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Soul Summit FREE Dance Party: Guest DJ – DANNY AKALEPSE (Big Crown Records, NYC)
September 15, 2017 @ 9:00 pm
FREE
Guest DJ: DANNY AKALEPSE (Big Crown Records, NYC)
To get a sense of who Danny Akalepse is you have to look at his track record. DJing since 1993, he came up as a Battle / Party DJ in Hip Hop’s Golden Era where it truly was your skill set that your reputation was based on. With more than two decades of djing under his belt he has become highly respected in Soul, Funk, and Hip Hop circles the world over. Dividing his time in the early days of his career between radio, battles, DJing for Parrish Smith of EPMD, and collecting records he developed both his ear buy cialis online and rounded out his skill set as a DJ.
Moving from LI to Brooklyn in 2000 Lepse started really pushing his mixtapes, selling more copies than a lot of indy labels sell albums. These mixes landed him a ton of residencies, most notably an 8 year 2 night a week gig at the now legendary APT in NYC. Sharing the bill with the likes of Bobbito, Jazzy Jeff, DJ Premier, and his now partner in crime Rich Medina, Lepse’s fan base went through the roof. When APT closed it’s doors in 2009 Rich & Danny brought their Wednesday night to a new venue renaming the party PROPS, which they have since taken all over the U.S. and Europe. When you hear Lepse DJ it’s a mix of new, unknown, and classic tunes spanning nearly all genres taking the party on a dynamic journey. An avid record collector, he has a library of easily over 20,000 pieces, so playing just typical tunes is out of the question. His ability to ignite dance floors while pushing the listeners has put him on stage with the likes of KRS-ONE, Cypress Hill, Kenny Dope, DJ Spinna, Lord Finesse, J-Rocc, DJ Scratch, and Just Blaze to name a few. DJing on the road all over the states and Europe for the past ten years heavily, he continues to grow his brand and make his mark.
Guest DJ: EL MICHELS (EL MICHELS AFFAIR, NYC)
When Leon Michels name first appeared on a record, he was 16. That release was Thunder Chicken, and the group was his high school band, The Mighty Imperials. The record was essentially an homage to The Meters, at the time it was near pitch-perfect for the budding retro-soul scene. While that release was an early step for Michels, aspects of it have almost become trademarks of his work: a unique raw-yet-disciplined approach to his sound and songwriting, and a soulful genuineness that has a sense of humor one minute and a sense of solace the next.
Right from the jump his hustling work ethic was evident, always involved in a lot at once. While finishing Thunder Chicken, Michels began touring and recording with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings—which he did for the next 7 years. During that time he was also recording songs in a makeshift home studio and preparing for what would be his first full-length record, Sounding Out The City, and the first release under the name El Michels Affair. In 2004, when Sounding Out The City was recorded, Michels’ obsession with early rocksteady, American soul, and 60’s garage rock crept its way into the songwriting and recording aesthetic, the outcome was something Michels appropriately dubbed “Cinematic Soul.” The album was to be the first release on Truth & Soul Records, a new label Michels co founded.
The lo-fi warm recording aesthetic and bottom heavy production alongside the immediate success of EMA’s debut release lead to playing a show with Raekwon of Wu-Tang fame. That show went over so well it lead to a tour with El Michels backing multiple members of the Wu-Tang Clan. It was these shows that ended up laying the groundwork for the release of El Michels Affair’s second full-length, Enter the 37th Chamber, which eventually introduced them to a worldwide audience. While the band’s fanbase went through the roof, the industry also quickly recognized that EMA was a force to be reckoned with. Almost in a domino effect, a huge range of hip-hop artists sampled Michels’ songs, from Ghostface Killah, Just Blaze, and Jay-Z to J Dilla, J.Cole, and Travis Scott.
While simultaneously running a label, playing / touring, and co-producing other artist’s music Michels helped found The Menahan Street Band, co-produced Aloe Blacc’s sophomore smash LP, Good Things, and received a writer credit on Adele’s Grammy-nominated album, 19. Shortly there after Michels found himself on tour with The Black Keys after being cold-called by Auerbach and asked to join them on the road. It turned out that Auerbach was a big fan of the sound and approach of the Lee Fields record “My World”, which Michels produced. And when Auerbach was tapped to make Dr. John’s critically acclaimed album , “Locked Down” and Lana Del Rey’s LP, “Ultraviolence”, Michels was brought along to play and add his signature sound. That led to being included in and touring for Auerbach’s psych-rock project, The Arcs, which features Michels as a musician and co-producer.
So this brings us to Big Crown Records, the second record label Michels has helped build from the ground up. “Running a label that’s just one kind of music can be limiting,” Michels explains. “I know that, personally, things can’t be the same thing over and over again. You have to push into new something different, new directions—but keep hold of that aesthetic that got you here.”
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El performing with Lee Fields on CBS This Morning:
Soul Summit DJs: SLOPPY WHITE, DAVE MATA, DUKE GRIP
Soul Summit started as an idea in late 2009 after walking around the city and seeing numerous flyers for soul nights. An idea formed. Why not have one night with a delegate from each soul group/crew to celebrate the different types of early soul sounds currently being represented in the city? The idea sprang into action and soon we had three ‘residents’, Dave Mata, Duke Grip, and Sloppy White. The original purpose was to challenge attendees with different sounds and to not have a solidified format. Most important, the night is not about the guests but above all the music. With no preference to ‘rare’ records but records aimed for the dance floor regardless of how rare or common. Soul Summit is not about a ‘scene’ or alienation. We encourage all people from walks of life to come listen and celebrate early soul music.