Pocket Life November 2019
By Corky Mau
November 2019
The Right Notes
Kennedy grad hits it big in the music world
Walt and Linda Yip are Pocket residents with a unique perspective on the commercial music universe, including hip-hop, rhythm and blues, dance, K-pop and now country. The reason is simple: Their son, Jonathan Yip, is a founding member of The Stereotypes, one of the hottest music production teams in the business.
I recently ran into Walt and Linda, and they told me about their son’s latest achievement. Jonathan, who graduated from Kennedy High School in 1996, and his three fellow Stereotypes have been nominated for the Country Music Association’s Album of the Year award for their co-production work on singer/songwriter Thomas Rhett’s “Center Point Road.”
The CMA awards show, Wednesday, Nov. 13, represents another milestone in the remarkable success of The Stereotypes. The group was formed in 2003, when Jonathan met Jeremy Reeves at the Sacramento Guitar Center. The songwriting and production partnership flourished when Ray Romulus and Ray Charles McCullough II joined, and they have been going strong ever since.
Based in Los Angeles, The Stereotypes are no stranger to award programs. The team has been nominated for nine Grammy Awards, winning three times. They have worked with the biggest names in the music industry, including Bruno Mars, Justin Bieber, Cardi B, Lil Yachty, Pitbull and Chris Brown.
Members of The Stereotypes come from diverse backgrounds: Asian, Haitian, African-American, Caucasian and Samoan. Their move into country music reflects the diversity.
“We’re surprised and honored for the nomination,” Jonathan says. “It was exciting to crossover to an unfamiliar genre and make good music with a new country artist.”
CRAB & SHRIMP DINNER
The annual Crab & Shrimp Dinner & Dance will be held Saturday, Nov. 23, at the Pocket Portuguese Hall. Cocktails start at 6 p.m. with dinner at 7 p.m.
Tickets are $50 per person, which includes an all-you-can-eat feast of salad, pasta, crab, shrimp, dessert and wine. A DJ will play your favorite dance tunes. For tickets, call Judy Dias Allen at (916) 947-6695.
CHILDREN’S ART WORKSHOP
Artist Liz Harrington will lead a children’s art activity workshop Wednesday, Nov. 13, from 6 to 7 p.m. at A Taste Above Cafe in the Promenade Shopping Center. The cost of $15 per child includes all supplies and a scoop of Gunther’s ice cream. Sign up at eventbrite.com.
YOGA FOR CHARITY
Infinite Giving 916 will hold a Yoga Flow fitness class Saturday, Nov. 9, from 9 to 10:15 a.m., at the Jazzercise studio at 7485 Rush River Drive. All fitness levels are welcome. Bring your own yoga mat.
Class is free with a donation for the Oak Park Community Center Senior Program and Maryhouse (a Loaves & Fishes center for women and children). Suggested donations include gently used women’s clothing and tennis shoes, blankets, adult diapers, tooth brushes and toothpaste, soaps, body lotions and backpacks. Donations will be accepted from 8 a.m. to noon.
Register for the class at eventbrite.com. For more information, contact Monique Hollowell at (916) 202-2999 or infinitegiving916@gmail.com.
TO A LONG LIFE
My friend’s aunt, Mabelle Jan, a longtime Greenhaven resident, turns 103 on Nov. 12. As the oldest of 12 children, she spent a lot of time caring for her siblings.
“On Saturdays, I used to take my younger brothers to the movies on Stockton Street (in San Francisco). We’d pack food and sit in the front row. It cost us 10 cents back then,” she says.
Mabelle and her late husband David loved to travel abroad. And they liked to go fast. They flew the Concorde to New York in the late 1980s. Happy birthday, Mabelle!
Corky Mau can be reached at corky.sue50@gmail.com. Submissions are due six weeks prior to the publication month. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento.
