Posts tagged: New York City

Throwback Thursdays: Spliffington on Reel 2 Real’s “Conway”

March 1, 2012

We’re huge fans of Spliffington’s artwork and his Out Pon Bail Tumblr (always a great source for rare sound tapes and videos as well as odd photos) so we’re glad to have the man on our team. For his first LargeUp post, he recalls getting turned on to Reel 2 Real’s NYC discount department store-themed, dancehall-inflected mid ’90s club hit as a youth in Senegal. For more Spliffington, check his Gunwash radio show on heritageradionetwork.com on Thursdays from 7:30-8:30 and Radiolily.com on Saturdays from 4-6.

Tags:Conway, dancehall techno, Erick Morillo, New York City, Reel 2 Real, Senegal, Spliffington, The Mad Stuntman

Shout-Out: Happy Birthday, Ralph McDaniels

February 27, 2012

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Words by Jesse Serwer—

Today we’re sending a big birthday shout-out to the man who pioneered the shout-out and one of my personal heroes: “Uncle” Ralph McDaniels.

Tags:Chaka Demus and Pliers, New York City, Ralph McDaniels, Trinidadians, Video Music Box

Twitter Contest: Tickets to Better Mus’ Come (And Mr. Vegas!) at Lincoln Center, 2/16

February 13, 2012

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Words by LargeUp Crew—

We’ve been bigging up Jamaican director Storm Saulter and his directorial debut Better Mus’ Come for years, and, recently, we told you about the long-awaited NY premiere of the movie at Lincoln Center’s Walter Reade Theater. Well, we’re pleased to announce the event’s gotten even more exciting with the addition of dancehall legend turned festival-tune revivalist Mr. Vegas, who will perform what is sure to be a historic unplugged set prior to the screening. We can’t say for sure but we think this might be the first time a dancehall artist has been billed at Lincoln Center.

Tags:Better Mus' Come, Giveaways, Imagenation, Jamaican FIlm, Lincoln Center, Mr Vegas, New York City, Walter Reade Theater

Throwback Thursdays: Tiger feat. Q-Tip, “Who Planned It”

February 9, 2012

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Words by Jesse Serwer—

Ghetto Muzik was a video show that aired in New York City in the mid ’90s. Along with Ralph McDaniels’ Video Music Box, it had the distinction of being one of the first and only US video programs to regularly feature dancehall music. Somebody recently added an entire episode’s worth of footage from it, and ‘God bless ‘em. This particular episode features WBLS Reggae House Party host and current Sirius XM radio personality/program director Pat McKay (with help from Bobby Konders and Tim Westwood) filling in for regular host Marcia Davis, and the playlist is just sick: Red Fox’s “Born Again Black Man,” Louie Rankin and Black Uhuru’s “One Love,” “Just Because I Am Poor” by HR of the Bad Brains, “Wild Wild Life” by Wailing Souls, George Clinton’s cameo-heavy “Paint the White House Black.” What?

Tags:A Tribe Called Quest, Dancehall, Ghetto Muzik, New York City, Pat McKay, Q-Tip, ragga hiphop, The Abstract, Tim Westwood, Wanga Gut

LargeUp TV: Mr. Vegas Unplugged, ‘Sweet and Dandy’

February 7, 2012

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Words by Jesse Serwer:::Photo and Videos by Kevin Ornelas—

Mr. Vegas gets props (although not as much as he should) for being a great dancehall hitmaker but a lot of people don’t realize just how awesome and unique of a singer he is. As Vegas told us in our recent interview, his heroes are Barrington Levy, Alton Ellis and Tenor Saw, Jamaican tenors with unmistakeable vocal character. On the upcoming Sweet Jamaica LP (out Feb. 21), he makes a damn good case for being classified in the same league as them, with vintage-style originals and spot-on recreations of classics like Ellis’ “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy” and Hopeton Lewis’ “Take it Easy.”

Tags:Alton Ellis, Barrington Levy, Hopeton Lewis, Jamaica, Miss Lily's Variety, Mr Vegas, New York City, Sweet Jamaica, Tenor Saw, Toots And The Maytals

Video: Mims feat. Jovi Rockwell, “The City”

January 20, 2012

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Words by Jesse Serwer

Mims is pretty much known in the hip-hop world as a one-hit wonder thanks to his massive success with “This Is Why I’m Hot,” and relative radio silence since then. But the Washington Heights rapper has actually done quite a bit of dabbling in Caribbean music since then, featuring on a song with Barrington Levy (and Snoop) and chatting some patois on “Hold Yuh.” Much as when Junior Reid laid waste to the dancehall remix of “This is Why I’m Hot,” Mims’ latest track, “The City,” (download here) sees him shown up by another Jamaican, in Jovi Rockwell.

Tags:Dancehall, hiphop, Jovi Rockwell, Mims, New York City