Coming around the bend....

50 cent said that a new artist should develop a relationship with an up and coming videographer so that they can both develop content together. I've always thought this but everyone wants to get paid right out of the gate. Not only do you have to run a few races but you have to win a few before you get put out to stud.

Trying to stay ahead of the game is hard if you don't know what game you are playing

When I started in the DJ game I quickly realized that I was at a disadvantage because I didn't make my own tracks.  My first attempt at making tracks was pitiful at best.  As I started to get better and  gained access to better tools I found that the next hurdle was to find a concept that was catchy.  That is not always easy.  Eventually, I found a few phrases and melodies that worked but every time I would get over that hurdle another one would spring up behind it.  I started to see a pattern in the process and my tracks got better.  I soon found that allowing others to "touch" a track brought flavor that you may not have discovered.  Here is an example of a remixer I know that has honed his skills to a level that makes it seem as though his remix is a stand-alone, original song.  Listen here.

One time for the crew

Update: Last night I came out of DJ retirement and I jacked so hard on and off the turntables that I broke my glasses. I also fell in love three times and got crushed twice with a potential third time on the horizon. I had the wrong cord for my hard drive but I made it work until DJ Roc moved the computer and all music stopped instantly. King Farley Jackmaster Funk and DeejayDeeon Boyd posed for an epic photo. I don't drink but I had plenty of water. April DiscoGoddess bought me a beer and I was thankful although I don't drink. Greedy Brisco got me there and Clenton DjClent Hill got my home (HSE in effect!). We had a moment of silence for Rashad Teklife. Overall, I had a great time although I'm sore as hell today and can't see worth a shit. Good times.

Corky Strong - Wave

This is from my label, Halsted Street Entertainment.  You can get it on Beatport

Corky Strong - Wave

This is from my label, Halsted Street Entertainment.  You can get it on Beatport

House music loses a legend

Recently House music legend Frankie Knuckles passed away.  I did not know the man personally but his influence and loss has been felt throughout the industry.  What is really crazy is that, with his death, all types of people are trying to throw parties in his name.  Now don't get my wrong.  I'm all for a good party but it seems more opportunistic than honoring this man to me and I'm not the only person that thinks this way.  Facebook has been all ablaze with opinions debating all positions of this issue.  Some are for it and some against.  The only valid point in my opinion is why not have just one party where all the people can come together as one.   Why is this not the only solution?  Because it is not about honoring this man's memory, the movement and culture at all.  It's an opportunity by a few individuals to make money off the death of a person that  they may or may not have even known personally.  So how did they come to this decision?  Was it like "Hey did you hear that Frankie Knuckles died?  Let's throw a party in his honor!"?  I find it very strange that so many parties have popped up all of a sudden.  One person even went as far as invoking the name of another House legend to honor as well in the form of a Frankie Knuckles/Ron Hardy tribute.  Well here is the thing with me.  If you want to truly have this celebration then make it free to the public.  If you are truly broken up about his death then come out of your pocket for this tribute.  If that task is too overwhelming get with the other people throwing their parties and split the bill, hold just one party in one spot and let's all come together as a whole and celebrate this man's life's work without trying to make a profit off his demise.  I will probably take a lot of flack off this but that is just my opinion on the matter.

Beyonce being Beyonce

There is old footage of Beyonce floating around the interwebs from an interview of  Destiny's Child.  It shows Kelly Rowland making a statement that she was the group's "second lead singer" to which Beyonce had a passive aggressive response.  It shows what Beyonce thought of her "group" at the time.  This is why if you decide to live a public life you need to watch what you say about people.  It will ALWAYS come back to bite you on the ass.

Boy bands

The music industry is always trying to manufacture a new sensation. They take a group of young, almost talented people and slam them together with a producer and, with a little training and a ton of PR, the industry has the next sensation. I don't even think these kids like each other and then they are on a world tour. The problem is once they reach maturity they are abandoned by the industry for a new, fresh group of suckers. It's kind of like dudes that date young women. Every now and then they trade them in for younger women.

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Record Union: Something New

Record Union: Something New



So I decided that, since I nearly died in 2013, I will start releasing more music.  I know it's morbid but I want to leave a better legacy than songs about camel toes and 69ing with fat booty girls.  This will be out in about a week and I hope you will\ enjoy the tracks.   I will be in the lab working on new stuff.

Wish List

Things I'd like to see for 2014:

1. Mel Gibson to shut the fuck up and make movies.
2. Wesley Snipes to pay his fucking taxes and make movies.
3. The RZA to stop making movies and make more music.
4. More titties.
5. More ass. 
6. More ass and titties.
7. More Chicago House in movie soundtracks and commercials.
8. More Chicago Producers making those songs that end up in those movies and commercials.
9. More clubs that feature House.
10. More of my music played in those clubs

G.E.T.O. DJ'z, Inc. - I Am House (DJ Flint's Hidden Sound Village Remix)

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Stop the violence.

