PSFK Author:
KatieSherman

As an encore to their Reebok partnership earlier this year, Kool-Aid is moving its urban focus to a new partnership with hit reality TV star and original member of Run-D.M.C., Joseph Simmons (aka Rev Run).  The collaboration aims to showcase the drink’s four new reformulated products and one new product that meet the company’s “better-for-you Sensible Solution guidelines” - essentially reducing the sugar content of the drinks.
The partnership will build 24 playgrounds nationwide to support the idea of a healthier, more active urban community. The promo will also involve KaBoom!, a non-profit organization creating local areas for kids to play.

[via ProHipHop]

Ever wonder if someone is doing the same exact thing you are at the same exact moment?
Arguing with a cabbie, mentally looping the same Lupe Fiasco song or snickering alongside you? They will be soon.

Enter Pangea Day. Named after the super continent that might’ve existed over 250 million years ago (before the component continents separated), it intends to bring the world, well, back together.

On May 10^th, millions of people worldwide will watch the same short films at the same time. Via thousands of locally organized events, the organizers hope to remind watchers what we all have in common.

6 cities will broadcast live footage of 24 short films in 8 languages. Those in Cairo, Kigali, London, Los Angeles, Mumbai and Rio de Janeiro can check out the events’ headquarters. The estimated 4hr long cinematic debut will also include top speakers and musical performers: Queen Noor of Jordan, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, musician/activist Bob Geldof, Iranian rock phenom Hypernova and others.

To spread the good word even further, performances and films will be available via Web, mobile phone and local television (based on locale).

Executive Director Delia Cohen hypothesizes, “Pangea Day will be a global campfire of shared stories.” And while movies can’t change the world. The people that watch them, can.

In step with recent smart mob activity mentality we’ve been covering, a dance revolution broke out when hundreds gathered in NYC’s Union Square for a ‘silent rave’ event on Friday, April 19^th. iPods in hand, the crowd began dancing at 6:15pm sharp. Each hearing only the song in their headphones, the group convulsed disparately. The not so silent dance-a-thon buzzed with onlookers and spontaneous hoots from dancers in the zone.

The crowd was comprised of many underage teens and NYU students. Some stood on benches and while others climbed the statue of George Washington but all shared a sense of camaraderie - insider information isn’t just power, it’s an icebreaker.

Slideluck Potshow recently returned to New York for its 11^th event. This new twist on a potluck dinner features a series of 5 minute themed slideshows by a mix of emerging and established artists. Everyone brings a dish to share, and a casual atmosphere is created where aficionados of all sorts can sprawl out and enjoy the show.

These events are just as much about mingling as highlighting contemporary art. Participants have used the events as a foundation for fame, some going on to be featured in Communication Arts and obtaining commercial work.

Beginning as just a few friends sharing work in a backyard, Casey Kelbaugh and team have spread the showcase overseas. While submissions for U.S. shows are accepted from international entrants, Germany, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela and Spain now highlight native talent with their own Slideluck Potshows.

Slideluck Potshow

Helping to bring graffiti artists out of the shadows, Sean Bono started Art Battles in NYC’s Lower East Side. A live graffiti competition, the event retains the street’s sense of urgency by limiting the time allotted to sketch. No take-back strokes or do-over drawings. But in the end, this doesn’t get painted over – it gets sold to the highest bidder.

The live audience thrives on contestants’ improvisation, last minute changes and quick bravado. Much like the DJ Battles of the early ‘90s, the pressure to perform is tangible. Staged spontaneity requires not just talent, but showmanship. This graffiti-without-penalty builds upon common street art with its ingenuity. Not to mention, the law-abiding contestants charm the audience with their poise and focus.

As alley artists pit against each other, the timed event incorporates competition by placing the artists side-by-side. The audience, sipping Budweiser cans in the gallery basement and swaying to live DJs, votes for the crowd favorite.

Though MTV showed interest in the idea last spring, future plans are not yet determined. For now, the events new home at 45 Bleecker St will continue to give emerging artists the spray paint and soapbox they need.

Check out the next battle on Friday, April 4, 2008.

