pura diva

dj heavygrinder

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Thu, 12 May 2005 19:19:14 PDT

heavygrinder:: drum n bass//breaks//hard//house

seattle-native turned LA-resident, DJ HeavyGrinder has been spinning in the city of angels since 1998. Since landing in La La Land HeavyGrinder has killed the decks of White Lotus, the Key Club, and the Sunset Room while traveling to France, Japan, Atlanta, Hawaii, San Francisco, DC.-- ok, you get the picture. The girl is popular!

Let this Drum n Bass goodie called 'Equilibrium' jump start your Thursday evening and when you get a chance, check out HeavyGrinder's website.

AUDIO//Equilibrium//DJ HeavyGrinder//February 2005// MP3

TT: electronica, music, women, dj, dnb

veronica

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sun, 08 May 2005 12:15:31 PDT

veronica:: sexy house

mtv Canada darling DJ/producer Veronica has been rocking the Vancouver scene, and the rest of the world, for years. Known for her phantasmagorically sexy house beats, Veronica has organized numerous all female nights in Vancouver and held several residencies. The accolades are plentiful as well: #1 DJ for 2002 by the readers of the Georgia Straight, 3rd Best DJ in WestEnder Magazine, and a nominee for Best Gay & Lesbian DJ.

AUDIO//The Sweetest Sounds//DJ Veronica//MP3

TT: electronica, music, women, dj

wayna

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sat, 14 May 2005 12:56:06 PDT

wayna:: soul//jazz//hip hop//r&b

honey soul's blog has a wonderful peek into the sweet, soulful sounds of Wayna, an underground siren who's stage presence and originality caught the attention of Stevie Wonder.

Visit the site to catch some tracks from her album, Moments of Clarity, Book I.

LINK//Honey Soul

TT: soul, hip hop, music, women

rena jones:: transmigration

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sun, 01 May 2005 20:20:49 PDT

rena jones:: electronica//IDM//breaks//world

rena Jones is still one of those undiscovered gems for many people, at least those outside of San Francisco's electronica scene. She is a sound engineer and string manipulator of violin and cello, an audio engineer with a celestial voice, and a composer/producer whose range covers old world beats and contemporary electronica.

This is essentially the backbone of Transmigration,Rena's second solo album that is a soulful, downtempo journey of tabla, sarod, dumbek, bansuri, ney, and Banzantar influenced ethno beats melted with broken beat, IDM, and innovative strings.

Visit Rena's website for a lovely discography and more information.

AUDIO//Transmigration//Rena Jones//April 2005//Autumn

TT: electronica, music, women

sunday special:: sy smith

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sun, 01 May 2005 12:50:35 PDT

sy smith:: soul//funk//electrofusion

we Southern girls love the unexpected lagniappe. I've decided to make a habit out of throwing in some extra divas that don't fit the normal genres featured on puradiva, kinda like a special dish.

In this spirit, I'd like to present Sy Smith: Emmy-nominated singer/producer/songwriter whose latest album, The Syberspace Social, is already getting airplay on KCRW.

As a singer, Sy has been a back-up vocalist for the likes of Whitney Houston, Meshell N'degeocello, and Usher and has done on the spot lyrics for Macy Gray and Christina Milian. But those days are over, and with a sublimely gossamer voice and catchy hooks, Sy is propelling herself to the forefront.

Check out a little teaser called "Time" and find more lovely, spacey flavored tracks at Sy's website.

AUDIO//The Syberspace Social//Sy Smith//April 2005//Time

TT: soul, funk, electronica, music, women

hold my gold: a white girl's hip hop guide

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Fri, 29 Apr 2005 11:36:05 PDT

hold my gold:: satire on hip hop//race//gender//culture

50 cent is revolutionizing pop culture as we know it. Through his music and image, the well-muscled rapper has taught hip hop connoisseurs and novices alike important lessons, like how to spell PIMP... and how to stunt. His persona has even inspired a book meant to guide hip hop envious white girls out of their wack-ass worlds and into a crunk life-- enter Hold My Gold: A White Girl's Guide To The Hip Hop World.

Hold My Gold is a satire on the marketing/pop culture trend that is hip hop from the perspective of two white girls, Amanda McCall and Albertina Rizzo. Amanda is a Central Park West chic that once worked for The Late Show with David Letterman and Albertina has been an editor and publicist. In an interview with Yale Daily News, the two explained how the 2003 MTV Music Awards, during which 50 Cent poured from the heavens out of giant, jewel-encrusted pimp cup and a love affair with gangsta rap made them realize that this book was a necessity. "I realized that I love [50 Cent] and hip-hop so much that I'm going to dedicate the rest of my life to helping white girls like myself to love hip-hop, " Amanda asserts. Whether she's serious, I can't tell, since the rest of the interview is filled with silliness, but their book definitely takes a light-hearted approach to what mass media insists is urban epitomized: Cristal, flossin, chronic, thuggin, and of course, G-Unit.

