This is a great image I had to take from Matteo's blog of Guru back in the day. My man Simone was holding down the hip hop and jazz scene in Italy back then.
We're having a little party next Friday at subMercer in NYC. All the usual suspects in the house including guest dj Butter who will get things started right. We'll also say happy birthday to our friends Simone and Miguel.
Space is limited so RSVP to getdownyc@gmail.com to secure a spot.
I was saddened to learn about the passing of GURU yesterday. As half of Gangstarr, he and Premiere were one of the greatest hip hop duo's ever and a huge influence on me. Almost all of their records are certified classic, if not by sales.
Thanks to his first Jazzmatazz record, I started a deeper interest in jazz which was providing a lot of the samples for the hip-hop of that time. It also remains a classic record today.
I'll never forget the track "Jazz Thing" they did for Spike Lee's Mo Betta Blues. It's a sad day.
Jay Lew is hosting a series of interviews with creative types based around this five senses for the Converse blog. This month is our good friend Kaya Sorhaindo respresenting smell. Stay tuned for more profiles.
Miguel Angel Hurtado & Jeff Ng
Hustlers, Various
Cafe Gitane, NYC
April 2010
To celebrate the launch of Dr. Martens 50th campaign, we are doing a little party at LeBaron Tokyo in 2 weeks. The line-up which is headlined by campaign stars Verbal & Yoon, also features heavyweights like Don Letts (what!) and Japanese music legends DJ Nori and Takagi Kan. Let's do this big Tokyo!
Check the history of Dr Martens mini-doc. Some great cameos including our man Shuya!
Dam dreams about going to outer space.
On Thursday we launched the 50th Anniversary campaign for Dr Martens. Its been an honor to work with such a great brand with a strong music heritage. Because of this connection, we decided to celebrate the last 5 decades by selecting new school artists to interpret some of their favorite cult classic trax from the past.
To help take us into the future we enlisted the likes of the Noisettes, Dam-Funk, The Cinematic Orchestra, Verbal & Yoon, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Raveonettes, Buraka Som Sistema, N.A.S.A. and The Duke Spirit. We then created original music videos with notable directors like Don Letts, Rankin and Anthony Burrill.
The first 3 tracks + videos are now available for free on 50.DrMartens.com, including lots of behind-the-scenes footage.
And of course, don't forget the limited 50th boots, available at Opening Ceremony.
Here's a little mix of edits n things that I did for The Mixtape Club -- a great site spearheaded by my boy Brian Thomas.
