On the run eating…

Finally got a second to catch my breath, so I decided why not sit down and write something? Just a quick side note…if you enjoy reading my blog or enjoy my writing…let me know.  It’s this type of feedback that motivates me to keep posting.  Ok, moving onward…This was one of those dj on no sleep and move from gig to gig without eating or drinking type weekends.  Aside from the 4 weekly spots I did, I also dj’d a bar crawl (Jacob & Anthony’s), DJ’d the Nappy Roots concert (Northern Lights), as well as pulled off a  marathon 14 hour dj day on Saturday.  No complaining here though as my friends can attest to one of my mantras “chill don’t pay the bills.  Oh and Yes…Nappy Roots.  Remember them? No? thats ok haha.  Anyways, it was nice to see an old crew still rocking together.  I had a chance to meet with a few of the crew and they were some real down to earth people.  People will try to knock on them for being washed up but if people still want to pay money to see you perform, I’d like to hear some good reasons why you wouldn’t.

If you know me then you know I’m on that 90′s nostalgia tip.  The music is a given.  The sneakers is a must.  The clothes…ehh some of the styles still speak to me.  But I’m definitely all about the 90′s hip hop whips.  Below is a pic of the inspiration for what I just picked up for fun to ride in for the summer.   Also, peep the Nappy Roots thumb drive.  Kinda cool if you ask me.

 

Full Circle

Man, this weekend came around before I was ready for it… and before I knew it….it was over.  So, I dj’d a bunch of my resident gigs this week as well as the Cassidy concert at Northern Lights in Clifton Park, NY.  But the real highlight came when I was djing my buddy Matt Cherchio’s wedding.  Matt, If you are reading this, congrats again my brother.  You have a beautiful wife and Nick is one of the most colorful and charming kids I have ever met.  I mean this kid literally lights up the room, I kid you not.  So, in case you didn’t know…Djing a dj’s wedding is the ultimate compliment and I was honored as Matt was one of my earliest influences in the game.  This gig was tough because the bar was set high.  I was hired to not only perform but also to rock as I knew Matt would be listening critically.  Matt couldn’t have made things easier for me as he had the entire setup ready for me.  Sound, serato, and all.  All I had to do was put on the headphones and do work (Thanks again Matt).  Well, to my surprise one of Matt’s wedding guests was none other than Dan Testa.  Dan was the absolute earliest intro to my dj world aside from Yo MTV raps or video music box.  Sorry young bucks, no 106 and Park back then…haha.  Man, I can still remember his setup of turntables in his room.  Coffin with the tables set up non battle style.  Sony stereo on video output.  And some bull shit Lineartech turntables.  Sorry Dan, I know you used to swear by them..haha.  Anyways, I remember it like it was yesterday.  It was a party at 1 Kent St. where I saw and later met Dan (Peppaz), Sean Duncan (Matt’s Best Man aka Dj Handikap) and Matt (Dj Cherch).  I must have looked like I had just seen a UFO as I was vibing to this Dj (Handikap) cutting and mixing what I later discovered to be a Kenny Dope break beat.  It was a wrap.  I was an instant junkie for life.  Well from that point on for the next 2 years, I continued to probably bother and annoy the shit out of Dan as he was my closest source for all info and things dj/turntable related.  A month after I purchased my first pair of 1200′s, I was djing alongside Dan and Handikap at a local hole in the wall (Peabody’s for those who can remember lol).  Fast forward 14 years and here we are at Matt’s wedding chopping it up and reminiscing about some of the times we shared.  Dan is older than me and a guy I always looked up to and although it was 14 years later I was glad to be able tell him that he was a major influence in my career as a dj but more importantly, I got a chance to give thanks.  Dan expressed that he was proud to see where I have taken things and expressed a “real connection to me” which I whole heartedly agree.  Without these guys and of course Deejay Element, I wouldn’t be where I am today or know half of what I know.  So, from the bottom of my heart…Thanks Guys!

