Episódios
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I’ve been wanting to do a Freestyle mixtape for a while now. I have cool memories of this music booming out of little Suzuki Samurais and Honda Civics in the late '80s during family vacations to the East and West Coasts.
Lately, I’ve been listening to a lot of archived radio DJ mixes from the late '80s and was inspired to pull together some tasty Rap, Freestyle, Electro, Post-Disco, and House for this tape. I only recently became aware of the original version of 'Show Me Love' and found an unopened copy on Discogs, so the version at the end of this set is a genuine needle drop.
A brief introduction to the Freestyle genre: Emerging in the early 1980s in the United States and originating in the urban Latino communities of New York City and Miami, Freestyle was characterized by a blend of synthesizer and drum-heavy electronic beats, Latin percussion, and emotive, often dramatic singing. Notable artists include Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam, Stevie B, and Exposé.
Internationally, the impact of Freestyle was more nuanced. In Europe, while synth-pop, new wave, and house music were more dominant, elements of Freestyle influenced the emerging Eurodance scene. Meanwhile, in Japan, Freestyle was overshadowed by genres like J-Pop and city pop, along with various other forms of Western music.
While its core fanbase resided in cities like New York and Miami, Freestyle's popularity was embraced in club scenes nationwide and received considerable radio play, particularly on urban contemporary, dance, and R&B stations during its peak in the late 1980s. This era marked the height of Freestyle's run in the charts with songs like 'Fascinated' by Company B, 'Crush on You' by The Jets, 'Point of No Return' by Exposé, 'Naughty Girls (Need Love Too)' by Samantha Fox, and 'Tell It to My Heart' by Taylor Dayne.
Freestyle's influence persisted into the early '90s, notably in Eurodance with international hit songs like 'Rhythm of the Night' by Corona and 'Be My Lover' by La Bouche, which exhibited similarly catchy choruses and uptempo rhythms, but with much denser and slicker production. While in the Latin music scene, especially in the early to mid-1990s, Latin Freestyle, a subgenre, saw artists like Selena infusing traditional Latin sounds with Freestyle's electronic beats and rhythms.
Freestyle remains a distinctive and memorable part of 1980s music culture, representing a unique fusion of sounds that captured the energy and diversity of its era.
Fantasy 3 - It's Your Rock
Pretty Tony - Fix It in the Mix
Freestyle - Don't Stop the Rock
Trinere - How Can We Be Wrong
Sequal - It's Not Too Late
Jennette - You Turn Me On
Olga - Play Another Song for Me
Pretty Poison - Nightime
Newtrament - London Bridge is Falling Down (Dub Mix)
Beat Street - Breaker's Revenge
Bohannon - Let's Start the Dance III (Instrumental Club)
Patrice Rushen - Number One (Instrumental Version)
N.O.I.A. - The Rule to Survive
Import #1 - Set It Off (Party Rock)
Connie - Rock Me
Lidell Townsell, M T F - Nu Nu (Radio Apella)
Robin Stone - Show Me Love (New York Mix)
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I first read about the N.E.R.D. project in something like Maxim Magazine back in college around 2001. Very quickly, the UK version was on file-sharing sites (Napster, LimeWire, Kazaa), and I snapped it up. Ironically, there was no way to know the actual tracklisting, so I made a mix CD with the order that I liked. This was the OG beats version that was never released in America and remains my preferred version. In 2002, with what must be one of my first-ever purchases on Amazon, I actually managed to buy the OG UK version on CD so that I could have WAV files of this amazing debut album, though I quickly burned a CD with the order I was used to from my sketchy mp3’s.
N.E.R.D.’s second album, Fly or Die, was actually really good, but at the time, I was sorta turned off by the band instrumentation on a N.E.R.D. album and didn’t keep up with them much after that. This needed to be sorted out, so I’ve gone through their discography for a mixtape. I’ve used some of my beats versions of In Search of... songs as well as the officially available versions with full instrumentation because, with fresh ears, some of them actually kinda slap. You be the judge.
One thing I realized while pulling this tape together is that Fly or Die was actually freaking amazing. I love the Steely Dan-esque moments, and really, the only thing I can knock it for is being a little short. Definitely an admirable follow-up to their goat debut masterpiece, In Search of...
