He's a womanizer, but an expert at throwing knives

April 3, 2006 12:30 AM

If you had to amass a large collection of mp3s of mainstream rap club bangers in a short amount of time - how would you do it?

So, here's the deal. I've been holding down a weekly radio show at my local college station for a bit now, and have gained some small reputation for doing so.
Actually, I've been approached by a number of friends and acquaintances to DJ some parties for them.

I, as a general rule, play pretty crazy stuff. Sorta like a less talented version of Diplo - aestheticwise, at least. However, I completely realize that most people are completely unprepared to dance to my Ableton-powered impromptu soundclashes of Daft Punk vs. Zion-I vs. Dandy Warhols. They want the jams.

I'm totally fine with this. I know that people want to hear the (strictly non-conscious) Top 40 stuff, because, really, that's just how it is.

So, here's the question. Given that because I'm using Ableton I only need mp3s (no wax, no CDs) of the joints in question, how do I go about getting all the new (and somewhat "classic") joints? I'm only concerned with hip-hop/rap, as that is what my "audience" will be looking for. Special focus on Dirty South and West Coast stuff, since I kinda like spinning that shit anyway.

Basically, I am kinda unfamiliar with the MTV circuit because I tend to ignore that shit (I recognize beats, but don't know names of artists) - I'm too busy with my other "scenes". So I need to

a) find out what songs people would actually like - is there an "Official Definitive List of Ignorant Club Bangers" somewhere?
b) acquire those songs, as cheaply or freely as possible.

Thanks in advance.

As an aside, I may also be opening DJ for a world-famous rap act soon...so my need isn't just for parties. Feel free to suggest particular songs?

posted by dihutenosa to Media & Arts (29 answers total)

Response by poster: Oh, and assume that any parties will be from ~30 to over 150 people, depending - if that makes a difference. TIA once again.
posted by dihutenosa at 12:32 AM on April 3, 2006

a) find out what songs people would actually like - is there an "Official Definitive List of Ignorant Club Bangers" somewhere?

The Billboard Hot 100.

b) acquire those songs, as cheaply or freely as possible.

I obviously wouldn't advocate pirating music.
posted by maxreax at 12:47 AM on April 3, 2006

How do you acquire music normally? I'd recommend torrent tracker sites like mininova and the pirate bay, since the really popular stuff is usually well seeded.

I'm to lazy to figure out what p2p programs don't use spyware. If you wanted too, you could try using them inside a VMWare virtual machine.
posted by delmoi at 1:15 AM on April 3, 2006

You could get real crazy and buy them. Just sayin'. You're getting paid for DJing these parties, right?
posted by jtron at 1:30 AM on April 3, 2006

jtron: you mean buy, burn to a CD, then re-rip as MP3s, losing quality in the process?
posted by delmoi at 2:25 AM on April 3, 2006

1. [obvious] Observe other djs.

2. Um, stop avoiding Mtv if you think that you're going to dj for an Mtv crowd. Find tracks that you actually enjoy, that might work in with the stuff you usually play.

3. Get a real set of tables and dig through the bins at record stores. Even if you don't wanna lay down some wax, go to record stores. Talk to people, ask what people are buying, enjoy that personal communication you don't get when buying/stealing/downloading mp3s. Again, dig through the bins and try stuff out on the store equipment.

4. Also, and this is coming from a college radio dj, stop thinking you're hot shit because you're a college radio dj. Maybe, you should find a place where you can dj to a crowd who won't know you're condescending them. They will. Just cause someone's asking for the new Juvenile single and not the Ghislain Poirier remix track from the Lady Sovereign EP, doesn't mean they're stupid.
posted by elr at 2:26 AM on April 3, 2006

I know this isn't what you're asking, but if you have a reputation for your weekly radio show, in which you play "pretty crazy stuff" -- why not just play the same at your parties?

It would be a nice party, me thinks, something new and fresh. Especially if it's a pretty young and hip crowd... not just the usual iterations of 'My Humps'..
posted by provolot at 2:31 AM on April 3, 2006

Consistent research and study of big city hip hop radio and dance clubs is pretty much the best way to do this. Ideally, a trip to Tijuana would be all you need. But, since you said a short amount of time, here's some timely can't-miss suggestions.

Mrs New Booty - Bubba Sparxxx
Shake - Ying Yang Twins
Check Up On It - Beyonce
Since You Been Gone - Kelly Clarkson
I Gotta Stay High - Three 6 Mafia
Oh - Ciara
One Thing - Amerie
Laffy Taffy - D4L
Badd - Ying Yang Twins f. Mike Jones
Ignition Remix - R. Kelly
Hollaback Girl - Gwen Stefani
Gold Digger - Kanye West
Temperature - Sean Paul (if it works, We Be Burnin probably will too)
and, yes, My Humps - Black Eyed Peas (Pump It and Don't Phunk With My Heart will also work.)

