James Blake Plots Tibet House Collaborations With Laurie Anderson, Rahzel

Posted on Feb 6th 2012 3:40PM by Theo Bark
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Jerritt Clark, Getty Images

Irreverent up-and-coming hip-hop act Das Racist and dubstep-inspired singer-songwriter James Blake will share the stage with avant-garde legends Philip Glass, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson at the 22nd Annual Tibet House Benefit at Carnegie Hall on Feb. 13.

The lineup, which also features Antony Hegarty, Stephin Merritt and Rahzel, was curated by Glass, who recently celebrated his 75th birthday in commemoration of the Monlam Prayer Festival, which traditionally takes place at the Tibetan New Year.

In preparation for his performance, Blake tells Spinner/RPM that he's taken time off to "hibernate" for the first time since his cover of Feist's 'Limit to Your Love' propelled him to stardom.

"I've had the pleasure of just able to hibernate, really, which is why it's nice that I'm playing this gig," Blake explained. "It will be the first gig that I've played with a real break in between, you know, lots of touring, so we'll see how that effects my voice and how it effects the way I play. Generally it'll just make me feel more inspired."

Blake expressed excitement about sharing the Carnegie Hall stage with some of his experimental heroes, especially Laurie Anderson, whose early forays into electronic music have inspired countless DJs and producers. Surprisingly, however, it was human beatbox Rahzel who garnered the most excitement from Blake.

"I've followed Laurie Anderson for a while and I've got several friends who are really excited about me being able to play with her, and so am I," Blake said. "And Rahzel as well, I was a big fan from the early days, from the Roots and everything he's done, really. It's been really cool."

Proceeds from the benefit will go towards the Tibet House U.S., the Tibetan community of New York and New Jersey and other non-profit organizations. For more information about Tibet House, or to buy tickets, click here.

Watch James Blake Perform 'A Whilhelm Scream' on the BBC

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