Jip Jop, Main Squeeze to bring nonstop music

Jip Jop is fine-tuning its hip-hop while The Main Squeeze is preparing to bring the funk. Both bands will be headliners from 10:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. at Saturday’s concert at The Bluebird Nightclub.

“It’s the first time ever on the Bluebird stage there will be two bands headlining,” said Main Squeeze keyboardist Ben “Smiley” Silverstein.

Both bands are originally from Bloomington and both have roots in IU.

Jip Jop takes its name from hip-hop and jazz, said Jip Jop vocalist Ben “Benny Nice”
Gershman.

“Jip Jop is a fusion of jazz, hip-hop, with influences of classical reggae and early Motown,” Gershman said.

Jip Jop first started making music in 2006 when four musicians at IU’s Jacobs School of Music converged with rapper and jazz enthusiast Gershman.  

After the addition of bassist Bobby Wooten III in the fall of 2007, Jip Jop began its movement by performing in fraternity houses, basements and backyards, spreading the word and building a dedicated fan base.

“Jip Jop is a different thing from what I was playing at the music school,” trumpeter Ryan Imboden said. “When I play with Jip Jop we have our music morphed. It’s a party instead of a concert. People are going to have fun with their friends and dance.”

Saturday’s show will mark Jip Jop’s first professional concert.

“We’ve played at Jake’s before, but this is our first real show,” Gershman said. “It’s almost like a genesis of the last few years.”

The concert will be different from other concerts at the Bluebird, since both bands will take turns sharing the stage.

“We will be collaborating a few times with The Main Squeeze, but we won’t both be on stage at the same time,” Imboden said. “There’s going to be a lot of surprises.”

Although The Main Squeeze is influenced by some of the same musical genres as Jip Jop, the band creates a different type of music. While Jip Jop is mostly influence by jazz and hip-hop, The Main Squeeze is influenced by funk, soul and jazz, Silverstein said.

Like Jip Jop, many of the members of The Main Squeeze are from the Jacobs School of Music.  

Silverstein said 80 percent of The Main Squeeze’s music is original and 20 percent is covers. The band’s covers range from soul tracks by Stevie Wonder to more danceable songs by Michael Jackson.

Saturday will be The Main Squeeze’s debut of its first album.

“This is the first time we have original music for sale,” Silverstein said. “The EP has seven tracks and is called ‘First Drop.’ We are really psyched about it.”

People will also be able to download some songs after the concert Saturday,
Silverstein said.

“It’s going to be a hell of a party,” Silverstein said. “There will be nonstop music. It’s going to be a night to remember.”