If you want to rock the crowd with a familiar beat while serving up the unexpected, check out some underground mixtapes, where MCs will deliver new raps over instrumental versions of popular hits. Clipse - We Got It 4 Cheap Vol. 2 is pretty much the gold standard in this regard.

Also, don't forget to call upon the Top 40 of yesteryear. A little Kriss Kross or Rob Base and DJ EZ Rock never hurt nobody.
posted by samh23 at 3:01 AM on April 3, 2006

The MTV Party To Go series may allow you to get some classics in a short amount of time.
posted by bwilms at 3:31 AM on April 3, 2006

The cheapest way to get a lot of music quickly and legally is to join one of the subscription download services, like Napster or Rhapsody or Yahoo. You pay a monthly fee and can download as much music as you like. They are not mp3s but they are digital. The disadvantage here is that you maintain access to the tracks ionly for as long as you pay the monthly licence fee, usually $10-$15.

The next cheapest option is to use something like AllTunes/AllofMP3.com, but many people distrust its claimed legal status. It is cheap, however, for tracks that will not expire. It also enables you to grab them in very high quality, and even fully uncompressed which, for some of the arse-shaking booty tracks, can really make a big difference when you are playing them back on a serious system.

The most expensive option is to use use a pay-per-download service and pay for each track. The advantage here is that the tracks stay licenced "forever". iTunes is the most popular option here, but almost all the major services also offer pay-per-track options.
posted by meehawl at 3:36 AM on April 3, 2006

eMusic is another monthly subscription service which lets you keep up the music. I used a free trial to download enough music for a party I had.
posted by grouse at 3:43 AM on April 3, 2006

Their infomercials always struck me as horrendously lame, but maybe Now That's Music is exactly the sort of compilation you're after.
posted by unmake at 4:35 AM on April 3, 2006

Best answer: alt.binaires.sounds.mp3.rap-hiphop usually has the promo cds for urban radio stations every month or so. That's probably exactly what you need. Look for January - April 2006.
posted by geoff. at 5:23 AM on April 3, 2006

Yahoo's music subscription service is probably a good bet-- I think they also have charts and stuff.
posted by cell divide at 6:18 AM on April 3, 2006

What geoff. said- the Top 40 subscription CD's we used at a college radio station I worked for were called Promo Only and they sent what was basically the Clear Channel playlist for any given genre every month. I think they charge a lot for these CD's, but if you can find the tracklisting or something, that's your cheatsheet.
posted by rxrfrx at 6:21 AM on April 3, 2006

Check out sites that specialize in more dance type music, here are a few I like:

Audiojelly
Juno Records
Beatport
posted by jerryg99 at 7:01 AM on April 3, 2006

MTV Jams, one of the spinoff video-only channels always seems to be on top of things. Leave it on in the background and see what catches your ear. MTV.com is probably the quickest way of getting the information, as they have popular listings online as well as charts.

I'd suggest against pirating the MP3s in question. As with all piracy, the risk shoots way up once you're accepting money or displaying in public.
posted by VulcanMike at 9:37 AM on April 3, 2006

the last track on the new ghostface album is def a club banger. 'be easy' is the title, but there are 2 versions on the album. the last one has ice cube rapping about his PG movie career and is priceless. i def feel you on playing the mindless club bangers in teh club, it just works. this song might not be popular quite yet, but it has all the qualities that make people freak on in the club.
cheers
posted by garethspor at 10:29 AM on April 3, 2006

for cheap quasilegal mp3's from russians, try all or mp3

Allofmp3.com
posted by Infernarl at 11:35 AM on April 3, 2006

Geoff— Not to hijack, but I've seen alt.binaries.* recommended for several different music questions. How would someone with only a moderate knowledge of the old days of the internet connect to the Usenet?
posted by klangklangston at 5:26 PM on April 3, 2006

klangklangston, try www.easynews.com. it's cheap and rather easy
posted by rxrfrx at 7:07 PM on April 3, 2006 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: To clear up a few questions:

1. Not planning on getting paid for any of these parties. It's really just for fun.

2. I don't mind paying for the songs.

I think I was a bit unclear about my questions - it's not necessarily that I don't know the artists/songs, it's just that I would never think to go pick their songs up, yaoming? So having some sort of cheatsheet like what rxrfrx mentioned sounds like a good idea - not sure where to get that, though, since we don't seem to have that delivered to us.

