This is a blog used to help promote DJ Kool Emdee and dedicated to GOOD music and those
who love good music, be it old or new school. Any music or links posted are for SAMPLE PURPOSES ONLY. We wish that you would support all artists by purchasing their bodies of work.
I walk into the Detroit Deli and order the Tone Trezure, a lovely dish of eclectic Soul, Gospel, Rhythm & Blues, laced over some soulful Hip-Hop beats. This incredible vocalist hailing from Michigan has already worked with the likes of Jay Electronica, Texas' own Erykah Badu and Strange Fruit Project, just to name a few. Thanks to my good friend Bobby Phats who hosts a radio show called The Groove, he introduced me to this amazing young artist. As a FREE DOWNLOAD, she's giving the world another taste of who she is with The Lost Remnants of Tone Trezure. In her own words about her current EP:
"This album is just some comprised work I've done over the years that I wanted to share. This was an era in my life when I was really getting into my own and just wanting to be heard so I wrote about everything. This was a wonderful growing period in my opening up more to the Hip-hop and Soul side of R&B."
Previously she released her My Destiny EP in May. Both are available on her Bandcamp page. For right now, check the preview and Enjoy!
Remember the days when you used to dump a roll of quarters to play your favorite arcade game trying to perfect your skills? Ahhhhh...that was the life. What made the experience extra sweet was when you had your walkman on blasting your favorite tunes while you played. The memories of yesteryear. Well...here's a mix of 8-Bit and 16-Bit sounds inspired by video games that features some notable beat makers of the current sound. Enjoy!
Arcade Funk Tracklisting:
01. Yellow Magic Orchestra - Computer Games (12" Mix) 02. Bullion ft. Paul White - Get Familiar 03. Flying Lotus - Massage Situation 04. Samiyam - Bonus Mission 05. Nameless ft. Clear Soul Forces - Pick Up The Sticks 06. Computer Jay - Maintain (Mike Slot Remix) 07. Dorian Concept - Bipolar Friend 08. The Clonius - Fogged Spacesuit 09. AEED - Error Code 10. Devonwho - Stile 11. Wajeed - Tetris 12. Flying Lotus - First Friday Funk 13. Onra - My Comet 14. Elaquent - Shoguns Orders 15. Elaquent - Try Force (The Future Is Retro) 16. Elan - Fresh Lava (Original Mix) 17. Devonwho - Adept 18. Knxwledge - Konfrontation
This is just a preview of my new mixtape Soul Blendz Vol.4. Send a message to my inbox if you would like a copy of this. The actual full length mix has a few more tracks added to it.
If you missed Dutch duo La Melodia's debut release Vibing High from 2007, do yourself a favor and get caught up. Because Melodee and DJ/Producer I.N.T. recently dropped another treat for us in the form of an EP titled Electric Love. All production was done by I.N.T. except for "Friend For Life", a certified banger that was produced by the lovely Suzi Analogue. Time to give yourself an eargasm to "Electric Love". Enjoy!
I had to take this time to give a massive shout out to my new friend Erica Nicole, President/CEO/photographer of Raw Image Studio, who did an excellent job (as usual) of shooting photos of The Foreign Exchange show this past Sunday at Numbers in Houston. Take a look at the video below for some of the work she has done, then rush on over to her site for more info and booking. You'll agree that she's amazing.
London based Eric Lau is really creating a huge buzz for himself lately. Having worked with the amazing husband and wife duo, Georgia Anne Muldrow and Dudley Perkins, to Lupe Fiasco, Tanya Morgan, Guilty Simpson, Tawiah and Rahel, Eric will be releasing an instrumental album called Makin' Sound on Kilawatt on September 27th. His previous New Territories release from 2008 was well received after many caught wind of him with "I Feel Fine" featuring Rahel on Brownswood Bubblers 4 in 2006. Kilawatt V2 released a few months ago added to his momentum. You can preview all of Makin' Sound on the Kilawatt Bandcamp page. Check out "Cruise Control" and the Eric Lau interview on his upcoming release. Enjoy!
