Normally we feature a Colorado producer at The Solution Showcase, but this month we’re making an exception to feature the surprise winner of last month’s Solution Beat Battle, Albuquerque ’s own BK Beats. BK beat out an insanely talented group of producers to take the…
February 2012 marks 5 years of The Solution and before anything else can be mentioned, we have to thank everyone in Denver and beyond who’s come out to the party. Whether it was in our earliest days at the Shelter/Milk Bar or at our longest running home, The Funky Buddha, or maybe you just learned about us via The Solution Showcase at the Meadowlark over the last month or two, it doesn’t matter; we wouldn’t be able to do anything cool without your love and support. With that said, a lot has changed since we started the party and we want to make sure everyone knows about what we’re up to going forward.
As you might have noticed, the party has grown beyond just a club night. Last year, we embarked on a statewide tour with Tanya Morgan, TiRon, Whygee, King F.O.E. & Boonie Mayfield, threw our first BBQ (with our good friends Family Affair) and started a monthly spinoff based around showcasing new talent, called The Solution Showcase, at the Meadowlark. This year we’ve already launched The Solution Boulder at ‘Round Midnight, we’re about to take the party outside of our great state for some collabs with like-minded parties in other cities and this month, we’re going to celebrate our 5 years with 5 events that we call The Solution 5 aka #TheSolution5.
With that in mind, what hasn’t changed about The Solution is that we’re still dedicated to making sure every event we throw is something we’d wanna go to, something fun and, hopefully, something a little more unique than your average party. With that in mind, let us tell you about what we’ve got in store for #TheSolution5.
Wednesday, February 22nd we’re teaming up with world renowned Red Bull Music Academy for what’s shaping up to be a one of a kind celebration of the man who was quite possibly the greatest hip hop producer ever, J Dilla. We’re throwing the party at Beta Nightclub (1909 Blake St) and it’s an unprecedented event to hear Dilla’s music on one of the best sound systems in the world. As if that wasn’t enough, we’re bringing out the legendary DJ Spinna (New York) and frequent Dilla collaborators and Detroit icons Waajeed & Phat Kat out to celebrate with us. Phat Kat will be rocking with Dameion Hines and Q-Knox of Big Wheel, who’ll also be performing a tribute to Jay Dee of their own. The Solution DJs aka DJ Low Key, Sounds Supreme and Lazy Eyez will be on the turntables to kick things off and with Dilla’s catalogue, you’re gonna miss some incredible music if you show up late.
Saturday, February 25th is the opening of The Art Of Records at Family Affair downtown (2048 Larimer St) from 6-9pm. It’s an art show based around classic hip hop album artwork being interpreted by top Colorado-based artists, curated by Dunn the Signtologist and DJ Low Key. We’ll be displaying the actual 12″ album covers next to the artwork and DJ Low Key will be spinning the records on display throughout the evening to bring things full circle.
Sunday, February 26th we’re excited to present The Solution Beat Battle at La Rumba (99 W. 9th Ave). A dozen of Denver’s top producers will face off head to head to see who has the best beats in town. Producer extraordinaire Boonie Mayfield will be rocking a live beat showcase, “legends in the making” (according to Ali Shaheed Muhammed of A Tribe Called Quest) and new school vets Tanya Morgan will be performing and we still have more on the bill to be announced shortly. If you’re a producer or beatmaker looking to enter, check out this post for more info.
Every Thursday night in Boulder, don’t miss our fifth event of the #TheSolution5, The Solution Boulder, at ‘Round Midnight (1005 Pearl St). In the coming weeks, we’ll be throwing our infamous chicken & waffles party up there, featuring a performance from Tanya Morgan, hosting a women’s shoe and fashion show with Installation (an easy contender for best shoe store in the whole state) and a whole lot more.
So thanks again for everything Colorado, you’re the best. Here’s to the next 5 years and beyond.
