Music
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Tyler, The Creator earns new career milestones on Billboard’s charts, thanks to his latest album, Chromakopia.
The set debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 (dated Nov. 9) with 299,500 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the Oct. 25-31 tracking week, according to Luminate – Tyler, The Creator’s biggest week ever in terms of units. Notably, the set was released on an off-cycle Monday (Oct. 28); thus, its first-week sum is from only four days of activity. (Most albums are released on Fridays, giving them a full seven days of activity in their opening chart weeks.)
The LP sold 66,000 on vinyl, the third-biggest debut week for a rap album on vinyl since Luminate began tracking sales in 1991.
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Further, all 14 songs from Chromakopia chart on the latest Billboard Hot 100, led by the set’s opening track, “St. Chroma,” featuring Daniel Caesar, at No. 7, and “Noid” (released ahead of the album on Oct. 21), which jumps 43-10. The tracks mark his first two career Hot 100 top 10s.
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Here’s a recap of every song from the album on the latest Hot 100 (all of which are debuts except “Noid”):
Rank, TitleNo. 7, “St. Chroma,” feat. Daniel CaesarNo. 10, “Noid” (up from No. 43)No. 14, “Sticky,” feat. GloRilla, Sexyy Red & Lil WayneNo. 15, “Darling, I,” feat. Teezo TouchdownNo. 16, “Rah Tah Tah”No. 32, “Thought I Was Dead,” feat. ScHoolboy Q & SantigoldNo. 33, “Hey Jane”No. 40, “Judge Judy”No. 42, “Take Your Mask Off,” feat. Daniel Caesar & LaToiya WilliamsNo. 45, “Like Him,” feat. Lola YoungNo. 46, “I Killed You”No. 53, “Tomorrow”No. 56, “Balloon,” feat. DoechiiNo. 65, “I Hope You Find Your Way Home”
Prior to this week, Tyler, The Creator had charted 33 Hot 100 hits, reaching as high as No. 13 with “Earfquake” in 2019. His new total of 46 career entries dates to September 2011, when he first charted as a featured act on The Game’s “Martians vs Goblins,” also featuring Lil Wayne. The song spent one week on the chart at No. 100. He returned in July 2017 with “Who Dat Boy” (No. 87 peak).
Thanks to their featured appearances on the songs listed above, Santigold, LaToiya Williams and Lola Young all earn their first career entries on the Hot 100.
Meanwhile, Lil Wayne tallies his 187th career Hot 100 hit, and first of 2024, thanks to his feature on “Sticky.” He has now charted at least one song on the Hot 100 in every year since 2004 – 21 consecutive years and counting, the longest active streak among all acts. The next-longest active runs are by Jason Aldean and Chris Brown (20 years each), Taylor Swift (19), Luke Bryan (18) and Mariah Carey (17) – all five acts have all charted in 2024, thus continuing their respective streaks.
Ariana Grande is paying homage to her younger self. In an interview with Australia’s Hit 104.7 Canberra, the “We Can’t Be Friends” singer was asked why she chose to use her “grown-up name,” a.k.a. her birth name Ariana Grande-Butera, in the credits of Wicked. “Technically, it’s my little girl name! It’s technically little Ari’s name,” […]
While Shygirl was crushing performances onstage as the supporting act for Charli XCX and Troye Sivan‘s recently wrapped Sweat tour, a lot more was happening behind the scenes and on the road. “We would get off the tour bus at every truck stop just to look at and buy every souvenir that caught our eye,” […]
Solange loves her some Sosa. Footage captured Chief Keef meeting Solange over the weekend and the heartwarming exchange found the Chicago drill pioneer in shock that the A Seat at the Table singer was a fan of his music.
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“That’s you on the keys?” she asked Sosa about a certain song of his. He replied stunned: “What the f–k is going on?” All Solange could do was laugh at the interaction.
Another clip found Chief Keef calling her his “bestie.” “Y’all heard Solange my bestie,” he said. “That’s my bestie.”
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A bystander chimed in: “That’s hard!”
