MEN (band)

JD Samson & MEN was a Brooklyn-based band and art/performance collective that focuses on the energy of live performance and the radical potential of dance music. MEN spoke to issues such as trans awareness, wartime economies, sexual compromise, and demanding civil liberties. The collective disbanded in late 2014.

This article is about the band and art/performance collective. For other bands of this name (including the unrelated punk rock band also from Brooklyn), see The Men.
JD Samson & MEN
MEN performing at the Commodore Ballroom.
Background information
OriginNew York City, New York, USA
GenresElectropop
LGBT music
Years active2007–2014
LabelsMEN Make Music
Sony Records
Columbia Records
Iamsound Records
Trouble Records
Websitehttp://www.menmakemusic.com
MembersJD Samson
Michael O'Neill
Tami Hart
with
Johanna Fateman
Emily Roysdon
Past membersGinger Brooks Takahashi

History

The group began in 2007 as the DJ/production/remix team of Le Tigre members JD Samson and Johanna Fateman. When the duo began to write new songs, it made sense to merge their efforts with JD's other new project, Hirsute. JD and original Hirsute members Michael O'Neill (Princess, Ladybug Transistor) and Ginger Brooks Takahashi (LTTR, The Ballet) then comprised the core of MEN, with Johanna Fateman and artist Emily Roysdon contributing as writers, consultants, and producers.

In 2009 MEN self-released an EP called MEN that sold out following US tours with Peaches and Gossip. MEN also toured in the UK and Europe during this time. Their debut album Talk About Body was released on February 1, 2011 via Iamsound Records in the US and through Sony/Columbia in Europe. With the release of the album, Takahashi was subsequently replaced by Tami Hart.[1]

Until the spring of 2012, the band was known simply as MEN, but changed the name to JD Samson & MEN for clarity and to emphasize the collaborative nature of the musical efforts on record and on stage.[2]

In response to the arrest of members of the Russian feminist punk rock protest group Pussy Riot in 2012, JD Samson & MEN released a single and music video entitled Let Them Out Or Let Me In. JD Samson has been an active member and spokesperson of the Free Pussy Riot movement.[3]

JD Samson & MEN released their second studio album, Labor, in October 2013, preceded by the release of two singles from the album including "All The Way Thru", for which they teamed up with French producer Yuksek. Like their 2012 EP Next, this album was self-released on the MEN Make Music label.

In late 2014, Samson decided to dissolve the MEN collective and move on to other projects.[4]

Discography

Albums

EPs
  • MEN - (MEN Make Music) June 25, 2009
  • Next - (MEN Make Music) February 21, 2012[7]

Singles
  • "Credit Card Babies" - (Trouble Records) September 6, 2010[8]
  • "Off Our Backs" - (Iamsound Records) November 9, 2010[9]
  • "Who Am I To Feel So Free" - album version/Antony version - February 14, 2011
  • "Let Them Out or Let Me In" - non-album single - October 1, 2012
  • "All the Way Thru" - August 20, 2013[10]
  • "Making Art" - September 17, 2013[11]
  • "Club Thang" - November 12, 2013
JD Samson performing with MEN at the Commodore Ballroom

References
  1. Rathe, Adam (8 March 2011). "Are We Not MEN?". New York Press. Archived from the original on September 16, 2012. Retrieved 2011-03-08. the band has big plans for its future—which includes musician Tami Hart in place of Takahashi.
  2. "Top40-Charts.com". Top40-Charts.com. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
  3. Cragg, Michael (2012-10-01). "New music: MEN – Let Them Out Or Let Me In". The Guardian. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
  4. Norris, John (January 10, 2015). "JD Samson's Life After MEN". Vice.com. Archived from the original on September 19, 2019.
  5. Breihan, Tom (22 November 2010). "New Release: MEN: Talk About Body". Pitchfork. Pitckfork Media. Retrieved 2011-01-20.
  6. Mirk, Sarah (2013-09-30), "JD Samson Talks About Her New Album and Being an Activist Artist", Bitch Magazine
  7. "Top40-Charts.com". Top40-Charts.com. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
  8. Charig, Josh (13 September 2010). "Credit Card Babies review". www.music-news.com. Retrieved 2010-09-13.
  9. "IAmSound Records-MEN". IAMSOUND Records. Archived from the original on 2011-01-23. Retrieved 2011-02-20.
  10. "MEN release song from upcoming album Labor". www.drunkenwerewolf.com. Retrieved 2013-11-01.
  11. "Making Art". www.menmakemusic.bandcamp.com. Retrieved 2013-11-10.
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