Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Anime Midwest 2012 Announces Random aka MegaRan, Level Boys, and V is for Villains


Lisle, Illinois - March 23, 2012- Anime Midwest 2012 is excited to announce performances by Random aka MegaRan, Level Boys, and V is for Villains at the Anime Midwest 2012 convention. Anime Midwest is a national fan conference (think Comic-Con) that will bring together thousands of attendees for a three-day weekend filled with autograph signings, special guests, an exhibit hall, concerts, costume contests, and events. Anime Midwest will be held July 6-8, 2012 at the beautiful Wyndham Executive Conference Center in Lisle, Illinois. Additional guests are slated to be announced as the convention approaches.

RANDOM (a): Unpredictable, Following no particular pattern, deterministic...a system whose evolution cannot be predicted exactly. Random, aka Random Beats, aka Big Ran personifies what Hip-Hop should be: Spontaneous, fun, and true. Every album conveys a different theme, a different vibe and a different emotion.

Welcome to The Random Experience, where You Are the Music.

Born Raheem Jarbo in Philadelphia to a southern mother and African father, Random’s songs are filled with all of the heartache, pain, triumph, tragedy and fun that come with everyday living. A Philadelphia native and Phoenix transplant, graduate of Penn State University and middle school instructor, Random speaks to the everyman, transcending race or class barriers.”I never want anyone to predict my next move,” he says.

You can, however, expect the unexpected from Random, hence the name. After teaching himself to make beats on the MTV Music Generator software for PlayStation, Random landed a job at a Philadelphia studio as a producer and engineer. During downtime, he would create his first demo tape. This led to Random signing with indie label RAHM Nation Recordings and releasing his debut album, The Call in 2006. Random made waves by going way left of his backpack roots when he released “Mega Ran” in 2007. It was an album completely comprised of sampled 8-bit beats from the hit video game series “Mega Man.”

This led to an unprecedented barrage of work from Ran. The album (and its follow up, Mega Ran 9) virtually exploded after video game corporation CAPCOM offered Random a special licensing agreement, and calling on Ran to perform at Comic-Con and other special events. In 2009, Random signed a deal with Japanese record label River City Records and released RANDOMONIUM, a collection of previously released material. In 2010, Random collaborated with critically acclaimed producer K-Murdock to release FOREVER FAMICOM, a conceptual album paying homage to the 8-Bit NES and 16-Bit Super NES video game consoles.

In 2011, less than a year after the success of FOREVER FAMICOM, Random teamed with AZ producer LOST PERCEPTION to create “Black Materia,” an immense album experience that chronicled the events and story of the classic video game Final Fantasy VII. This album went on to rank in the top 10 of its categories on Amazon and iTunes, beating out mainstream stars such as Kanye West and Lil Wayne. in November, he released the final piece of the Mega Ran trilogy, Mega Ran 10, with CDs and even a special blue vinyl. A month later, Ran released "The Memorandum," a throwback hip-hop experience with AZ hip-hop artist Mr. Miranda. A remixed and remastered version of the Black Materia album was released Jan 31, 2012.

Today, Random is no longer a teacher by title, but still travels the world to entertain and educate through the gift of music. From the clubs and lounges to the packed comic and gaming conventions all over, Random’s music has managed game and movie soundtrack placements and press coverage in Playstation Magazine, Wired Magazine, The Phoenix New Times, URB Magazine, Game Developer, Nintendo Power, and more. Something old..something new...something Random. More about Random can be found at http://animemidwest.com/guests with links to Youtube videos of his most popular music.

The Level Boys are working on their second CD (first official LP), after passing out their first promotional EP at shows like C2E2 and performing. Next Level or NLV, is a label started by K-1 and managed by K-1 and J Rell. K-1 started off just making beats, but soon started rapping. Level Boys can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Levelboys

V is for Villains is a new breed of entertainment. Mixing the visual styles of Steampunk, Carnival and Noir, with the musical taste of Nine Inch Nails, Prodigy, and your favorite film score; V is for Villains will take you on a journey through the imagination that your mother couldn't prepare you for. Most groups often say that they intend for "world domination"...V is for Villains might actually mean it.... Their official website can be found at http://www.visforvillains.com/

Anime Midwest 2012 will converge on the Wyndham in Lisle, Illinois from July 6th to July 8th, 2012, with three full days of unique programming, concerts, exhibits, and events lasting as late as 2am. Attendee registration for the convention starts at just $25 for the entire weekend, which includes access to all convention events. Much of the convention is catered with free rice and soda, included in that price.

Last year's Anime Midwest featured special guests from top-selling, award-winning video games like Portal 2 and Team Fortress, in addition to anime shows like Dragon Ball Z and Soul Eater.

Full information about the convention can be found online at http://animemidwest.com/


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Anime Midwest Press Release

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