SUMMER IN THE CITY
Sep 1, 2006 12:00 PM, Kylee Swenson
If you like learning production and performance science from the likes of Marley Marl, Rockwilder and DJ Spooky, then this year's Remix Hotel event in NYC was a good place to be. From June 23-25 at the SAE Institute of Technology in the heart of Manhattan, people were pickin' up what the producers, DJs, manufacturers, musicians and industry experts were puttin' down.
Resident Remix Hotel sage Hank Shocklee (producer and founder of Public Enemy) moderated several panels, getting engineers, producers, attorneys and other experts talking about their innermost music-industry secrets. Ali Shaheed Muhammad (Tribe Called Quest), Easy Mo Bee (Notorious B.I.G., Busta Rhymes) and Chucky Thompson (Mary J. Blige, Nas) waxed poetic and talked about their production techniques. Meanwhile, Mocean Worker, Ezekiel Honig, Steven “Boogie Brown” and Jason Nevins delved into the world of remixing; and DJ Spooky, Markus Schulz, Jazzy Jay, Cosmo Baker and Lance Jordan got deep into a DJ debate. From sampling licensing to touring, promotion, digital downloads, music trends, record deals, radio, engineering, producing and mastering, the Remix Hotel left no topic unexplored. To check out audio and video of the panels for yourself, go to remixhotel.com.
As if the 15 panels weren't enough, SAE was also buzzing with workshops and gear demos, such as Reason presentations by Rockwilder and Marley Marl in the Propellerhead room and an Apple Logic Pro drum-replacement demo from Dallas Austin's longtime engineer, Rick Sheppard. In other rooms, Ableton, Pioneer, Roland, Digidesign, Cakewalk, M-Audio, Akai, Access and Stanton also represented.
A highlight was Absolut's happy hour every night (Absolut made a special drink for Remix called the “Ruby Red Remix”). But the best was the “Jean Grae Needs a DJ” contest in the Rane/Serato room on Sunday, June 25. Rapper Jean Grae whittled the 70 contestants down to 20 for the semifinal showdown. With judging help from rapper Talib Kweli, turntablist Roc Raida and Blacksmith/Warner's Corey Smyth, Grae picked 19-year-old DJ I-Dee from Miami, who blew everyone away with his awesome battle skills and funny diss faces.
After this year's NYC, Remix Hotel Atlanta (coming up September 6-8) has some big shoes to fill.
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