Los Angeles based producer Asterix takes viewers on a tour through his home studio and vinyl collection. After showing how his record collection is organized, Asterix gives a walkthrough of his process of making a beat, which includes sample chopping and drum layering using his customized Akai MPC2000 XL. By the way, the MPC2000 XL … Read more
Exile returns for a showcase at The King of The Beat. With his trusty Akai MPC2000 XL by his side, Exile gives another quick lesson live sample based performing.
Once again, DJ Premier drops an interview and reminds all of us about the rules and guidelines for producing, DJ’ing, and music creation. The producer talks about up coming projects with KRS-One, Grand Puba, Ice-T, and Q-Tip on his label Year Round Records while emphasizing the importance of independent music. DJ Premier also gives his … Read more
Rocket Panda Media presents a film entitled Revolutions Per Minute: The Analog Spirit in a Digital World. The documentary explores the viability and appeal of analog and physical music forms in an age of instant and disposable digital music. The short clip of the record store owner explaining his mission to build the ideal record … Read more
Chicago area producers get ready. Mikkey Halsted presents the Fresh Produce Beat Battle, which will take place Friday, April 23rd at Reggie’s Rock Club. The crowd judged producer beat battle will feature a showcase with producer B-Crucial and will be hosted by NoTryDo, SINCERE, and Que Billah. Fresh Produce Producer Beat Battle Friday, April 23rd … Read more
Accompanied by Mad Skillz, DJ Jazzy Jeff spins a half hour long set of hip-hop classics. Complete with ample cuts and quick juggles, DJ Jazzy Jeff shows the crowd just exactly why his name is legendary. Thanks B-Man!
Herbie Hancock sits down with Native Instruments engineer Annie Mincielli to demo the company’s latest product release, Alicia’s Keys. The musician and engineer preview a portion of the sound set, which was sampled directly from Alicia Keys’s own Yamaha ™ C3 Neo grand piano.
You’ve been playing with the beta release long enough. Serato has announced the release of Scratch Live 2.0. The highly anticipated update delivers over a number of new features and improvements, including support for three decks with the Rane SL 3, Smart Crates, Serato Playlists, various library views, and new file management options. Read the … Read more
Dave Tompkins heads over to NYC’s Big City Records to share some of his favorite albums that utilized the vocoder and a bit of the strange history behind the device’s creation and rise in popularity.
Be sure to check out Dave Tompkins’s recent book, How to Wreck a Nice Beach: The Vocoder from World War II to Hip-Hop, which is available now.
Part 2 of Sha Money XL’s interview with Grind Music Radio features the producer/manager talking about meeting and working with 50 Cent and learning about the importance of drums from Jam Master Jay. Sha Money XL also touches on the difference between working with artists as they rise in reputation and after they’ve become more … Read more