Early this month ASCAP (the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) launched the ASCAP Mobile application for iPhone®, iPad® and iPod Touch®. The app will allow members to monitor their accounts while on the go. They plan to release versions of the app for Blackberry® and Android® (Droid) in the near future. Read more at ASCAP.com.
After hearing the latest album from Pittsburg, PA based Persephone's Dream, I would have to say that PAN: An Urban Pastoral is one of the most musically diverse Progressive Rock albums I have heard in a long time. An wonderful blend of Jazz and Swing elements, World, Electronica, Trip-Hop, Pop, Metal and Folk helps this album to stand out far from most Rock bands. These guys have more than 13 years of experience at what they do, so look forward to me spinning a few tracks at some of my upcoming sets. Visit the Persephone's Dream website for more info and order the CD from CD Universe and Amazon.
PAN: An Urban Pastoral Tracklist:
01. Prelude (0:39) 02. Invocation (1:18) 03. Pan’s Labyrinth (7:28) 04. Those Who Remember (3:42) 05. Chaosong (1:25) 06. Sidewalk Soliloquy (2:50) 07. Chaosong Reprise (1:31) 08. Denouement of a God (1:02) 09. Le Defile Satyrique (1:32) 10. Maenads, Melody and Meter (3:01) 11. Ubi Sunt (1:12) 12. The Seduction of Daphnis (4:59) 13. Nectar of the Gods (3:12) 14. Youth’s Denial (1:16) 15: The Temptation of Icarus (2:14) 16. Selene Rising (2:03) 17. The Tears of Selene (9:31) 18. Erato’s Pulse (11:06) 19. Silhouette (8:45)
I'm excited to post new music from Bobbie Fine, a good friend of mine who has a heavy voice in the world of Hip-Hop. He's known for penning the classics "In Control of Things" and "Back Again" for YZ and a member of Blaque Spurm and the Funk Family with late legendary producer/DJ Tony D. His current group Good Biz keeps the flow of classic Hip-Hop as it's meant to be with fellow members Ms. Quay Devon and KP.
Here are their two latest singles "I'm Ready", an excellent remix of Alicia Keys' current single and "Higher" (serious head nod factor) from the Principle & Interest EP. You can purchase all Good Biz Music projects via the Good Biz Music website and on iTunes. Enjoy!
Here's a funky soulful mix I put together after going through so many breaks last night. Working on refreshing my music head with some wonderful tunes I forgot about. Some of these sound familiar because some of your favorite rappers, MC's and R&B artists sampled most of the tracks listed. Artwork is by the late Ernie Barnes. Enjoy!
01. Eddie Kendricks - Intimate Friends 02. Brass Construction - The Message (Inspiration) 03. Barry White - Never, Never Gonna Give You Up 04. Gwen McRae - 90% of Me Is You 05. Faze-O - Ridin' High 06. Rick James - Moonchild 07. Keni Burke - Rising To The Top 08. The Gap Band - Outstanding 09. The Brothers Johnson - Strawberry Letter 23 10. Earth, Wind & Fire - Fantasy 11. The Jacksons - Heatbreak Hotel 12. Love Unlimited Orchestra - Midnight Groove 13. Dennis Edwards ft. Syreeta - Don't Look Any Further 14. Marvin Gaye - Time To Get It Together 15. The Bee Gees - Love You Inside Out 16. Tom Brock - There's Nothing In This World 17. Little Beaver - Party Life 18. Steve Arrington - Beddie Biey 19. Cameo - Hangin' Downtown
Evolution of A Hit Song That Nobody's Heard by Arnecia Harris
Who knew that back in 1983, when my dad Anthony Stephens was sitting around with his band in Montreal, Canada, smoking, drinking and vibing in the studio that they’d record a song that would still be heard around the world almost 30 years later. In 1986, The Source approached gospel singer Candi Staton about putting her vocals on the track and together, her and The Source delivered, “You Got The Love.” While it would be easy to say, “the rest is history,” that would be lying.