Hello

Did a little clean up on the blog.  How do you like the new (but still very much the old) look?  So, the Grammy awards were on tonight and I got a chance to watch some of it and It got me asking myself…Why does the most prestigious music award show have to be so simultaneously painfully boring.  Anyways, RIP Whitney Houston.  She hadn’t made a hit or a song worthy of mentioning in probably twelve years but left us with some great ones.  Word to DMX.  My new policy regarding the passing of celebs in the entertainment world is to leave the commentary here and only here on the blog. No more poisoning of social networks of dumb and annoying status’/tweets.  One of the most annoying things is when my news feed on Facebook/Twitter becomes just that.  I’ll get my news from a news worthy, credible and reputable source but thanks for telling me the Yankees won.  Tell em why you mad son!

Anyways, relaxing and recharging for the next few days to get ready to tackle another busy week of djing.  Stay up and God bless.

Introducing: Take a listen Thursdays

Introducing: Take a listen Thursdays.  I’ll be posting tracks I dig every Thursday.  No bias, rhyme or reason.  Definitely no posts based on self interest.  So, with that being said…I Found this track randomly a couple of weeks ago.  Thought I’d share it with y’all.  It samples the same “after the laughter” by Wendy Rene that is all too familiar.  This one is just as infective on the ears.  Produced by the up and coming Dj Burn-One.  Peep his discography.  He normally has more of a vintage southern feel to his beats however, this tracks shows his range as a beatsmith.  Enjoy!

So what’s really good?

People seem to ask me this a lot lately.  Maybe it’s because I post way less on Facebook  about what’s going on in my life.  My logic: if you know me then you know what i’m up to (aside from djing).  So to answer that question… a whole lot lately!!!.  I’ve been busy playing dj/business man…This year I has been the busiest I have ever been ..(actually it seems like I have said that every year for the last 9 years…lol).  These days i’m booked 4 days a week and most times a double on either friday or saturday almost weekly.  From the club to concerts to private and not so private parties… the last 6-8 months have been fruitful.  I’m not chasing stardom or  pointless pipe dreams…just trying to be a good dj with an even better business sense.  No shots, but I’m not trying to be rich or famous.  Well…definitely not famous…haha.  These days I have a lot to be thankful for.  With that being said, I really cherish my free time.  I am a lot more low key these days, spending my time with my girl, my dogs and a just few chosen friends.  You can say that I’ve smartened up a lil bit.  No more pointless cancerous friendships.  On another note, fitness is still the way of the walk.  These days the gym feels incredibly played out and boxing is the move.  I’m working on my technique at the same time I’m getting my cardio straight.  So sucka’s best not get in my way this year.  Lean and mean is the objective and at 192 lbs…things are coming together.  Here’s a list for those of you who been asking for a new one/ people who don’t like to read.

what’s good:

1. Iphone 4s.  Siri is my girl son!
2. Building this VIP style inspired Lex.  Can’t wait till people ask me “why did you do that?”
3. Jeremy Lin back to back 25/28 point games and the Knicks win!
4. my girl making my place more comfortable.  nice bed/bath accessories make all the difference.  If you 30+ years old and you ain’t got no soap or toilet paper.  move back 2 spaces b.
5. Baked Lays
6. Gatherer’s Granola
7. Monta Ellis.  Dude looks piru and his game is just as gangsta!
8. Late night drives in the Land Cruiser.  No traffic.  Just me, the vehicle and some beats.
9. This years Winter weather.  No snow means no salt (I hate salt on my car) and my back doesn’t hurt from shoveling .  Win/win.
10. Glaceau Smart Water

Not so good:

1. No surf/talk function on iPhone?
2. Gas prices skyrocketing.  $80 to fill up? FOH
3. Being broke at 30+
4. Driving a luxury car and being unemployed.
5. Facebook (in general)
6. Tweeting like you got something important to say.  Nobody cares that you just had lunch
7. Thirst buckets for attention on Facebook.
8. Coat tail riders.  Be your own man.  Pave your own path.
9. Jersey Shore (guilty as charged for watching).  This show has run out of story lines.  The only one to make it out of this on top is Pauly D.  No dj skills + good personality = residency at a club in Vegas.  Snooki, see you on celebrity rehab in a year boo.
10. Simon Cowell has a new show searching for america’s best DJ talent?  FOH!!!

