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Jesse Valencia | |
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Birth name | Jesse Michael-Geronimo Valencia |
Origin | Phoenix, Arizona, US |
Genres | Indie rock, Psychedelic rock, Alternative rock, power pop, folk |
Instrument(s) | Guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, piano, drums, harmonica |
Years active | 2001–present |
Jesse Michael-Geronimo Valencia is an American musician, author, actor, and founding member of the band Gorky.
Valencia's family moved to Show Low, Arizona when he was 15 years old. He graduated from Show Low High School. [1] Valencia attended Northern Arizona University where he earned an undergraduate degree in humanities in 2011. He also received two master's degrees there, one in English – Creative Writing in 2014, and other in English – Literature in 2015. [2] He has also served in the military police for the U.S. Army. [1]
Valencia founded the Indie rock band Gorky as a solo project in Show Low, Arizona in 2001. Drummer Ben Holladay joined the band in 2002. Gorky currently consists of its two founding members and bassist Crabdree and guitarist Benjamin Turner [3] The band has self-released three studio albums. The third album was recorded during Valencia's first semester at the David Lynch Graduate School of Cinematic Arts after learning the Transcendental Meditation technique, and released in April 2019 to coincide with the release of his debut nonfiction book, Keep Music Evil: The Brian Jonestown Massacre Story. Also in April, Gorky embarked on a short tour in support of Mathemagician, where Valencia hosted author events and read excerpts from his book. [4]
In 2019, Valencia published the book Keep Music Evil: The Brian Jonestown Massacre Story, a history of The Brian Jonestown Massacre band. [6] The book was featured in the Editors picks of a 2019 Vogue magazine. [7]
Valencia made his on-screen acting debut in the 2016 independent crime drama Durant's Never Closes, and later appeared in the art horror Bride of Violence and post-apocalyptic short film The Mad Man Of Miami. [8] In 2019, he enrolled in the David Lynch Graduate School of Cinematic Arts for their screenwriting program at the Maharishi University of Management. [1] [9]
As early as 2017, to promote Gorky's in-development musical film In The Land Of Good Oaks, Valencia began pushing the idea of a Sitgreaves County secession movement in the southern parts of Navajo and Apache Counties to local Republican groups in Northeastern Arizona. In the story of 'Good Oaks', the character Valencia was to play, Rhys Diaz, was similarly the creator of such a county. The stunt only made it as far as the local newspaper. From 2018 to 2020, as Valencia was in the David Lynch Graduate School of Cinematic Arts MFA in Screenwriting Program developing the screenplay to the film, 'Sitgreaves County' grew from a fizzled publicity stunt to a full-blown populist movement. During this time, Valencia successfully lobbied Rep. Walter Blackman and Sen. Wendy Rogers to each introduce their own Sitgreaves County study committee bills into the Arizona Legislature. [10]
In 2021, Valencia pulled the plug on the final Sitgreaves County bill and revealed his intentions of promoting himself, Gorky, and the film after Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez and Vice President Myron Lizer issued a formal letter to Governor Doug Ducey appealing to him to veto the bill if it passed, as the Navajo leadership interpreted any Sitgreaves County bill as being racist legislation directed against them. [11] [12]
After issuing an official apology to the Arizona State and Tribal Governments, Phoenix Magazine and The Arizona Republic released articles about the Sitgreaves County publicity stunt. Valencia subsequently released Gorky's 7th album "Sitgreaves County" on July 3, 2021. [13]
David Keith Lynch is an American filmmaker, painter, visual artist, musician, actor and philanthropist. Lynch has received critical acclaim for his films, which are often distinguished by their surrealist, dreamlike qualities. He has received numerous accolades, including the Golden Lion in 2006 and an Honorary Academy Award in 2019. In 2007, a panel of critics convened by The Guardian announced that "after all the discussion, no one could fault the conclusion that David Lynch is the most important film-maker of the current era."
Flagstaff is the county seat of Coconino County, Arizona, in the southwestern United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 76,831.
Navajo County is in the northern part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, its population was 106,717. The county seat is Holbrook.
St. Johns is the county seat of Apache County, Arizona, United States. It is located along U.S. Route 180, mostly west of where that highway intersects with U.S. Route 191. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 3,480.
Heber-Overgaard is a census-designated place (CDP) in Navajo County, Arizona, United States. Situated atop the Mogollon Rim, the community lies at an elevation of 6,627 feet (2,020 m). The population was 2,898 at the 2020 census. Heber and Overgaard are technically two unincorporated communities, but as of the 1990 census, their proximity led to the merged name of "Heber-Overgaard".
