For a while, I have been wanting to do a column/blog post on my website where I shed some light on audio/video/ANYTHING that has inspired me over the years and to this day. I have decided to call it “My Favorite Things”, you know, like the song. And now is a good time to start.
This week, the music world was hit with more bad news: Grandmaster Roc Raida of the X-Men/X-Ecutioners passed away, unexpectedly. Raida was an early influence on me and watching him on battle tapes move faster than anyone I had ever seen blew my mind. NINJA OF RAP…. NINJA>>NINJA>>NINJA>>NINJA. He was basically the king of ‘body tricks’, or when you move your body around while keeping the rhythm of your juggle or routine. I would try for hours to get that fast and just end up sounding terrible. The under-the-leg was one thing, but the ‘mouth’ thing?? and the back-to-the-crowd, reaching over his shoulders?? The spin-hit-the-crossfader with his shoulder?? RIDICULOUS. These were things that no one else could do with that precision. Raida was crowned World DMC Champion in 1995 and in the process became a legend on the battle circuit.
As the shirt in the above video declares, he was a member of the world famous X-Men (later, due to just copyright fears, X-Ecutioners) crew with other NY powerhouses Rob Swift, Mista Sinista and Total Eclipse. Steve Dee was also part of the crew in earlier years, the DJ who essentially invented juggling. Juggling and breaking records was their specialty, which more than likely came from their New York background, growing up watching legends like Flash and whatnot. When the world of DJ battling got more scratch-oriented, The X-Ecutioners focused more on shows & production. Their influence was not to be forgotten though, and I saw a lot of Roc Raida’s influence on DJ Craze’s routines during his 3-year reign as world champ. I always missed having the X in later battles because they brought so much excitement and fun to the table, something Raida obviously prided himself in.
The crew made a lot of music outside of battling. They put out 2 full-length albums as a crew: 1997’s “X-Pressions” and 2001’s “Built from Scratch”. Raida did cuts and production on a lot of dope records. Some of My Favorites:
Scratches:
O.C. “Times Up” (from Word….Life)
Show & A.G. “Next Level” (from Goodfellas)
Artifacts “Come On With The Get Down” & “Dynamite Soul” (One & Two) (from Between A Rock & A Hard Place & Dynamite Soul 12″)
Production:
Jungle Brothers “How Ya Want It (I Got It)” + Remix w/ De La Soul & Q-Tip (from Raw Deluxe & Remix 12″)
Show & A.G. “Got The Flava” (from Goodfellas)
Roc Raida remained very active in the hip-hop scene outside of these accomplishments, hosting his own battle called “The Gong DJ Battle” and touring relentlessly (most recently as Busta Rhymes’ tour DJ). I regretfully never got to see him perform in person, but I’ll never forget the energy he gave me through his music and footage. May he rest in peace and may we as musicians and DJs carry on his legacy.
That gives me chills.
-Bastid