And elr - I think you're judging me a bit unfairly. I don't think I'm hot shit because I'm a college DJ. If someone put on that boring Ghyslain remix of Fiddle with the Volume or whatever it was, I'd probably leave. I'm looking for the top 40 stuff because honestly, that's what's danceable, and it's what's fun. I'm not trying to be condescending to anyone here - I just want a shortcut to playing music that will be conducive to everyone having a good time, without having to watch MTV for 2 weeks straight.

Oh, and buying wax is pointless (for me) because I'm DJing with mp3s. I know some think it's a copout, but the sheer capabilities of working with digital music outweighs the cool factor of the tech 12s.

Thanks for the replies so far, everyone. Oh, and I've tried allofmp3.com, but they don't have some of the older jams I'm looking for. Maybe one of these subscription services is the ticket.
posted by dihutenosa at 9:25 PM on April 3, 2006

I think I was a bit unclear about my questions - it's not necessarily that I don't know the artists/songs, it's just that I would never think to go pick their songs up, yaoming?

Use the Hot 100, the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, the Hot Latin Songs--even Hot Ringtones.

Here's my advice, not that you asked for it:

If you really want to be a memorable DJ, play as many club hits as you can interspersed with real bangers that a) never got play for some reason, or b) are on recently-released albums and will probably be released as singles, but haven't been yet. These are songs that people will come up to you and ask, "This is hot; what is this?" The ratio for those to Top 40 stuff should be about 5:1. Play some "oldies," too--think late '80s-early '90s--but not too often (think 10 or 15:1). Those will get the biggest reactions.

Always, always, always play at least one 2Pac song and at least one Biggie song (maybe more, depending on what coast you're one). "California Love" and "Juicy" are the obvious ones. If you're in Texas, DJ Screw and Scarface. Show love the hometown crews.
posted by maxreax at 10:38 PM on April 3, 2006

Sorry, that's the way the question read.
Still, spending time in a record store, looking and listening and trying shit out for free will yield better results than TV or the internet, especially at getting a taste for the flavor of your own town.

I can't really speak for much outside of the Midwest but say, in Chicago you could get away with a lot more soul/house oriented stuff than in some places. In Minnesota people seem a lot more open to more underground and classic hip hop, throw on some Dana Dane, some Afu Ra, that new Murs album, some Rhymesayers, etc.

I've always found that what works best at parties is what you enjoy the most. Keep some hot tracks on hand if the audience starts to drift or to amp up the dance floor but few people want to hear the same thing they hear everyday. They just want to hear their favorite tracks at the right moment, and they will not hesitate in telling you what they are.

At the last party I spun at, one guy came up to me once every fifteen minutes to ask if I could play a Rammstein track I didn't have, another one kept asking me to play his one-track demo (after I'd played it once), a beautiful girl got indignant when she asked for Biggie and the closest I could offer was Pac, you can't please everyone.
posted by elr at 3:34 AM on April 4, 2006

(obviously, going to a record store won't get you the tracks, just perspective- not to sound redundant or anything)
posted by elr at 3:37 AM on April 4, 2006

also, recent Madlib, MF Doom, Jay Dee (r.i.p.) and Dangermouse albums have mad crossover appeal

even for people who have no idea who any of them are
trust me, you'll have people coming up to you impressed

you play MF Doom at a party with a fare share of twentysomething potsmokers and you'll be a hero, thanks to Adult Swim

-okay I'm done
posted by elr at 3:48 AM on April 4, 2006

also, recent Madlib, MF Doom, Jay Dee (r.i.p.) and Dangermouse albums have mad crossover appeal

Eh, not for dancing, no.
posted by rxrfrx at 9:19 AM on April 4, 2006

Response by poster: elr - yeah, I got you. I'm on the West coast, and house wouldn't really fly over here - unless the crowd was into that sorta thing anyway. Depends on the crowd - I'm just trying to expand my range a bit.

And rxrfrx is right - I love stones throw (the dangerdoom record was sort of terrible though) but most people aren't willing to dance to that. I know that I'm not. Great listening music, though.

maxreax, I agree with your ratio scheme there.
posted by dihutenosa at 10:14 AM on April 4, 2006

true. except for madlib, but that's more when he's getting into straight funk

also, I just realized that all the people I listed collaborated with each other, and I hated narly all those collaborations. I need sleep so fuckin bad.

Just do me a favor and throw on some Bambaataa whenever you get the chance.
posted by elr at 1:30 PM on April 4, 2006