N.A.S.A.

N.A.S.A., re-cast here as "North America/South America," was an intercontinental, multimedia collaboration centered on two North and South American producers. Los Angeles-based Sam "Squeak E. Clean" Spiegel and Brazilian Zé "DJ Zegon" Gonzales each had respective public reputations/day jobs as being the brother of director Spike Jonze and a skateboarder. In the '00s the two began working on a collaborative music project that involved musicians ranging between David Byrne, Kanye West and Sizzla. Their music was primarily rooted in hip-hop but incorporated the sounds and influences of their collaborators: samba, dancehall, R&B, rock, and so forth.

They released The Spirit Of Apollo in 2009. Notable tracks included the baile funk-inspired "Whachadoin?," which featured Spank Rock, M.I.A. and Santogold, and the dark "Way Down," which featured producer-rapper RZA, singer Barbie Hatch and former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante. The physical album had a visual art component with a series of interchangeable covers designed by contemporary artists, like Sage Vaughan, Shepard Fairey, Mark Gonzales, Marcel Dzama and The Date Farmers. The single "Money," which featured musicians spanning genres and continents (David Byrne, Chuck D, Ras Congo, Seu Jorge and Z-Trip), was directed by Syd Garon and Paul Griswold, and featured images by Shepard Fairey. ~Dan Nishimoto

• 21 Jan 2009

  Five artists design covers for N.A.S.A. album

• 19 Nov 2008

  Kanye West, Lykke Li, and Santogold collaborate on single track for N.A.S.A.

• 16 Jul 2010

  "Strange Enough" f. Karen O, Fatlip, and Ol' Dirty Bastard (Video)

• 01 Jul 2010

  "I Wanna Be Your Lover" f. Max Hedrum & Barbie Hatch

• 22 Jan 2010

  "O Pato" f. Kool Kojak & DJ Babao (Video)

• 19 Nov 2009

  "Spacious Thoughts" ft. Kool Keith & Tom Waits (Video)

• 27 Jul 2009

  "Whatchadoin?" ft. M.I.A., Santigold, Spank Rock and Nick Zinner (Video)

• 10 Jun 2009

  "A Volta" ft. Amanda Blank, Sizzla and Lovefoxx (Video)

• 27 Mar 2009

  "Gifted" ft. Kanye West, Santigold & Lykke Li (Video)

• 09 Mar 2009

  "Way Down" ft. John Frusciante, RZA, and Barbie Hatch (Video)

• 17 Feb 2009

  "The People Tree" (feat. David Byrne) (Video)

• 02 Feb 2009

  "Strange Enough" (MP3 ft. Karen O, Ol, Dirty Bastard, and Fat Lip)

• 28 Jan 2009

  N.A.S.A. Music (MP3) ft. Method Man, E-40 & DJ Swamp

• 27 Jan 2009

  The Mayor (MP3) ft. The Cool Kids, Ghostface Killah, Scarface & DJ AM

• 26 Jan 2009

  "Hip-Hop" ft. Slim Kid Tre, Fatlip, and KRS-One (Video)

• 13 Jan 2009

  Whachadoin ft. M.I.A., Santogold, Spank Rock & Nick Zinner (MP3)

• 10 Dec 2008

  Gifted ft. Kanye West, Lykke Li and Santogold (MP3)

• 08 Dec 2008

  Money (ft. David Byrne, Chuck D, Seu Jorge, Ras Congo, and Z-Trip) [Video]

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  N.A.S.A.
  The Spirit of Apollo
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  N.A.S.A.
  Spirit of Apollo