Pour a Little Out For Those That Passed Away

At the Helsinki Bar in Saint Petersburg Russia and they've got just the drink I need. The star of the show... James Brown!

Helsinki at 45rpm

Man, I really wish I had taken better pics of this party on my first night in Helsinki.  But I think you can tell what type of night and how packed it was from these.  Let me start by saying that I firmly stand by my choices in the music that I play and that includes many genres, at the end of the day it's all about good music and it's the DJ's job to educate the listener!  So with that being said....  Another reason why I love traveling is to see what people react to and then do my best to take them on a journey which is exactly what I did during my gig in Helsinki.  I was hired to do a 2hr set after the resident DJ opened, his set was mostly electro and alot of 80's which sounded great behind the Funktion One sound system.  I got on around midnight and decided to change the pace up to something I'm sure this crowd (which consisted of hipsters, cool kids, the in crowd etc) wasn't expecting.  My set was completely 7" Funk, Soul, Latin and Hip Hop with the Funk, Soul and Latin being the winners on the night.  The crowd completely set the dance floor a blaze to music that they've probably never heard of (minus a few tunes here and there) which reconfirms what I've known, find your lane and rock with it.  Don't dumb down your music and don't dumb down people that are open, leave the dumb music for those dummies that are clueless!  Let's just say that at the end of the night I got a standing ovation from the crowd and even the bar tenders and club booker approached me and said that they had never seen this place rock how it did tonight.

*Note: My set was only for 2hrs after at which the resident said I might as well keep on rocking and close out the night which made my set 3 1/2hr.  Power to the music and power to the people that actually get it!

Funkastic

In a little less than two weeks I'll be heading back to Zurich to rock with my man Spruzzi at the opening of his Funkastic party at Moods.  The night will of course be Funk & Soul 45's with maybe a few other things thrown in there for extra measure.  Always a great time in Zurich!

Music, Beer, and Conversation

Being able to enjoy beers and talk music with some of my Finnish friends in Helsinki on a Tuesday afternoon was great.  We'd just come back from doing a little diggin at DJ Anonymous' Life Saver pop up record shop that he does every August for 1 month and I definitely pulled some gems.  My dude Tipa has an amazing record collection and has stories for days on the legendary artists that he's met and crazy stories on how he met them.  The homie Focus from Flow Mo Crew is the truth, one of the best Bboy's on the scene, but has had turntables and records for the better part of 10 years and is a lover of good music first and foremost.  I've heard him play several times in the last few months and he's definitely in the right lane, but how could you not be when you've come up hearing and seeing DJ's like Anonymous?

The Soul of Saint Petersburg

Yesterday was an extremely long day especially after DJing the Cosmopolitan event, DJing the after party, then going to the after after party there was only enough time for a 2 1/2 hr nap then waking up to make my 6am train from Finland to Russia to meet up with Misha Chak for Fun City Shingaling.  Mad tired on the train and not being able to sleep due to customs agents and guards always checking for passports, the 3 1/2 hr train ride actually went by a lot quicker than I expect.  Once arriving in Saint Petersburg I met up with Mr. C, strolled the streets a bit, stopped back past his home to listen to records on his amazing hi fi sound system, drink tea then rest before heading out the first of two parties that I am doing this weekend.

After a little rest we jumped the subway and headed to the center of town to our party of the evening at Taiga which is a really cool outdoor alley way area with a few artist shops, tables with people eating and drinking, a really cool barber shop and of course DJ set up with just enough speakers to fill the space nicely playing Soul 45's.  When we arrive things are already in full swing and people seem to be enjoying themselves.  Before going on I sat and had a bite to eat and a couple glasses of white wine before signing autographs for people who actually know who I am and came out specifically to hear me spin.  Great to know that there's people that follow me that are not in the dance scene only but people who love this music and the DJ's that play it as well.

All in all it was a great way to start my weekend off playing tunes for people, I was extremely happy to be able to play some Sweet Soul, Modern Soul and Latin 45's that I haven't been able to throw in the mix lately so the time and vibe was perfect.  Tonight we're off to the grand re-opening of Mr. C's "Fun City Shingaling" at Mope which has an amazing sound system and a great club atmosphere party for more madness.