She Wants To Move
Things Are Getting Better
Inside Of Clouds
Don't Don't Do It
Anti Matter
Rock Star
I've Seen The Light
Hot n Fun
Party People
You Know What
The Way She Dances
Waiting For You
Baby Doll
Everyone Nose (All the Girls Standing in the Line for the Bathroom)
Ride That Thang
Am I High
Thrasher
Chariot Of Fire
Fly Or Die
Wonderful Place
Maybe
Stay Together
Jump
Spaz
Brain
Tape You
Voilà
Lapdance
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Estão a faltar episódios?
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This mix is a bit of a sidequest as I put the finishing touches on a pretty fire N.E.R.D. mixtape that I’ve been working on.
Occasionally, I give flowers to some of the great pop tapes and CDs I grew up with. At times, I'll also include a mixtape from other artists who were highly influential to me, especially when they seem to be otherwise missing from the internet for some reason.
I stopped DJing in 1994, dropped out of college, and ran off to the Navy, realizing that rocking parties with two tape decks wasn't going to translate to club gigs anyway. For the next 20 years, I was just a DJ fanboy. During that time, I really dug the late '90s big beat scene, with artists like The Chemical Brothers, Fatboy Slim, The Crystal Method, and Groove Armada. The Chemical Brothers’ commercial mix CD, 'Brothers Gonna Work It Out,' was a massive influence, so much so that when I returned to DJing in 2013, now with the benefit of a laptop and controller, I specifically studied it until I could recreate it. Needless to say, their old DJ sets are a huge influence on me and all are worth a spin when you find them.
This particular Chemical Brothers DJ set has been on my hard drive for 21 years, titled “ChemBros_Soundsystem_XL_2003.mp3,” and was originally recorded from the radio in 2003. I most likely downloaded it from Kazaa or Limewire. It stayed in heavy rotation on my Creative MuVo MP3 player at the time. Now, it's nowhere to be found online, which is a shame, so I'm uploading it here as I finish up my N.E.R.D. mixtape. Enjoy — it knocks.
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For a long time, I’ve wanted to give flowers to some of the great pop tapes and CDs I grew up with.
It's time for my little love letter to INXS's 'Shabooh Shoobah.' INXS's Kick dropped when I was in the 7th grade, and it was everywhere. As a budding crate digger, I randomly bought this one with my lawn mowing money and was obsessed. For much of 1988, I rotated between 'Shabooh Shoobah', The Cars' self-titled album, and the Doors' 'Absolutely Live,' in my RadioShack-brand Walkman. In fact, I could get through all of 'Shabooh Shoobah' and half of the 'Cars' tape on my morning bus ride to school. Good times.
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I found this buried on my hard drive. This is my open-to-close set at Akron’s Square Nightclub in Highland Square on February 19th, 2016. This was a fun gig I held down for a few years after it fell into my lap. I used to play deep cuts and hipster stuff for the heck of it at Square and set up the main DJs who were in regular rotation. They used to, sorta, start later and later since someone was already there (me) who set up the booth and made sure the subs were bumping and not overheating since I’d aim fans at them and stuff, like the true gear nerd that I am.
One day, DJ Robin, originally scheduled to take over at 11 PM, couldn’t make it, and I ended up filling in. In no time, I settled into a weekly routine of subbing for either Robin or the other main DJ (whose name escapes me even after all these years).
Even though Square is known as an LGBT bar, it also serves as the only dance floor in Highland Square. As the night progresses, the crowd changes from older gay patrons to bridesmaids, then to 30-year-olds looking to have a good time before heading home to relieve their babysitters. Eventually, from 1-2:30 AM, it transforms into a full-on college bar.
The DJs had already established a “pay-to-play” tradition, with a request list placed next to the tip jar. I heavily relied on that list to figure out wtf these people wanted to hear, and would cop things from iTunes as needed. For this gig I’d basically play a request then riff for a few songs, and then grab another request, all night long. I built up a pretty solid charts library along the way. Basically anything old and/or weird is me, and the random contemporary songs where requests peppered in.
I had so many crazy interactions that I started bringing a digital recorder that let me record the crowd noise via a mic along with capturing a clean signal from the mixer. It’s definitely cool to hear the floor fill up as the night progressed. I miss that place.
