Rumpus

When Rumpus first heard about High Definition, we were immediately ready to crap with joy. From what we’d heard of the duo (comprised of rapper/Yale Golf Team member Carson Weinand DC’13 and a guy name Bradley from some school in Florida), we completely thought we’d been given a double dose of Jamie Kennedy in Malibu’s Most Wanted. Naturally, Rumpus could not resist the opportunity to get to know the Yale half of the duo, Carson Weinand to get the skivvy on the creators of “Champagne Room.” and “Rich and Famous.” However, though we were prepared to interview a Wack Miller Vanilla Woods wannabe, we learned that not only are the High Definition tracks sick, but minds behind the music are pretty cool:

Do you think that you’re better than the best white rappers on the streets, Eminem and Vanilla Ice?

I’d like to think it’s more like Vanilla Ice
But… you golf…Have you at least ever been shot? All the good rappers have been shot….

I’ve played golf since I was three. I got recruited from the damn golf team. I wish I had a struggle story. I wish I could say I got shot 18 times—-but I shoot 18 holes. I used to write rap lyrics walking down the fairway on the back of a scorecard in the middle of a tournament.

What made you decide to start rapping?

I never decided, it fell into my lap. It wasn’t like, “Yo, I wanna be Eminem or yo I wanna be Mac Miller, gotta get tattoos all over my body—that’d be great and all, but it was simpler than that. Bradley and I started in high school senior year. I had a shitty mic in my closet and we messed around just for fun. We’d get these horrible instrumental quality tracks from the internet and I dunno, we just started.

How did you get started?

We wrote all the songs out before, rehearsed them, and then went to a professional studio in Orlando. It’s a very time consuming process, but if you love doing it, it doesn’t matter.

So the other half of High Def is back in Florida. Is having a long distance relationship hard?

It’s really tough, no homo, but yea, I miss Brad! We text and talk a lot, sometimes Skype. Half of what we talk about is music and coordinating what we can do with it: “Yo you hear that new Drizzy? That Mac Miller shit? Chyeeeaaa boi!” You know.

Do you feel a battle of passions between golf and rap?

No! They’re totally independent of each other. I play golf and that’s a huge part of who I am, but so is rapping. In fact I have a song for the golf team, you can check it out on Youtube.

…We’ll do that….

Do you suffer from #whiteboyproblems?

A lot of people think we’re some rich, white kids that pay the blogs to talk positively about us and that’s not true. We don’t pay the blogs shit to do anything. We send them the songs and they do what they want with it. Besides, what does being white and so called rich have to do with anything? Bottom line: Let’s smoke and listen to my tracks

HEAR HEAR!

Tell us about your new album, “It’ll be Okay”

Yea we’re proud of the album. It’s named after the title track, “It’ll Be Okay,” for which we have a music video. We recorded nine tracks over the summer. The majority of the songs are party tracks, but some tracks try to take it deeper and really express ourselves. We’ve definitely grown from our first album musically and lyrically, so go get that shit! It’s on iTunes!

So now that you’re finally famous on campus, when’s the tour?

We’re not famous yet! (laughs) But that’s the bitch about being separated—we can’t do shows. But we are gonna try and do Battle of the Bands and open for Spring Fling.

What do you want to say to all the haters?

Listen, we love what we do. Yea I play golf, yea we’re white, but that’s not important. It’s all about the music at the end of the day! Obviously you can be whatever race and rap—I think I’ll be better at rap than Tiger Woods will ever be at golf because I put my heart and soul into it. And leave the hoes alone.

Well said Mr. Weinand. There it is folks, much to our chagrin, High Definition is not a duo of wannabes rocking argyle and khakis stuffed up their ass cracks (although Carson does wear it at practice– “I got that good argyle from grandma. I owe her a track…”). They may be new on the scene, but their tracks are hot, so buy their shit so they take Itunes’ top spot!

They’re latest album It’ll Be Okay is available on iTunes and shiyat

After seeing this youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x70pWpIDqGs&feature=player_embedded, Rumpus was intrigued.

