talkmagic.co.uk

magicrob wrote:Equally, you can be a famous Magician without necessarily being everybody's cup of tea

One thing I will agree with you on

Criss Angel - Urgh!

Coming from someone who's not exactly a fan... I don't begrudge any of Dynamo's success. In fact, I'm delighted for him.

That said, I do know why he's made such a success of himself.

He started doing magic in hip-hop clubs. At first, performing to ordinary folk and getting a good reaction. Over time he'd play to the odd main act at the club nights. The names got bigger and bigger and more people started hearing of him. A lot of people heard of him "have you seen the hip-hop magician?" way before they saw him. He went to shows, performed tricks for increasing famous acts and started being invited to record launch parties, aftershow parties and so on.

In going to those things he started breaking out of the hip-hop world coming across TV producers and the like.

He's famous because he's worked HARD performed LOTS to the exact right group of people... and he did it for a LONG time. It must be at least 8 (maybe 10) years since I first heard about him.

As for having a "chav persona" not a chance.
A slightly more talkative and English "Blaine" maybe... but no chav.

If someone wanted to get his level of fame, your standard working magician's approach is exactly the wrong way to go about it.
"It's not what you know, it's who you know."

Lord Freddie wrote:Dynamo (appears to use obvious stooges)

from his 4 part series I honestly think I could count the stooges he uses on one hand (allbeit a six finger hand)

(I'm not counting the 'Police' for the walking on water thing)

1 for the tan line thing

1 for the tattoo thing

4 for walking through window

all uses are justified in my eyes

Criss Angel uses a stooge for the most basic card tricks

If you buy one of his tricks online you get a free blow up stooge

BigShot wrote:"It's not what you know, it's who you know."

In actual fact, thats almost not true.
In our case, when you get spotted......
its not who you know, It's who knows you.Stephen, was smart enough to make sure he was seen by the right people, for him.

One of the reasons i feel happy to perform at places like The RVT with Freddie, is that there is usualy somebody in the audience that could see you and go.. i want that guy for our next series.

and you know what.. heres a prediction for you.

That is soon going to happen. I feel it in my bones.


( The next chance for oportunity to come a knocking, November the 3rd .... so if you want to see those knockers, make sure you are there in the audience!!)

Like it or not Dynamo and others have done a lot for magic.

If laymen like what they see then great! stooge or no stooge, it will make no difference what someone like Dynamo is doing other than the fact that people are talking about magic again.

The moment a lay person see's great magic performed in front of them everything else goes out the window no matter what or who it is. Remember he mainly does marketed effects so anyone can do these things.

If someone says something like how did Dynamo put the phone in the bottle? or what do you think about Dynamo, Derren or Blaine.? Just say they are great? And have all helped keep magic popular Now check this out.

Then proceed to warp the muggles mind.

Point is, it doesn't matter who performs what as long as its done well and lay people enjoy it then magic will continue to exist. These people just help us to keep it interesting on massive scale. We need to worry when they stop asking or are bored with the concept of TV magic.


I dont think anyone in this country will will ever have the TV success or career of someone like Daniels again. But if they do it will be good for all of us.

Lee.

daleshrimpton wrote:

BigShot wrote:"It's not what you know, it's who you know."

In actual fact, thats almost not true.
In our case, when you get spotted......
its not who you know, It's who knows you.Stephen, was smart enough to make sure he was seen by the right people, for him.

Pretty much what I meant by that post.
I've never met him so I don't know how "smart" he was about it, but it seems to me that he did what other performers in the hip-hop world do... used his skills to get into nights, shows and parties for free, got noticed and invited further up the ladder.

Either way he has had chance after chance precisely because he didn't follow the standard magician's route. Considering P&S's success despite exposing moves and the cups and balls I kinda wonder if the usual approach is even the right way to go at all. :p

cc100 wrote:Compare this to the guy on Penn and Teller dressed as a dragon. A very skilled performer, no doubt, but simply reinforcing many people's perception of magic as being childish and trivial.

From what i've heard Piff (Jon) has been one of the people to do better from the show even though he didnt fool them, i read a american tv channel wanted to start a Piff sitcom lol. Also from my mates and other layman that talk about fool us Piff was there favourite performance !

They did cut out his Dresscode performance. We all know he has the same 6 tricks he does on TV appearances, but so did Blaine and Brown. For those who want to see another side to Dynamos personality watch this - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qhz-6HO6ito

See? Now he's admitting to having Copperfield as a hero, I'm suddenly warming towards Steven

Possibly it's just his HipHop persona that grates on me?

Well, I've just watched about half an hour of youtube videos and...

... I really like the lad!

Sorry to the haters!

magicrob wrote:See? Now he's admitting to having Copperfield as a hero, I'm suddenly warming towards Steven

Possibly it's just his HipHop persona that grates on me?

This is why i say, I'm not keen of "Dynamo"..... the character, it just does nothing for me. ( and why should it? Its not aimed at somebody my age)
ive never said anything against Stephen.

daleshrimpton wrote:

magicrob wrote:See? Now he's admitting to having Copperfield as a hero, I'm suddenly warming towards Steven

Possibly it's just his HipHop persona that grates on me?

This is why i say, I'm not keen of "Dynamo"..... the character, it just does nothing for me. ( and why should it? Its not aimed at somebody my age)
ive never said anything against Stephen.

Yeah - ditto, Dale - perhaps I'm just having a Magical Mid-Life Crisis....and am just not down wiv da krew no more blud

A response and a retraction:

Firstly, I don't think he has a "hip-hop persona". He came up in the hip-hop world for sure, but he's not doing some fake-gangster, rapping his patter nonsense. He's just a Bradford lad performing magic.
If anything I would have said he's more like a chatty Blaine.


That said, I've just watched some of his more recent stuff on YouTube and I might need to think about retracting my "not a fan" comment.
He seems to be toning down the really cringe-worthy dance part of his "Dynamo Shuffle" - and the less of that the better because it's terrible... but he's far less monotonous than he used to be which is great.

He chains together effects in a way I've not seen him do before, his patter has improved and I can't fault him for any of that.

I think his 'Dynamo Shuffle' is quality!

magicrob wrote:and am just not down wiv da krew no more blud

.....Please.....NEVER speak like this again.