This particular set was full of glitches because I had opened up my mixer to patch the sound card for time code vinyl and made it unhappy, so it cut out abruptly 2 or 3 times during my set. The first time it happened, I was caught lacking. By the time it cut out on me towards the end, I had a Whitney Houston gay bar banger ready to go on my phone that was hooked up to the AUX-in. First-world problems…
[MBP12->Xone:23C->TASCAM DR-40 in 4-channel mode for crowd noise along + line-in] -
Finally something new. I got inspired by Chris Read's awesome Hip House mixes (https://www.mixcloud.com/chrisreadsubstance/) and mined my HD to mix up one of my own para la gente.
The Jacksons - Opening
C+C Music Factory - Here We Go (the Rockin' in '91 Mix - Zelma Sings)
Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance (Nearly Neuebeat)
King Bee - Back by Dope Demand
Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock - Get on the Dance Floor
Double Trouble & The Rebel MC - Street Tuff
D-Mob - It Is Time to Get Funky
Stacey Paton - Turn up the Music
White Knight - Get Crazy
2 in a Room - Wiggle It
Twin Hype - Do It to the Crowd
Fast Eddie - Let's Go
Deskee - Let There Be House
Mr. Lee - Get Busy
M T F & Lidell Townsell - Touch Me
Technotronic - Get up (Before the Night Is Over)
The Beatmasters ft. M.C. Merlin - Who's in the House?
Tyree - Let the Music Take Control
C+C Music Factory - Here We Go (the Clivilles & Cole Rockin' in 91 Mix)
C+C Music Factory was the sh*t, don't @ me -
August 2023 update: a new school year just started, and I have a new son, so this will probably be my last upload for a few months… If you dig this mixtape, please check out all the rest. I only post bangers. Lastly, please give me a good review if you're listening on iTunes.
Duncan Gerow is a beast, I've been scraping his SoundCloud for a decade after watching DJ Jazzy Jeff drop his fantastic edit of Missy Elliott's Sock It to Me at a festival.
SWV+AKÓ
T.I.+Bun B+Dilla+Erykah Badu
Brandy+Erykah Badu
Snoh Aalegra+Brownstone
Ari Lennox+South Circle
Durand Bernarr+Ari Lennox+Monica
Erykah Badu+Hi-Tek
Busta Rhymes+Gorillaz
Ciara+DJ Mustard
Next+Biggie
Drake+Tems+LL
Justin Timberlake+Clipse+The Neptunes
Destiny's Child+The Neptunes
Aaliyah+Evil Needle
Usher+Timbaland
Craig David+Evil Needle
Whitney Houston+Craig David
Ashanti+Tim & Bob
Kelela+Neptunes -
Theo Parrish is a Detroit legend who put out a series of edits on vinyl simply labeled Uget (ugly edit) that were lofi and interesting. I love what he's doing here and wish more editors would use this quick-and-dirty style. If I were to guess what's going on or wanted to construct an edit in this style myself, I'd start with original vinyl. After identifying the breaks and interesting bits that I'd want to loop, I'd record a bunch of needle drops into a simple DAW like Audacity then move them around and copy-n-paste them until I had a 10-minute banger like “Party Going On”. Don't bother quantizing anything, and make sure the record needle is old and the vinyl dusty. Chef's kiss.
Brainstorm - Journey to the Light
Freddie Hubbard - Little Sunflower
GQ - Is It Cool
Mandrill - Feeling Good
Rahsaan Patterson - It Ain't Love
The Dells - No Way Back
Jackey Beavers - Mr. Bump Man (Give Me A Hand)
B.T. Express - Peace Pipe
Kool & The Gang - This Is You, This Is Me
Etta James - In The Basement
The Dells - Get On Down
Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes - The Love I Lost
Willie Hutch - Slick
Funkadelic - Undisco Kidd
GQ - Lies -
New series…
For a long time, I’ve wanted to give flowers to some of the great pop tapes and CDs I grew up with.
EMF vs. The Farm vs. Stereo MCs, let's GO!
If you're listening on Apple Podcasts, please shoot me a quick 5-star, and a positive review if you're feeling generous. While you're there, remember to sub. -
I grew up with sisters, they had the Milli Vanilli tape and I had the INSOC tape, both tapes knocked. MV vs. INSOC, let's GO!