20 things I’m On/Off’s

On

1. boxing my ass off 4-5 days a week
2. doing 150-200 push ups a day
3. Carlos Mencia’s new material
4. Rittz the Rapper “White Jesus” mix tape
5. 90′s rap video automobiles
6. Me time
7. Mallory Malloy
8. Destroying Dj sets when I damn feel like it
9. Soup and sandwich season
10. the smell after you swifter wet jet

Off

1. Wack local rappers..ur not a ceo/boss.  you work at Panera.  Lemme get a lemon chicken orzo?
2. wack local rappers videos…fuck was you thinking?
3. wack local dj’s…don’t get me started
4. yes men or yes women.  keep “real” people around you.  Thank someone when they give you real criticism.  Anyone can say “you’re awesome!”
5. Black Friday.  What a sham.  I refuse to ever participate after making the mistake of going to woodbury commons 4 years ago.  The memory still pains me.
6. Reality TV.  I’m done with it.  I’m not just talking Jersey Shore.  Found out Pawn Stars and Auction Hunters were just as fake and equally as produced as the worst of the reality shows out there.
7. Yelawolf’s new album “Radioactive”.  ”Trunk Muzic” was a banger.  This one…not so much.
8. Working out like Rocky Balboa on meth and being 3 pounds heavier as a result.
9. The NBA.  Greedy ass muhf&$kas.
10. Dubstep.

Too late to write… so here’s some lists

Too late to constuct complete sentences so I am compiling two lists.  The titles are self explanatory.

Im on that:

1. Vita-Coco/Power-C all day son!
2. The no red meat diet
3. Patagonia gear (getting my urban lesbo granola steez on)
4. boxing classes (watch my right hook suckas!)
5. Qt with my few peoples and my dog Nilla
6. Rittz the Rapper.  Peep his mixtape: “White Jesus”.  On heavy rotation in the Land Cruiser
7. Returning all the dumb ish I bought for halloween aka unstimulating the economy
8. Not buying sneakers (like I used too at least)
9. Cleaning up my Macbook so it’s like day 1 out of the box at the Apple store
10. Not buying a new Macbook
11. How to make it in America and Boardwalk Empire (HBO son!)
12. Fixing my own thermostat
13. four wheel drive
14. lean and mean.

FOH!!!

1. Occupy wall street movement.  I would love to join but I got to go to work and despite the Patagonia gear, I’m not much into camping.
2. LMFAO costumes for halloween.  The first 3 or 4 were cool/funny.  After that, you’re just a another dude wearing leopard jeggings.
3. LMFAO dudes on halloween asking me to play “Party Rock Anthem” at 10:15.  Dude, relax.  It’s 10:15.  We got all night.  Nice jeggings!!!
4. Losing all my crates on my Serato and trying to DJ a halloween weekend not knowing where any of my music is.
5. Upstate nightclub/bar gimmicks.  Phony contests, excessive boasting about sexy and packed crowds = everyone knows you are lying.
6. Upstate NY weather
7. Upstate residents complaining about upstate ny weather…..on facebook!
8. Halloween in general this year.  Usually I enjoy it.  Maybe I’m getting too old…haha
9. Being a meathead.  Go bang your head on a wall.

I’m baaaaaaaaaaaack.

