R U Professional
Encyclopedia
"R U Professional" is a song by the indie rock
band The Mae Shi
, inspired by the audio of a July 2008 outburst of actor Christian Bale
on the set of Terminator Salvation
. The song was written and released by the group twenty-four hours after the February 2, 2009 appearance of the Bale outburst on the internet. In a statement released from The Mae Shi, the group explained that the audio from the Bale outburst "was so crazy" that they were inspired to record a song about it, further stating "it's a tribute song we made to celebrate the epic-ness of Christian Bale". The piece was made available on YouTube
and via download on MediaFire
on February 3, 2009.
The song has received generally positive reception. MTV.com characterized it as "a Devo-esque slice of new wave fun", and Dose
called it an "electro jam". Geoff Boucher of the Los Angeles Times
called it "a jaunty pop ode to Bale". Music sites including Pitchfork Media
were impressed with the group's ability to write, record and release the video within twenty-four hours after the audio of the Bale outburst appeared on the internet.
was acting in a scene for the film Terminator Salvation
with actress Bryce Dallas Howard
, Bale yelled at the film's director of photography, Shane Hurlbut
, for walking into his line of sight. During the four-minute audio recording, Bale can be heard screaming obscenities at Hurlbut and threatening to quit the film if Hurlbut did it again and was not fired. Hurlbut responded calmly and apologized several times to Bale, and continued shooting for seven hours after the incident.
The incident occurred in July 2008 during shooting for the film in New Mexico
, and an audio recording of Bale yelling at Hurlbut appeared on the website TMZ.com
on February 2, 2009. Prior to releasing the audio on the internet, TMZ.com had reported on the incident on their website in July 2008. TMZ.com reported that film executives for Terminator Salvation sent a copy of the audio recording to the film's insurance company, in case Bale did quit the film.
In a statement to Los Angeles radio station KROQ-FM
on February 6, 2009, Bale said he "acted like a punk", and that he and Hurlbut talked after the incident and "resolved this completely". Bale acknowledged the two worked together for several hours after the incident, and "at least a month after that", and noted "I've seen a rough cut of the movie and he has done a wonderful job. It looks fantastic".
The lyrics of the song include references to films Bale has appeared in including Newsies
, Swing Kids
, and American Psycho
. The song begins with the phrase, "He is the Dark Knight, he is professional." The chorus of the song is "Oh, whoo wow/ He is professional/ But I think he's lost control", and the lyrics include: "Swing Kid with a violent streak", "Step back, stay out of his light/Better not try to put up a fight/Newsies will get you tonight/'Cause they're professional!", and "Don't look too deep in his eyes/he can't hide what's inside of his mind/and it might get a little bit ugly/and you might meet an American Psycho". The piece incorporates audio clips from Bale's outburst. The song was made available for listening on YouTube
or via download on MediaFire
on February 3, 2009. The video description on YouTube by the group stated, "Song By The Mae Shi celebrating the life and work of Xtian Bale. Bale's performance as John Connor in the upcoming Terminator 4 'Redemption' Film will no doubt be one of the greatest of all time. He will win every Oscar for his performance, even the special effects and animation ones."
magazine commented "L.A.'s The Mae Shi take things to another level, not just sampling Bale but turning around an electro jam, 'R U Professional'". Geoff Boucher of the Los Angeles Times
called the piece "a jaunty pop ode to Bale". Whitney Matheson of USA Today
called the song "a danceable and inspired track", and commented "I smell a hit."
Darryl Sterdan of The Toronto Sun commented about the remixes which appeared after the Bale rant, "Here's one of the first, and one of the best: A danceable little electro-pop ditty from L.A.'s Mae Shi, complete with original lyrics and peppered with snippet's from Bale's rant. What else can you say but: Oh, good for you!" New Musical Express recommended the piece, and described it as "an electro-rock song ... sampling Bale". Kevin Harley of The Independent
reported that the ban would appear at a music festival, "The Fans Strike Back", and commented that they "must play their Christian Bale mash-up. They are professional, yes?" Derek Bledsoe of Boing Boing
called the song "a tasty Christian Bale tribute".