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Boogie (genre): during the 1970s, the term “boogie” described music from the disco and post-disco subcultures. In the 1980s, the term was revitalized in London to refer to a type of African-American dance/funk music. Boogie had a large underground following in London's nightclub scene due to a lack of mainstream radio support. Boogie records were often imported from the U.S. and sometimes labeled as “electro-funk” or “disco-funk.” Although the word “boogie” was initially used to describe disco records, it became more popular as “disco” gained negative connotations. “Boogie” originally appeared in funk, soul, R&B, and disco music from the 1970s, with notable examples including “Jungle Boogie” (1974) and “Boogie Wonderland” (1979). Kashif is considered to be one of the pioneers of boogie music, with his 1983 single “I Just Gotta Have You (Lover Turn Me On)” helping to define the early 1980s boogie sound. Other popular boogie tracks from the 1980s include “Wake Up” (Hamilton Bohannon), “Act Like You Know” (Fat Larry's Band), and “Boogie's Gonna Get Ya” (Rafael Cameron). Boogie artists in the 1980s began experimenting with heavy bass, paving the way for the roots of house music. Hamilton Bohannon, D-Train, and Sharon Redd were among the artists who contributed to this new sound. Some producers, like François Kevorkian and Larry Levan, polished and extended the limits of urban-oriented boogie, while others like Arthur Baker and John “Jellybean” Benitez drew inspiration from European and Japanese technopop music. The latter approach paved the way for electro, and subsequently, freestyle music.
Change – Paradise
Gwen Guthrie – Padlock (Larry Levan Mix)
Sharon Brown – I Specialize in Love (12 Inch Version)
Unlimited Touch – I Hear Music in the Streets
Shalamar – Make That Move
Gwen Guthrie – It Should Have Been You
D-Train – You’re the One for Me
Skyy – Here’s to You
Bobby Thurston – Check Out the Groove
Skyy – Call Me
Secret Weapon – Must Be the Music
Cheryl Lynn – Shake It Up Tonight
Kashif – I Just Gotta Have You (Lover Turn Me On)
Ashford & Simpson – It Seems to Hang On (12 Inch Disco Mix)
Loleatta Holloway – Love Sensation
Jocelyn Brown – Somebody Else’s Guy
First Choice – Let No Man Put Asunder
Change – Searching -
This was fun to make. To me, Azealia Banks is the most interesting artist to emerge in the last 20 years and deserves all the flowers.
212
FuCk hIm aLl nIgHt
gImMe a cHaNcE
SoDa
1991
FiErCe
tHe bIg bIg bEaT
LuXuRy
mOvIn’ On uP (cOcO’S SoNg, LoVe bEaTs rHyMeS)
pArAdIsO
ChAsInG TiMe
mIsS AmOr
vAn vOgUe
tReAsUrE IsLaNd
nEw bOtTeGa
oUt oF SpAcE
FaNtAsEa
aZeAlIa sKiT (fAnTaSeA MiXtApE)
lIqUoRiCe
cOuNt cOnTeSsA
MiSs cAmArAdErIe
aNnA WiNtOuR
HyPnOtIc (HoUsE MiX) -
A collection of Pete Le Freq Refreqs
Blu Cantrell – Breathe (Pete Le Freq’s Got Rid of Sean Paul Rework)
Alicia Keys – Time Machine (Pete Le Freq Refreq)
The Jones Girls – Nights over Egypt (Pete Le Freq 2020 Refreq)
Pete Le Freq – Lock It Up (Pete Le Freq Refreq)
Instant Funk – Bodyshine (Pete Le Freq Refreq)
Teena Marie – Square Biz (Pete Le Freq Refreq)
A Guy Called Gerald – Voodoo Ray (Pete Le Freq Refreq)
Pete Le Freq – Show Me the Way (CMS Master)
Ralphie Rosario Ft. Xavier Gold – You Used to Hold Me (Pete Le Freq Rough Refreq)
Pete Le Freq – Want My Love
Sister Sledge – Lost in Music (Pete Le Freq 2019 Refreq)
GQ – Disco Nights (Pete Le Freq Refreq CMS Master)
Teddy Pendergrass – Get Up, Get Down, Get Funky, Get Loose (Pete Le Freq 2020 Refreq)
Michael Jackson – Thriller (Pete Le Freq 2022 Re-touch)
The Police – When the World Is Running Down (Pete Le Freq Refreq) -
Real ones know how special Phil Collins is, but here’s a little starter pack. I gave it a lofi treatment to keep things interesting, like finding a dodgy Type 1 cassette mixtape from 1985.
