Mancunian House legend Gerald Simpson aka A Guy Called Gerald offers up a brand new mix of 802s Hip-Hop and B-Boy. Simpson himself describes it as a tribute to Kool Herc, whose parties and DJ technique played a huge role in the formative years of Hip-Hop. "He was a young Jamaican American and he just wanted to throw a party. His uncle had given him the best sound system in the neighborhood, yet he had no venue to play at and he was broke. What Kool Herc chose to do could have [...]
Far be it for me, a mere Canadian with a music blog, to comment on something like the whole rancorous American health care debate, which is completely none of my business. But, I have to say, when I read things like this story about the legendary DJ Kool Herc 's treatment for kidney stones leading to a "financial crisis" because he doesn't have health insurance, I have to shake my head in wonder. You can be on whatever side of this whole health care debate that you wish, but it seems to me you'd have [...]
- Word on the street is that there is a big football game this weekend. Here are three things that'll make it better: these crazy bets , the possibility of free pizza and, if you're a Packers fan, Lil Wayne's new fight song . - David D. was man enough to admit when he was wrong and gave a history lesson on MF Doom. - Project Pat has a new side hustle . - Several mixtapes were highlighted this week [...]
G5 - February 2, Wednesday I missed Acrylics the first time around a few years ago. I really dig this song, thanks to Stereogum for the video. John Roderick of The Long Winters discusses the idea that "shuffle" has ruined our ability to place music in its intended context: "We forget that DEVO was protest music, the Talking Heads made social commentary, the Pet Shop Boys were gay liberationists. These weren't just songs that played at prom, they were reactions to the [...]
Hip Hop is a money-making paradise for many of the biggest names in the game - but spare a thought for one of the genre's creators and innovators, the mighty DJ Kool Herc. A few days ago, DJ Premier announced on his radio show that the man who is widely regarded as th 'godfather of hip hop' (thanks to his efforts of being the first DJ to loop the drum breaks on which this music we know and love has been built) is in real need of help. It turns out that Herc, who [...]
Kool Herc, the man forever linked to the creation of this Hip-Hop music thing, has fallen ill and in need of financial assistance from the community. Given I'm one of the oldest gathered here, the idea may not resonate with everyone, which I completely understand. A quick Google search or checking his Wikipedia page may sway those who feel unconnected to his story because Herc's the guy responsible if you ever nodded your head to the beat of a rap song. Donate a lot, donate as little as $1. But consider sending some small token [...]
Filed under: News , Exclusive , New Releases Nowadays it takes next to no time to craft a sonic collage of your favourite (or least favourite) music. That's rad for any of us who ever wondered what it'd be like if Jay-Z dropped rhymes over the 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' theme with beats by Technotronic and backup vocals from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. But the digital revolution's accessibility presents a daunting challenge to remix [...]
G5 - Your (sometimes) daily EP of music links Sasha Frere-Jones recaps his interview of Björk at her Polar Music Prize reception (with a cool visual recollection of the event) Good news, hip-hop fans: 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, where Kool Herc spun his sister's birthday party in 1973 (and thus is considered "the birthplace of hip-hop"), is not going to be destroyed The xx won this year's Mercury Prize, for best British album of the past year. Given its history, that there wasn't [...]
It happened that in 1942, a wealthy landowner, attorney and businessman from the parish of St. Ann, Jamaica, Sir Alfred D'Costa, grew concerned by the failure of the corn growing on his farm as part of a wartime food production campaign. D'Costa took his concerns to the local authorities, sending them a sample from the red soil where the crops were planted. The results of these soil tests changed Jamaica, and as I will suggest here, Western music as we know it. Consider this post my entry into the world of Freakanomics. [...]
It's been 30 years since The Sugarhill Gang transformed hip hop from a musical upstart into a chart-topping genre, with their hit single 'Rapper's Delight. To mark this auspicious occasion, the BBC has pulled together a great feature on the impact that hip hop has had in the US , the UK and around the world . While all the pieces are of interest, it's the spotlight on the US - and in particular the Bronx, the birthplace of hip hop - that really hits the nail on the head. For the [...]
Starting today, intrepid Voice intern Michael Downes will offer a daily, highly biased digest of that evening's best NYC shows -- and the whole weekend's slate on Friday, which today is, mercifully... Continue reading "Tonight They're Gonna Rock You Tonight: Zap Mama, Cake, and Some Golden-Age Hip-Hop" >
Monday 5/25 * The XYZ Affair, Mieka Pauley, Jones Street Station, Three Fifty Duo @ Pianos ( MP3s: download 2 Summer Jams by The XYZ Affair) * Memorial Day BBQ @ Goodbye Blue Monday Tuesday 5/26 * Spinal Tap Unwigged & Unplugged @ Beacon Theatre * Hooves on the Turf presents Vandaveer @ Sycamore ( MP3: "However Many Takes It [...]
A good friend once told me that people born after 1982 don't know hip-hop. That statement not only helps make sense of the decline of the genre at the hands of younger artists, it means there are a lo... Continue reading "You Got to Read This: "Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Nation" by Jeff Chang" >
Last month I had the tremendous opportunity to interview DJ Kool Herc . For those who don't know, he started hip-hop, and, hence, he spawned everything from Grandmaster Flash to JumpTheTurnStyle. My article appears in the current issue of The Source (with Jeezy on the cover). But my original version is much longer, and rap fans shouldn't be deprived of anything that this man has to say. Here it is in its entirety, which still isn't long enough, but makes for a good blog entry: It might be difficult [...]
Kool Herc , the father of hip hop , will make his first-ever Dallas appearance Saturday, October 31, at minc with Busy B. The booking coup was announced less than a week after Instrumental Entertainment bought the Exposition Park club. Creo Jones, marketing director for Instrumental, said the appearance will include an open-floor b-boy and b-girl contest to be judged by Herc or Busy B. "It's new ownership, a new vibe, new everything," he says. "We kept a couple of bartenders and DJ Wood on Saturdays. It'll be a little [...]
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