DJ Culture
DJ Yoda Talks Staying True to Himself by Not Playing Certain Artists
While in Las Vegas for a gig at On The Record, the UK’s DJ Yoda sat down with the R.O.A.D. Podcast. The veteran hip-hop DJ discussed how he stays true to himself by not playing certain artists.
Yoda also talked about the influence of reggae and dancehall in the UK scene, helping design products for Pioneer DJ, among other topics.
Watch an excerpt of the interview above and the full episode here.
Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube
Related Post: Melo D Talks West Coast Style of DJing on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’
Watch: Behind the Scenes with DJ Jazzy Jeff and Will Smith
After a long hiatus, DJ Jazzy Jeff and Will Smith, a.k.a. the Fresh Prince, reunited in 2017 for pair of concerts. The performances, held in Croatia and the U.K., brought the duo together after nearly two decades apart. Some behind-the-scenes footage has recently been shared, showing Jeff and Will rehearsing for their shows.
Watch the duo’s practice session above.
In related news, DJ Jazzy Jeff will be performing along with DJcity president Phenom at SUNBURN Pool Lounge at the Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego on Saturday, June 29.
Related Post: Watch: DJ Jazzy Jeff, A-Trak, and Craze Talk DJing on ‘Drink Champs’ Podcast
Red Bull 3Style Extends Application Deadline
J. Espinosa at the Red Bull 3Style IX World Finals in Taipei, Taiwan on Jan. 27, 2019. (Credit: Jasmine Chang)
Red Bull 3Style has extended the application deadline for the X World Championship to July 31.
The former world champions will review all applications in August, with the world tour taking place from November 2019 to February 2020. The world finals will be held in Moscow in April 2020.
To enter, record a five-minute routine and upload it on 3Style’s website. The competition rules can be found here.
Stay tuned for more exclusive 3Style coverage.
Watch DJcityTV’s mini-documentary about the IX World Finals:
Related Post: Applications Open for Red Bull 3Style X World Championship
Why UK Hip-Hop Hasn’t Crossed Over Into the US, According to Cipha Sounds
Veteran DJs Cipha Sounds, Roctakon, and Steve1der sat down with the R.O.A.D. Podcast this week. The crew discussed UK hip-hop and why it hasn’t crossed over into the US.
They also talked about the Bay Area’s reaction to Lil Jon and Mac Dre‘s new single, “Ain’t No Tellin’,” which is currently No. 9 on DJcity, among other topics.
Roctakon was a guest on the R.O.A.D. Podcast in March along with A-Trak and Craze, where they debated the current state of open-format DJing.
Watch an excerpt of this week’s interview above and the full episode here.
Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube
Related Post: Melo D Talks West Coast Style of DJing on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’
Grandmaster Flash Becomes First DJ to Win Polar Music Prize
Grandmaster Flash with the King of Sweden at the 2019 Polar Music Prize award ceremony in Stockholm. (Credit: Annika Berglund)
DJ and hip-hop pioneer Grandmaster Flash has become the first DJ to win Sweden’s Polar Music Prize, which is often described as the “Nobel Prize for music.”
Flash, who was born in Barbados and raised in the Bronx, was one of three laureates for the 2019 award. The others were the German violinist, Anne-Sophie Mutter, and the music charity, The Playing For Change Foundation. All three received $130,000 of prize money.
The Polar Music Prize was founded in 1989 by Stig Anderson, who’s best known as ABBA’s manager. Anderson petitioned the Nobel Prize committee in the late 1980s to add a music award. However, his idea was rejected, so Anderson created his own award: the Polar Music Prize.
Flash accepted the prize from the King of Sweden, saying the award was “in honor of every DJ, every rapper, every graffiti artist, and every breakdancer.”
He added: “This thing that I did had not existed before, and I am one of many where I come from. It ended up being called hip-hop, taking the drum break from pop, rock, jazz, blues, funk, disco, R&B, and using duplicate copies of records. I would take one section and repeat it over and over again.”
De La Soul’s DJ Maseo spoke at the ceremony, saying: “Grandmaster Flash is a scientist and a virtuoso who has demonstrated that turntables and mixing consoles can be musical instruments … [He] changed the course of popular music. Some 40 years later, the musical form and the hip-hop culture that Grandmaster Flash helped to create, in the ruins of the South Bronx in the mid-1970s, has grown into the largest music genre, hip-hop, in the United States and the world.”
Flash is in impressive company. Previous Polar winners include B.B. King, Bob Dylan, Chuck Berry, Dizzy Gillespie, Elton John, Led Zeppelin, Metallica, Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd, Quincy Jones, Ray Charles, and Stevie Wonder.
Watch Polar’s video about Flash below. You can also to listen to a Spotify playlist of his influences.
Related Post: Grandmaster Flash: Technology Is a Gift and a Curse
Melo D Talks West Coast Style of DJing on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’
Melo D, from the legendary Beat Junkies crew, was featured on this week’s episode of the R.O.A.D. Podcast. The Los Angeles native broke down the West Coast style of DJing and how it compares with the East Coast style.
Melo D also discussed J Rocc’s role in founding the Beat Junkies, the crew’s Institute of Sound DJ school, and more.
Watch an excerpt above and the full episode here.
Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube.
Related Post: Boogie Blind Remembers Roc Raida on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’
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