BlackBook

Want to brunch with Tumblr founder David Karp? Split an omelette with Vimeo founder Jake Lodwick? Have an espresso with the lead singer of OK Go? Yep, so do I. And maybe someday we will, but for now, we’re getting the next best thing: a video from GE’s two-hour Brilliant Brunch at SXSW, when eight leading creators of all things tech, media, & music came together to dine on waffles, sip Bloody Marys, and tackle how they got started, what challenges them, and how they stay on top.

Veteran performers releasing new material can cause simultaneous rapture and fear, as even in the hope that this will all be totally amazing like all their other stuff, there's still that fear that it just won't measure up to the music you know and love. For every Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! or Old Ideas, there are a million Rod Stewart standards albums. But David Bowie is also David Bowie, and fans and critics alike are already riding for his new album, The Next Day, out March 12th. And now, you can decide how right or wrong they are and listen to the whole thing for free on iTunes until the album's release. 

So it’s the first day of the work week and there are four more days to go. I get it. But why ruminate when you can start to make Mondays the best night of the week? This weekly column is devoted to finding the best events across NYC hosted by individuals and places that are doing amazing, crazy, wild, sexy things on Monday nights. And I am here to honor them. From Tony Award-winning shows to chocolate desserts, here are tonight’s top events.

Instead of ending the year with a slew of Best Of lists, BlackBook asked our contributors to share the most important moments in art, music, film, television, and fashion that took place in 2012. Here, Natalie Alcala writes of the big year for multi-hyphenate wunderkind, Dev Hynes.

It’s possible this sentiment is exclusive to me, but it feels like forever since I got down to a romantic dance ballad that I was head-over-heels happy about. But a catchy tune like “Black & Gold,” with a campy video to match, off of 30-year-old Sam Sparro’s eponymous debut album, is sort of what I’m referring to. 2008 welcomed this Aussie-born, L.A.-raised singer-songwriter to the stage with the record’s release—though he was no stranger to the limelight. Indeed, Sparro got his start as a youngster, singing in the choir and appearing in fast food ads, among other things. The way I see it, this sweet diva was born to be a star.

So it’s the first day of the work week and there are four more days to go. We get it. But why ruminate when you can start to make Mondays the best night of the week? This weekly column is devoted to finding the best events across NYC hosted by individuals and places that are doing amazing, crazy, wild, sexy things on Monday nights. And we’re here to honor them. Here are tonight’s top events.

For our Oct./Nov. issue’s Industry Insider section, we interviewed professional house music DJ Diego Harispe. In the business for over 10 years, Harispe approaches his craft old-school, mixing CDs and vinyls, and weaving the sound into a story. Currently based in Miami where he's found DJing at such spots as Nikki Beach and Mynt, Harispe has DJd across South America (Crobar in Buenos Aires) and Europe, where he honors the local cultures’ music. Here, Diego shares what he thinks a DJ should never do, the one song everyone loves, and what he reminds himself in the midst of success.

The storied New Orleans venue named after the legendary band (turning 50 this year) has made the 2,200-mile haul to Northern California, setting up its first satellite in Mission District: Preservation Hall West at the Chapel.

As their Russian party empire spreads across America (a new Mari Vanna will open soon in LA), it's no surprise Ginza Project invades America's most unapologetic bastion of decadence. Their glamorous NYC karaoke bar Jelsomino has set up shop in the former Areobar space on Miami's Collins Avenue.

Tony winner Lin-Manuel Miranda talks about bringing the hit movie 'Bring It On' to Broadway.