I am currently reading a novel by Jonathan Lethem called The Fortress of Solitude. The last part of chapter ten is an exquisitely vivid description of a block party where the best local DJ is going to perform a showcase of scratch talent on the hottest day of the summer. Two other local crews do a bit of DJing and uprockin’ to hype up the crowd until DJ Flowers arrives to rock the joint. The story centers around a white kid that struggles to fit in a newly developed anti-white culture in New York. An excellent read.
Aside from the white kid being shot piercing looks of curses and death by the black and Puerto Rican people around him, this scene in the book was oddly appropriate seeing as though I read it soon after the block party mentioned in one of my previous articles where Just Blaze featured. Also, after peeping the Common AOL freestyle (thanks Jeff), I decided to go YouTubing, checking out various early Common, Eminem, Pharaohe, Qwel, Psalm One, Open Mike Eagle (sup) and Copywrite freestyles. Then the chain reaction began…
I started by checking out DJ Dummy, then moving to DJ Jazzy Jeff particularly because I like the “Billie Jean” remix that I saw/heard him do a summer or two ago. Then I managed to stumble across a few DJ Noize vids. Wowzers. I was impressed. The only DJ “talent” I experience regularly is the blends that take place at the clubs that I don’t frequent too often. I’ve only physically attended one battle and it was amazing. I didn’t agree with who was chosen as the winner, but the show was radical… that’s right, I said “rad”. You got a problem with my word choice, refer to your Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles lunchbox and matching Michaelangelo thermos. You can’t tell me that when you were a kid you didn’t yell, “Ninja, vanish!” and run and hide when you were hanging out with your friends and heard your parents coming… but I digress.
Lately I have been linking the chain to hear different artists DJ, sing, MC and even witness a few breakdance vids I’ve never seen before. I’ve ordered a few new CDs as a result of my endeavors, too: Yahzarah and Radiohead, to be exact. Com Lag is nice (Radiohead) and I’m still waiting on my Hear Me (Yahzarah) import to be delivered. Ah, the wonders of the Internet were brought full circle by the writings of a laureate.
And finally, on a totally unrelated note, despite the unlikelyhood, here are three things that I would definitely vote against being produced and released to the public for profitable means:
1. a book by Michael Vick titled, If I Did Do It…
2. a reality show where eight pastors’ children are picked to live in the Playboy Mansion…
3. a live action film of Captain Planet. I just don’t see Dolph Lundgren pulling it off at his age.
Be good.
