Kirby Conversations | Exploring Kirby, Nintendo, and More

How Button Masher Turned His Love of Kirby Into a Grammy

Apr 24, 2024

Jake 'Button Masher' Silverman, Grammy-winning music producer, discusses winning a Grammy for updating a Kirby song. They dive into the technical brilliance of the composer's work, Button Masher's projects inspired by Zelda and live shows blending music with ROM hacks. They also share plans for exciting new music projects and collaborations in the gaming industry.

46:56

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Episode guests

Jake "Button Masher" Silverman

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Button Masher and Charlie Rosen won a Grammy for their new arrangement of 'Meta Knight's Revenge' from Kirby Super Star, showcasing the technical brilliance of composer Jun Ishikawa's work.

Jake plans to work on live shows blending music with Super Mario World ROM hacks and create an arcade-inspired music album, continuing his passion for unique, niche music collaborations.

Deep dives

Jake's Grammy-Winning Journey

Jake, a composer and arranger of video game music, won a Grammy for his adaptation of Meta Knight's Revenge. Starting as a grad school teaching assistant, he arranged Kirby music for a concert which caught the attention of Charlie, leading to a Grammy submission. Winning when nobody expected it, Jake was grateful, stating the win was a cherry on top of the 30th anniversary year for Kirby fans.

Introduction

3min

From No Followers to Grammy Winner

19min

Evolution and Recognition of Video Game Music

3min

Musical Influences and Electronic Composer Appreciation

3min

Exploring the Genius of Kirby Superstar Soundtrack Composition

3min

Exploring Video Game Soundtracks and Social Media Surprises

2min

Exploring Game Soundtracks and Collaborations in the Gaming Industry

15min

In 2022, Jake "Button Masher" Silverman and Charlie Rosen won the Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella. Their song was a new arrangement, performed by Button Masher and Rosen's 8-Bit Big Bang, of "Meta Knight's Revenge" from Kirby Super Star. In our episode today, Button Masher joins us to reflect on how this update of a classic Kirby song—the only Grammy-winning video game cover ever—came together, his experiences at the Grammys, and the technical brilliance of composer Jun Ishikawa's work. Then for Act 2, we discuss Button Masher's work on Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore, a new game inspired by the classic Zelda CD-i titles, and his plans for exciting new live shows that blend music with ROM hacks.

For our Patreon-only 3rd Act posting later this week, join us for an additional segment where Jake discusses his childhood and early musical experiences and Ky shares her father's unique background playing with Guns N' Roses before they were Guns N' Roses (like, for real—it's a wild story): www.patreon.com/KirbyConversations.

Follow Button Masher's work on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/@_buttonmasher or on Instagram. Hear the Grammy-winning arrangement of "Meta Knight's Revenge" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIP3HdFl-JM

Want to reach out? You can email us at mail@kirbyconversations.com. We're particularly interested in any questions you might have for future Q&A segments on the show.

Lastly, Kirby Conversations is giving away a $500 Nintendo Switch Shopping Spree to one lucky listener! See all the ways to enter here: https://gleam.io/HFrXY/win-a-500-nintendo-switch-shopping-spree

Kirby Conversations

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Bridget

Threads: @no1kirbyfan

Sean Douglass

Bluesky: @seandouglass.bsky.social

Ky "Captain Dangerous" Parker

IG: @captaindangerous

Our music is by Megan Kellough (https://diamondthorns.bandcamp.com) and arranged by Duncan "PixelTea" Smith (https://duncansmith.carrd.co/).

Our show art is by DJ (IG: @drawing_lemonz).