For All You DJ's... Your Two Founding Fathers... Know Your History...
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Grandmaster Flash
01 July, 1975 Grandmaster Flash begins working on a new, revolutionary technique of DJing: In addition to extending the break of a song, he begins mixing bits of two different songs together. Using headphones, he's able to get the songs to overlap and connect. His new 'mixing' technique would be adopted by every Hip-Hop DJ to follow...
Flash (Joseph Saddler) played illegal parties and also worked with rappers such as Kurtis Blow and Lovebug Starski. He formed his own group in the late 1970s, after promptings from Ray Chandler. The initial members were Cowboy (Keith Wiggins), Melle Mel (Melvin Glover) and Kid(d) Creole (Nathaniel Glover) making Grandmaster Flash & the 3 MCs (with Melle Mel being the first rapper ever to call himself an ""MC""). Two other rappers briefly joined, but they were replaced more permanently by Rahiem (Guy Todd Williams, previously in the Funky Four) and Scorpio (Eddie Morris, also used the name Mr. Ness) to create Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five. Soon gaining recognition for their skillful raps, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five pioneered MCing, freestyle battles, and invented some of the staple phrases in MCing. They performed at Disco Fever in the Bronx beginning in 1978. Cowboy created the term ""Hip Hop"" while teasing a friend who had just joined the US Army, by scat singing the words ""hip/hop/hip/hop"" in a way that mimicked the rhythmic cadence of marching soldiers.
Grand Wizard Theodore
Grandmaster Flash's partner, Mean Gene, has a thirteen-old-brother named Theodore that is also beginning to DJ at local parties. After accidently sliding the record under the needle; a young Grand Wizard Theodore takes DJing a step forward by pushing the record back and forth lightly under the needle during breaks. He calls his new technique 'scratching.'
Grand Wizard Theodore Scratching & KRS One Emcee'in
i'm wit you on this one Trademark....you know what always bothers me, these djs/so-called turntablists who swear they nice and try to exhibit their shit knowing its not polished and sounds so damn shitty. I can't stand it. I am a true believer in humility....basically if your shit sounds wack, you have to know it does and have enough discretion not to display it in public. It will only embarrass you and your crew. Turntablism is indeed an artform. I'll fucks wit you trademark. 1
WOW PAY!!!! YOU GOT ALOT ON YOUR TABLE, I'M IMPRESSED WITH YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS. MUCH RESPECT TO YOU!!! JUST FOR DABBLING IN THE DJ WORLD IS ENOUGH TO CERTIFY YOU AS A TRUE BRINGER OF HIP HOP BUT YOU UNDERSTAND IT TO THE FULLEST ANDTHAT DOES MY HEART GOOD!!!
ALSO, KEEP THE FLOOR MOVIN' AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE AND DON'T HURT ANY WACK DJ'S TOO BAD!!!!!
MUCH LOVE,
-Trademark WE LIVE OUR ARTFORM!!!
I agree with Trademark as well DJ Sir.Cumference...All people need some sense of Humility...Some DJ's really don't know how wack they are..I mean "Whats a DJ that can't Scratch, or mix a track? Shiiit I got Cd Players more usefull than that!"
There's Too many fake kats claiming there DJ's cuz they play music at parties, but can't even match the bpm's when mixing 2 song's together...As a producer/emcee I've always had turntables around when sampling, but I never claimed to be a DJ...Some people got it, some people don't...Respect to all of ya'll that know your History, Headz need to know this information...There's some facts about turntablism I never knew till now...Goodwork.
Big ups to this thread. I haven't been on the forum for a few days but I just ran into this and thought I'd add my two cents. Even Babs (who coined that term "turntablism") isn't really feelin' that term either. Its become a limiting term for us. I'd prefer we get called scratch musicians.
Scratching has progressed to the point that its not just the wikki wikki, or the beat juggling.
Its become a musical genre all into itself with whole songs being made with no use
of Drum machines, samplers, etc. You've got the drums made from scratching, the horns made from scratching, the melodies made from scratching. Entire songs are composed by scratching.
Its hard to explain into words, its better to listen. May I suggest an album?
Sketchbook-An Introduction to Scratchmusic by Ricci Rucker and Mike Boo
Its old (released in 2004) but still VERY RELEVANT, and aside from our lil scratch community and those in the know was lost in the shuffle. But its still out there, still waiting to be discovered by alot of folks. It touches on a number of genres.