Fans lent their stamp of approval to the unlikely meet-up in The Neighborhood Talk‘s IG comment section. “I love how celebrities get star struck as well cuz Sosa ain’t wrong this is a wholesome moment frfr,” one person wrote.
Another added: “He was lowkey happy she knew who he was I love that for her!”
Chief Keef is currently on the road for his A Lil Tour run, which was rescheduled from earlier this year to close out 2024 due to a medical emergency. He’ll be making North American stops in Denver, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Brooklyn, Detroit, Philly and more before wrapping up in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 24.
Solange and Sosa are yet to collaborate, but perhaps that could change in the future. Chief Keef delivered his delayed Almighty So 2 project in May, which debuted at No. 30 on the Billboard 200.
Solange has been laying low on the album front as her last LP arrived in 2019 with When I Get Home. Earlier this year, she teased writing music for the tuba. “I’ve started writing music for the tuba, and I am trying to talk myself into releasing it, but I can only imagine the eye rolls from people being like, this b—h hasn’t made an album,” she told Harper’s Bazaar.
Watch the clip below.
Between the Election Day (Nov. 5) and the 2025 Grammy nominations reveal (Nov. 8), the week ahead promises to be one of the busiest in recent memory. The worlds of hip-hop and R&B are sure to be central to both of those events, but major cross-generational news has already made this week a heavy one.
According to his publicist, Quincy Jones, a 28-time Grammy-winning giant across entertainment, passed on Sunday night (Nov. 3) at his Bel Air home surrounded by his family. The producer behind Michael Jackson’s historic LP as well as iconic films such as The Wiz and The Color Purple, Jones’ contributions across music, film, television, and music journalism are immeasurable and his impact will continue to be felt for generations to come.
The news of Jones’ passing comes just days after the shocking conclusion to Young Thug‘s highly-publicized criminal trial. The Hot 100-topping rapper was sentenced to 15 years probation and no prison time after pleading guilty in the long-running case accusing him of leading a violent Atlanta street gang. The decision rocked the hip-hop world, with everyone from Sexyy Red to T.I. reacting to the news. R&B singer Mariah the Scientist, Thugger’s girlfriend, even skipped out on one of her shows on Latto’s Sugar Honey Iced Tea tour to go spend some time with her man.
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With Fresh Picks, Billboard aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop — from Jordan Hawkins’ rollicking ode to a “Love So Good” to Big Moochie Grape and Key Glock’s latest link-up. Be sure to check out this week’s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.
Freshest Find: J.I the Prince of N.Y, “Get to Know Me”
Nearly a decade after he first appeared on The Rap Game, J.I the Prince of N.Y is still dropping heat. The Brooklyn emcee is always good for a track that seamlessly blends emotional vulnerability with New York braggadocio, and “Get to Know Me” is another winning addition to his catalog. “I know you brushing off ya pain, if you afraid to fall in love can you at least try to love me coldly/ You used to tell me bout ya day, now we dancing in the rain, do you really wanna get to know me?” he somberly sing-raps over a downcast R&B-inflected trap beat, courtesy of DopeBoyz and Buckroll Beats. “Get to Know Me” clearly positions J.I in the lane of A Boogie wit da Hoodie — and, in turn, the legacy of NY rap ballads (shoutout LL Cool J) — but his wordy hooks and stream-of-consciousness verses push him somewhere slightly different. J.I’s new track plays like a rambling apology, sometimes a pre-emptive atonement and other times he knows he’s already too late.
Nippa, “Pride”
London native Nippa has been steadily making waves on both sides of the pond with his slinky mixture of rap and R&B for some time now. “Pride,” a sultry Afrobeats-influenced ode to letting your guard down and giving into love, deserves to be his biggest hit yet. Over lovelorn guitar and a drum pattern that begs every waist in the room to start wining, he sings “Wonder if I try/ Take off my disguise/ Wonder how it feels to be you/ Feeds my ego, play and pick two.” The Louddaaa-helmed track is quite short, which perfectly positions it for endless remixes and extended version to further build out its atmospheric vibe.