SUNDAY, 2/26 -> We’re excited to present The Solution Beat Battle at La Rumba (99 W. 9th Ave). A dozen of Denver’s top producers will face off head to head to see who has the best beats in town. Producer extraordinaireBoonie Mayfield will be rocking a live beat showcase, “legends in the making” (according to Ali Shaheed Muhammed of A Tribe Called Quest) and new school vets Tanya Morgan will be performing and we still have more on the bill to be announced shortly. Producers, beatmakers & such, The Solution Beat Battle is taking submissions for competitors from now until Monday, February 20th. No application fee necessary. Please send either:
-A soundcloud link to 3+ of your beats or -An e-mail with 3 beats attached or -A streaming link to a project you produced
and
-a photo of yourself (to be posted when the competitors are announced)
WEDNESDAY, 2/22 -> We’ve been working on this for a while now and we’re jumping up and down with excitement to announce all the details of The Solution’s 6th annual celebration of the life and music of James Yancey aka J Dilla aka Jay Dee aka one of the greatest hip hop producers of all-time (if not the greatest). We’ve teamed up with the infamous Red Bull Music Academy and Beta Nightclub (1909 Blake St) to bring out some top notch heavy hitters to celebrate in grand fashion, check out the lineup:
New York’s DJ Spinna is legendary producer/DJ who’s worked with everyone from Eminem to Mos Def to his group The Jigmastas, was tapped to remix songs by the likes of Stevie Wonder, Mary J Blige, George Michael, De La Soul, Das EFX & MC Eiht before making himself into a force to be reckoned with on the house music scene (his Shawn Escoffery’s “Days Like This” remix is a house classic). Listen to his J Dilla tribute above, download the ridiculous “Dillagence” version with Phonte here (which you might have heard at The Solution before) and check out The Recall, his self-made best of production mixtape, here.
Detroit’s Waajeed was a frequent Dilla collaborator, is one half of PPP/Platinum Pied Pipers and the founder of Bling47.com (if you’re a Dilla fan, you really need to check the site ASAP), a some time Slum Village DJ and producer, executive producer behind Dwele’s debut Rize, and has worked with everyone from Roy Ayers to Onra to Jazmine Sullivan. Check out these fresh Waajeed mixtapes from the homies DJ Mensa & DJ Topspin to get a little more familiar with his work.
Phat Kat aka Ronnie Cash aka @RonnieEuro aka 1/2 of First Down (J Dilla was the other half) is a Detroit legend, having put out records with Jay Dee before Slum Village, being featured on Fantastic Volume 1 and Welcome to Detroit, having some of Dilla fans favorite joints like “Nobody Care About Us”, “Cold Steel” (w/Elzhi, the video above) & “Game Over” and being known as one of the fiercest rappers to come from the D.
Two of our favorite musicians in town, Dameion Hines & Q-Knox of Big Wheel, will be backing Phat Kat and providing their own homage to the music of Dilla.
Beta’s insanely sophisticated Funktion One sound system is going to be as important to the night as anything. We’ll be blasting Dilla’s music on one of the best sound systems in the entire world, don’t miss an unprecedented chance to hear it sounding better than ever before.
18+ /// Doors at 9 /// $10 cover with half going to music-related charities /// BetaNightclub.com for more on the club and pre-sale tickets /// #TheSolution5 /// Special shouts to Detour on the flyer design, all the heads who’ve come out to any of our Dilla celebrations, Stones Throw for help with past events, our previous Dilla celebration guests Slum Village and Tanya Morgan and Red Bull Music Academy for helping make it happen this time around (check out the video below if you’re not familiar).
*Before we get started on 2/22, producers, musicians, singers, songwriters, engineers, DJs, instrumentalists, arrangers, sound experimentalists, etc are invited to come check out the Red Bull Music Academy Lecture Series w/DJ Spinna, Waajeed & Phat Kat earlier in the evening. If you’re interested in applying to the 2012 Red Bull Music Academy in NYC (which you can do from now until 4/2), you should definitely try and come out for more information and the experience of hearing what our renowned guests have to say about music, life & Dilla. RSVP required on the FB event page or justin[at]redbullmusicacademy{dot}com for entry and details.
P.S. In case you’re not familiar with J Dilla, you’re about to be blessed by a ton of incredible music (plus you probably are familiar with some of his work and don’t realize it, if you’re into acts like Common, D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Slum Village, The Pharcyde, A Tribe Called Quest & De La Soul). Check out these links from StonesThrow.com for more on your favorite producer’s favorite producer, word to the likes of Questlove & Pharrell:
J Dilla passed away on the morning of February 10th, 2006 at the age of 32. He had suffered for over three years with an incurable blood disease, and had also been diagnosed with lupus. He left behind a body of work which will be loved and rediscovered for years to come.
Our admiration for this artist, and our brief time working with him, is too much to cover in this small space, but we have a wealth of biographical and discography info, photos, interview and published features in the links below.
THURSDAY, 2/23 -> Before we get this started, shouts to everyone who came out to The Solution Showcase #2. It followed in the footsteps of the first one and was a blast. Inka One showed why he’s one of the most respected DJs in California, Es Nine blessed the crowd with some beautiful music and The Foodchain somehow squeezed their whole band into the cozy space and had a packed house going crazy. Big ups to everyone who’s been coming out, y’all are the reason even the biggests of haters would have to say #TheSolutionShowcase is 2 for 2. In the interest of keeping our newly minted streak going, we’ve got a hell of a lineup booked for the The Solution Showcase #3 at the Meadowlark (2701 Larimer St).
