Ask George

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In 2012, Berklee College of Music awarded legendary funk musician, songwriter, and producer George Clinton an honorary doctorate. Now it’s time for an appointment with “Dr. Funkenstein” himself. Berklee Online, the award-winning online continuing education division of Berklee College of Music, announced today that Clinton will be the first guest on the new Berklee Online Live: Songwriting series. The series is an interactive video interview forum from Berklee Online’s digital magazine, Take Note.

Using social media, viewers will have the opportunity to ask guests like Clinton about songwriting by posting questions with hashtag #BerkleeOnlineLIVE. Those submitting questions are encouraged to get creative (for example, by posting photos yourself with hand-written questions, five-second video clips, etc.). The event will be streamed on the Take Note website and on Berklee Online’s YouTube channel on Monday, August 7, at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Without George Clinton, funk as we know it would not exist. Having spent the past six decades writing, recording, and revolutionizing music with his bands Parliament and Funkadelic, Clinton has produced more than 40 hit singles. His profound influence extends beyond the work of his own bands, and has paved the way for acts such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, De La Soul, Primus and more. Clinton’s songs have been sampled more than 2,000 times, making him one of the most sampled artists of all time. His recent collaborations with Flying Lotus and Kendrick Lamar prove that his influence has no expiration date.