2uce Betta joins the Rob Bennion Band

It's been great working with 2uce on our collaboration "Robot Dream" (http://www.myspace.com/therobotdream) He is a very talented rapper and singer as well.

My band is going to showcase him so that we can largely expand our repertoire for events that call for dance music, playing current pop, hip-hop and R&B music (and the classics too).

Listen to a sample, our version of Estell and Kanye's :American Boy" notice how smooth 2uce sounds, and Hayley's great R&B stylings: http://www.robbennion.com/mp3s/americanboy.mp3

Robot Dream

After meeting and rehearsals and various brainstorming sessions, I'm happy to announce my new band "Robot Dream" featuring Indianapolis rapper 2uce Betta. Bart Olson, drummer extraordinaire, will be filling out the trio as I play electronic and acoustic wind instruments. Bart and I go back to my junior year in high school when we played in a band called "The Shriners." Since then he's performed all over geographically and musically, performing in a variety of bands, most recently drumming for Ryan Shupe. Here's a link to 2uce Betta's website: http://www.2ucebetta.com

The concept of the group is life through the eyes of a Robot (or "Flo-bot" in this case). Universal themes of unrequited love, anxiety, fitting in, paranoia, and having a great time will be illustrated by 2uce's unique rapping style over Portishead/Massive-Attack style electronica created by acoustic and synth instruments played by Bart and myself. Listen/download a demos of the band here: http://robbennion.com/mp3s/originals/robotdemo.mp3

2uce will also be performing with my regular event band. Over the past year I have performed and DJ'd many events and wedding receptions, and have had many clients request current hip-hop and R&B songs during the dance portion of the event. There is a real demand for a band that can play the current chart-toppers, a band that could do hip-hop and R&B songs which MTV is currently playing.

Together with LA native Hayley Singley and rapper 2uce, my band does what no other Salt Lake city band can do: we play popular R&B and hip-hop music, from classics like Michael Jackson's "Billy Jean", "Rapper's Delight" and the Beastie Boys to current chart-toppers like Beyonce and Jay-Z, Estelle and Kanye West, and the Black Eyed Peas.

Generation Xers are now CEOs, CFOs, and getting married by the droves. This party band, the only one of its kind, can really push the boundaries of live music. Keeping in mind that we are still well-versed in the classics from the Jazz/Blues/Pop American songbook such as the Beatles, Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, and many others. The object is to the dance floor packed.

The Salt Lake Tribune's pop music/pop culture writer recently wrote about the new band: http://blogs.sltrib.com/burger/index.php?p=3208&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

Timpanogos Storytelling Festival Performance

This year again my band is performing at the Timpanogos Storytelling Festival in Orem at the Scera Shell amphitheater. It'll be this Saturday . . . if you're already going to the festival or haven't heard about it, we're performing just before the "Laughing Night" at the Scera shell (outdoors). Its agreat band, with Bart Olson on drums (from Ryan Shupe and the Rubberband and earlier the Shriners if you knew me in high school), Hayley Singley Kirkland (last month she sang the national anthem at an LA Dodgers game, she's the regular singer in my band) and guitarist Kenji Aihara (japanese ninja guitarist master).

We're performing from 6:45 to 8pm. Hope to see you there! Nicolle and the kids will be there as well . . .