P. Diddy Schools Adrien Brody

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Oscar-winning actor Adrien Brody wants to start a second career -- as a music producer. The star of the Holocaust drama The Pianist has grabbed the attention of hip-hop heavies such as P. Diddy, Dr. Dre and Roc-A-Fella Records founder Damon Dash with a CD of his beats.

"I told Adrien he produces like RZA, which is a big compliment," says Diddy. "My advice was to keep doing what he was doing."

Brody was a skilled break dancer in his youth and learned to recite raps verbatim growing up in Queens, New York -- a talent he retains today. But the actor makes it clear that he's into more than just rap beats. "I do make hip-hop music," Brody says. "But I am not solely a hip-hop musician."

But at a P. Diddy party in Long Island's Hamptons, Brody floored a roomful of rap luminaries with his hip-hop know-how. "I was surprised how knowledgeable Adrien was about the scene and culture," says Dash. "He was really excited about making beats. It almost seemed like he'd rather be doing that."

Brody has started to get some results, including a session with Lenny Kravitz. "I felt that Lenny was impressed by what I brought to the table," says the actor. But according to Diddy, there's still much for Brody to learn. "Adrien calls himself A. Ranger," says Diddy. "I could get a better name for him. I ain't gonna let my man be out there like that."

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Song Stories

“V.T.T.L.O.T.F.D.G.F.”

Fishbone | 1985

Quite a few musicians have utilized initials for song titles -- Michael Jackson's "P.Y.T.," Abba's "S.O.S.," Donald Fagen's "I.G.Y.," etc. But the more curiously initialed tune has to be "V.T.T.L.O.T.F.D.G.F.," short for "Voyage to the Land of the Freeze-Dried Godzilla Farts." Fishbone's original guitarist, Kendall Jones, explained to Rolling Stone, "When Norwood [Fisher] wrote it, he introduced it to the band saying, 'Man, I've been hearing about all these Nazi right-wing groups on the news saying the Holocaust was staged. So what if America said it never dropped two atom bombs on Japan, that it was actually Godzilla popping a couple off?' Only Norwood would come up with something that out." The same year "V.T.T.L.O.T.F.D.G.F." was released, the film Godzilla 1985 appeared in North America.

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