Kevin Foakes (Strictly Kev / DJ Food) – London, UK
As a young photographer shooting and devouring music in the underground clubs of Tel Aviv in the late ’90s and early 2000s, I became acquainted with the DJ Food record Kaleidoscope. I listened enraptured to its jazzy, sophisticated sounds, particularly the track “The Aging Young Rebel.” I didn’t know whose deep voice was captivating me so much, but it stuck with me.
Ahmir Questlove Thompson – Philadelphia, PA [An excerpt]
When a window opens in Questlove’s schedule—even if it’s very last-minute and on July 4—you take it. As drummer for the legendary hip-hop band the Roots, bandleader for The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, professor at New York University, and round-the-clock DJ, Questlove rarely gets a break in his schedule.
Mickey McGowan – San Rafael, CA
Culture’s Keeper
The Gaslamp Killer – Los Angeles, CA
William Bensussen is lucky to be alive. In the summer of 2012, the Los Angeles-based producer and DJ, better known as The Gaslamp Killer, was riding his scooter home from a friend’s house when a gust of wind threatened to take his hat. Reaching for it with one hand and braking with the other, he flipped his scooter, catching a hard blow to the gut on the way down. Internal bleeding meant emergency surgery, which left him with a scar the length of his abdomen and no spleen...
Gilles Peterson – London, England
Over the past 25 years, the name Gilles Peterson has gradually become synonymous with his self-styled ‘worldwide’ sound and his eternal quest for the perfect beat. Coming from French-Swiss parentage in South London, Gilles worked his way up the greasy pole of the music industry, taking on lowly jobs at record labels and setting up his own pirate radio station, to eventually become one of the most revered tastemakers in the UK and beyond.
Philippe Cohen Solal (Gotan Project) – Paris, France
Co-Founder of Gotan Project, Philippe reveals how a trip to a kibbutz, electronic music and film scores led him to urban tango.
Miriam Linna & Billy Miller – Norton Records
I first met Billy and Miriam of Norton Records and Kicks Books at one the Big Ten Inch parties that ran out of Brooklyn, spinning mostly old 78 RPM records. We then got to know each other even closer when hurricane Sandy hit their warehouses in Red Hook and flooded their entire stock. I was living a few blocks away and immediately ran over to help them salvage the records, recruit other volunteers, and bring my camera along to film the disaster.
Jeff “Chairman” Mao – Harlem, NY
A humble Harlem brownstone apartment with a massive vinyl collection.
Justin ‘Rambo’ Salinas – Minneapolis, MN
Up and Down the Mississippi: On the Hunt for Chicano Soul
Arlene Sepulveda & Ruben Molina
The Southern Soul Spinners: Revolving Around the Eastside Sound