Through chapters on Da Basix (hip hop influenced vocab words), social etiquette, accessorizing, the art of looking like a video ho, and a history of hip hop, the authors aim to show any suburb dwelling quasi-socialite how to dewackify her house, replace her Sex & the City martini with Hennessey, and add some bling to her J Crew cardigan.

The book's publisher, Simon & Schuster (send any angry mail to them, please, and not me), is a large publishing house that rarely backs anything that won't sale. So what makes them think this book has an audience, and why did this book happen in the first place? Because commercial hip hop has become ubiquitous. It's undeniably the biggest selling genre for many music labels, such as Universal Music Group. And being able to make money for the industry giants means being worthy of becoming a marketing trend. And becoming a marketing trend makes you cool as hell.

But, things can only be marketed if they're compacted into easily defined images and catchphrases. Which is where the trouble starts.

It happens with everything, from the success of Viacom/Bravo's Queer Eye landing Tom a Pier 1 contract, to Bratz dolls having competing toy manufacturers scrambling to sell playthings to tween girls. So, why shouldn't two white girls be able to make a little dough off the ridiculousness that America accepts as hip hop culture? It's deliciously unexpected.

For many critics and hip hop purists, these are sad days for hip hop. The subject of women's objectification, homophobia, violence, anarchy and various other hip hop buzz words have been discussed ad nauseum, so I won't do that here. But bottom line, commercial hip hop is about to change and become more like underground hip hop. Tired of being laughable and formalistic, it's starting to incorporate Afro Punk sounds, return to consciousness and fun, and love itself again.

But maybe we can giggle at the past along the way.

TT: hip hop, music

b-girl be: a celebration of women in hip hop

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Tue, 26 Apr 2005 14:22:19 PDT

b-girlbe:: art//dance//dialogue//djs//fashion//film//graf//
history//media//poetry//rap//b-girl bbq

from now - June 11, 2005, the Twin Cities' own Intermedia Arts will be hosting b-girl be, a Women in Hip Hop summit celebrating women's accomplishments in all aspects of the genre. There will be networking and seminars to sharpen skillz and resources for creating aerosal art, poetry, film, rap, dance, and all other related art forms.

Featured artists include DJ Kuttin Kandi, aerosal artist Lady Pink, documentary photographer Martha Cooper, and B-Girl Asia One.

The B-Girl Be Summit will be held from June 2-5 and passes are available at $30. Passes go on sale May 1; those interested should call Intermedia Arts at 612/871.4444 or visit the website.

LINKS//Intermedia Arts

Technorati links: hip hop, dj, music, bgirl

bitches on the switches . apr 27

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Tue, 26 Apr 2005 02:56:30 PDT

my girl DJ Shugga [breaks//house] will be ripping it on the decks along with Eva, Alikat, and and Amyx. Oh, those lucky folks in Woodland Hills.

mutamassik: shotgun wedding vol 1

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Tue, 26 Apr 2005 09:22:55 PDT

dj mutamassik:: ethno//afroasiatic//break//hiphop

i've decided to begin Monday with something unexpected, so DJ Mutamassik (meaning tenacity in Arabic) is the perfect fit. My path toward this Brooklyn-based Egyptian American DJ began with a release entitled ROUGH AMERICANA. Here's the quick run down: Afro-Arabic messo-punky foundations beneath rich, purposeful Egyptian hip hop breaks with kisses of junglist bass rhythms. Rough Americana is actually a self-titled release for a band containing Mutamassik and Morgan Craft; the two recorded the album live at Peter Karl's studio. Mutamassik brought the vinyl while Craft supplied the guitar.

Most people who are familiar with Mutamassik find her acumen mesmerizing and highly artistic, able to take a soundwave and wield it into a landscape of experiences. She actually has a quite discography under Warner Bros., but occasionally she does stuff that falls off the radar. So, I was, of course, excited to come across a rare gem of a collaboration she did with DJ Rupture called SHOTGUN WEDDING on the violent turd label. Tracks 1-11 are mixed by DJ Rupture while 12-22 are annointed by Mutamassik. The mixes were recorded during the duo's stint with the Biduon event crew in Dubai. This was strictly a promo, but it's also a VOL 1, and I'm lusting for a second volume.

