Rockin' And Rollin' With The Bots
Greetin’s, Hip Hapa Homeez! Welcome back to Watermelon Sushi World. Your Hip Hapa missed you last week, but she’s making up for it by introducing you to TWO righteously talented guests this week.
The pix above and below are of The Bots, Afro-Caribbean-Asian brothers and Cali cuties with their own band. After you read the Q&A, check out their links below. Aren’t they precious? Thank you, Renee Tecco of Sweet Rice Chronicles for the heads up.
Respect, respect.
Q: What are two nice, mixed-race boys like you doing in a band named The Bots?
A: Well, we thought the name was catchy. It’s not short for robots and is not associated with robots. We used robots on our first album to go with the theme.
Q: How did you get your exotic birth names?
A: Our mother and father are Rastafarians and took our names out of the Holy Bible. Anaiah is 13. His name means ‘Jehovah has answered’. Mikaiah is 16. His name means ‘Who is like unto Jehovah’.
Q: Where and how did your Chinese father and Afro-Caribbean mother meet?
A: Our parents met at The Rastafarian Organization of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. It’s the same religious organization Bob Marley was a member of. Our dad said he made a beeline for our mom when he first laid eyes on her. They exchanged numbers and, you know the rest.
Q: What kind of lifestyle does your family have?
A: We were raised with both cultures. We are not fluent in Chinese, but it’s spoken by our grandparents and we understand most of it. We have not been to Carnival, but we are aware of it. Our mom was raised in the states.
Q: How would you describe your sound?
A: Rock and indie rock.
Q: What! No reggae?
A: It takes a couple of people to play reggae. We do play around with it, though.
Q: How did you choose your instruments?
A: We play multiple instruments, and over seven instruments each. They were the only reasonable things to play in a rock and roll band, so we decided Mikaiah should play guitar and Anaiah drums.
Q: Who writes your songs, and who decides what you’re going to play?
A: We write all of our songs, and Anaiah decides which songs to play when we perform.
Q: Do you two always get along even when you’re not playing music?
A: Yes, we get along because our parents would not have it any other way. We love each other very much. Of course, we sometimes argue like brothers do, but it’s quickly quashed.
Q: Was your album “Self-Titled Album” released on July 25 as planned?
A: Not officially, but it began to stream on the Internet last summer in July.
Q: How often do you rehearse, and when do you get your homework done?
A: We rehearse mostly on the weekends, both days, and when we sometimes squeeze time in on the weekdays after we are done with homework. We are required by our parents to bring home all A's and B's, and we do get good grades. When we are not doing homework, we write as we are working on our next album.
Q: It looks like your schools (Glendale High School and Roosevelt Middle School) have been very supportive of your music education. How important is it to get an early start?
A: Important because you can get better with time.
Q: Who are your favorite musical artists?
A: We like Attic Monkey, Arcade Fire, Bad Brains, A7X, and Yeah Yeah Yeah's just to name a few. There are too many to mention.
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Here are The Bots’ upcoming gigs, shows, and tours:
Emergenza Festival at The Joint, Beverly Hills, April 2
The Strange on Melrose, April 7
Glendale (battle of the bands), April 17
Afro Punk Tour, June 25 (three weeks)
Warped Tour, August 11-15
The Bots Official Website:
The Bots Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Bots/93384124079?ref=mf
The Bots MySpace:
http://www.myspace.com/thebotsband
YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/user/haiakim
Afro Punk:
http://afropunk.ning.com/profile/TheBots
IMRadio:
http://www.imradio.com/?f=artists_view&id=4894
Vans Warped Tour 2010 – THE BOTS Profile:
http://www.vanswarpedtour.com/warpedtour/band.asp?xid=24343
Irie. While you’re checking out The Bots’ links and things, don’t forget to become a Watermelon Sushi film fan on Facebook. As long as you’re cruisin’ there, go to the Hip Hapa Homeez Group page and join to stay updated on the latest news about blendies, hapas, interracial adoptees, and mixies. Buy a Hapa*Teez t-shirt and not only earn a rear crawl credit on the Watermelon Sushi film, but see your photo on the Hip Hapa Homeez Group page in weekly rotation. If you’ve made a purchase, contact us so we can give you your prize.
Until two weeks from now, I promise to always be
Your Hip Hapa,
Yayoi