The song barely registered on the Billboard charts when it was released in the United States. For years, royalty checks ranged from the $100s to sometimes less than a $1 (I still have the stubs, by the way). And then in 1991, DJ Eren released a bootleg mix of it in the UK with Candi’s vocals laid over the house song “Your Love.” DJ Eren’s mix reached #4 on the UK charts. Because of the success from Eren’s bootleg mix, the song has been remixed into a dance version, a Euro rock version, had a splash of reggae added to it, and then covered and returned to its soulful roots.
Anthony Stephens
Since 1991, the song has steadily been on the UK charts, and has been licensed for corporate events, movies (Layer Cake), TV shows (Sex and City Series Finale), TV promos (Grey’s Anatomy), reality shows (T.O. Show season finale), and more. In 2009, it was released by both Florence and The Machine (UK’s Best New Artist) and Joss Stone (soulful artist extraordinaire); two artists who have widely different audiences, but who can appreciate a good song. Asked why she decided to cover, “You Got The Love,” Joss Stone replied, “I appreciate other people's writing and music as well as my own and it's a great song!” With both of their releases, the success of “You Got the Love” reached heights never before seen in its history.
And yet for all its international success, nobody's ever heard of the song, The Source, or Anthony Stephens, the primary creator behind the song. The success of this song overseas, shows that there are many ways to achieve success in the music business and it doesn’t always include becoming a household name. Only four members from the original band are still living, but Anthony Stephens and his business partner John Bellamy will continue to take advantage of the song’s popularity as long as people enjoy the song. Look for The Source magic to continue in 2011 with new music from their production company Tri-She*Kieta in 2011. For licensing information regarding any of their mixes, contact licensing@sourcemusicgroup.com.
2010 has been a great year for Detroit music. The surge continues as MC/producer Black Milk drops Album of the Year today on Fat Beats Records and also available on iTunes. Black Milk is assisted on this project by band mates AB on keys, drummer Daru Jones and vocalist Melanie Rutherford.
Album of the Year Tracklist:
01. 365 02. Welcome (Gotta Go) 03. Keep Going 04. Oh Girl ft. AB 05. Deadly Medley ft. Royce Da 5’9 and Elzhi 06. Distortion ft. Melanie Rutherford 07. Over Again ft. Monica Blaire 08. Black and Brown ft. Danny Brown 09. Round of Applause 10. Warning (Keep Bouncing) 11. Gospel Psychedelic Rock 12. Closed Chapter ft. Mr. Porter
It was 2006 when I first heard of Darien Brockington on Nicolay's "I Am The Man" b/w "I Love The Way You Love" 12 inch. At that time, it seemed like there were more women who had banging Soul tracks and the guys did more softer R&B. Along with a sigh of relief, I pretty much ran this song in the ground playing it at every set. But hey...nobody complained either.
Not long after, I found out he had his own project titled Somebody To Love that featured Yahzarah, Little Brother and a few other talented folks. Pretty soon I was gathering every piece connected (pun intended) to what is now known as the FE Music family.
Here it is 2010 and the soul is still flowing with his latest Cold Case Files that's out now and available on iTunes. Here's where you grab your significant other, pull them in close, relax and listen to "Rain". Enjoy!
I know it's been awhile since I've posted a FREE mix. So here's your chance to take advantage of this jazzy groove. Leave comments to let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Click on the arrow in the player to download.
Abstract Jazz Lounge: Mixed by DJ Kool Emdee
01. Intro 02. Bobbi Humphrey - Harlem River Drive 03. Donald Byrd - Think Twice 04. J-Dilla - Oblighetto (Remix) 05. Kyoto Jazz Massive - Spireedom (DJ Mitsu The Beats Remix) 06. Anita O'Day - Tenderly (Mocky Remix) 07. Roy Ayers - Funk In The Hole 08. Oumou Sangare - Seya 09. Busi Mhlongo - Uganga Nge Ngane 10. Patato & Totico - Mas Que Nada 11. Flora Purim - Overture 12. Victor Davies - Morning Sun (Juju Orchestra Remix) 13. Bebel Gilberto - Aganju (The Latin Project Remix) 14. Kira Neris - Un Ete Sans Fin 15. Duke Hugh - Poloroids 16. Elaquent - Cloud 8 17. Caetano Veloso - Michaelangelo Antioni 18. Bonobo ft. Andreya Triana - Eyesdown 19. Robert Glasper - Downtime 20. Jazeboo - Acapulco 21. Cassandra Wilson - You Move Me
My homegirl DJ LaFemme linked me up w/ this musical stew she put together seasoned with Soul, Hip-Hop and some jazzy instrumentals. Peeps the sounds below and check out her other mixes here.