We know about some fairies among at Yale, we know that some are hidden (1 in 4, definitely more…) but to think that there may be real fairies- ones with wings and glitter that don’t come off in the shower, wow. Just wow.

We have found the man who can help us find these nature spirits. And we implored him to teach us more, only to be rejected. So nature spirits please help us find you by helping us find a way to have this man help us find you. find you.

This is how he rejected us the first time:

—-

Dear Messenger Valentine.

I recently became very interested in the Nature Spirits.  I currently attend Yale University, where unfortunately there are many disbelievers in the reality of these Magical Beings.  To spread the Good Word and Truth of The Matter, I would like very much to interview you for a campus publication and contingent upon the positive reception of the article possibly come to speak here as well.

Let me know if you might be interested in helping me spread The Word.

Thank you,
Melanie

—–

Rumpus is uniquely qualified to tell you about all the things that can screw up your upcoming school year, because- let’s be honest- we’ve done all of them. We ended our freshman year broke, broken up with, and broken out. And also naked. We thought you’d like to avoid our mistakes… or not, whatever you want.

1. Drinking and Partying

If this isn’t your first question for us, then that is your first mistake. Drinking and partying always come first in college. They come before coursework, working out, waking up, relationships, and remembering your mom’s birthday. You may not have a lot of experience with alcohol from high school. You don’t quite know its full potential. Your first step is to find out your limits so that you can exceed them every single time. You want to push on past corner spectator, past funny drunk, and into passed out wino in a bush. If you don’t wake up with fuzzy memories and leaves in your hair, you could have done better.

But when to implement this lifestyle, you ask?

The answer is simple. Despite the fact that you will become a raging alcoholic, always start out the year saying that you’re “never going to drink” and that you “can have fun without alcohol.” Wait until Freshman Screw, when you need just a sip to calm your nerves because your suitemates notice that you look frantically nervous. You’re also worried about being awkward around a girl that you’ll probably end up making-out with, throwing up on, and then avoiding eye contact with every day in Intro Psych. You manage to take fifteen shots in fifteen minutes, and pass out in the bush you will come to call your own. Even become a psych major and live in said bush for three years after college paying off debts.

2. Forgetting Names

Don’t remember anyone’s name. You’re going to meet so many people, it just isn’t worth the effort. Don’t bother stalking or asking one of your suitemates, you’ll just forget again. Assume her name is Sarah or Jennifer, and shout it out repeatedly while drunk. Even introduce her as Sarah. Don’t listen to protests from her or her friends- chicks dig it when they think you’re a playa. Then ask her out. She’ll imply that you’re an asshole and unattractive. Tell yourself she was just intimidated by you. Rinse and repeat. When the next Jennifer rejects you, forget Yale girls and target Q-Packers. Eventually realize you’re an unattractive asshole and become depressed for a few days. Then realize you can just stick to calling people really awesome nicknames like “Big Country,” “Frog,” or “Googoo.”

3. Clubs

At college, there is the overbearing existence of these whimsical and sometimes threatening clubs. Imagine a scary movie where a supporting character hears a voice from a distant door at the end of the dim hallway whispering “Come.” Of course, everyone watching the movie realizes that the voice is probably a possessed demon-child. Still, the character walks in and… dies. Do you want to be that supporting character? If yes, then push the whole “extracurricular” envelope and end up in a cult-like political party arguing over issues that do not matter in the real world. Pretend they do matter and become really passionate about them… never returning to reality.

4. Random Hook ups

Random hook ups should be the only reason you leave our dorm room each weekend. Go to any of the frats or Toad’s, which actually includes a “hook-up guarantee” in its $5 admission Saturday nights. The following morning, be especially sure to be seen by your college master on your walk of shame. Ultimate goal: to lose your pants and run into your last night’s hook up giving a campus tour… who decides it would be fun to ask you, “Why did you choose Yale?”

This is why I chose Yale. Good luck freshmen.