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Colin Reuter writes "There are not one but two feature-length documentary films in the works about the burgeoning nerdcore hip-hop scene. Nerdcore Rising from indie company Vaguely Qualified Productions in NY focuses on the founder of the "movement," MC Frontalot, and features MC Hawking, mc chris, Weird Al Yankovic, Brian Posehn, Daily Show personnel, and dozens of aspiring nerdcore rappers from around the country. The competing movie, Nerdcore For Life from Chicago's Crapbot Productions covers many of the same personalities, getting the backstory on more than twenty young nerd rappers including ytcracker, MC++, and Lords of the Rhymes. With two movies duking it out, the print edition of Wired profiling the rappers, and the Associated Press getting onboard, is nerdcore going to turn into a legitimate subgenre? Or will this always be our dirty little secret?"

mc chris, the "beloved" rapper behinds such classics as Fett's Vette and The Tussin in addition to voicing Hesh on Cartoon Networks Sealab 2021 has responded to reader questions. The riveting results are just one click away. You know you want it. And his tour has dates in NC, SC, FL, GA and more. You know you want those too.

yo mc (Score:3, Interesting) by tekunokurato (531385)

Hey mc, we know the generalized geek rapper from the songs, but tell us about YOU. What're the hardware and OS of choice? What kind of characters do you play in D&D? What're your favourite movies/books? Top five all-time desert-island superpowers?

I have a 12 inch mac top, and it's got all the usual programs attached. We made the cartoons on macs with photoshop and protools. so i have all those programs on there as well.

I don't play D&D. I used to when i was little with my brothers, but i wasn't into all the waiting around, I guess I found it boring. I had more fun devising my own version of it, drawing maps, being more creative with it.

A few of my favorite movies are It's a Wonderful Life, Meatballs, Fresh, The Apartment, Double Indemnity, Rear Window. I like the Harry Potter books, and any tale of teenage ennui like The bell jar, or catcher in the rye, or the perks of being a wallflower. I think I'll never shake highschool.

Birthday song (Score:4, Insightful) by kirkb (158552)

Since the 'Happy Birthday' song [snopes.com] is copyrighted, would you consider open-sourcing Hesh's Birthday Song [pod-six.net] under something like the Creative Commons License? I'd rather hear it than the cheezy home-brew birthday songs that restaurants are forced to devise.

I dunno. People ask me to sing it for them at shows because it's their birthday, and I'll try to do it, even though I always mix up the room full friends, mouth full of cake line. there's no feeling worse that letting someone down that knows the lyrics better than you. especially with all the cartoon stuff. it's not my favorite thing that i've done. I don't know why hesh raps. hesh has slowly turned into me over the years.

Whose Voice Work do You Enjoy? (Score:4, Interesting) by ewhac (5844)

Your work on the Adult Swim lineup is much appreciated in our household. But I wondered whose voice work you enjoyed (not necessarily restricted to Williams Street). Who's fun to listen to? Who's fun to work with?

Dave Willis (carl and meatwad) and Dana Snyder (Master Shake) are brilliant. I love watching Dave work, because he'll start out with the scripted line then say it a million times over slowly moving towards a totally different and far funnier line. and as for dana just about everything that comes out of his mouth as shake is funny. I was lucky I got to hear all of their outtakes. and that goes for andy merrill too. I used to cut his reads up in protools. that guy likes to swear and burp, in character.

Hey chris... this is NOT how PAX will be... (Score:4, Interesting) by (PA)Storm Shadow (863825)

Making music for the Nerdcore seems problematic to me. Namely, I don't think that one would be able to put forth a bunch of intellectual property on the internet and expect this group to actually pay for it. Are you 'making it' on the take from the door at your gigs alone? (Hat's off on leaving your day job and giving it a go in either case). Do you feel pressured to put forth a conventional full-length CD for your fans, or will you continue to offer up shorter, sweeter groups of songs for free on your website?

The albums will get longer and you'll have to buy them, but I plan to make some online only songs just so I don't lose internet street cred. I'd like to do that with a cover album since we could never afford to charge people for it.

Music and computers (Score:3, Interesting) by adeydas (837049)

Since you are a musician, you must be using computers for your musical needs. Do you trust Open Source or Propriety software for that?

Also for general computing, what do you use? Can you cite your reasons for the same?!

My dj, John, makes the music on protools with a variety of plug ins. I don't really understand how it works, but I know the sound improves daily. He's constantly seeking out way to improve the sound, which is great for me. We both used macs. I've got a 12 inch lap top, he's got a G5 and 15 inch laptop. We use macs because the industry uses macs, both television and music. and pc's are lame.

Real Question. (Score:3, Interesting) by hot_Karls_bad_cavern (759797)

Did you get to spend much time with the late Harry Goz?

(Harry was Captain Murphy on Sealab, amongst many other things). What are your thoughts on him? Will we see more work with AdultSwim in the future?