Genevieve Koski of The A.V. Club
called the piece "a hastily written, but pretty amusing, original song". Rhodri Marsden of the Irish Independent
commented "one suspects it was a pre-existing tune hastily adapted" for the Bale outburst. Matt Fernandes of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
described the piece as a "new wave ditty using the jerkiest clips of Bale's on-set rant", and commented "The results are pretty funny." El País described the piece as an electropop song that contributed to the viral spread of the Christian Bale rant after its release on the Internet. C7nema commented on the fallout from the actor's rant, "The furor was such that even the band The Mae Shi made a hilarious song called 'R U Professional' dedicated to the madness of Bale.
Kristin Hunt of The Celebrity Cafe wrote that the piece "gets my vote for best Bale parody", and commented that in her view it was better than "Bale Out
" by RevoLucian
. Chicagoist wrote that the song by The Mae Shi was their favorite of the Christian Bale remixes, commenting "There are lots of remixes floating around there but this track by The Mae Shi is our current favorite treatment." Mark Richardson of Pitchfork Media
was impressed that "R U Professional" was compiled in twenty-four hours, noting "Props for putting it all together in a day". Mark Lore of Chico News & Review called the piece "a loving nod to the prima donna rant of Christian Bale".
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band The Mae Shi
The Mae Shi
The Mae Shi are an experimental punk band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2002.-History:The band was formed by Tim Byron and Ezra Buchla, who had known each other for years, having spent time growing up in the Los Angeles suburb of Claremont together—Jeff Byron and Buchla were classmates at...
, inspired by the audio of a July 2008 outburst of actor Christian Bale
Christian Bale
Christian Charles Philip Bale is an English actor. Best known for his roles in American films, Bale has starred in both big budget Hollywood films and the smaller projects from independent producers and art houses....
on the set of Terminator Salvation
Terminator Salvation
Terminator Salvation is a 2009 American science fiction action film directed by McG and starring Christian Bale and Sam Worthington. The fourth installment in the Terminator series, the film is set in 2018 and focuses on the war between Skynet and humanity, with the human Resistance fighting...
. The song was written and released by the group twenty-four hours after the February 2, 2009 appearance of the Bale outburst on the internet. In a statement released from The Mae Shi, the group explained that the audio from the Bale outburst "was so crazy" that they were inspired to record a song about it, further stating "it's a tribute song we made to celebrate the epic-ness of Christian Bale". The piece was made available on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
and via download on MediaFire
MediaFire
MediaFire is a free file and image hosting web site that started in 2006 and is located in Harris County, Texas, United States. The domain mediafire.com attracted almost 60 million visitors annually by 2008 according to a Compete.com study.- Features :...
on February 3, 2009.
The song has received generally positive reception. MTV.com characterized it as "a Devo-esque slice of new wave fun", and Dose
Dose (magazine)
Dose is a daily Canadian news website and former daily print magazine.Dose was a mixture of standalone features and coverage of daily news, sometimes from an irreverent perspective...
called it an "electro jam". Geoff Boucher of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
called it "a jaunty pop ode to Bale". Music sites including Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
were impressed with the group's ability to write, record and release the video within twenty-four hours after the audio of the Bale outburst appeared on the internet.
Background
While Christian BaleChristian Bale
Christian Charles Philip Bale is an English actor. Best known for his roles in American films, Bale has starred in both big budget Hollywood films and the smaller projects from independent producers and art houses....
was acting in a scene for the film Terminator Salvation
Terminator Salvation
Terminator Salvation is a 2009 American science fiction action film directed by McG and starring Christian Bale and Sam Worthington. The fourth installment in the Terminator series, the film is set in 2018 and focuses on the war between Skynet and humanity, with the human Resistance fighting...
with actress Bryce Dallas Howard
Bryce Dallas Howard
Bryce Dallas Howard is an American film actress and daughter of director Ron Howard. She made her acting debut in her father's 1989 movie Parenthood and went on to have small roles in films and make stage appearances for the next several years...
