George Clanton

Born: 1988
Location: Ridgeway, Virginia, USA
Genre: Vaporwave, Chillwave, Hypnagogia
Years Active: 2014 -
Real Name: George Clanton Jr.
A.K.A.: CHINA, Esprit Fantasy, Mirror Kisses
Way of Working: Artistic vision
Associated: Neggy Gemmy (wife)
Labels: 100% Electronica (owned by Clanton)

Essential Releases

100%
Electronica (2015)

Vaporwave and chillwave. First record released under his own name.

Slide (2018)

Nostalgic trip into '90s electronica.

Ooh Rap I Ya (2023)

Multi-genre work of various electronic styles.

As both an artist and owner of the independent label 100% Electronica, George Clanton is a hugely influential figure in the vaporwave scene. His label is home to some of the microgenre’s leading lights, including death's dynamic shroud and his wife, Negative Gemini.

While new forms of music traditionally emerge in a specific location as a response to changing social conditions and technological innovations, vaporwave came from the internet. Not in a superficial sense, where the net simply acts as a delivery system, but fundamentally. The genre and its surrounding aesthetic, with its effects-laden slow samples and distorted imagery, is a direct product of internet culture, existing primarily in the digital world.

In this disembodied space, immutable characteristics such as age or gender are less important. Time and space become fluid and can be transposed at will. In our modern reality, you can listen to music from 1927 with a push of a button and talk to someone on the other side of the world almost instantly. This is why vaporwave album covers feature things like Roman busts next to a personal computer with Japanese text, and why its music combines disparate elements such as jazz and trip-hop drums.

This visual and sonic disconnect is central to the genre's themes of nostalgia and ironic mockery. On the cover for his album Slide, for example, Clanton happily uses the children's toy, despite being a grown man. This playful subversion connects with the idea that for vaporwave artists, the past made a promise it failed to keep.

Despite this digital focus, Clanton has attempted to take the form into the physical world by organising the first-ever vaporwave festival, 100% ElectroniCON, in 2019. While a moderate success in its own right, drawing 1,300 people, it triumphed as a statement of intent. Many of the acts had very limited experience performing live, but subsequent shows, such as one in Los Angeles, drew 2,000 people. Both the 2023 and 2024 ElectroniCON events sold out quickly.

George Clanton isn’t just an artist, he's a man on a mission to make vaporwave a genre for the internet and beyond.

Skills

*This is a work in progress. Values are subjective.

Emotional Impact

i Does it connect with the heart? What does it make you feel and how much of it?

65

Mental Impact

i Does it connect with the head? Social issues, interesting observations, clever lyrics, similies etc.

55

Originality

i Are they unique? Did they break new ground, use new techniques or create new genres.

55

Artistry

i Using creativity and imagination to present themselves in a unique way. Example, Wu-Tang Clan as Shaolin and Marvel characters etc.

75

Authenticity

i Do they really mean what they say? Is it autobiographical, personal?

40

Live

i Stage presence, working the crowd, performance. Miming, forgetting lyrics reduce this.

45

Production

i Studio techniques. More important for electronic music including hip hop.

70

Musicianship

i Their ability to play individually and as a group. Technical skills. DJing. Freestyling for hip hop.

65

Textures

i Technical attributes.

80

Songwriting

i Storytelling. Cohesive themes. Is the song about something? Stan by Eminem is an example of excellent songwriting.

80

Danceability

i Does it make you move? Do you tap your foot, nod your head or move your whole body?

75

Fun

i Is listening to it a good time? Are the lyrics funny? Depressing themes lowers value.

80

Consistency

i Have they put out good music across their careers. Two good albums and 5 band ones will reduce this value.

80

Range

i Fast, slow, ballads, party jams. Do they go beyond their own genre?

85

Cool

i Laid-back, icy detachment, unflustered.

35

Charisma

i Factors include appearance, force of personality. Elvis making people faint etc.

65

Commercial & Critical Success

Awards

Certifications

Charts

Critics

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