The #SleezbagMekalekTape dropped in August, and I'm still not cringing when I listen to this thing, which means I can now write about how proud I am of it. Sam got in touch with me years ago, when I was still in LA, and asked if I was interested in putting together this tape he was working on. So, of course, we proceeded to build something completely new from the ground up.
Every verse on here was done exclusively for this tape. Sam and I picked the beats, ran them by the MC, and even though those carefully cultivated beats were occasionally completely ignored, the soundscape remained in tact: late-90's/early 2000's rawness.
This tape took FOREVER, and I've never done a mixtape like this before, with scratch sentences in between damn near every song. It's all blended seamlessly like a "real" mixtape should be.
Many have already called this a classic, so you should probably listen to it. Forrealz.
Break Yo' Self, Fool!
The title of this blog post was actually one of the titles I offered the folks at Redefinition Records for this new 7" scratch record. Thankfully, they reigned me in and suggested something a little more straight ahead: "Breaks For Hire".
Portable scratching, or skratching, is sweeping the nation, and fools can scratch any damn where they please. The pool, the tub, the club, the mountains...you better watch out for some scratch nerd at a beach near you this summer, working on their tears, cuz it's probably gonna happen.
I wanted to make a record that has everything you could need for this portable setup: phrases, sounds, drums, synth notes, and battle/routine lines. This record is unique in that I layed the entire kit over a 70 BPM instrumental, so if you let it play, it remains on beat the entire time. Oh yeah, it's also in the key of C-minor.
Add in some skipless tracks, and an entire side of K-Def drum breaks on the flip (WHAT?!), and you have "Breaks For Hire".
Breaks For Hire 7", available via Redefinition Records.
Speak For Yourself
I still remember when this kid, Milez, took the stage for the first time at a club called The Ocean Mist in Matunuck, Rhode Island. I looked up from behind the turntables, and saw this kid who couldn't have been more than 13 years old, really looking kind of engulfed by the huge stage he was standing on. About 30 seconds after I threw the beat on, he had the crowd in hysterics; this kid was not joking around at all.
Jump to 2016 and here he is, spraying venom-tipped darts over a Bombdrop-produced gorilla beat. I mean, there's no question Milez is a menace; this kid shreds...
And I'm still behind the turntables for him, slicing up that BIG line.
Yeah Juan, You Right
This is that one right here. Brand new Tic-Tac-fresh, breezy bap by my man, Juan Deuce, called "You Right" produced by J57. I got to do like 3 different types of scratching on here: the intro simple-styles, the catchy reel-you-in hook styles, and the "watch me flex a little" outro styles. Bless my guy for letting me get all creative.
I don't even know what instrument is going on in this beat--it's like an electric piano put through a sampler and slowed down w/ some white noise and vinyl funk in it. Oh yeah, plus some bottled-up summer breeze thrown in. Perfect end of summer stuff for the heads.
Make sure to get Juan Deuce & J57's "Sock Money" out on September 23rd (iTunes link in the player). The entire project is special--I've been listening to it non-stop since I got it.
Check...
Rock The (wedding) Bells
May is here, and so then is wedding season. This year, I have tossed aside my Grumpy Cat-like tendencies, and actually gotten involved. With the invaluable help of my wedding-DJ-sensei, DJ Roux, I DJ'd my first post-nuptial roof-caver. It was in a barn, which was kinda tight, and never one to be a complete sellout, I did some blending, scratching (tastefully of course), and rocked my first salsa set. Add in a lot of Patrice Rushen, some Kenny Dope, and it went pretty smewth for a first effort.
Also, I learned what to yell when you're feelin' it at a Puerto Rican jam. WEPA!!!!
Photo by Jason Shechtman: www.leisurecult.com
Throw On Your Haz-Mek Suits.
Man, another day, another fire collaboration with Blind Barber Productions and the guy on the beats, Rodney Hazard. This time, one of the greatest flows in hip-hop history provides the voice, as "Mr. Rather Unique" himself, AZ, melts over a Latin-style guitar like silk sheets over Eva Mendes' naked body (as I imagine it anyway). Providing the scratch bridge at the end? Yours truly.
I was stuck on the last line for a little bit when my man Andrew Kelley suggested "some Sosa / Escobar gangster wisdom". This guy is always right. Bing, bang, boom…but look at me now.
Blind Barber is Bada$$
This is brandy ("I Wanna Be Down") new basement rawness, produced by the kid Rodney Hazard, and featuring NYC's golden-era child, Joey Bada$$. Oh yeah, and I'm doing the cuts on this one. My main mellow Andrew Kelley at Blind Barber Productions called me up and asked me to do something for the hook and breakdown--preferably a line from Buckshot of Black Moon.
Now I'm not the one to brag, but I'm pretty sure that I found the best possible line that could be cut in a Joey Bada$$ song…AND it's a Buckshot line. Check this knocker out and for sure be on lurk for Rodney's album called "Victim Volunteer" as well all other music from Blind Barber Productions; they might be my favorite new people movin' the movement.
Ty Dolla $ign on a Mekalek Beat?
So, it appears that Ty Dolla $ign, the kid out of Cali that's buzzing like crazy right now, actually sang on a song that I produced. I don't make a habit out of Google Image searching dudes to see what they look like, so I had no idea until my buddy Newman told me. He was just Ty back then, but the kid was maximum talented--he could make great beats, play keys, and sing--but I didn't know he rapped. He's also in a video that we put together at Glow-in-the-Dark Records for Shawn Jackson's "Soopafly". Not surprised that he's poppington, dude's been putting in wurrrrk. Plus, he gets extra points for always being a hella cool dude. Here's the song I produced with Ty singing the hook...
TCOR x Grief 78 - "Eggos" (featuring DJ Mekalek)
Brand new bap produced by my potna, The Custodian of Records. His beat is teflon-tough, and the vocals are almost too damn raw. I said almost…there does not exist a "too raw". I was enlisted to handle the scratching on the song, and I flexed a few of the new patterns that I've been working on. Peep it...
BARFLY-ah-ah-ayyyy-ah-ah-ah-ah-ayyyy
Barfly is a new project upcoming. It's an MC/producer/DJ album featuring FourOhOne on the beats, Swann Notty on vocals, and me on the scratches. I've never done a project like this. Stay tuned for "The Barfly EP".
Photo by Jessica Pohl
JEEPERS. CREEPERS.
New video from my one of my upcoming projects called "Big Trouble", featuring myself on the beats and my man, !LLUMIN@TE, laser beaming his way through the vocals. Rest assured, you are in big damn trouble. This one dropped (appropriately) on Halloween. It's just so spooky, but don't be scurred; just listen to the crunchy drums and rapid-fire vocals.
…sheesh…
Welcome...
Welcome to my new site; as things happen, they'll be updated here.
Check out the custom intro I made in the player below.
Hold it.