Man it’s been forever since my last post. I cannot fully say it’s because I have been that busy (even though at times I am).  So, lately I have been on some other shit and for some reason I have been obsessed with change.  No, not coinage haha.  Just doing things differently.  I woke up one day and said to myself that I am going to try different things and possibly make choices I ordinarily wouldn’t.  Well…here I am.  My hair is long as shit and not popular with the ladies (oh wells), I bought a new truck (it’s actually a 95 smh), and I started up a DJ school.  Those are the highlights but just a few of many things that are so different from say 6 months ago.  Anyways, I’m typing this laying in bed well rested after one of my infamous 12 hour dj days.  Yesterday I dj’d the sold out Mac Miller concert in Clifton Park, NY.  I can honestly say that the show was one of the busiest I have ever done. The crowd was young and consisted mostly of high school and college kids.  These kids were hype and restless.  When I say restless I really mean restless!!!  I tried my best to hold them down but after a while all they wanted was Mac.  At times breaking out in chants “We want MAC!!!”.  It wasn’t a diss to me rather a compliment to Mac Miller.  Anyways, it was interesting to observe Mac and his crew do his thing.  The kid has a buzz like no other right now.  No official album out yet and he’s already killing the game.  Man o man…the powers of the internet.  I could tell this kid (Mac) and his crew were living the dream.  20 something year old rap stars!!!  Wouldn’t that be nice.  Peeps are gonna hate though.  Some of my friends tell me how much he sucks.  Granted, all of them

are above the age of any of the Mac Miller fans at the show.  I think the kid has a decent flow.  His subject matter is a little young for me but I think his main appeal is that he seems like a kid we all know.  Hell, I knew a bunch of Mac Milllers in college!!! Anyways, just felt the urge to write something.  Sorry I have been away for so long!!!

NY sports…Big city of dreams?

So the Yankees failed to sign Cliff Lee.  The money was on the table but he chose to go to Philly instead for considerably less money.  Wait..what? You mean the Yankees didn’t get the player they wanted?  This doesn’t happen often but it may be the shape of things to come.  Maybe it means money really isn’t everything.  What were the factors?  family?  location?  best chance to win a championship? maybe it was an x factor like George Steinbrenner not being around and dealing with Cliff Lee one on one like he once did with Reggie Jackson and Gary Shefield.  One thing is for certain.  It wasn’t all about the money for Cliff Lee.  Which makes me think about the current reputation NY has as a city.  I may catch a lot of heat from lifetime new yorkers but there is a possibility NY may not be the big city of dreams it once was.  Have we lost our lustre? maybe the mystery is gone? have we over exposed ourselves in the media and pop culture that the rest of the country and the world are looking for excitement elsewhere?  It’s definitely debatable.  Just a lil while ago, I was asked to go to the Giants vs. Philly game on Sunday.  My initial answer was yes until I started looking up ticket prices.  $250 for a single ticket?!?!?!  FOH!!!.  They must be out of their cottt dayummm minds if they think I’m paying that much for one ticket.  I like football.  I don’t love it.  I’m certainly not spending close to a g to go to a Giants game.  I’m just glad my Knicks are killing the game right now.  Amare is averaging 30 plus points a game and Raymond Felton is coming into his own.  On top of all this, Melo Announces he will only accept a trade if it is to the Knicks?  Dope!!!  Maybe NY isn’t so bad after all.  Let’s go KNICKS!!!

All black kicks, air zoom generation and storm shadow.

So yea in case you haven’t noticed, I got a thing for those all black kicks.  Something so dope about having a fly pair of kicks in all black.  A few weeks back I copped the 24/7′s and the other day I couldn’t pass on the all new all black Lebron 8′s.  Thats a lot of dough dropped on kicks that no one ever really notices…smh.  It’s all good cause I do this for me dummy!!!

You know things are out of control when you look underneath your bed and you have a deadstock pair of lebrons (air zoom generation) underneath your bed.  These are the first Lebron sneakers meaning this pair is at leat 7 years old…smh.  Dusty as hell but definitely worth something to the right person.  These coincidentally match Miami’s current uniforms.  Hmm…coincidence?…Any lebron fans left out there?…lol.

Growing up I played with many different toys but G.I. Joes were my action heroes of choice.  I spotted the re-release of some classic figurines.  Here is my favorite from back in the day…. Storm Shadow.  Arguably the illest and most popular G.I. Joe villain ever!!!.