, Bale yelled at the film's director of photography, Shane Hurlbut
Shane Hurlbut
Shane Hurlbut, also credited as L. Shane Hurlbut, is an American cinematographer. Originally from Ithaca, New York, he grew up near Cayuga Lake, and graduated from Southern Cayuga High School in 1982. Hurlbut studied film at Emerson College, graduating with a degree in film and television in 1986...
, for walking into his line of sight. During the four-minute audio recording, Bale can be heard screaming obscenities at Hurlbut and threatening to quit the film if Hurlbut did it again and was not fired. Hurlbut responded calmly and apologized several times to Bale, and continued shooting for seven hours after the incident.
The incident occurred in July 2008 during shooting for the film in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, and an audio recording of Bale yelling at Hurlbut appeared on the website TMZ.com
TMZ.com
TMZ.com is a celebrity news website that debuted on November 8, 2005. It was a collaboration between America Online and Telepictures Productions, a division of Warner Bros., until Time Warner divested AOL in 2009. However, it is still affiliated with AOL News and has the AOL News logo affixed in...
on February 2, 2009. Prior to releasing the audio on the internet, TMZ.com had reported on the incident on their website in July 2008. TMZ.com reported that film executives for Terminator Salvation sent a copy of the audio recording to the film's insurance company, in case Bale did quit the film.
In a statement to Los Angeles radio station KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM — branded 106.7 KROQ — is a commercial modern rock radio station licensed to Pasadena, California serving the Greater Los Angeles. The call sign is pronounced "kay rock." It is the flagship station of Loveline hosted by Dr...
on February 6, 2009, Bale said he "acted like a punk", and that he and Hurlbut talked after the incident and "resolved this completely". Bale acknowledged the two worked together for several hours after the incident, and "at least a month after that", and noted "I've seen a rough cut of the movie and he has done a wonderful job. It looks fantastic".
Inspiration and release
A statement released by The Mae Shi explained the group's inspiration to write the song: "We thought it [the tape] was so crazy that we, The Mae Shi, wrote and recorded a song about it. We should clarify and say that this isn't really a Mae Shi song, it's a tribute song we made to celebrate the epic-ness of Christian Bale." Band drummer Brad Breeck commented in an interview, "It was a late-night, spur-of-the-moment experiment. We heard the Bale thing, wrote and recorded a song in about two hours, posted it to the Internet. That’s it!"The lyrics of the song include references to films Bale has appeared in including Newsies
Newsies
Newsies is a 1992 Disney musical film starring Christian Bale, David Moscow, and Bill Pullman. Robert Duvall and Ann-Margret also appeared in supporting roles. The movie is widely claimed to have gained a cult following after its initial failure at the box office...
, Swing Kids
Swing Kids (film)
Swing Kids is a film produced in 1993, directed by Thomas Carter and starring Christian Bale, Robert Sean Leonard and Kenneth Branagh. The runtime is approximately 112 minutes. The film is considered as being part of the Lindy Hop revival of the 1980s and 1990s...
, and American Psycho
American Psycho (film)
American Psycho is a 2000 cult thriller film directed by Mary Harron based on Bret Easton Ellis's novel of the same name. Though predominantly a psycho thriller, the film also blends elements of horror, satire, and black comedy...
. The song begins with the phrase, "He is the Dark Knight, he is professional." The chorus of the song is "Oh, whoo wow/ He is professional/ But I think he's lost control", and the lyrics include: "Swing Kid with a violent streak", "Step back, stay out of his light/Better not try to put up a fight/Newsies will get you tonight/'Cause they're professional!", and "Don't look too deep in his eyes/he can't hide what's inside of his mind/and it might get a little bit ugly/and you might meet an American Psycho". The piece incorporates audio clips from Bale's outburst. The song was made available for listening on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
or via download on MediaFire
MediaFire
MediaFire is a free file and image hosting web site that started in 2006 and is located in Harris County, Texas, United States. The domain mediafire.com attracted almost 60 million visitors annually by 2008 according to a Compete.com study.- Features :...
on February 3, 2009. The video description on YouTube by the group stated, "Song By The Mae Shi celebrating the life and work of Xtian Bale. Bale's performance as John Connor in the upcoming Terminator 4 'Redemption' Film will no doubt be one of the greatest of all time. He will win every Oscar for his performance, even the special effects and animation ones."
