Ari Lesser

Hi, my name is Ari Lesser, I'm 23 years old, and I was born and raised in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. I graduated from Cleveland Heights High School, and then from the University of Oregon in Eugene. In case you didn't know the west coast is ground zero for the Hip Hop revolution that will soon be seen sweeping the nation and world. I write and perform intelligent, conscious, and often political Hip Hop. I feel very strongly that the war in Iraq is an unjust war, that there must be a reinvestigation of the September 11 attacks, that George W. Bush cheated to win the presidential election in both 2000 and 2004, and since then has repeatedly lied to the American people, about everything from the Environment, to the War in Iraq, and that the Bush Administration is the worst administration in the history of the United States. Now that the Democrats have regained control on the House and Senate they should attempt to Impeach Bush and his Posse and have them all tried for war crimes. I support Barak Obama in 2008 (I love Kucinich but he doesn't have a chance against the big money). Alongside my conscious lyrics, I have a number of other songs that are meant to make people laugh and entertain them, and do not reflect my values and beliefs. Many of these songs are profane, chauvinistic, hedonistic, and sarcastic. I specifically label them as Ignorance, because (along with almost all mainstream rap you hear on the radio) that is what they are. So if you come across one of my ignorant songs, know that I do not in any way condone drug abuse, sexism, racism, or violence. Rather, these songs are my attempt to show the absurdity of the fact that these are the major themes in most mainstream hip hop. One a side note, my family owns The Funny Times newspaper, which is America's longest running ad-free humor publication, and we have about 75,000 subscribers worldwide. Every month The Funny Times compiles the funniest short stories and cartoons, both political and nonpolitical, from writers and cartoonists around the country. If you're interested in Humor, Politics, and Fun, check us out at funnytimes.com.

Your influences?

Immortal Technique and Sublime are very influential.
Also Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, John Lennon, Afroman, and Rage Against the Machine.

Favorite spot?

Eugene, Oregon and Cleveland, Ohio

Equipment used:

My mouth and brain.

MySpace page: http://www.myspace.com/hiphoprevolution