Friday, May 25 - NYC

Being involved so heavily in music, most DJs, MCs, and producers often get used to the presence of longtime idols and predecessors. On this night the Lifesavas definitely still had that enthusiastic awe for Don Blackman, a soul artist who would share the stage with them for “Long Letter.” The song samples Blackman’s “Since You’ve Been Away So Long” from his self-titled album that was never released by Arista/GRP. At the end of the song he gave pounds to Vurs, Jumbo, and Shines, showing his clear appreciation for their respect of his musical contributions.

Later that night I myself couldn’t help but turn into a fan when Pete Rock hit the stage to DJ. He produced the unofficial hiphop anthem “T.R.O.Y.” along with countless other classic albums and songs. Seeing such an inspiration sneak through the back door just feet away reminded me why I love music so much.

Judging from the amount of Japanese cats in the crowd taking pictures, I wasn’t the only one in awe of the hiphop legend. Pete rocked it decently off strictly vinyl, added another dimension by getting on the mic like all NYC DJs do, and kept people movin’.