Chicago is a messed up city for music.  The Rap scene is full of Youtube rappers that think they will be the next Chief Keef and get a huge deal off one catchy song and fans that can't keep from shooting each other.  no one can have a party in Chicago without someone messing it up if Rap music is played.

The House music scene is clicked up and the conflict is not with the fans but the DJ's themselves.  This guy can't play with that guy because the other guy doesn't like him.  Just the other day I heard about two well established DJ's and life long friends getting into a fight at the club.  I will say that one of the DJ's in question has had his ass on his shoulders for some years now but that is not a reason for fisticuffs.  There is even a guy in the business that makes it his business to pick a fight with a DJ every other week.  I think he is starved for attention.

I just want to do music. That is all.  I don't want to worry about who said what to whom.  I want to make a nice ass track that you hear as the club and I want to hear that random girl in the crowd that squeals and says "That my jam!"  None of us are superstars and we need to remember that.

Self help

I'm starting a series of web based self-help videos and blogs. This is my first topic. Enjoy and please comment.

Track star

So the other day I was having a conversation with DJ Traxman who had recently returned from Japan while supporting his latest releases.  He was going on about how about how Dance Mania (Records) was huge in Japan and that I would be surprised by what were hits there.  At that point he mentioned an old song of mine that, by my standards, was a B-side at best.  The name of the track was "Top Shelf Booty" and it was something I rarely played.  He said it was a hit there and I was floored to say the least. Anyway, here is that track:

The attack on DJ Nate

Recently someone uploaded a video of a young DJ named DJ Nate getting beat up and robbed. In the few days it has been up it has gone viral on Facebook and is now on WorldStarHipHop.com and Youtube trending there as well. I've noticed this video being played in public where ever I go and even my niece was watching it this morning. I've also noticed a metric ton of people having something to say about it, both in Nate's favor and against him saying how"weak" he is. The truth of it is that not only was Nate attacked but he was ambushed. He knew his attacker because the guy is related to one of the artists Nate has worked with in the past.
Here's my take on the DJ Nate thing: He has no real friends and is out there alone. The guys that were filming are not his friends but are "hanger on's" that know him simply because he is a low level celebrity. Personally, I take this as an attack on the DJ culture as well as if he attacked me. This is why celebrities have to divorce themselves from "the hood" once they make it because the snakes are out there from the first dollar you made and didn't give them 50 cents of it. Those of us that know Nate know that he is not a thug in the least and would not have been able to fight off this type of attack.


DJ Nate, I don't know you personally or professionally but I support you simply because this could have been me being attacked just as it could have been any other DJ from Chicago or any other city.


I normally don't support videos showing people being attacked but this thing has gone viral and is everywhere.

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Halsted Street Entertainment Volume 2

Here is the classic mix by DJ Greedy and me, DJ Flint.  Enjoy!

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Bad Marketing

So I'm at the Blok Bizness Meet and Greet and Power 92 has a table set up there.  On said table is some "movie swag" (that's an industry term and not that bullshit Lil' Wayne says) including hats and shirts from recent movies.  Now mind you this is mostly a Rap event and besides the DJ's there are mostly rappers.  One of the items on the table is from the movie "Snitch" which simply said "snitch" on the hat.  Whomever thought that to be a good thing to put on a hat and give away should be fired.  No one is going to wear that hat.  Even kids in third world countries where they give away the shirts of the losing Superbowl team will not wear these caps (they print up both teams as champs so they have them ready for the outcome).

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Adventures of a guy with no car....

So I'm on the train and I'm minding my own business. This guy gets on the train.  He's about 320 and has his S-curl pulled back into a ponytail.   You know the type.  He starts singing like he is the lost  Isley Brother.  So I'm giving him the stink eye for fucking up my calm and another guy gets on the train and starts going nuts talking to himself like a Looney Tune exploded in his head just at that very moment.  To top off my day I end up at my destination and I'm standing in line for checkout.  There is a couple behind me that apparently like the smell of my soap and want me to smell their's,  The guy is speaking VERY loudly in my ear in what I believe to be the Cantonese dialect and is very pleased with himself and the joke he just told.  I wanted to punch him in the throat for standing so closely to me but his girlfriend looked as though she may have been tough.  I had too many bags for a spontaneous Kung Fu fight.  I need a car.

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Have a listen to my demo...

Sometimes I get so excited about having my labels music on Beatport.com that I forget that there are other sites hard at work pushing the HSE sound as well.  Have  a listen to the Junodownload.com music player.  We are also available on Amazon.com and you can heaar us on Spotify and Rhapsody.

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Choosing sides only works at KFC...

There is a war going on in Chicago House music.  It's not broadcast out loud but you can catch rumblings here and there.  It is a multi-front war.  It has different factions.  Let's talk about these factions.

There is the Old School versus the New School.  