Lori Ann Piestewa was a United States Army soldier killed during the Iraq War. A member of the Quartermaster Corps, she died in the same Iraqi attack in which fellow soldiers Shoshana Johnson and Piestewa's friend Jessica Lynch were injured. A Hopi, Piestewa was the first Native American woman to die in combat while serving in the U.S. military and the first woman in the U.S. military killed in the Iraq War. Arizona's Piestewa Peak is named in her honor.
Linden is an unincorporated community located in Navajo County, Arizona, United States, just west of the city of Show Low. It is situated atop the Mogollon Rim at an elevation of over 6,000 feet. The community was evacuated in June 2002 due to the Rodeo-Chediski fire, which eventually consumed part of Linden, destroying a number of homes.
Alpine is a census-designated place in Apache County, Arizona, United States, in Bush Valley in the east central part of the state. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 145. It is located near the eastern border of the state.
Collin Hegna is a Portland, Oregon-based musician, composer, and recording engineer. Hegna founded the Spaghetti Western–themed indie rock combo Federale and remains their principal songwriter. In addition, he has played bass with The Brian Jonestown Massacre since 2004.
Black Canyon Lake is a lake in Navajo County, Arizona, United States.
"Drinking the Kool-Aid" is most strongly believing and accepting in a deadly, deranged, or foolish ideology or concept based only upon the overpowering coaxing of another; the expression is also used to refer to a person who wrongly has faith in a possibly doomed or dangerous idea because of perceived potential high rewards. The phrase typically carries a negative connotation. It can also be used ironically or humorously to refer to accepting an idea or changing a preference due to popularity, peer pressure, or persuasion. In recent years, it has evolved further to mean extreme dedication to a cause or purpose, so extreme that one would "drink the Kool-Aid" and die for the cause.
The David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace is a global charitable foundation with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, and Fairfield, Iowa. It was founded by film director and Transcendental Meditation (TM) practitioner David Lynch in 2005 to fund the teaching of TM in schools. Over the years it has expanded its focus to include other "at-risk" populations such as the homeless, U.S. military veterans, African war refugees and prison inmates.
Federale is an American psychedelic rock ensemble based in Portland, Oregon. Their cinematic musical style draws inspiration from European genre films such as Spaghetti Westerns and giallos, with a notable emphasis on the compositions of Ennio Morricone.
Dig! is a 2004 American documentary film about the collision of art and commerce through the eyes of The Dandy Warhols and The Brian Jonestown Massacre, focusing on the developing careers and the love-hate relationship of the bands' respective frontmen Courtney Taylor-Taylor and Anton Newcombe. It was shot over seven years and compiled from over 2,500 hours of footage. It won the Documentary Grand Jury Prize at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by the Museum of Modern Art for their permanent collection.
Lashana Lynch is a British actress. She is best known for playing the role of Rosaline Capulet in the ABC period drama series Still Star-Crossed (2017), Maria Rambeau in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films Captain Marvel (2019), Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), and The Marvels (2023), MI6 agent Nomi in the James Bond film No Time to Die (2021), and as Izogie in The Woman King (2022).
The Rattlesnake Fire was a wildfire that burned 26,072 acres (10,551 ha) in Navajo and Greenlee Counties, in Arizona. The fire was detected on April 11, 2018, on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation and spread onto the San Carlos Indian Reservation and Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests over the following four days. Fanned by high winds, the Rattlesnake Fire spread rapidly until it was contained on May 1. The fire continued to burn within containment until May 27. No structures were damaged or destroyed by the fire, but 15 firefighters were injured. Investigators suspected the cause of the fire was human activity, but it was never determined with certainty.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre is an American rock band led and started by Anton Newcombe. It was formed in San Francisco in 1990.
On March 17, 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was reported to have reached the Navajo Nation. The virus then spread rapidly through the Navajo Nation to the point that the Navajo, in 2020, had a higher per capita rate of infection than any state of the United States. The population according to the 2010 United States census was 173,667. As of September 13, 2022, the number of confirmed cases was 31,571 with 1,893 deaths.
Sihasin is a Diné band consisting of brother and sister duo, Clayson and Jeneda Benally. The band's name, "Sihasin", translates to "hope" in the Diné language. The band is from Flagstaff, Arizona, and their music is based in Diné culture, activism and punk rock.
Jim Jones was a cult leader who on November 18, 1978, orchestrated the mass murder suicide of 909 members of his commune in Jonestown, Guyana. Since the events of the Jonestown Massacre, a massive amount of literature and study has been produced on the subject. Numerous documentaries, films, books, poetry, music and art have covered or been inspired by the events of Jonestown. Jim Jones and the events at Jonestown has had a defining influence on society's perception of cults. The widely known expression "Drinking the Kool-Aid" originated in the events at Jonestown, although the specific beverage used at the massacre was Flavor Aid rather than Kool-Aid.