He’s a teacher by day and Karl Malone’s cousin, that in itself should merit a listen to Kenan Bell. But the La Crescenta, CA hip-hop artist has recently dropped his “remix collective project” –- entitled Good News: The Mix-Tape — and with remixes of songs by artists as wide-ranging as Pink Floyd, Lily Allen, Gang Gang Dance, Jose Gonzalez, Peter, Bjorn & John, Duran Duran and Neil Diamond, how couldn’t you want to listen?

Backed by a full indie-band, the idea was originally conceived when a Smiths remix Kenan did for fun managed to find its way onto a Morrissey fan site, and then to Morrissey himself. For his part, Bell says, “I wanted to rap over The Smiths because people said it couldn’t be done.” For Good News, Bell and his production team reworked songs of Bell’s choosing: gathering the songs, pulling samples and writing the lyrics all in a matter of a few days — some of the songs written and tracked on the spot, in one take.

The Tripwire has the exclusive drop Bell’s version of Jose Gonzalez’ “Crosses”, and if you like it, you can check also out his Peter, Bjorn and John remix, his Lily Allen remix and his Gang Gang Dance remix.

Kenan Bell – “Crosses” (Jose Gonzalez Remix)

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