I only spent one day with him really. My first day of recording. I was very nervous and I think someone had a hangover so Harry suggested some tea with some jack daniels in it. he was a really nice old guy, very professional and very funny. He was such a strong part of the show, things just weren't the same afterwards. his wife said he was very happy to go out being as popular as he was on sealab. so it was cool that he left us in style.

If presented with an actual musical instrument... (Score:4, Interesting) by smitty_one_each (243267) *

could you play it?

no. I wish I could play piano but no such luck. it's the one thing I can't do. And I wonder if I'll ever try. I feel like writing, drawing, acting and rapping is plenty for one man's plate.

Adult Swim Ties? (Score:3, Interesting) by astyanax (8365)

How about some more computer raps? "Ratz" and "Boy's dont cry" are the closest I've heard of your work to a computer-related song, any chance of getting some Linux-related rhymes? :)

I think the songs will reflect the fan base as well as what i'm going through in my life. I'm not as hardcore a nerd as people want to think I am. I'm much more of a loser. I try to listen though and get to know my fans and what they're into and then put it into the songs to an extent. I think that being solely about geek stuff like computers is dangerous though, because then you get pidgeonholed. the music is mainly about me not so much the scene.

I'll be in Ann Arbor, but what about lip syncing? (Score:4, Interesting) by ian rogers (760349)

It says on your website that you have a meeting about preserving your voice, is this a joke? Are you really having problems or foreseeing problems with your voice? Am I going to see an SNL Ashlee Simpson type ordeal happen at your show at the Blind Pig?

The jist of it is, is that I smoke too much weed which is bad for my vocal chords. but after every show kids try to smoke me up. Any blue blooded stoner would love this charity, but I've learned to get the bulk of the shows done before I start indulging. This next tour is for a straight month, so I'll be gettin the shaky hands I'm sure. And I'll never lip synch. I'm very serious about performing. and letting people see and hear that I can do these songs live.

Hard to work with? (Score:4, Funny) by myowntrueself (607117) Is Master Shake hard to work with?

I think I answered this one. Dana Snyder is one of the nicest and funniest guys in the universe. One time we were all at the Claremont Lounge in Atlanta and I showed up and he was just visiting, and he pulled out a chair for me and made me sit next to him, and we caught up. he's way cooler than me and doesn't have to treat me as nice as he does, but he does and it's cool. He's the opposite of Master Shake.

What I want to know is... (Score:4, Interesting) by th3space (531154)

Why is it that MC Pee Pants gets absolutely no respect from Satan, whereas the WisdomCube/Dubmassahedron does? To me, MC Pee Pants, while not as intelligent as the aforementioned geometric characters, is vastly more entertaining than that lot.

I think Satan likes to torture Pee Pants. Is it a surprise to anyone that Satan is cruel and vindictive? Wait till you see what he does to me next.

Question (Score:4, Interesting) by vincent404 (588127)

How did you start your act? also When and how did you get into voice acting?

I just got discovered in a bar, by Dave Willis, creator of athf and the voice of carl and meatwad. Adam Reed was with him and they both kinda snatched me up. I don't know what it was about that night that screamed, "get this kid in cartoons!" but it was one of those life changing evenings I have no recollection of because I was hammered. people ask me how to get into voice acting, and I tell them to learn to drink a pint of beer in under five seconds. that's how it worked for me.

Your Real Voice? (Score:4, Interesting) by Laebshade (643478) I know some voice actors, for example, use their natural voices for cartoon characters (Bugs Bunny, etc.). When you rapped, as MC Pee Pants (or Sir Loin) for ATHF, was that your natural voice? If not, can you post a clip of your real voice?

my voice is much lower in real life, like james earl jone's. I use the high pitched version to get on tv (and get laid.)

my honest question ... (Score:4, Funny) by YankeeInExile (577704) *

Who the fuck are you, and why do I care?

No one special and you obviously don't. Nice use of the word, "fuck," though.

Re:Who? (Score:5, Interesting) by Golias (176380)

Any chance of your newer songs becoming available on iTMS?

I dunno what that is. So i'll say yes.

Many of you are no doubt familiar with the works of mc chris. He's probably most well known as the high pitched rapper on the track 'Fett's Vette' that you probably have an MP3 of somewhere. In addition to several highly entertaing albums, he's also the voice of MC Pee Pants (Aqua Teen Hunger Force) and Hesh (Sealab 2021). He's now touring, but you better already have tickets since he sold out his first 8 shows (including my local venue. The wife is very unhappy with me for not getting tickets in time). He'll also be performing at the Penny Arcade Expo later this year. This is your chance to ask him those burning questions. Standard Slashdot interview rules apply: Ask here, and we'll pick from the best of them and then wait patiently for Chris to bless us with his words.

Corvus writes "Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research has written a paper proposing a system giving everyone a voucher which they could use to support the creative artist/writer/etc of their choice, as a way of avoiding the intrusiveness and inefficiency of the current copyright system." I'm sure I'd use mine on MC Chris.