Kids Today

I have always found it important that new generations experience the music from previous ones. Where it starts to get on my nerves is when the discovery turns into elitism. For example, when a early 20 something "discovers" classic hip hop or house music. Now, by classic most likely they are going back to the era AFTER what would be considered classic because in many cases, the true classics are out of print and unavailable in pretty much any format, and unless you're in touch with someone who was around for that time left to the Internet at best. I say the "after" part because it's usually once a genre gets more popular that mainstream picks up on it and thats when the compilation or marketing people start the time line.

In hip hop for example, I have talked with kids in their twenties refer to classic old school hip hop as NWA, Ice-T, and House of Pain. They're a decade off. From Marley Marl, Africa Banbotta, The Treacherous Three, Grandmaster Flash, to RUN DMC and the Beastie Boys through to Tribe Called Quest they usually miss the whole 80s era of rap. It's like hip hop only became cool with Dre to them. The flip side, is when they do end up retracing a genre back to its roots, and then hold it over your head like they discovered it and are the keepers of it either with classic or underground material (you know, what isn't played on the radio). All of a sudden you have young twenty somethings rolling up in a club asking for Mos Def or Talib in an obviously mainstream top 40 club then giving the DJ attitude like he isn't keeping it real. You get the same thing in house music.

It seems to me all the young kids discover house music from someone who discovered house music and all of a sudden theres a bunch of DJs spinning house or bogging about house and having no real appreciation about the genre as a whole. They like what they like and anything else either unfamilliar or different is wack. Can't we all just get along? House has been around since the mid 80s, but most of these people discovered house in the mid 90's because thats when they turned 21 so thats the "classic" era for them. I've played classic house to some of them like Marshall Jeffersons "Move Your Body" or Steve Poindexter "Work That Wotherfucker" from the 80's only to get "How is this house music?"

Now don't get me wrong, house has many genres and I always try and give respect to anyone who embraces it, spins it, or makes it. But don't turn around and start giving someone else crap because theyre not spinning what you think is house when for example, I've been spinning it and producing it since many of them were watching Sesame Street. Don't get me wrong, I've played and produced more then a few tracks that even I cringe at now. These days, I spin a lot of European and UK peak hour anthem house late night, and early I do a mix of deep, bumpin, and funky house (Kerri Chandler, Dennis Ferrer, Masters at Work, Sole Channel, Chuck Love type stuff). I'm just tyring to get the crowd moving and do my thing. I'd much rather get the crowd hyped then have them standing around bobbing their head like someones playing easy listening. Weekly club nights are different then raves and one off parties. People come to clubs to get their groove on, and 4 hours of unrecognizable tracks would drive me insane in any genre. Back in the day in clubs like The Loft and Paradise Garage you would heaqr such a vibrant mix of different dance music and no one was going to step to Larry Levan and tell him he's all over the place. And if you don't know who Larry Levan is shame on you.

Mix it up, don't be afraid to try new styles. Step out of the box. House is a feeling not a style.