Month: March 2022

So I decided to take a scratch class with DJ Vekked, whom is a multiple time DMC World DJ champion. I learned a lot from my first session with him. In particular he showed me how important pitch was when scratching. You can ask 5 different DJs to do a chirp scratch repeatedly and if they all use different pitches it will sound different from each one of them. I would try to change up the pitch of my scratching but I’m more focused on it now. I’m drilling doing pitch changes on the scratches I know how to do and I’m already seeing better results in the sounds of my scratches. A lot of DJs don’t scratch right now because they don’t want to put the effort it takes into becoming proficient at it. You have to do the boring monotonous drills as well as the fun freestyling. I would suggest to any Dj that they give scratching a try though. You will never master it and there’s always something new to learn. Have a great rest of the week!

I haven’t really been on my MPC One in a few months. I kind of put it to the side when I started sim racing as another side hobby. Today I turned it on and cranked out a decent beat. It sounds like an old school Kanye West beat. I had forgotten how fun it was to make music for a minute there. The MPC One is such an easy device to use and I really love the MPC workflow. I didn’t do any sampling, but just loaded up some kicks, snares, hats and bass sounds was a lot of fun to put together creatively. I have to make sure I stay in my music. It’s really therapeutic for me and keeps me grounded. After I made the beat I loaded it onto my laptop with Serato and scratched over it which always puts a big smile on my face. There’s nothing like scratching over a beat you yourself made. It really amazes me what a home user can do with this technology. Things producers couldn’t dream of doing 20 or 30 years ago, we can do with the press of a few buttons or mouse clicks. Also, with all the beats I’ve made none of them sound exactly alike. There’s so many sounds and samples out there to choose from, that every project you start can have a unique fresh feel to it. I stopped my subscription to Splice because I had so many sounds that I hadn’t used and I was just collecting more and more with each monthly charge. With all that’s going on in these times, it’s nice that we have some things that can bring us some joy from time to time. Making music, for me, is one of those things. I have to remind myself to stay on my DJ decks and stay on my MPC and keep the good vibrations of the music coming.

So I once read that it’s impossible for a human being to multi-task, and technically that’s true. Your mind can only focus on one thing at a time to do it properly and correctly. This morning I’m scratching and doing sit-ups and push-ups in between. I’ve done 100 crunches and have to finish 60 more push-ups to get to 100. I work a physical job so you have to keep yourself strong and in shape. It feels real good when I exercise and stretch in the morning. Stretching is also very important. Before I start scratching I stretch my hands and fingers so they are nice and loose. Between my job delivering packages to people and driving, as well as constantly being on my turntables my hands get tight and sore. I know it’s not easy to exercise, but you have to make the time to do it. Wake up a bit earlier in the morning and while you’re getting your lunch together, drop down and do 25 push-ups or crunches. If you like to watch the news in the morning (even though it’s fabricated mostly), get some exercise in during the commercial breaks or something like that. Fitness is very important. I’ve lost a ton of weight during coronavirus whereas most people have put on weight. I went from a size 42 pants to a size 36. I feel good and I’m moving a lot better to. Take care of the body that God gave you and it will take care of you. Be breezy!

So I’m still rocking with my Reloop Elite and 2x Audio Technica 1240XP decks. When the Pioneer DJM-S11 came out, I thought it looked pretty cool, but it wasn’t worth spending $2k to upgrade from my Reloop Elite when the form factor and functionality is pretty much the same. Sure there’s a pretty screen and all that, but other than that and a few other little things it hasn’t changed much from the features my Elite has. I was thinking the other day, “What else can they do with a DJ mixer?”. In 5 years what are the mixers coming out then going to have on them feature wise? We’re still waiting on Serato and Rekordbox to release the next add-on that’s a killer feature. Until that happens, the mixers that are coming out are just going to be re-hashing the same technology. The last thing Serato released was Scratch Bank I believe and that was able to be implemented in current mixers. I think the companies making mixers are going to have to think outside the box in terms of adding features to their upcoming mixers. The DDJ-Rev7 for example has it’s own hardware Scratch Bank where you can trigger scratch sounds that are actually on the DJ controller. It will take things like that to make the mixers coming out in the next few generations to be a worthwhile upgrade from the current mixers. Off the top of my head I can’t think of what they can do to set the next mixers apart, but that’s probably why I’m not on the R&D Team of a DJ gear company. I’m sure if I really sat and pondered on it I could come up with something cool. I will say that I am excited for the future of DJ Gear, but the DJ software companies are also going to have to step their game up and start coming out with new plugins/addons that allow for more creativity which can then be accessed from the next iterations of mixers and controllers. Scratch bank was a great idea and we need more ideas like that. Time will tell where the industry goes and I’m happy to be along for the ride.

With all the negativity that’s going on in the world, it’s still a beautiful day to be alive. I got a dope wife, a roof over my head, a crazy DJ setup I can scratch on in my free time, and Gran Turismo 7 just came out on PS4 which I play using my force feedback steering wheel and pedals. It’s always good to start the day with a positive affirmation and with being grateful for the things you have instead of feeling down/being negative about the things you don’t have. I’m going to attack the day full bore and find my joy in it no matter what. Before 7am I was up and scratching on the decks while listening to the old Church of What’s Happening Now podcasts with Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt. I feel good and I’ve even been lifting weights a bit this morning. Starting the day off feeling strong is always a great thing. It’s the end of the week and this week was pretty good for me all being said. I wish the world as a whole was in a better place of peace, but I will continue to pray to the Most High asking for that peace and I’ll do what I can in my little pocket of the world to bring that peace. Keep your head up and keep moving forward. Tomorrow may be a brighter day so don’t give up today.

Hi there reader! Well it’s been a while since I’ve updated my site, but I plan on spending more time with it and keeping it updated as we move forward. I pay for this every month so I might as well use it to it’s fullest. Right now in the world, Russia recently invaded the Ukraine. Although there have been reports of Ukrainians being racist towards black Africans there, I still pray for them that they make it through this. I saw a post on Instagram from a caucasian Ukrainian that was scratching on his portable Reloop turntable. He mentioned he was stuck in his basement and that they are constantly hearing sirens, gunfire, and explosions. That’s terrible for anyone to have to endure and people should be allowed to live in peace, even the ones who may harbor some prejudice. Those people are just victims of misinformation and a lack of intellect to think for themselves. That prejudice is perpetuated by people who show black people as thugs, hoodlums, and a people lacking intelligence. It’s by design. I was reading today about a black neighborhood on the south side of Chicago that was called Bronzeville in the 1920’s to the 50’s. It was a hub of black culture, arts, commerce, and general black progression. “They” saw to it that it was destroyed by redlining, and infusing drugs into the communities. When I was growing up in Chicago you could see the remnants of Bronzeville, but it had been replaced by abandoned buildings, crack addicts, prostitution and crimes of all sorts. I don’t want to get too political or conspiratorial on this page anymore, but the last thing I’ll say on what’s going on in the world is that the good people of our planet need to come together to make a difference. We need to take back our planet from the darkness and bring it into the light. I know there’s a huge mountain ahead toward doing that, but we have to start climbing it one inch at a time. Take care of yourselves.