released in 2018 and 2019’s ‘The Illuminated Hermeticum of Mr. Bates’, Beard Bates has also established himself as, for lack of a better term, one of the most abstract and unpredictable artists of our time. With an ability to blend hip-hop, funk, ambient and psychedelic rock, he creates music that is well and truly, uniquely, his own. He’s also an artist who pays close attention to the events that have occurred and are occurring around the world, and who is not afraid to voice his views – however tongue-in-cheek or serious they might be, on such things. Case in point, his latest release, a reimagining of the song “Whitey On The Moon”, the video for which PopWrapped are delighted to premiere.
Asked why he chose to rework this song in particular, Bates takes us back in time. “The year was 1970, and in the wake of the Apollo Moon landings Gil Scott-Heron, African-American soul and jazz poet, released “Whitey on The Moon,” the ninth track of his debut album ‘Small Talk at 125th and Lenox,” he explains. “The song tells of medical debt, high taxes and poverty experienced by the urban public during the Apollo Moon landings. The poem critiques the resources spent on the space program while Black Americans were experiencing marginalization. While white-men were dancing on the moon, Scott-Heron felt his own community was being neglected yet taxed in order to support the “Whiteys” on the moon.”
He goes on: “Fast forward to the modern day and we have a Billionaire space race underway. Elon Musk launches his Tesla into orbit, seeks to colonize Mars, and is filling the atmosphere with Starlink satellites. Not to be outdone, on July 11 2021, Sir Richard Branson blasts himself into space, beating Jeff Bezos, who, upon the anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, followed suit by phallically rocketing himself beyond the stratosphere. It’s Billionaire Dick-Swinging pornography forced down the public’s choking throats.”
Bates is a believer that history is very much repeating itself. “While most of the population struggles to make ends meet and pay the bills, in the wake of the worst pandemic in modern times, we again have Gil Scott-Heron’s “Whitey On The Moon” scenario playing out,” he says. “The world is forced to watch the Elite joust, invite their friends, and offer $400,000 tickets to Angelina Jolie and Ashton Kutcher for private flights. There’s something decadent and revolting about the whole enterprise and I uniquely poke fun at it.”
Check out the video for “Whitey On The Moon” below and for more information on Beard Bates, give his page a like on Facebook or follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