He’s one of our favorite producers out and no slouch on the mic. His fun, breezy style of music slaps hard enough to get the attention of tastemakers like Mark Ronson and A-Trak (who signed him to his Fool’s Gold label) while his resume is thick with diverse and talented names like Phonte, Wale, Mistah F.A.B., Lyrics Born, Little Dragon, Teedra Moses, Tanya Morgan, J’Davey, his own Honor Roll crew & more; we’re honored to bring out the bay area’s own Trackademicks. Track will be joined by his Honor Roll brethen and one of the bay’s favorite DJs, DJ Tap 10, for their first Colorado show ever.
Above: DJ Tap 10 /// Below: Quiz (fka Sunkenstate) of Black Actors
Black Actors aka Quiz (fka Sunkenstate, of Suicide Watch fame) and .anansi will be holding down things for Denver, rocking songs from Quiz’s new Elm & Oak project, Etcetera, and more. To represent the production side of things, we’ve got the infamous Kid Hum debuting his first live beat performance and we don’t think anybody’s ready for that.
Me and Lazy Eyez will be the night’s DJs (Sounds Supreme will be holding things down at ‘Round Midnight for The Solution Boulder), rounding out the bill and keeping the party sounding right from beginning to end. We’ll be posting music and videos from everybody on the bill to get y’all familiar over the next few weeks, so don’t worry if you’re not familiar with someone on the bill, just trust that your favorite DJs aren’t gonna steer you wrong (a big part of The Solution Showcase is about discovering dope new music and people have been digging it). Stay tuned to @DenverSolution for more details and a chance to win free tickets. 21+ /// $5 Pre-sales available at Family Affair downtown & get you 15% off your entire purchase /// $8 at the door. – DJ Low Key
FRIDAY, 1/20 -> First off, thank you Denver. The first Solution Showcasewas packed full of great people and great energy. All the performers left the party raving about how cool the crowd was, saying everything from “that was the best show I’ve ever been a part of” to “you guys have a great thing going on in Denver”; so thank y’all for being so damn cool. Everybody I talked to in the crowd showed love right back, excited to see some of their favorites rock and learn about other dope new music. Just about everything went according to plan, better than expected even; and on that note, it’s my pleasure to announce the lineup for The Solution Showcase #2 at the Meadowlark (2701 Larimer St).
He’s one of LA’s favorite DJs, the founder of Boombox, one of the best hip hop parties in the country, was a key part of Basementalism’s national college radio dominance in the mid 2000s and still somehow manages to hate 99% of the music that comes out, your favorite hater Inka One.
In my humble opinion, their new album Brunch is one of the best#COHipHop albums of all time, they’ve rocked with a who’s who of hip hop over the last few years and made fans worldwide, you know them asThe Foodchain.
The Solution DJs aka me, Sounds Supreme and Lazy Eyez will also be rocking throughout the night, bringing you the very best in hip hop & more. And in keeping with the Brunch theme, we’ll havecomplimentary silver dollar pancakes from 9-10pm to sweeten the deal, so make sure you come out early. Just like last time, we’ll be posting music & videos from everybody performing over the next few weeks to get y’all familiar, so don’t worry if you’re not up on the whole lineup, just know that me, Sounds & Lazy aren’t gonna steer you wrong (a big focus of this night is about introducing Denver to great new music, that is what DJs are supposed to do, right?). Stay tuned to @DenverSolution for more info, a chance to win free tickets & another contest. 21+ /// $5 Pre-sales available at Family Affair downtown (plus get 15% your entire purchase when you buy a Solution Showcase ticket) /// $8 at the door. – DJ Low Key
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Wednesday, 2/22 -> Red Bull Music Academy presents The Solution’s 6th Annual J Dilla Celebration at Beta Nightclub w/DJ Spinna, Waajeed, Phat Kat, members of Big Wheel, DJ Low Key, Sounds Supreme, Lazy Eyez & more…
(click to enlarge)
WEDNESDAY, 2/22 -> We’ve been working on this for a while now and we’re jumping up and down with excitement to announce all the details of The Solution’s 6th annual celebration of the life and music of James Yancey aka J Dilla aka Jay Dee aka one of the greatest hip hop producers of all-time (if not the greatest). We’ve teamed up with the infamous Red Bull Music Academy and Beta Nightclub (1909 Blake St) to bring out some top notch heavy hitters to celebrate in grand fashion, check out the lineup:
New York’s DJ Spinna is legendary producer/DJ who’s worked with everyone from Eminem to Mos Def to his group The Jigmastas, was tapped to remix songs by the likes of Stevie Wonder, Mary J Blige, George Michael, De La Soul, Das EFX & MC Eiht before making himself into a force to be reckoned with on the house music scene (his Shawn Escoffery’s “Days Like This” remix is a house classic). Listen to his J Dilla tribute above, download the ridiculous “Dillagence” version with Phonte here (which you might have heard at The Solution before) and check out The Recall, his self-made best of production mixtape, here.
