//Oakland Weekend: WE LOVE THE TOWN x SAMPLEd..

Two serious Oakland get-downs this weekend:

WE LOVE THE TOWN / FRIDAY JAN.29 / LUKA'S:
This Friday night is my personal favorite party to spin at, period. One, I have always loved the vibe in Oakland, and two, Zita and I always put in brisk work on the turntables here. It's a more fierce, energetic look than our GOLDEN night, which is more laissez-faire clubhouse style (which is still big fun). WE LOVE THE TOWN at Luka's, come early and join the multitude on the parquet floor at the first needle drop, and stay late cause hey, East Bay folks you ain't gotta cross a bridge!

SAMPLEd / SAT JAN.30 / PARADISO:
This Saturday I have the good fortune of not only spinning a second night in a row in The homeTown, but I also get to join one of my DJ Heroes (the real thing, not a video game) World Famous DJ SHORTKUT, plus one of the most genuine homies and skilled-on-the-fader Oakland Fader DJ PLATURN, plus my brother my ace DJ MPENZI inna di place, all under one roof the new ParaDiso in the already-bubbled Oakland Uptown. Now this new 5th Saturdays jumpoff, aptly named SAMPLEd, is set to be a musical history lesson /slash/ name-that-sample game /slash/ these.. are.. the.. breaks /slash/ all-out shake your body down to the ground now Get Down. It is a place where beat-heads, record nerds, music lovers and beautiful people will all converge for some top notch Edutainment. Lemme tell you, I witnessed Shortkut slay an all-45s set last week and to catch him in Oakland is NOT TO BE MISSED. Thank me later!

Also, I would like to announce the February return of a concept I really love, me & Zita's Looking for the PERFECT BEAT at a new SF venue!

Lastly, as thanks for making it to the bottom of this note, if I get TWENTY guestlist email replies for Friday and/or Saturday night to goodlifeoakland@gmail.com not only will you get in for cheap but I will donate my Saturday DJ earnings to Haiti relief via HERF. And as additional thanks, here are a bunch of free downloads of my mixes and live sets via the excellent Mixcrate, including my 2009Rewind mix, a live at Golden opening set from the vaults, and Stop the Fussing & Fighting! Enjoy:

//The Funeral of Martin Luther King, Jr..

The Funeral of Martin Luther King, Jr.

His headstone said
FREE AT LAST, FREE AT LAST
But death is a slave's freedom
We seek the freedom of free men
And the construction of a world
Where Martin Luther King could have lived and
preached non-violence

-Nikki Giovanni

//GOLDEN 2010

//Here's to a GOLDEN 2010. Recent unfathomable events, while reminding us of the tremendous inequalities that exist yes in the western hemisphere, should also remind us to heed Jill Scott's mantra to live ya life like it's golden and not take anything in life for granted. And to help in any way you feel able (like this).
//This Saturday DJ Zita and I kick off our GOLDEN year with a couple of the homies in tow. Not only are they nice djs but they are also a couple genuinely nice peoples:

//OwlBoogie (Action Figures) - This dapper dude has been around for a while now, he ain't no new jack. In fact I remember seeing him catch wreck on the wikka-wikka a good 8 or so years ago as the backing deejay for Kiwi. Know his steeze by checking out this 15min-to-the-head 4-track mix from 1993 (!!what were these young serato whippersnappers doing back in '93? huh?) and more flava here, like Low End Theory vs. Midnight Marauders for your ATCQ fix.

//DJ un.D.fine (Devil's Pie) - This cat Virak is another dj for the people. Hella soulful. Check him out on some ol' robotic futuristic George Jetson crazy joint--live a coupla weeks ago on Neitherworld Radio with his Come Ride My Spaceship mix, and of course, you can't front on his Devil's Pie Maxwell Tribute.

//Lastly, I went into the archives and pulled one of my live sets from Golden in March '09. This one in particular is an opening set (we drop the needle at 9pm)...one of the great things about spinning in the early hours of a party is being able to focus more on laying a vibe and setting a mood versus trying to keep pushing the energy higher and higher during the peak of the night. You get to express your inner music nerd and throw on some cutty album tracks and lesser-known gems that you love. Vibe with me..

DJ Dmadness Live at Golden (March 21, 2009)