Turn It On Again
Just a Job to Do
Misunderstanding
Taking It All Too Hard
That’s All
Man on the Corner
I Missed Again
Dance on a Volcano
Mama
Robbery, Assault and Battery
Squonk
Follow You Follow Me
Abacab
Who Dunnit -
Every 6 months or so, I spend a weekend cleaning and ripping my old vinyl. I had forgotten about my last session for a long time and upon rediscovering the project folder I realized there was a decent selection of '90s gems in that batch and a mixtape was born.
Rip Chain: SL-1210MK2, M44G (JICO Stylus), Scarlett 2i2 DAC, Audacity
Vanilla Ice - Ice Ice Baby (Miami Drop Mix)
Debbie Deb - I'm Searchin' (Short Vocal Version)
Pam Russo - It Works For Me (Drumapella)
Bassheads - Is There Anybody Out There? (Just Get Up and Dance Edit)
Vanessa Williams - Running Back to You (Radio Edit)
Corina - Summertime Summertime (Spanglish)
INOJ - Love You Down
City Boyz - Get 'Em Up
Hypnotone - Dream Beam (Original Mix)
Joeski Love - Pee-Wee's Dance (Instrumental Dub)
LL Cool J - Rock the Bells (Original Version)
Queens Brooklyn Connection - This Is Called Hip Hop (Instrumental)
L. the Head Toucha - Too Complex (Street)
Kwest Tha Madd Lad - Lubrication (Safe Sex Radio Version)
Obscure Disorder - Maintain the Focus (Dirty)
Jedi Mind Tricks - Retaliation
Most Wanted ft. Pras - Ain't No Stoppin' (Album Version)
G. Simone - Music for the '90s
Bruno Mars - Versace on the Floor (-8 on My Technics) -
A collection of edits and reworks by the impeccable Casual Connection. Australia, stand up!
Ginuwine - Pony
Horace Brown - Shake It Up
Next - Too Close
Usher - U Make Me Wanna
Eve - Who's That Girl
Fat Joe ft. Ashanti - What's Luv
Mya - Case of the Ex
Naughty by Nature - Feel Me Flow
Adina Howard - Freak Like Me
Aaliyah - Back & Forth
Mariah Carey - Make It Happen
Brandy - Full Moon
Cassie ft. Timbaland - Way Me & U Are
David Bowie - Let's Dance
Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up
Casual Connection - The Magic
Blackstreet ft. Janet Jackson - Girlfriend Boyfriend
Bow Wow ft. Ciara - Like You
Nelly ft. Kelly Rowland - Dilemma
Craig David - Fill Me In
Mary J. Blige - Everyday People
Coolio - 1,2,3,4 (Sumpin' New)
Craig Mack - Flava in Your Ear -
Another one! Duncan Gerow is a beast, I've been peeping out his SoundCloud for nearly a decade after watching DJ Jazzy Jeff drop his fantastic edit of Sock It to Me at a festival.
Ella Mai+T-Pain
Tweet+Anderson Paak
Miguel+Devin the Dude
Riri+G-Unot
Ari Lennox+213
Ari Lennox+Biggie
D'Angelo+Dr. Dre
Usher+LL Cool J
Brandy+The Roots
Raphael Saadiq & D'Angelo+India.Arie
Nivea & Jagged Edge+Missy Elliott
Aaliyah+Tim & Bob
Mary J. Blige & Nas+Devin Morrison
Fabolous & Tamia+Lil' Kim
Mariah Carey+Bruno Mars
Usher+Bruno Mars -
Duncan Gerow is the truth! Been scoping out his SoundCloud for nearly a decade.
Bey & Slim Thug+Doja Cat
Christina Milian & Fabolous+Matthew Jehu
Riri+Jarreau Vandal
Bobby Valentino+Timbaland
D'Angelo+Timbaland
Alicia Keys+Dilla
Ashanti+Mark Morrison
TLC+2Pac & Digital Underground
Next+Dam Funk
Ruff Endz+DJ Mustard
Usher, Lil Jon & Luda+DJ Mustard
Riri & Bryson Tiller+The Neptunes
Tems+Foxy Brown & Blackstreet
Miguel & Travis Scott+Sounwave
Miguel+Tame Impala
Frank Ocean+Craig David
Ciara & Luda+Timbaland -
I found a folder on my computer of a bunch of demos, outtakes, and singles from Paul's Boutique that I had sorta forgotten about and gave it a mix.
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