B. Lewis is a fairly new force to be reckoned with in instrumental Hip-Hop and Future Soul. I've really been digging this guy's last few projects and was delighted to see he uploaded another banging 7 track CD to his Bandcamp page today, which makes this extra fresh, any way you want to slice it. I'm amazed that hot producers like him and a few others I have posted offer their material for FREE. Thank him by visiting his Myspace page (of course you have to become his friend), then hurry to his Bandcamp page to download La Semaine. Enjoy!
A few weeks ago I met this talented group of young ladies at a local showcase I was running sound for. Talk about being blown away by the strength, control and harmonies from these vocalists. It's as if for that moment we all went back in time and Motown melded with the P-Funk Allstars and hooked up with En Vogue to assist with the sound and arrangements these beautiful ladies displayed. It was quite refreshing to finally hear something different after nearly two hours or more of "crunk" like rappers who all had the same things to say in their rhymes. Outside of the performers of the night, they have a different sound that sets them apart from many artists in the city PERIOD!
I'd like everyone to meet Houston bred Sydnee Jane & The Jane-ettes. These ladies are not at all limited to one genre and all are classically trained. They tag themselves as "THE from another planet-type Sassy, Southern, Retro Futuristic Songbirds!" Check out the videos and visit their website. Enjoy!
This is the latest single from bay area songstress Goapele featuring the award winning South African Hip-Hop star Hip Hop Pantsula. "Victory" is the second single from her upcoming album Milk & Honey due out spring 2010. The title track was leaked online last year and now she's allowing fans to download this track for free.
Proceeds from Milk & Honey will go to ANSA (Artists for a New South Africa) a non-profit organization working to combat HIV/AIDS, assist children orphaned by the disease, advance human and civil right, educate and empower youth and build bonds between the U.S. and South Africa through Arts & Culture. Show your support for both projects by purchasing the album or sending donations.
UK based Richy Pitch has nearly ten years in the game with a series of remixes and his own projects, as well as working with Hip-Hop artists like J-Live, Quasimoto, Asheru, El Da Sensi and a few others. Last month he released his latest album titled Ye Fre Mi on BBE Records. While the album was still in production, Richy visited Ghana and hooked up with a few rappers and singers who are featured with him on this latest project that's a stew of African influences from Highlife, Afro-Beat and "Hip-Life" (a fusion of Hip-Hop & Highlife pioneered by Reggie Rockstone) and U.S. bred Hip-Hop.
For those who love Hip-Hop, old school 2D video games and comic books, i'm sure you'll dig the video for his first single "Blackstar" that features Ghanaian rapper M.anifest. Richy is well deserving of having Pitch in his name as the pitch is bended on the song taking it from a slow Dubstep type tempo all the way to a banging dance tempo that makes you want to rush to the dancefloor.
Tracklist: 01 Intro feat. Abiba Tete & Kwesi Dankwa 02 Abanaba feat. Kwesi Dankwa 03 Black Star feat. M.anifest 04 Visa Connection Man feat. Reggie Rockstone & M3NSA 05 Dey Suffer feat. Yasmeen 06 Odo Yea feat. Gouda Traditional Music 07 We're Taking Over feat. Samini & DJ Black 08 Living Drum feat. M.anifest, M3NSA & Wanlov the Kubolor 09 Show Me How feat. M3NSA 10 Ninsuo feat. Kwesi Dankwa 11 Dey Craze feat. Sena & Wanlov the Kubolor 12 Fufuo feat. AB 13 Outro feat. Abiba Tete & Kwesi Dankwa
UK based DJ/Producer DVA has teamed up with Swedish soul sister Fatima of the Eglo Records family to bring you his funky remake of "Just Vybe" that's featured on his debut Natty project due out October 4th on Hyperdub. The crafty drum elements in this tune reminds me of "funk carioca" (most commonly known as baile funk) of Brazil.