I got my copy through a friend, but just recently discovered that BOOMKAT was selling the CD (yes was, ahem) and still has some sound files up, so I wanted to share. Below is the Boomkat promotional copy and links to MP3s, etc:

"This ace mix inaugurates violent turd's shotgun wedding split dj mix series. Easy labels such as "postcolonial party music" or "hardcore world beat" fail to describe DJ’s rupture and mutamassik's forward-looking diasporal breakbeats. Hip Hop, Dancehall, and Drum'n'Bass meet in beirut while chopper blades whir overhead. bump this in your car for instant street cred, whether you're cruising cairo, brooklyn, or harare. World-class and world-conscious... Mutamassik's Bidoun session scratches and mashes upper Nile Sa'aidi, old-skool rap instrumentals, hardstep d-and- b, and underground rai hits into a serious, rooted mix of relentless rhythms from pan-afroarabic immigrant sound sources. Ace."

AUDIO//Shotgun Wedding Vol 1//DJ rupture + DJ Mutasmassik//Released 2004//Streaming Sounds//Track 1

AUDIO//Rough Americana//Rough Americana = DJ Mutamassik + Morgan Craft//Who Genius (Track #5)

Technorati links: hip hop, dj, music

dj heather

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sun, 24 Apr 2005 17:21:09 PDT

dj heather:: chicago house

one word: verve. Her hands seem to mix magic and her ear is simply perfect, so, almost anyone who hears DJ Heather falls in love with her, which might explain her URL. Brooklyn born, Heather gained buzz in the Chicago scene with a residency at Artful Dodger where she mixed a selection of funk, hip hop, house, jazz, RnB soul, thumping disco, and ephemeral grooves that were so vibrant, they were damn near visible to the naked eye.

Her residency soon moved to Red Dog, spinning downtempo, hip hop and rare beats. Chicago hipsters began to regard Heather as a hip hop DJ, but after a stint at the world renowned Gramaphone Records, Heather began to find herself pulled more into the direction of house, mostly by request. Needing to distinguish her style from the already well-known Chicago house scene, Heather formed the now infamous SuperJane collective with fellow female Chicago house heads DJ Colette, DJ Dayhota, and LadyD.

The idea behind SuperJane was to demystify the female DJ and make it obvious that there was no gender requirement to good spinning. Although whether or not SuperJane only highlighted the fact that the members were women or actually gathered respect for female turntablists and house vocalists is still up for debate, I've personally talked to countless female DJs today who were inspired by SuperJane. Some even got the idea to spin themselves after attending a night.

After 12 years, DJ Heather is a legend and seasoned professional. A supporter of good music and talent, Heather's worked with Demarkus Lewis, Chris Lum, Mazi & Spetto, and even spun with Jason Lyman as well as my girl Janel Roland. Nothin but love for DJ Heather.

AUDIO//Fabric 21 : DJ Heather + various artists, released March 14, 2005 : MP3

Technorati links: deep, dj, music, house

lottie

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sun, 24 Apr 2005 17:17:29 PDT

lottie:: deep//tech//house

queen of Ibiza. Resident DJ. Proper House spinner. Lottie has come a long way from her discovery in 1996; legend has it that some promoters for London's leading night THE GALLERY tuned in and plucked the DJ from obscurity.

Since those shadowy days, Lottie has become a beloved DJ, respected for her skills and superb musical taste that blends deep, tribal rhythms with techy to disco funk influenced vibes from both UK and American labels. She hosts several International gigs, is officially the first lady of Liverpool's Bugged Out, and has won applause from countless DJ and club culture magazines.

Although she's obviously stunning, Lottie hasn't let her looks control her destiny or her media image. She remains very selective about the press she allows and keeps the music as her first love.

AUDIO//Discover Lottie at Amazon.com

Technorati links: deep, dj, music

djladytribe

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sun, 24 Apr 2005 17:14:58 PDT

lady tribe:: hiphop//turntablism//vocalist

always difficult to typecast, DJ LadyTribe is a hip hop turntablist, graffiti legend, singer, and model. Her art can be scene floating along the sides of Los Angeles' cityscape, her DJ skills have her spinning in the hottest clubs and parties, and she has even been used as a model for the GTA San Andreas video game by ROCK STAR.

Catch LadyTribe singing the hook on Ghettoish, a track on the new BIG STEELE cd.

AUDIO//Listen to Tribe's mix FunkyTownLA

Technorati links: hip hop, dj, music

[ a b o u t ] this blog =

noreply@blogger.com (that diva chic) — Sat, 23 Apr 2005 23:43:46 PDT

puradiva is thoughts, found profiles, opinions and news about women in electronica and hip hop- from the queens of turntables singing soulful lyrics over deep House beats, to singers/songwriters and musicians experimenting with Trip Hop, Rock, Acid Hip Hop Funk, and beyond. We also talk about the Y chromosome whenever possible.