Reception
Gil Kaufman of MTV.com characterized the song as "a Devo-esque slice of new wave fun". Leah Collins of DoseDose (magazine)
Dose is a daily Canadian news website and former daily print magazine.Dose was a mixture of standalone features and coverage of daily news, sometimes from an irreverent perspective...
magazine commented "L.A.'s The Mae Shi take things to another level, not just sampling Bale but turning around an electro jam, 'R U Professional'". Geoff Boucher of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
called the piece "a jaunty pop ode to Bale". Whitney Matheson of USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
called the song "a danceable and inspired track", and commented "I smell a hit."
Darryl Sterdan of The Toronto Sun commented about the remixes which appeared after the Bale rant, "Here's one of the first, and one of the best: A danceable little electro-pop ditty from L.A.'s Mae Shi, complete with original lyrics and peppered with snippet's from Bale's rant. What else can you say but: Oh, good for you!" New Musical Express recommended the piece, and described it as "an electro-rock song ... sampling Bale". Kevin Harley of The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
reported that the ban would appear at a music festival, "The Fans Strike Back", and commented that they "must play their Christian Bale mash-up. They are professional, yes?" Derek Bledsoe of Boing Boing
Boing Boing
Boing Boing is a publishing entity, first established as a magazine, later becoming a group blog.-History:...
called the song "a tasty Christian Bale tribute".
Genevieve Koski of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
called the piece "a hastily written, but pretty amusing, original song". Rhodri Marsden of the Irish Independent
Irish Independent
The Irish Independent is Ireland's largest-selling daily newspaper that is published in both compact and broadsheet formats. It is the flagship publication of Independent News & Media.-History:...
commented "one suspects it was a pre-existing tune hastily adapted" for the Bale outburst. Matt Fernandes of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is the major city-wide newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. Although written to serve Greater St. Louis, the Post-Dispatch is one of the largest newspapers in the Midwestern United States, and is available and read as far west as Kansas City, Missouri, as far south as...
described the piece as a "new wave ditty using the jerkiest clips of Bale's on-set rant", and commented "The results are pretty funny." El País described the piece as an electropop song that contributed to the viral spread of the Christian Bale rant after its release on the Internet. C7nema commented on the fallout from the actor's rant, "The furor was such that even the band The Mae Shi made a hilarious song called 'R U Professional' dedicated to the madness of Bale.
Kristin Hunt of The Celebrity Cafe wrote that the piece "gets my vote for best Bale parody", and commented that in her view it was better than "Bale Out
Bale Out
"Bale Out: RevoLucian's Christian Bale Remix!" is a satirical dance remix by American composer Lucian Piane, also known as RevoLucian, released on February 2, 2009, to YouTube and MySpace. The piece utilizes audio from a July 2008 rant made by actor Christian Bale on the set of Terminator Salvation...
" by RevoLucian
Lucian Piane
Lucian Piane , also known by the Internet nickname RevoLucian, is an American composer and music producer. He has composed music for several films, television shows, theater productions and singers, and received a Recording Industry Association of America Platinum Album Award for his production...
. Chicagoist wrote that the song by The Mae Shi was their favorite of the Christian Bale remixes, commenting "There are lots of remixes floating around there but this track by The Mae Shi is our current favorite treatment." Mark Richardson of Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
was impressed that "R U Professional" was compiled in twenty-four hours, noting "Props for putting it all together in a day". Mark Lore of Chico News & Review called the piece "a loving nod to the prima donna rant of Christian Bale".
External links
- R U Professional, at YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
account of The Mae ShiThe Mae ShiThe Mae Shi are an experimental punk band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2002.-History:The band was formed by Tim Byron and Ezra Buchla, who had known each other for years, having spent time growing up in the Los Angeles suburb of Claremont together—Jeff Byron and Buchla were classmates at... The Mae Shi [ft. Christian Bale : "R U Professional" - Song By The Mae Shi celebrating the life and work of Xtian Bale.], at blog of The Mae Shi