Jordan Hawkins, “Love So Good”
Between Leon Thomas’ stunning Mutt LP and the ever-growing rumors of an impending rock album from Beyoncé, the union of rock and R&B has been growing notably stronger this year on the mainstream level — and North Carolina native Jordan Hawkins has something to say. “Love So Good,” a brash, raucous amalgamation of soul, rock, and gospel is a beautiful breath of fresh air. Beginning at the very apex of his falsetto, Hawkins tears through his ode to a life-changing love with an impassioned vocal performance that peppers his slight drawl with histrionic growls, effortlessly matching the rousing energy of the track’s instrumentation. Not too shabby for Hawkins’ first solo single of 2024.
Big Moochie Grape & Key Glock, “Manifest”
Big Moochie Grape is back. The Memphis rapper returned with his Eat or Get Ate 2 sequel project on Halloween. It’s a Paper Route Empire affair on “Manifest” with BMG calling on PRE honcho Key Glock for the braggadocious “Manifest.” Big Moochie manifested this life of luxury with some potent “za” in his pocket and $300,000 worth of ice around his neck. For him, it was always about the dollar signs. “All of these cap-a– rappers trying to fit in,” he raps over Bandplay’s cinematic production. “All I want is money, I don’t need friends.” Glock takes the baton and slows down the pace to balance out Big Moochie’s fervor.
BabyTron, “Nightmare On Yo Street”
Instead of Nightmare on Elm Street, BabyTron’s bringing a nightmare right to your block. With spooky season in full swing, Babytron adds to the terror with “Nightmare On Yo Street.” The Detroit rapper has carved out his own lane with a signature flow that feels like he’s talking directly to you while punching in every haunting bar. “This a f–king gun fight/ Why you bringing a knife,” he asks from the middle of a creepy cemetery in the official visual. It’s a welcomed addition to any ghostly playlist as BabyTron heads into his Tronicles album dropping on Friday (Nov. 8).
Ella Mai, “One of These”
An artist like Ella Mai wouldn’t typically appear in this column with hits on her resume, but “One of These” is an exception to the rule. The British singer may have found her next radio smash with the romantic tribute to her boyfriend and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum. Mustard samples Timbaland’s hollow bounce from CeeLo Green’s “I’ll Be Around” while Ella Mai implores women to get them “One of These.” “Wake up in the morning, he got flowers at my feet,” she sings. Although — there’s just not many 20-something-year-old NBA stars walking the earth who could already waltz to the Hall of Fame.
Worl Boss is finally free — and now the Jamaican musical and cultural icon is getting the podcast treatment.
Worl Boss: The Vybz Kartel Story, an eight-part podcast series from SALT, Big Wave More Fire and Gulfstream Studios, is set to debut on Dec. 16, 2024. Created by Tahir Garcia and Sam Griesemer and executive produced by Nick Panama and Max Musina, the audio series will explore the life, career and influence of the dancehall icon.
“There’s so many incredible stories that exist within dancehall and reggae music and the culture here in Jamaica, and so many of them don’t get shared with the public. The only time you hear these stories is if you’re lucky,” Garcia, who also narrates the series, tells Billboard. “We took a step back, two or three years ago, and decided that we wanted this space to be able to tell the story properly. Obviously, podcasting has become this huge thing. But one thing that’s missing, especially in Jamaican culture, is this concept of [podcasts] being scripted. There’s so much more that can be brought to it with sound design and actually sitting down and editing interviews to tell the narrative in a way that captures everything and really preserved the essence of [Vybz Kartel’s] story.”
The new podcast series is told entirely by Jamaican voices and will exclusively feature interviews with important figures within Kartel’s circle, including the first female member of Kartel’s Portmore Empire crew Lisa Hyper, Kartel’s former DJ Creep Chromatic and famed musician Wayne Marshall. These key players will also be joined by Winford Williams — host of On Stage TV, the longest-runnning dancehall interview series — as well as essayist Carolyn Cooper, author and professor Donna Hope, and Milk and Jay Will, two important collaborators on Teacha’s Pet, Kartel’s reality show.
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Earlier this summer (July 31), just over a week before Jamaica’s Independence Day (Aug. 6), Kartel regained his freedom after the Court of Appeal unanimously ruled that he and his co-accused — Shawn Campbell, Kahira Jones and Andre St. John — will not face a new trial for the 2011 murder of Clive “Lizard” Williams. Although he was originally sentenced to 35 years in prison after a historic 64-day trial back in 2014, Kartel (and his co-accused) have always denied their involvement in Williams’ death.
“We have a lot of assets and we spoke to people at the source, including his camp, people in and around his orbit, fans and musicians. We did a pretty extensive job covering all the bases,” says Panama. “We have a lot of voices that are going to be represented and using that as a way to help breakthrough and create the world around the story is part of how we’ll successfully bring this to market. We’ve got some really great partners in the audio space that we’ll be announcing soon, and I think they’ll help amplify this project even more.”
Known for hits such as “Fever” and his Spice-assisted “Romping Shop,” Vybz Kartel’s raunchy music and slick wordplay have soundtracked multiple generations of dancehall listeners, and Garcia promises the new series will be for everyone: from first-time listeners to lifelong fans. “If this is your first introduction [to Vybz Kartel], it’s supposed to be just as impactful as it would be to someone who’s listened to him forever.”
In addition to his music and efforts to support Jamaica, Kartel’s legal woes have also become a major part of his legacy — one that Worl Boss does not shy away from. “Everything gets addressed and talked about. We just don’t dwell on that. It’s a part of the journey, but it doesn’t define the character,” explains Garcia, who also tells Billboard that, “the hardest part was getting people who are close to [Kartel] to speak freely — especially while he was still incarcerated — because nobody wanted to do anything that could potentially incriminate [him or themselves]. Everyone was very, very cautious about agreeing to do it, and what put them at ease was us not focusing on the mess.”
Although there are currently no additional details about the podcast’s distribution, Panama stresses that the podcast series is just one part of the story they hope to tell. “The second [part] is a documentary series and feature film that are in development with arguably one of the biggest Jamaican directors, and UTA’s representing the project,” he reveals. “That will probably be more of a late 2024 thing, but the reason we did those together is because the story is so dynamic. Dancehall is such a small genre from a small country that has an enormously outsized impact globally. To have a revered yet controversial figure at the heart of that with Vybz [Kartel] is such a fascinating character and cultural study.”
Since his release, Kartel has remained outside partying and enjoying his freedom ahead of a massive “Freedom Street” concert at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica, on Dec. 31 — his first performance in 13 years. Production and filming for Worl Boss began before Kartel regain his freedom, but now “there’s a third act to his story,” Panama muses. “He wasted no time walking out of prison and getting his entrepreneurial and music endeavors back up and running and continuing to build his mythology.”
From February’s box office-topping Bob Marley: One Love biopic to Worl Boss, Jamaica has remained at the forefront of global popular culture throughout 2024. For his part, Garcia hopes this new podcast series is the beginning of several projects chronicling and preserving Caribbean culture and music history. “That’s one of the things we spoke about very early on in this process, what does the next step within this space look like?” he says. “Once [Worl Boss] starts rolling out, hopefully it reshapes what people think is possible, and that’s going to be even more exciting.”
In Emilia Pérez, French director Jacques Audiard boldly presents the tale of cartel boss Manitas del Monte who decides to retire from business and undergo gender reassignment surgery to become the titular character. Adding to the uniqueness of the film’s plot, Audiard tells the story via musical numbers that are as genre-bending and defying as the musical drama itself.
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The two-hour film, starring Zoe Saldaña (Rita), Selena Gomez (Jessi) and breakout star Karla Sofía Gascón (Manitas del Monte/Emilia), is musically diverse, with rock, pop and rap leading musical numbers — all sung in Spanish — that are interwoven with the script as they capture the evolution and transformation of the aforementioned women, who are intrinsically involved in each others lives.
Manitas first hires fierce lawyer Rita to help facilitate her surgery, and years later, rehires her to help her reunite with wife Jessi, a rebellious woman at heart. Throughout the movie, all three have compelling musical numbers that add insight into their independent struggles as women in a chaotic country like Mexico that is riddled with narco violence, machismo and corruption.
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“The goal was that the music and the songs were linked to the story and deal with emotions,” composer Clément Ducol, who alongside singer-songwriter Camille crafted the musical’s score, tells Billboard. “That it wasn’t only music reflecting the story but the music was the story.”
The French composing duo was involved with the project even before the script was finished. What they initially received from Audiard was a 20-page treatment, and they were hooked immediately. “I like [Audiard’s] work because it’s very raw and I knew it was going to be interesting working and singing in this project,” says Camille. “I knew he would go for something very natural and break the codes of a musical. I believed in Emilia Perez from the start.”
The songs were all written in Spanish with the help of language consultants, including Karla Aviles and Ignacio Chávez. “They really helped me understand the cultural references and particularities,” Camille adds.
Below, Ducol and Camille speak to Billboard about the music behind Emilia Pérez, out now in select U.S. theaters and premiering Nov. 13 on Netflix.
What was it about the project that made you want to be part of it?
Clément Ducol: Meeting Jacques Audiard was already an event because he is one of the most well-known directors in France. When he comes to me with the idea to make a musical, it was incredible. What was exciting was that Jacques invited us to be part of it since the very beginning. We actually didn’t have a script yet — only a treatment, like 20 pages of a novel. Everything was built along with the songs.
Camille: I’ve always loved Jacques’ work because it’s very raw, and I knew he would go for something very natural and break the codes of a musical. Reading the treatment, it really immediately struck me as something Shakespearean. I believed in Emilia Perez from the start.
Because music is very much a protagonist, I’m curious to know how you all landed on that vision and what were those early conversations like with the director?
Ducol: We were reading the treatment and would point out scenes that could be turned to songs. The goal was that the music and the songs were linked to the story and deal with emotions. That it wasn’t only music reflecting the story but the music was the story. The music shifts along with characters. It’s a story of emancipation, transformation and evolution so the music embodies all of that.
Camille: Jacques comes with questions. He doesn’t come with preconceived ideas. We’ve been with him questioning the script, the songs, the story, the characters. It was like back and forth process. A song like “Por Casualidad,” it changed three times not only because the song wasn’t good enough or needed more depth or to be enriched, it changed because the script changed to reflect what was at stake at that point. It’s a turning point in London when Emilia has made her transition and Rita has become a well-known lawyer. First we thought the song would be about them looking back on these years. And then we thought it should be about Emilia presenting herself as a new person to Rita. And Jacques said, “No, Rita is scared in this scene and we need to add suspense to the song. They’re not just friends catching up. This is where their friendship starts.” There’s many layers to this song.
The musical numbers are all in Spanish. How was that process of writing the lyrics? Did you write first in French then translate to Spanish?
Camille: I wrote the lyrics for the songs. Sometimes I imagined the lyrics in French, then I would switch to Spanish very quickly because I needed to hear how it actually sounded. As a lyricist, I’m looking for something that sounds good and right. I’m looking for a song that is a delight for the singers and the cast, whether a song is sad or happy. And for that, I needed to sing the words myself. There’s no point in writing in French and translating. It has to be in the language because the lyrics talk about the country, the reality, the landscapes, the people. We must say that this film is about transition, women changing, about Mexico, politics and compassion. I want to mention Karla Aviles, who is Mexican and who was our language consultant and really helped me understand cultural references and particularities. Ignacio Chávez too. We got feedback from them and it really was accurate and fair.
The music is stylistically versatile, there’s pop, rock, rap — what was your inspiration for the music?
Ducol: The inspiration was only the story and characters, it was a very intuitive process. There weren’t pre-existing ideas of what could be used, no styles were pre-determined. Jacques likes to say that music is trans-genre too, not only Emilia. As the music shifts along with the transformation of the characters, obviously there are a lot of different genres.
There are two musical numbers I’d love to break down. First “El Mal” by Zoe Saldaña, where she raps about corruption, and then the music transitions into a heavy rock song. How did you craft this musical number?
Ducol: Sometimes there were many steps because we had a pre-production process and Camille was doing the vocals, sometimes dialogue. Then we met the actresses and that was a new step for us. Sometimes the actresses gave us the right arrangement for the music. It changed a lot. For “El Mal” with Zoe, there was already this kind of rap, rock, opera but with an arrangement more electronic. And when Zoe sang the song and performed and danced, Jacques was at the studio and said we needed something more acoustic and rough. We redid the song with a live rock band.
Camille: We were lucky to have Zoe because she has a super rhythmical and sharp voice. She’s the character as we imagined her to be. She’s rapper, rocker, goes for it and Zoe was perfect.
Emilia Pérez
Shanna Besson/PAGE 114 – WHY NOT PRODUCTIONS – PATHÉ FILMS – FRANCE 2 CINÉMA © 2024.
There’s also “Mi Camino” by Selena Gomez. She was very in her element as pop star performing this song.
Ducol: We had written the bedroom scene for her, like walls turning into a techno song, something very punk. We had another song even punkier than this one and very rebellious. The first one was more like she wanted to rebel and second one was “I’m rebelling.” We hadn’t met Selena yet at that point and when Jacques met Selena he told us, “unfortunately we have to write another song. Help me find the song that tells the story of her as a woman and not only as the actress.” It was interesting approach. He wanted her to be revealed.
Camille: Selena has that quality. In her documentary we saw it too. She doesn’t talk about herself that much but you can feel she’s not hiding either. She’s not her vulnerabilities and that’s very inspiring for songwriters. She makes herself vey available to the character, to the director and us. She listens a lot to what’s needed. She gave that natural quality that she has, very round, milky and velvety voice and it deepened the character. The character of Jessi at the beginning was a little hysterical, stuck in her world, like a puppet. And Selena gave her something maternal, something central and now the character stands out a lot. In “Mi Camino,” she’s out of the box, she’s in love, she gains self-esteem and I think Selena really related to that.
Some have described the musical as a narcocorrido, do you agree with that?
Camille: I think Jacques wanted music to be incorporated because he had the intuition that songs and music would make this unbelievable story believable. Like an opera or musical drama. He presented it more as an opera because it’s a tale and singing allows characters to tell the truth about themselves and the truth about the world.
Ducol: We didn’t want to make Mexican music because we are not Mexican, we needed to be very connected to the story and characters, and there was no clear inspiration on Mexican corridos or folk music. For us, the Mexican identity of the music is more with the language and with the distinctive sounds of Mexico City.
Camille: Our goal as artists isn’t to say, “This is what it is.” Everyone will have their own opinion or perspective.
In the techno hall of fame, Dubfire exists alongside the greats. The producer, who was born in Iran and moved to Washington D.C. as a child as his family fled the Iranian Revolution, has been a fixture in the global scene for more than 15 years, playing under both his techno moniker and as half of Deep Dish, his longstanding and beloved progressive house project with Sharam.
The artist born Ali Shirazinia has been putting in work on both projects as of late, releasing his two-track Redacted EP, a collaborative project with Argentinean artist Flug, in late October, shortly after he wrapped a week at ADE in Amsterdam. He played a whirlwind of showcases, including the annual Homeless Homies fundraiser, which donates 100% of ticket profits and a portion of drink sales to homeless shelter in Amsterdam and the home of techno, Detroit.
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Next month, Deep Dish will play their first shows in London in more than a decade, premiering a load of new music to intimate crowds at venue The Cause. Dubfire will also globetrot to Tulum, Mexico in January to play at Damian Lazarus’ annual Day Zero party.
Here, he reflects on ADE, the passing of Jackmaster, the state of techno and more.
1. Where are you in the world right now, and what’s the setting like?
I’m currently in Montreal, recovering from the marathon 12-hour set I played at Stereo with my Deep Dish co-pilot Sharam. That kind of DJing is a dying art so we aim to not just entertain our audience, but inspire the next generation to step up and keep it alive.
2. What is the first album or piece of music you bought for yourself, and what was the medium
Ultravox’s The Collection on cassette. I didn’t really buy much vinyl — I was purely a cassette tape guy.
3. What did your parents do for a living when you were a kid, and what do or did they think of what you’ve done and do now?
We came to the U.S.A. initially not intending to stay, but the Islamic Revolution forced my parents to take up odd jobs to keep us afloat after we chose to stay. Though they had hoped I’d take up a reputable profession, they nevertheless helped launch the first Deep Dish release and watched in amazement as I began to tour the world over that decade and beyond. They have always been my biggest support.
4. What is the first non-gear thing you bought for yourself when you started making money as an artist?
It must have been a pager.
5. If you had to recommend one album for someone looking to get into dance music, what would you give them?
Global Communication’s 76:14.
6. What’s the last song you listened to?
Blixa Bargeld and Teho Teardo’s “Starkregen.”
7. You just spent the week at ADE. What are your big takeaways from the experience?
Choose all the panels you want to see in advance and schedule your meetings around them. Do not go out to any parties until Friday, and never try to organize an event unless you work with a local promoter.
8. What were your best ADE moments?
Catching up with legendary dub producer Adrian Sherwood at Melkweg and meeting with Armada at their incredible offices. Deep Dish couldn’t have found a better home.
9. You participated in the Homeless Homies event, which raised money for homeless organizations. Tell us what that program is and why you were compelled to participate?
Donating my name and time by playing an intense afternoon techno set is the least I can do to help the homeless epidemic. It’s inspiring to watch how committed [event organizers] DJ Bone and Ahnne are to easing, and eventually eradicating, homelessness in Amsterdam and Detroit. I wish more DJs, myself included, gave themselves to worthy community service.
10. What’s going on in electronic music right now that you’re most excited about?
The new STEMS feature in Native Instruments’ latest update of Traktor Pro is a game-change moment for DJing and production. I’m also excited by the sheer quantity of dance music which defies categorization, sitting comfortably in between genres and sub-genres.
11. What’s going on in electronic music that you’re over?
Social media and poseur DJs.
12. You won a Grammy in 2002 with Deep Dish for your remix of Dido’s “Thank You.” Did winning that award change your career in any way?
I can’t say that it had any residual effect.
13. Were you at the awards ceremony when you won? If so, what are your strongest memories of the night?
I recall Coldplay getting an award for their first album and going through the backstage press maze together with them.
14. You posted a really lovely tribute to Jackmaster after his passing last month. Do you have any great Jackmaster memories you’d like to share?
It is still incredibly tragic to think about; his brother who I hadn’t met reached out to me after my post with a very sweet message which was touching. We all knew, and saw, how loved he was by the sheer number of posts which surfaced, and in some way I think that helped our dance music community cope with the loss. I do recall another time where we DJ’d the same event in Valencia, and he was dancing and singing to Danny Tenaglia’s “Be Yourself” in complete bliss when I dropped it at the end of my set. I would notice this often with Jack; he’d become completely immersed in this music as if he was in a trance. It was beautiful to witness that.
15. What’s your take on the current state of techno?
True techno music has honestly never been better; I am buried in quality tracks at the moment, and these are mainly from newer, younger artists. Though it seems to be getting sidelined by this new form of EDM that is cloaked in techno which I find incredibly cheesy and irritating.
16. What artists are you taking inspiration from lately?
Joy Orbison, Chlär, SNYL, Nick Cave, Einstürzende Neubauten to name just a random few…and believe it or not, I’m completely obsessed with Lykke Li at the moment; especially her ü&me EP which is achingly beautiful.
17. What cities around the world feel the most exciting to play in right now?
Buenos Aires, Barcelona and Miami.
18. What’s the best business decision you’ve ever made?
Quitting my day job, which allowed me to pursue my dreams full time.
19. who’s been your greatest mentor and what’s the best advice they ever gave you?
My mother who forced me to park my money in real estate.
20. What’s one piece of advice you’d give your younger self?
Buy a villa in Ibiza.
Quincy Jones was a trailblazing producer, songwriter and composer – and those are just three of the many hats he donned in his seven decades in the business. Jones left his stamp on the Billboard charts with an impressive discography of his own performing work and as an integral collaborator with iconic singers such as […]
Tyler, the Creator released his eighth studio album, Chromakopia, on Oct. 28. And on Monday (Nov. 4), the rapper celebrated that album debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The set launched with 299,500 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending Oct. 31, his best week ever in terms of […]