User:Kendallhuston81278/Gypsyphonic Disko

The Beginning
The music group Gypsyphonic Disko is a combination of New Orleans style funk, Klezmer, hip hop, and Balkan music. Gypsyphonic Disko is a partnership between Ben Ellman and Martin Arcenaux (Quickie Mart) that started in 2010. . The duo has had a variety of artists that record with them including: Biggie Freedia, Sissy Nobby, Katey Red, DJ Jimi, Big Tymers, Mannie Fresh, and Birdman. . Gypsyphonic Disko, being a new band, allows both Ben Ellman and Quickie Mart to have side projects. .Ben Ellman, the producer of the group, is the saxophonist for Galactic, as well as the front man for The New Orlean Klezmer Allstars and Galactic. . Quickie Mart still works on solo projects deejaying in Los Angeles and New Orleans. .Gypsyphonic Disko released their debut album “The First Gypsyphonic Disko Mix tape” in January 2010. .Although the band is still in it's early stages, they booked a gig for Bonnaroo, a very popular music festival in June 2010.

= Ben Ellman =

The founder and producer of the band, Ben Ellman, was born in Los Angeles. He did not live there long before moving to New Orleans in 1989. The first introduction to music Ellman had as a child was a three year run in The Little Rascals Brass Band. . It wasn’t until 1991 that he joined another group called The New Orleans Klezmer Allstars. It was a mixture of new jazz and traditional Yiddish tunes. The band hit its peak popularity in 1996, having been well known for their funky music. The band recorded up until 2003, with their last C.D. being Borvis. .The New Orleans Klezmer Allstars continued to tour and had the opportunity of playing at the Voodoo Fest in 2009. . Continuing to perform at shows, or not, is still being decided. In the early 2000's Ellman joined a band called Galactic. He is currently the saxophonist and plays the harmonica for the group. . Galactic has acquired its fame through the many music festivals they have performed at, inlcuding: All Good Festival, Jazz Fest , and Bonnaroo. Ben Ellman and Martin Arcenaux met when Ellman's group Galactic asked DJ Quickie Mart (Martin Arcenaux) to come on tour.

= Martin Arcenaux =

The second member of the group is Martin Arcenaux, also known as DJ Quickie Mart. His love for music came from growing up around the music in bars around New Orleans. After Hurricane Katrina Arcenaux moved to Los Angeles, where he got involved in more gigs and music festivals. His first festival performance was at Bonnaroo in June of 2005. He did not attend 2006's Bonnaroo, but did decide to perform every year after from 2007-2010. The next festival Arcenaux played at was The Voodoo Music Festival. Not only did he perform in 2007, but also in 2010 Another festival Arcenaux performed at was The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, which he played in 2008 and in 2010. This is the most recent festival he's performed at. The record label that Arcenaux is apart of is a small Louisiana based company called The Media Darling Records Hip Hop Collection. After several shows, the label arranged for him to tour with Galactic. This generated the meeting of the artists and start of a new sound

= Present Day =

Most performances made by Gypsyphonic Disko are at bars in New Orleans. Deciding to veer away from the normal, the duo performed at the 2010 Bonnaroo music festival this past summer. This was a success, and due to the increase in technological advertising by facebook and myspace, the group has become more and more popular.[9] This became well know when their album "Gypsyphonic Disko" was released in early 2010 and there were over 30,000 downloads reported. The album was rated by Nerve Magazine as one of the top five albums to listen to. Gypsyphonic Disko's unique sound is constantly changing and bringing in many different fan groups. Quickie Mart and Ellman found and produced a mix between the New Orleans streets jazz and hip hop. This created a new wave of music.