Idolator
In February, we posted a handful of MP3s from a mysterious musician named Clutchy Hopkins, a man armed with an impossible-to-believe life story—his bio claims he's a cave-dwelling ex-mystic/revolutionary—and impossibly good instrumental beats. We figured that the whole thing was a ruse, possibly the alter ego of a big-name artist hoping to stir up some viral-marketing chatter (if so, it's working, as Hopkins has already earned a rave write-up on Okayplayer.com). Reader Jason Spitz, however, became obsessed with finding out more about Hopkins, and his Google-sleuthing uncovered two clips from an unreleased Hopkins "documentary," as well six tracks of MF Doom's lyrics over Clutchy's beats. As for the last known whereabouts of Hopkins himself, all Spitz could find were vague reports that the reclusive artist lived as a busking beach bum in Southern California—a convenient and anonymous hiding place for an aging, hirsute musician.
Last week, though, Spitz was approached by "Seth," a tall, boxy man in his late twenties who claimed to be an official Clutchy representative, and who was purportedly in town to take meetings with some indie hip-hop labels. They rendezvoused in a half-empty Silverlake pub and Spitz pressed him for details.
Let's be honest. Is Clutchy Hopkins real?
Yes, Clutchy exists.
Does anyone have contact with him?
He's currently living in a cave in the Mojave Desert. His daughter, Kelly Hopkins, is the only person with direct access to him. Through her, we correspond with Clutchy, and he sends us his tapes and paintings.
When were these tapes recorded? What instruments were used?
We think the tapes so far were recorded in the early 1980s. It's hard to pinpoint exact dates, since Clutchy did all his own recording. All the tracks are live instruments — electric and acoustic guitars, drums, bass, electric piano, melodica, Indian flute, and several homemade percussion pieces.
How do you respond to skeptics who claim Clutchy doesn't exist?
People are skeptical because they think he's too good to be true. Most people have low expectations nowadays. Clutchy's so fresh, they have trouble believing in him.
Clutchy's music has been embraced by some hip-hop fans. What's his opinion of the genre?
He's down with it. Clutchy feels hip-hop is the evolution of funk. He likes old-school, indie, conscious shit. But he's been embraced by other genres, too—jazz-heads, downtempo groove fans. We want his music to reach as many ears as possible.
What will we hear next from Clutchy?
Collaborations with Lord Kenjamin, a street musician from Jamaica. Clutchy met him while studying Rastafari in Kingston in the '70s. The two shared some interests—hand-made instruments and Kumina drum rituals. He and Clutchy laid down tracks before Clutchy left Jamaica, and we plan to release a CD of those tracks by fall.
While "Seth" refused to disclose his real name, he steadfastly denied that he was actually Clutchy himself. He also dismissed the notion that DJ Shadow was behind the whole operation, citing the live instrumentation and lack of loops and samples as evidence. We're extremely skeptical of Hopkins' outrageous back-story, but as long he's knocking out tracks like this, we're not gonna argue too hard:
Clutchy Hopkins and M.F. Doom - Untitled [MP3, link expired]
Clutchy Hopkins [MySpace]
Earlier: Listening Station: Bearded Man Emerges From Cave, Releases Album
Comments
This has gotta be Beasties-related. The "unreleased documentary" on Clutchie's MySpace page feels a lot like Spike Jonez.
coming soon on idolator records?
@TheSkinny: That pic looks like MCA, if you squint.
"He's currently living in a cave in the Mojave Desert."
It's amazing that the generator he must have used to power all of this electronic equipment didn't bleed into the recordings.
The long awaited backpacker/Terrastock burnout crossover.
well that could be palm springs("mojave desert"). i think, probably, in support of the "this is a beasties related hoax," the whole idea that he lives in a cave in that region... an abandoned mine shaft maybe... sounds like the beasties.
the live instrumentation on all the beats points to beasties too - they just announced some shows this summer that were going to feature them playing all live instrumental tracks...
This track's vocals are from MF Doom's "Change the Beat" - I think that makes this more of a remix than a new collaboration, wouldn't you say?
yeah that accapella is on the first single for "viktor vaughn vaudeville villian". and this isn't all that good.
hoaxes are cool, but it sucks when people do their homework so shabbily that it can be debunked within the first 30 seconds by anyone with google (or who took 8th grade social studies):
"clutchy's" bio: travel to Lagos, Nigeria to study with a master percussionist by the name Oba-lu-Funke. During his stay there he became a political revolutionary and gun-runner, and staged rebel missions to fight the oppressive government and its policies of Apartheid.
wikipedia: upon gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria made the liberation and restoration of the dignity of Africa the centerpiece of its foreign policy and played a leading role in the fight against the apartheid regime in South Africa;[16]
it does sound like the Beasties and their half-assed sophomore-year-at-Columbia politics though.
I was all geeked to hear this shit, since I'm a huge MF DOOM supporter and this Clutchy weirdness sounds crazy - but then I listened to the track, and.....
the beats are interesting - that's definitely not the Beasties, it's not Shadow, it's probably just some up & coming digger with nice taste in loops, and of course, MF - I mean Vikter - is always fresh
.....but the beats do not work well with the rhymes AT ALL. No no no. I like the Inhumans' blues version of that track WAAAY better.
Ok, here's my dichotomy of feelings on this...
I'm happy for this cat...he makes nice stuff and I'm sure one of the reasons he ain't famous yet is because that wasn't necessarily on his priority list in a life full of truth seeking and suffering.
But I know ten cats who lived thru fire, are well over thirty, are hella dirty and got stupid skills and they ain't hit the lottery yet.
Collabos with Danny Dumile is like hittin the lottery.
Who's this cat representing him? I want his business card.
Oh, man. I scrolled down just far enough to see the first line of the headline ("An Idolator Quasi-Investigation: Just Who Is This..."), read it as An Idolator Quasi-Intervention:... and thought, Shit! They're on to me!
No, I will not reveal why I might be the subject of a music-related intervention.
Clutchy fam.Its a project that has been put together by a very smart person.I hear Dan the Automator,Madlib,RZA,and Diamond D have all come together to form this madness.
You can only completely find yourself when you find yourself truly lost. The Life of Clutchy Hopkins is only the first of many works to come from this ever-changing legend that has become known as CLUTCHY HOPKINS. We hope you don't sleep on this groundbreaking movement that may just revolutionize the way the world percieves the evolution of funk. Please contact heckler79@msn.com with anything questions, comments, or support. One can only see the light in complete darkness. Diggers never sleep; sleepers never dig.
We've been somewhat intrigued by the whole Clutchy Hopkins mini-investigation that's been going on over at Idolator for the past couple of weeks (see their posts here, here, and here).
Oh lord. It's most certainly WTF day over here at Just Sayin.-OhWord "finds" Cam's Rhyme Book. This is perhaps the greatest piece of orignial rap/art/blog work since their Wu-Tang diorama set or FreeDarko's visual lexicon. Ever want to see the high school journal of a charicatured Killa Cam?
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