2008 Woodie Awards
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The Scene
Girl Talk turns music, law upside down
By Cameron Conway on 9/24/07
The drone of Boredoms, the soul of James Brown and the erratic bass of OutKast mingled with Jeff Mangum's count-offs and the strings of The Verve last Wednesday at the Black Cat. The venue wasn't host to some bizarre new version of "We Are the World," but packed to capacity for a single performer's set.
This "artist," the legitimacy of whom is disputed, copies other artists' music without prior request or any sign of remorse. He has yet to release a note of music that is genuinely his own, and has the potential to be in serious legal trouble due to copyright infringement as a result. Some of his music could be considered "up and coming," but a large percentage of it is literally decades old.
During his live shows, he can't be bothered to step away from his laptop for the entire performance. Nonetheless, he manages to sell out mid-sized venues all across the country and win over all the critics.
Greg Gillis of Pittsburgh, performing under the alias Girl Talk, may make his music by copying others, but the end product shows an unprecedented level of innovation and mastery. He could be described as a disc jockey, even though he doesn't consider himself one. He would actually be more accurately described as a mash-up DJ - a DJ who uses samples from existing songs to create new ones.
While it's true that all of Girl Talk's music is completely synthesized from existing songs, these sonic mosaics are more precisely constructed than a large percentage of popular music today. He doesn't just "mash" them together either. The precision with which he constructs his songs is almost architectural. The songs flow together phenomenally, essentially turning "Night Ripper," a 16-track album that uses more than 160 samples, into a single 41-minute song.
Another aspect of Girl Talk's music that makes it remarkable is the wide musical spectrum from which he takes his samples. While he samples almost exclusively from popular music, some of his oddball combinations are sure to turn heads and ears. One of his best tracks, "Hold Up," starts with a sample of James Taylor's "Your Smiling Face" backed by a rap beat, which melts from Timbaland to the Pixies, to D4L's "Laffy Taffy" and Internet cult favorite "Peanut Butter Jelly Time," and finally ends with the guitar solo from Weezer's "Say It Ain't So." The mastery with which all of these diverse songs are made into one really strips them of their genres and makes them all seem like great music. This aspect of Girl Talk's music also makes it ridiculously accessible to almost all audiences. Even if the music's appeal initially seems limited to novelty, upon closer examination it becomes obvious how well assembled the randomness is.
This "artist," the legitimacy of whom is disputed, copies other artists' music without prior request or any sign of remorse. He has yet to release a note of music that is genuinely his own, and has the potential to be in serious legal trouble due to copyright infringement as a result. Some of his music could be considered "up and coming," but a large percentage of it is literally decades old.
During his live shows, he can't be bothered to step away from his laptop for the entire performance. Nonetheless, he manages to sell out mid-sized venues all across the country and win over all the critics.
Greg Gillis of Pittsburgh, performing under the alias Girl Talk, may make his music by copying others, but the end product shows an unprecedented level of innovation and mastery. He could be described as a disc jockey, even though he doesn't consider himself one. He would actually be more accurately described as a mash-up DJ - a DJ who uses samples from existing songs to create new ones.
While it's true that all of Girl Talk's music is completely synthesized from existing songs, these sonic mosaics are more precisely constructed than a large percentage of popular music today. He doesn't just "mash" them together either. The precision with which he constructs his songs is almost architectural. The songs flow together phenomenally, essentially turning "Night Ripper," a 16-track album that uses more than 160 samples, into a single 41-minute song.
Another aspect of Girl Talk's music that makes it remarkable is the wide musical spectrum from which he takes his samples. While he samples almost exclusively from popular music, some of his oddball combinations are sure to turn heads and ears. One of his best tracks, "Hold Up," starts with a sample of James Taylor's "Your Smiling Face" backed by a rap beat, which melts from Timbaland to the Pixies, to D4L's "Laffy Taffy" and Internet cult favorite "Peanut Butter Jelly Time," and finally ends with the guitar solo from Weezer's "Say It Ain't So." The mastery with which all of these diverse songs are made into one really strips them of their genres and makes them all seem like great music. This aspect of Girl Talk's music also makes it ridiculously accessible to almost all audiences. Even if the music's appeal initially seems limited to novelty, upon closer examination it becomes obvious how well assembled the randomness is.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Corey Merrill
posted 9/25/07 @ 12:34 PM EST
This guy is awesome, I love his unique ability to create music. Does anybody know what programs he uses to do this?
Dan King
posted 12/11/07 @ 8:05 PM EST
I think the author's claim that Girl Talk is patently illegal is a bit of a stretch. A legal case against him would be interesting because his sampling of songs stretches the current "fair use" standards. (Continued…)
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