MySpace is banding together with UK’s MTV2 to create new programming for media-obsessed millenials, following in the footsteps of other MTV branded entertainment such as Axe’s GameKillers and Doritos’ When Spicy Meets Sweet. The collaboration pumps up the volume for MySpace’s network of music lovers, forming a show even teens can’t rebel against. The win-win, known as ‘The MySpace Chart’, launched in the UK on March 16, 2008 and will air weekly on MTV2.

MTV keeps traffic within its own channels by containing voting to the station’s TV viewers and website audience - all the while, showcasing MySpace’s affinity for budding singer/songwriters (the best are represented by “MySpace Chart’s five feature videos” from new and emerging bands and artists on its online site).

And why stop there? The media duo will be releasing a hunt for the next News VJ in a 5-part series set to air April 28.

[via The Guardian]

Upcoming technology from Fiserv, a financial IT services company, will soon make it possible to deposit checks virtually, from anywhere equipped with a scanner and wifi. Users will be able to wave goodbye to long waits at their local branch, and tellers and even ATMs could be dethroned by Fiserv’s service value and rewards. And it’s no surprise that the service-over-geo location mindset is impacting banking. We already purchase our cable, mortgage and prescription drugs without knowing where the closest branches are, because few consumers care who the man behind the curtain is as long as they’re getting what they want.

The scanning process is a quick 4 step process: users log-in to their online banking site, activate the Fiserv software, enter their deposit amount and scan both sides of the check. The whole transaction should take less time than filling out a credit slip and waiting in a branch line. While taking location out of the equation has been in bank business plans for years, at-home check scanning has only been available to small and medium businesses through Fiserv and to military members through USAA. With this service now being passed on to consumers, it may become as commonplace as online banking, moving us even closer to the reality of a paperless world.

And as an added benefit, the extinction of bank slips and ATM envelopes means the end of ‘empty envelope’ fraud (this no-check crime accounts for more than 50% of ATM fraud according to a Diebold report). Of course, though, the flip side of the coin is that new safety measures will have to be put into place for scanning checks, as current scanners are not able to detect anti-fraud features embedded in paper such as special stock and watermarks.

[via Chicago Tribune]

Say bye-bye to the peel-stick-and-pray method. Toumaz Technology is creating a new way to track how boo-boos heal. The UK start-up aims to manufacture custom microchips that can remotely monitor patients. When placed on patches such as band-aids, the chips enhance the healing process.

In this approach, the chip interfaces with sensors to track three vital signs; electrocardiogram (EKG graphic), blood glucose (sugar) and pH levels (hydrogen-ion concentration). The disposable piece has a life expectancy of 5-7 days and, assuming mass distribution, could cost as little as $5 each. This development follows in WebMD’s footsteps to make consumers more informed about their health. Especially with an aging population, such at-home treatments are increasingly important.

Possible uses for the patch are not restricted. Once consumers get a hold of the product, updates and edits are expected. Distribution is anticipated to commence in US hospitals by 2009.

EETimes: Startup puts wireless monitor on a band-aid

After years of crashing through walls to bring children cherry refreshment, the Kool-Aid man needs new sneaks. The tried and true juice drink partners with the time-tested Reebok brand to revive its message. The co-branded marketing promotion, Instant Classics, kicks off in Reebok’s ’08 Spring collection.

Other than color-by-flavor and ‘ice cube’ rubber soles, the common thread between these two hangs on nothing more than a few puns about ‘flavor’. Nonetheless, the two classics pimped out the Pro-Legacy basketball low-top for the big promotion. The Kool-aid Reebok Collection falls in line with ultra-saturated color palettes debuting in urban shoe wear designs of the last year. Reebok Director of Lifestyle Design, Benjamin Kuchler, takes the line one step further with the inclusion of t-shirts, hoodies and hats in every flavor SKU. The complimentary apparel pieces also follow in suit, tagged with the smiling, pitcher-pouring Kool-aid man.

In an attempt to make the collaboration really hang together, all sneaks come with scent-infused sock liners. The fruit-scented sneaks are only offered in toddler, pre-school, grade-school and men’s sizes, excluding women from the strawberry sweetness.

The collection ranges from $50-$75 and can be purchased at undergroundstation.com or select Reebok retailers nationwide. Grape, strawberry and cherry launched 2/1. Orange, lemon and lime hit stores 3/15.