2 Skinnee J's

Infobox musical artist
Name = 2 Skinnee J's
Background = group_or_band
Origin = flagicon|USA Brooklyn, New York, USA
Genre = Nerdcore
Geek rock
Years_active = 1991–2003
Label = Capricorn
Dolphins vs. Unicorns
Current_members = Special J
J Guevara
Mikey B
Eddie Eyeball
Lance Rockworthy
Stevie Spice
A.J. Stumpy Johnson
Past_members = Rabbi J-Slim
Joey Viturbo
J. Jonah Jamison
A.Mays
Andy Action
Alan Diggs

2 Skinnee J's is the name of a musical band, sometimes characterized as nerdcore hip hop.

History

Founded in February 1991 by a pair of college friends going by stage names Special J and Rabbi J-Slim; the name of the group is derived from the letters in their names and their similar girths. In May 1995 J-Slim left the band (he now works for the Children's Television Workshop), as did the guitarist, Joey Viturbo. Not long after, most of the horn section disbanded to attend graduate school. There followed a chaotic summer in which J-Slim's spot was filled by J. Jonah Jamison, but Jamison was replaced in September 1995 with the addition of former accordianist J Guevara. 1997 marked the release of the band's first album, "Sing, Earthboy, Sing!", with vocals by both Special J and J Guevara. The album was released by the band's then label, the indie "Dolphins vs. Unicorns."

One of their most famous and influential songs was "Riot Nrrrd" (1998), which would later appear in the movie "Never Been Kissed" (1999). (The term "riot nrrrd", a pun on "riot grrrl", was first used in Douglas Coupland's "Microserfs", to describe someone wearing "Dockers and Gap pocket-T". Whether the name of the song was a deliberate reference to the book is unclear.) "Riot Nrrrd", along with several other songs on their first full-length album, "SuperMercado!" (1998), would later cause MC Frontalot to include them in his list of nerdcore rappers. The album mostly featured playful, nerdy songs about such subjects as Pluto and "Star Wars".

In 2002, their third album, "Volumizer", was finally released after a two-year delay. The tenor was perhaps a bit less intellectual and a bit more serious than "SuperMercado!", but the overall trend remained playful and light. That changed somewhat in 2003 with "Sexy Karate!", which had a slightly angrier, more political tone.

In March 2003, the band announced in their [http://www.2sjmb.com/viewtopic.php?t=229 "farewell newsletter"] that they were soon beginning what they described as an "indefinite hiatus." However, in a 2005 post on the band's official webpage, Stumpy Johnson announced a reunion show on July 18, 2005, the two-year anniversary of the group's final live performance. A small series of shows throughout the northeastern United States was later announced; however, the band confirmed that these were merely "reunion shows" and were not meant to be interpreted as a sign that the band had officially reformed. Stevie Spice has not taken part in any of the reunion shows.

On January 28, 2008, Stevie Spice posted this message on the band's myspace page:

:"Dear 2SJ peeps..."

:"Over the holidays, a golden light shone down from above and it was shaped like Stumpy... I picked up the phone and called an old friend... who called another old friend... who called another. One call led to another and before we all knew it, we were back together fighting over ketchup and eggs in NYC (ok, it was just me and Lance fighting over the ketchup). We all are a little older, larger, and definitely wiser (I hear AJS has exceeded omniscient)."

:"Next summer is the 5 year anni since the last show with the full line up. 10 years since $upermercado. The time for the full fledged reunion has come. To make things complete we even got Action back on drums (B is on sabitical selling his ball swing - no, Eddie didn't help)."

:"August 6 - 11 2008"

:"DC, Norfolk, NYC and two others TBA."

:"Put the request in for time off and book your flights now. Convert your 401Ks into small bills for Stump. And most of all, get ready to ROKK!!!"

The New York City reunion show has been [http://www.rocksoffevents.com/rocksOff/details.asp?showID=1814 announced] . It will take place Saturday, August 9, 2008 at the [http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/00004082EB4466C0?artistid=731505&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=60 Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza] . Other shows announced for the tour include Friday, August 8, 2008 at the NorVa in Norfolk, Virginia and Thursday August 7, 2008 at the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh, NC, Wednesday August 6,2008 at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. A second NYC show will take place on Sunday, August 10, 2008, also at the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza.

The Two Skinnee J's played their first show in over 3 years at the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C. on August 6, 2008. The band played for two hours, one of their longest sets to date. The opening song was '718!', and they concluded the concert with 'BBQ' and 'Sugar & Candy'. Special J announced that this was the first concert in 9 years that the current band members played together.

Members

As of 2003, when the group went on hiatus, 2 Skinnee J's consisted of:
* Special J (MC)
* J Guevara (MC)
* Mikey B (drums)
* Eddie Eyeball (bass guitar)
* Lance Rockworthy (guitar)
* Stevie Spice (trombone, keyboards)
* A.J. Stumpy Johnson (fictional manager)

Discography

Albums

*"Sing, Earthboy, Sing!" 1997
*"SuperMercado!" 1998
*"LIVE BOOTLEG!" 2001
*"Volumizer" 2002
*"Return of the Furious Dragon! Live in St. Louis" 2002
*"Sexy Karate!" 2003
*"Live At the Blue Note 11/14/2000" 2004
*"The Big Green Book Box Set" 2008

ingles

*"6 Songs for 5 Bucks", 1993
*"American Heroes", 1994
*"Return of the New & Improved", 1995
*"Meadow Blaster/Kleen Kitty", 1996
*"Music for the People", 1998
*"Riot Nrrrd", 1998
*"(718)", 1998
*"The Best", 1998
*"The Whammy", 1999
*"Riot Nrrrd (re-released)", 1999
*"Stockholm Love", 2000
*"Grown Up", 2002

External links

* [http://www.2sj.com 2 Skinnee J's website]
* [http://www.2sjmb.com/viewtopic.php?t=942 Post to official message board describing the band's current status]
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:e1apqj2uoj0a~T0 2 Skinnee J's] on AllMusic Guide
* [http://www.archive.org/details/2SkinneeJs 2 Skinnee J's collection] at the Internet Archive's live music archive