Detroit’s Waajeed was a frequent Dilla collaborator, is one half of PPP/Platinum Pied Pipers and the founder of Bling47.com (if you’re a Dilla fan, you really need to check the site ASAP), a some time Slum Village DJ and producer, executive producer behind Dwele’s debut Rize, and has worked with everyone from Roy Ayers to Onra to Jazmine Sullivan. Check out these fresh Waajeed mixtapes from the homies DJ Mensa & DJ Topspin to get a little more familiar with his work.
Phat Kat aka Ronnie Cash aka @RonnieEuro aka 1/2 of First Down (J Dilla was the other half) is a Detroit legend, having put out records with Jay Dee before Slum Village, being featured on Fantastic Volume 1 and Welcome to Detroit, having some of Dilla fans favorite joints like “Nobody Care About Us”, “Cold Steel” (w/Elzhi, the video above) & “Game Over” and being known as one of the fiercest rappers to come from the D.
Two of our favorite musicians in town, Dameion Hines & Q-Knox of Big Wheel, will be backing Phat Kat and providing their own homage to the music of Dilla.
DJ Low Key (DAF4), Sounds Supreme & Lazy Eyez aka The Solution DJs will get the night started and hold down things like we’ve done every year since our first Dilla tribute in February 2007 (our first Dilla tribute was actually the third Solution ever).
Beta’s insanely sophisticated Funktion One sound system is going to be as important to the night as anything. We’ll be blasting Dilla’s music on one of the best sound systems in the entire world, don’t miss an unprecedented chance to hear it sounding better than ever before.
18+ /// Doors at 9 /// $10 cover with half going to music-related charities /// BetaNightclub.com for more on the club and pre-sale tickets /// #TheSolution5 /// Special shouts to Detour on the flyer design, all the heads who’ve come out to any of our Dilla celebrations, Stones Throw for help with past events, our previous Dilla celebration guests Slum Village and Tanya Morgan and Red Bull Music Academy for helping make it happen this time around (check out the video below if you’re not familiar).
*Before we get started on 2/22, producers, musicians, singers, songwriters, engineers, DJs, instrumentalists, arrangers, sound experimentalists, etc are invited to come check out the Red Bull Music Academy Lecture Series w/DJ Spinna, Waajeed & Phat Kat earlier in the evening. If you’re interested in applying to the 2012 Red Bull Music Academy in NYC (which you can do from now until 4/2), you should definitely try and come out for more information and the experience of hearing what our renowned guests have to say about music, life & Dilla. RSVP required on the FB event page or justin[at]redbullmusicacademy{dot}com for entry and details.
P.S. In case you’re not familiar with J Dilla, you’re about to be blessed by a ton of incredible music (plus you probably are familiar with some of his work and don’t realize it, if you’re into acts like Common, D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Slum Village, The Pharcyde, A Tribe Called Quest & De La Soul). Check out these links from StonesThrow.com for more on your favorite producer’s favorite producer, word to the likes of Questlove & Pharrell:
J Dilla passed away on the morning of February 10th, 2006 at the age of 32. He had suffered for over three years with an incurable blood disease, and had also been diagnosed with lupus. He left behind a body of work which will be loved and rediscovered for years to come.
Our admiration for this artist, and our brief time working with him, is too much to cover in this small space, but we have a wealth of biographical and discography info, photos, interview and published features in the links below.
J DILLA LINKSJ Dilla – Complete DiscographyJ Dilla – Official Biography
KEY WORKSJ Dilla – Donuts AlbumJ Dilla – Ruff Draft AlbumJaylib – Champion Sound Album
KEY NEWS FEATURES & TRIBUTESJ Dilla Cover Story Real Detroit Weekly, 2006Jay Dee 1974-2006 Urb, 2006Jay Dee’s Last Days Detroit Free Press, Feb. 2006Jaylib Live in 2004 Audio & PhotosJ Dilla & Madlib at Rock the Bells PhotosB+ Remembers Dilla & Madlib in BrazilAssociated Press: J Dilla ObitNew York Times: J Dilla ObitBehind the Beat: Photos: Inside J Dilla’s studio, 2005The Battle for J Dilla’s Legacy Vibe, 2009Reorganized J Dilla Estate Announced 2010](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lz0wk6XqUb1r53iido1_500.jpg)