Models x Moet x Mr. Fantastic

Had an amazing time DJing for the Cosmopolitan event as part of Helsinki Fashion Week.  Beautiful women on the cat walk, stylish people on hand and of course an amazing sound system for me to drop joints too!  There were two event's that I had so spin, one was the afternoonVIP lunch, awards and model meet and greet which at the last minute I was asked to present an award to Vans which I'm ok with, but I didn't realize I had to walk from the DJ booth down the runway to get on the mic and read the script.  Ok no problem, this is what I do.  The second event was the nighttime fashion show which was extra crazy, between all of people on hand filling themselves with Moet and H'orderves, the all Swedish model line up and the artists that performed it's definitely one for the books.

Better Late Then Never

I wish Adidas would have relaunched the OG Stan Smith during the Spring or Summer but I guess that means I'll have to put them on ice for next year.  Releasing in limited numbers September 4th then widespread sometime after that.

Ultimate Breaks & Beats 7" Slipmats

Coming soon from my Butta Brother, Breakbeat Lou and Eric Orr is the official UBB 7" Slipmats! Only 250 Numbered and sold in pairs.

DJ Eclipse on Crate Diggers

Shouts to my Rock Steady Crew fam DJ Eclipse on his recent episode of Crate Diggers.

J-Zone "Limitations & Mistakes"

Hot Peas & Butta fam, J-Zone nails it again with another video, this time "Limitations & Mistakes" in the studio.  I like the way this guy thinks!

Mexican In Helsinki

A few days back the homies from Flow Mo Crew took me to a really nice Mexican restaurant here in Helsinki.  The first thing that came to my mind was really? Mexican in Finland, c'mon this can't be official.  But with reassurance I was eventually proven wrong and had some of the best Mexican food I've ever eaten.  First of all they have 2 locations that serve two totally different menu's, the day time location is Cholo "Mexican Street Kitchen" which is a small spot that seats maybe 10-12 people and sticks with the basics, all freshly made at the time of order (which we waited 20 mins because of being so busy).  The second location is more of a fine dining establishment with expensive (and strong) cocktails, great service and fitting music.  After digging a little further I found out why everything was so authentic, the owner of the restaurant is actually from Mexico and moved here a few years back after marrying his Finnish wife.  The kitchen staff is all of his family so of course the food should be on point.

Helsinki Sights

One of the best things about visiting European countries like Helsinki is seeing the various architecture  and picturesque sights around the city.

Straight From The Sea

There's nothing like traveling and eating foods that are local to an area.  Today I enjoyed lunch out doors in the center with the homie Desto eating Arctic Char while talking about travels, music trends and production.  Nothing like fish straight from the ocean while visiting Helsinki Finland.

Fun City Shingaling

I"ll be back behind the decks at Misha Chak's Fun City Shingaling party in Saint Petersburg Russia this Saturday night spinning Funk, Soul and Disco Rap 45's.  It's been 1 year since my last outing in Russia for FCS so I'm excited to get back to the amazing party.

Northern City Soul Club

This Friday evening I'll be in Saint Petersburg Russia spinning Soul, Latin, Jazz and other choice genres on 7" at Northern City Soul Club.

Fresh Folks x Skeme Richards Interview

Earlier this year while living in Holland for 6 weeks I had the opportunity to meet up with Netherlands based brand, Fresh Folks who had contacted me prior to my arrival to do an interview.  On a cold afternoon we met up at the 45 Live offices to talk about Hip Hop, passing on traditions, being a DJ and more.

Enjoy.

Live from The Boombox

A few weeks back I had the opportunity to stop my the homie DJ Fresh's lab in Bogota Colombia and rock a quick set on his show before heading back to the airport for home.

Watch live streaming video from hipstepradiolive at livestream.com

It's Just Me

This past weekend in Heerlen, The Netherlands.

Funky Soul In Tel Aviv

After working on and off for the last 2 years I'm finally packing the 45 crates and heading out to Tel Aviv to spin at The Hop.  Definitely looking forward to catching up with the homies to bring that Funk, Soul and Hip Hop to the people.

Rotterdam Digs

A trip to Rotterdam isn't a proper trip unless I make a pit stop to Demon Fuzz for records.  Sometimes you even forget that they're still holding a package for you from the last trip.

I'm Your Puppet

There have been some really great exhibition's in the airports that I've been in lately.  On a recent trip to Colombia, I stopped in Atlanta's airport and saw this exhibit of rare puppets dating around 1950.