There are some DJ's that have been in the game since the beginning of it.  These guys have been spinning since the early 80's and, with the exception of a few breaks here and there, have not taken any time off.   Now let me clarify something about these guys.  It's not that they are legendary but just below that status.  They were the guys I like to call "and the rest" which would be the Professors and Mary Anns.  They have always been there but are just now getting their recognition.  They still have to quote their resumes to get jobs but they have impressive references.  This group feels that in order for them to recognize you as a peer you either have to have the same time in or have to have done something like produced a well known song.  If you started your career 10 years or more later than they did they consider you new school.  That is where the rub is.  They stick together and don't feel that a new guy can understand the struggle they have endured to be the headliner after living in the shadow of legendary DJ's.  In fact they question why they are not legendary in the eyes of the fans and often tag themselves as such.  

Current DJ's versus Newcomers (Up and comers)

Current DJ's have been in the game for at least 10 to 20 years.  They may be the hot guys on the scene right now.  You can tell who they are by how much they complain about the difference of DJing on real turntables versus "Hotplates" or using MP3's and Serato/Tractor programs.  Surprisingly enough the argument used to be about Turntables versus CD turntables but the latter has been quietly accepted because the Virtual DJ programs have taken its place as the demon of the culture.  These guys want to battle all the time because they feel that the new guys have not learned the required skills to have the title of "DJ."

Female DJ's versus Everybody else

Female DJ's feel that they are not given the proper or equal respect as their male counterparts.  Often times they complain that they are not being paid an equal amount or given the same consideration.  At the same time as wanting to be equals many of them often organize all female DJ functions and advertise it as such.  This is the Catch 22 of the struggle along with the overly sensitive nature of DJing with them.  It's like DJing on eggshells.

The Skilled DJ versus the Assisted DJ

This is more extreme than the Current versus Newcomers because there is still a basic knowledge of DJ skills and functions in that struggle.  The Assisted DJ has never used any equipment that does not have a "sync" button on it.  That means that he or she cannot hold a simple blend.  Now there are levels of DJ's out there.  There is the guy that can juggle a beat and scratch his life away all night.  He is the guy that breaks your mixer and blames it on your shitty equipment.  There is the guy that keeps the dancefloor packed all night but that guy plays all the crowd favorites and if you don't go on before him your set seems tame.  Then there is the top 40 guy that fades all his stuff in and out.  He is the "request guy" that will play your requests (kind of like the wedding DJ).  The Assisted DJ tries to do blends but can't count a beat and often brings in music on the wrong count and ALWAYS uses the sync button other wise he would "trainwreck" all over the place.  Real DJ's hate this guy.

Where do I fit in this crazy thing?  Well, my first gig was in Highschool in 1984.  I've produced a few popular songs that have been played in the clubs and on the radio.  I can DJ using turntables, Pitch controlled tape decks, CDJ's, Serato, Tractor or what have you.  I'm known to a few legendary guys as well as the general public.  I guess the only group that I can't say I identify with would be the female DJ's.

This would not be an issue as far as I'm concerned because I judge DJ's on their skill level.  I don't really care about the Gender thing.  If you train your dog to hold a blend and pick out good tunes then I will support him.  I do, however, have issues with the whole female DJ movement.  You see they are not getting gigs as good DJ's.  They are playing up on the gender thing and use it to their advantage until it becomes an issue then they shout "equality."  I don't like that.  I was at a function recently and a female DJ was doing her set.  She is a newcomer but  well known in the industry due to her other activities related to the industry.  I was watching her spin as most DJ's do when at a function of another DJ.  She looked up and started doing this flirty DJ shit that I see most female DJ's do.  At that point my admiration for her skill was somewhat diminished.  I was a fan of her technique and it seemed cheapened by her "Hey look at me!  I'm a sexy female that DJ's!" moment.  Hey lady!  I'm not attracted to you and I did not come here for the Cinemax version of House Music.  What's crazy about it is the more attractive female DJ's seem to not have to learn many skills versus the less attractive ones.  I've met some cold ass female DJ's and have nothing but respect for their skills and I've met some mediocre DJ's who would not get gigs if it wasn't for the fact that they were female.  

I'm also bothered by this "All Female DJ" functions.  I'll look at the roster and say "hey So and So will be there and Such and Such will be too" but then I'll see a bunch of names that I've never seen before and may never see again who are on the bill just because they are females.  That seems as if it would be counterproductive to the DJ's that have real skill if half your roster are train wreck DJ's.  

The world of House Music is judgmental.  Often times you have people that will judge the overall night based on the worst DJ there.  They will say your function sucked because of one fucked up set.  I went to the birthday bash of a legendary DJ and had a ball.  He had legendary performers and DJ's all night with two parties simultaneously pumping the jams but all anybody could talk about was the 5 minutes or so that the power went out on stage.  REALLY?!  That whole night was a great experience and you want to bitch about a glitch.  For some reason House demands perfection.

I really hope that the female DJ's abandon this crusade and just strive to be awesome.  If you are awesome DJ's no one will care if you are female or not.  At least that is how I feel about the whole thing.  Oh, and about that whole not getting paid equally thing?  If you are a headliner the promoters will pay your price to get you.  If you are not getting paid then it is because you are accepting the lower payments and complaining about it later.  You can put a stop to that in the door so if you are not getting what you think you are worth then who's fault is that really?

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