Elaquent is another producer who never ceases to amaze those who like 8 bit swing beats. If your ears haven't taken in the sounds of his Persona album he released late June, it's not too late. Mosey on over to his Bandcamp page and purchase it. Trust me it's a great buy. Check out the proof with one of his more recent tracks he did a couple of weeks ago. Enjoy!
They say that "three times' a charm", so i'm sure fans of The Foreign Exchange will be charmed with their third album Authenticity that will be released on October 12th. They are offering their first single "Maybe She'll Dream of Me" as a free download on The Foreign Exchange website. The tune is produced by Nicolay and Phonte, and also features Phonte rendering vocals. This slow bounce reminds me of a mashup between a 70's disco laser meets DJ Spinna. Peep the track below and be sure to support them and the whole FE Music family. Enjoy!
Authenticity Tracklist:
01. The Last Fall 02. Authenticity 03. Eyes To The Sky 04. All Roads 05. Fight For Love 06. Maybe She'll Dream Of Me 07. Don't Wait 08. Make Me A Fool 09. Everything Must Go 10. Laughing At Your Plans 11. This City Ain't The Same Without You
On my usual quest to try and attempt to quench this incurable thirst for music around the world I came across the heavyweight beat style of Duke Hugh. Duke hails from Groningen, Netherlands, located in north-west Europe. His website and Myspace page doesn't really say much about him, but after hearing his beattape and a few other tracks, I can sum him up in one word....DOPE! Not sure if he wants to remain under the radar or not, but i'll do my part to chip in and let as many as I can know about his music. Check out tracks below, and as another added treat for readers, he's allowing people to get a sample of him via download of his Summer 2010 beattape for FREE on his Bandcamp page. Enjoy!
Jazz pianist, composer and Hard Bop innovator Horace Silver, born Horace Ward Martin Tavares Silva on September 2, 1928. Silver is known for his humorous, funky style of playing that was influenced by Gospel, African music, Latin music, and other genres. He started out playing tenor sax, but later changed to piano. Silver was discovered by saxophonist Stan Getz after Silver's trio backed him at a gig in the Sundown Club in Hartford, Connecticut in 1950. It was with Getz that Silver made his recording debut.
Horace Silver would later go on to record several albums with many Jazz notables. In 1963 he teamed up with Carmell Jones on trumpet, Joe Henderson on tenor saxophone, Teddy Smith on bass and Roger Humphries on drums to record most his best known album titled Song For My Father that was released in 1964 on Blue Note Records. Three of the album's songs featured Blue Mitchell on trumpet, Junior Cook on tenor saxophone, Eugene Taylor on bass and Roy Brooks on drums.
In an interview for the liner notes for Song For My Father, Silver commented on the title track saying: "This tune is an original of mine, but it has a flavor of it that makes me think of my childhood days. Some of the family, including my father and my uncle, used to have musical parties with three or four stringed instruments; my father played violin and guitar. Those were happy, informal sessions." After his tour of Brazil in 1964 which led to a heavy Lusophone influence in "Song For My Father", Silver is also noted as saying: "I was very much impressed by the authentic bossa nova beat. Not just the monotonous tick-tick-tick, tick-tick, the way it's usually done, but the real bossa nova feeling, which I've tried to incorporate into this number."
I walk into the Detroit Deli and order the Tone Trezure, a lovely dish of eclectic Soul, Gospel, Rhythm & Blues, laced over some soulful Hip-Hop beats. This incredible vocalist hailing from Michigan has already worked with the likes of Jay Electronica, Texas' own Erykah Badu and Strange Fruit Project, just to name a few. Thanks to my good friend Bobby Phats who hosts a radio show called The Groove, he introduced me to this amazing young artist. As a FREE DOWNLOAD, she's giving the world another taste of who she is with The Lost Remnants of Tone Trezure. In her own words about her current EP:
