It is said that the music genre of Hip-Hop was born the night of August 11, 1973, when a young DJ named Kool Herc organized a party in the recreation room of a housing development at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue (New York Magazine story). 36-years have passed since that seminal moment in music history and African-American culture, and various efforts along the way have tried to capture Hip-Hop’s momentous contribution in the form of a museum. No one has gotten as far as the current organizers of the movement to create the National Museum of Hip-Hop. (Facebook | Twitter).

For the past five years, the museum’s organizers have been painstakingly planning a physical, interactive museum and cultural center to cement Hip-Hop’s rightful place in history. From meetings with Hip-Hop’s early pioneers to New York City’s office of Economic Development, the NMoH team are working through the process to make the museum a reality.

Prior efforts to create a Hip-Hop institution have been dogged by lack of funds, political issues, or the absence of a qualified team to pull it all together. Many of the pioneers of Hip-Hop had been unable or unwilling to agree to participate for one reason or another. Some of the early stars of Hip-Hop, who never enjoyed the financial success of today’s rap superstars, understandably want to make sure they are compensated for their participation. On the business side, label executives see the possible financial upside of a commercial enterprise, advocate for a Hip-Hop Hall of Fame, where they can clearly monetize Hip-Hop through a flagship restaurant, merchandise and other commercial activities.

On the political side, there’s heated discussion about where the museum should be located. In the Bronx, the birthplace of Hip-Hop? Brooklyn, where Jay-Z and Biggie emanated from? Or, Queens where Run D.M.C. were born? And, Staten Island is always a long shot, because of ease of access. All signs are pointing to Manhattan for now. Hip-Hop is a global phenomenon. Although the museum would certainly benefit any borough, the political and financial realities of a Manhattan location, with possible smaller borough-based satellites makes sense economically. Tourism will be an important driver and the museum’s success depends on being accessible to visitors from around the world.

To kick off fund raising for construction of the museum and drive awareness for the museum’s cultural programs and community-based initiatives, the organizers are planning a black-tie event, slated for February 9th at M2 UltraLounge on Manhattan’s West Side. Chuck D and KRS-One will host the star-studded event. Confirmed guests include Big Daddy Kane, the Cold Crush Brothers, members of the Rock Steady Crew, MC Lyte, Rakim, DJ Red Alert, Ralph McDaniels, The Roots, and Redman. The events co-chairs include, Bill Adler, Dr. Ben Chavis, Andre Harrell, Afrika Bambaataa, Terry Stewart and Jim Fricke.

“The timing is perfect for the development of a museum that will preserve the great culture of Hip-Hop, a museum that will serve as not only a beacon for Hip-Hop’s achievements but also as a hub for community enlistment,” said NMoH President Craig Wilson.

The project’s Advisory Board includes Def Jam Records co-founder Russell Simmons; political activist Dr. Ben Chavis; Uptown Records founder Andre Harrell; Leyla Turkkan, C.E.O. and President of PR/Marketing firm The Catalyst Group; Hip-Hop curator, journalist and publicist Bill Adler; Bob Santelli, executive director of the Grammy Museum; and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s President and C.E.O. Terry Stewart.

For more information on the National Museum of Hip, please sign up on their Facebook page located at http://www.facebook.com/hiphopmuseum or follow their announcements through @NMoH on Twitter. NHoH’s proper web site is coming soon at http://www.hiphopmuseum.org.

(Disclosure: Netmix founder, Tony Zeoli, is also acting Director of Interactive for the National Museum of Hip-Hop.)

Defected Records founder, Simon Dunmore, takes you 10-years of Defected’s history with the release of Defected Clubland Adventures Vol. 1 and Vol. 2.. From Ministry of Sound to Il Divino, Pacha to the Winter Music Conference, and the 100 Club, Dunmore showcases the label’s highlights, from its early roots through its recent partnership with Strictly Rhythm Records and signings of David Penn, Yass, Chocolate Puma, Hardsoul, David Bovie & Roy Rox, and the Martinez Brothers. Besides tossing in a few mix compilations like Def Con 1, Jay J & Miguel Migs – In The House, and Giles Peterson – In The House, the video features some of the best house music ever made, including:

• 1999 – Soulsearcher – I Can’t Get Enough
• 1999 – Onephatdeeva – In And Out Of My Life
• 1999 – M.A.W. feat. India – To Be In Love
• 2000 – Bob Sinclair - I Feel For You
• 2000 – ATFC – Bad Habit
• 2001 – Roger Sanchez - Another Chance
• 2001 – Kings Of Tomorrow feat. Julie McKnight – Finally
• 2001 – Dubtribe Soundsystem – Do It Now
• 2002 – Shakedown – At Night
• 2003 – Junior Jack - E Samba
• 2004 – Martin Solveig – Sur La Terre and I’m a Good Man
• 2005 – Soul Central feat. Kathy Brown - Strings Of Life
• 2005 – Bob Sinclair feat. Gary Pine – Love Generation
• 2006 – Blaze feat. Barbar Tucker - Most Precious Love
• 2006 – Bob Sinclair feat. Steve Edwards - World Hold On
• 2007 – Dennis Ferrer - The World As I See It
• 2007 – Bob Sinclair feat. Dollarman & Big Ali – Rock This Party
• 2007 – Junior Jack – Stupid Disco
• 2008 – Marc Evans – The Way You Love Me

All tracks can be heard gotten on both Defected Clubland Adventures Vol. 1 (not available on iTunes) and Vol. 2 (buy the full length mix by Simon Dunmore) through at Defected.com.

If you don’t know Dubspot, the music production and DJ school has quickly entrenched itself as the defacto spot to learn the tools, tips and techniques for the DJ trade. Whether it’s making music with Ableton Live, scratch classes using Serato, or DJing with the Pioneer DVJ mixing console using DVD’s, the school has a class for you.

Dubspot’s 2009 Summer registration is under way and you’ll need to jump on it quick, because I hear that classes are filling up. According to a recent NYTimes article about DJing in the dowturn, Dubspot enrollment has doubled to 300 since last year. Since the economy took a turn for the worse, it’s always good to use the time to pick up a new skill. While some are transitioning to nursing and health care or other sectors, you might be thinking about leaving the corporate carer behind to do something infinitely more creative than crunching spreadsheets and building Power Point presentations.

Recently, Dubspot celebrated its two-year anniversary with a weekend long event from June 25th to the 28th. I wasn’t able to attend, but the folks at Dubspot and Plexi PR were able to provide this wrap up:

DubSpot, New York City’s home for dynamic electronic music production and DJ education, celebrated its 2 Year anniversary with a long weekend June 25th-28th.  In addition to hosting three individual birthday parties, DubSpot also brought its Live 8 U.S. Sessions Tour in for its home stop, with Ableton Live 8 production and performance workshops.  An abundance of high profile artists were involved throughout the events, and the weekend has received enthusiastic praise from all participants not only for its ingenuity, but also its originality and high standard of quality.  Full workshop videos with techno auteurs Richie Hawtin & Ambivalent, Dub pioneer Scientist, Peter Kirn of CreateDigitalMusic.com and much more to be made available online soon.  Check out the DubSpot blog here for updates.

The first of DubSpot’s 2 Year Anniversary parties was the Funk Aid for Africa NYC release party.  The album, and the fundraising effort in general, had been riding high already from a 4 star review from Time Out New York, and DJ sets from OBaH, Reborn and Ticklah carried the party late into the night. The second of DubSpot’s 2 Year Anniversary Parties was held at Love, and saw Minus’ Richie Hawtin take to the decks for a special 4-hour set.  Hawtin set the place ablaze in an all too rare club appearance in New York.  Working with our partner, NYC techno promoters  Blk|Market Membership, DubSpot packed the house with instructors, students and friends, and danced until dawn to the banging beats of world-class techno. Sunday night’s Hi-Fidelity DubSpot Sessions kept the momentum going late, as Scientist mixed Dub Is A Weapon live, plus sets from Badawi, DJ Kiva, Matt Shadetek, and DJ Rupture.  The show was widely enjoyed and appreciated as a world-class night of music and community.

Below are a list of classes and dates. I’ve included the recent July dates just in case there’s an opportunity to join in late, since they only started a week ago. Click the links for more information.

DubSpot Upcoming Class Start Dates : Summer 2009
Registration is open for DubSpot’s summer sessions. Get started on bringing your musical ambitions to life.

July 21: DJ Beginner & Extensive packages Tuesdays will begin with DJ OBaH at 7:15pm.
July 21: Turntablism classes meeting on Tuesday will begin with 2007 DMC World Supremacy champ DJ Shiftee at 5:15pm.
July 23 Music Production package B: encompassing Reason Ableton & Logic Thurs 6:15 taught by Chris Petti of the Reason Users group.
August 2nd Ableton Live with Jon Margulies: Sundays at 4:00pm Can be taken separately or as part of our year long Ableton certificate program
August 7th Ableton Live with Jon Margulies: Class will meet Wednesdays and Fridays at 6:15pm. Can be taken separately or as part of our year long Ableton certificate program
August 14th  Logic Intensive with Matt Shadetek of Dutty Artz – Mondays Wednesdays Fridays 10:15am
August 18th Ableton Live: Class will meet Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10:15pm. Can be taken separately or as part of our year long Ableton certificate program
August 18th DJing with Video class with Lars of DVJ Vision begins Tuesdays at 5:15pm.

In just two short years, DubSpot has fully emerged as a force in the electronic music world.  The Live 8 U.S. Sessions Tour will continue this Fall in Los Angeles in October, then move on to 5 other cities including Seattle, Chicago, Atlanta, Austin and Washington D.C.  And that’s just this first round.  The tour will continue to grow, and continue to be the ambassador of DubSpot’s devotion to excellence in electronic music.  By providing unique opportunities for established and aspiring artists alike to develop their knowledge, careers, and production and performance abilities,DubSpot will secure and advance its position on the cutting edge of electronic music education! – Quote courtesy, Plexi PR

DubSpot 348 West 14th Street New York, NY 10014
212.242.2100 // info@dubSpot.com
www.dubspot.com

- by Tony Z.