On this week's show we welcome a producer, musician, DJ, and composer with a list of achievements longer than this introduction can afford. A Philadelphia native and proud supporter of his hometown, King Britt has been involved in beat culture since the late 1980s operating across scenes, genres, and roles: He was DJ for Digable Planets during their first album tour; he was one of the co-founders and residents of Back2Basics, an influential weekly that help stir what would become neo-soul; he helped link the US and UK dance music scenes as one-half of E-Culture with Josh Wink; he paid homage to his diverse musical roots as Sylk 130; and as King Britt he's explored beats, hip-hop, and house. But as we said at the beginning, there's much more - techno, ambient, broken beat, jazz... In recent years, King took a position as Assistant Teaching Professor in Computer Music at UCSD and used this to create the Blacktronika curriculum which honors people of color who have pioneered groundbreaking genres within the electronic music landscape. 

This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower. This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

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On this week's show we welcome Suzi Analogue: a producer, songwriter, DJ, and label head whose forward-thinking, global outlook continuously provides fresh perspectives on beat culture. Originally from the Baltimore area, Suzi first came to attention in the late 2000s as part of the Philly-based Klipmode collective alongside mndsgn, devonwho, and knxwledge. Suzi then moved to NYC where she setup her Never Normal label as a home for her own music and that of peers and influences including Count Bass D, DJ Earl, Ezrakh and more. At the same time she also collaborated with Tokimonsta and Georgia Anne Muldrow, continuously pulling at different sides of her hip-hop and electronic music backgrounds, while involving herself in different aspects of the industry. Today she resides in Miami, where she continues to expand her practice and grow Never Normal into a home for new and exciting sounds and artists while traveling through sounds on her own, varied releases. 

This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower. This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

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This week we welcome Alexander Nut to the show! A DJ, promoter, and the co-founder of Eglo Records, Alex has been an integral part of the London scene for over a decade, both behind the scenes and behind the decks. In the late 2000s, he was one of the most vocal supporters of the global beat scene through his show on Rinse FM, the only non-dance music focused program on the station at the time, and his work as a promoter through the All Young Kings mailing list. A regular at Plastic People, it was there that he met Sam "Floating Points" Shepherd with whom he setup the Eglo Records label in 2008, as a home for a new school of artists inspired by the soul and funk of the past and energized by hip-hop and dance music. 

This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower. This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

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This week we welcome another old friend to the show: Jim Coles AKA Om Unit. Jim and Laurent first met back in the early 2000s when Jim was blending youthful interests in electronic and dance music with the experimental approaches afforded by bedroom production and turntablism. Jim first attracted attention for his work in the liminal spaces between these two scenes as 2tall before eventually giving himself a fresh start at the end of the decade under the name Om Unit. As the 2010s rolled in, he was a part of the short-lived but much-loved club night Tempo Clash in London alongside Kutmah, Kidkanevil, Blue Daisy, and the late Offshore. At the same time, he also began to find a new musical voice at the intersection of UK club and dance culture, dub, and beats that earned him plaudits from peers and forebears including Fracture, Machinedrum, Mark Pritchard, Danny Breaks, Goldie, and Doc Scott. 

This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower. This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

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Episode 3, Part 2: Ali explains his decision to not become pigeonholed as the "hip-hop cover band," how Astigmatic helped put together the Lahore session with Tenderlonious and Latarnik, and various stories behind the sessions and the albums that came out of it. 

This week we welcome to the show Ali Riaz Baqar, a musician, composer, and producer who bridges North Indian classical music with jazz and hip-hop. Baqar is the driving force behind Jaubi, a quartet based in Lahore, Pakistan who first came to many people's attention with a cover of J Dilla's "Time: The Donut of the Heart" that reimagined the original using the Indian melodic framework of ragas. Working with the London-based, Polish label Astigmatic Records, Jaubi released their debut album earlier this year, Nafs At Peace, featuring collaborations with 22a's Tenderlonious and EABS' Marek Pędziwiatr. The album is the result of a short but intense recording session in Lahore that helped crystalize Baqar's approach and capture the freeform essence of the band.

This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower. This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

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This week we welcome to the show Ali Riaz Baqar, a musician, composer, and producer who bridges North Indian classical music with jazz and hip-hop. Baqar is the driving force behind Jaubi, a quartet based in Lahore, Pakistan who first came to many people's attention with a cover of J Dilla's "Time: The Donut of the Heart" that reimagined the original using the Indian melodic framework of ragas. Working with the London-based, Polish label Astigmatic Records, Jaubi released their debut album earlier this year, Nafs At Peace, featuring collaborations with 22a's Tenderlonious and EABS' Marek Pędziwiatr. The album is the result of a short but intense recording session in Lahore that helped crystalize Baqar's approach and capture the freeform essence of the band. 

This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower. This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

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Episode two, part two: Kutmah, Laurent, and Vanese discuss Jay Dee's impact, the different ways in which instrumental music can be presented, and the importance of mentoring and representation. 

This week we welcome Vanese Smith AKA Pursuit Grooves to the podcast, one of our favorite people in this modern beat culture. Originally from Maryland, now residing in Toronto, Vanese first came to many people's attention - including ours - via the Beat Dimensions compilation eventually going on to collaborate with fellow beat scene alumni Onra as well as making inroads into the dance music world with releases on Bristol's Tectonic label. Rocking live shows with two SP-505s, Vanese left a lasting impression on the scene and has remained active with self-releases as well as mentoring work as part of the Loop Sessions series and most recently working as DJ consultant and instructor on Spin, a Disney movie about DJ culture.

This episode was edited and produced by Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower. This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

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This week we welcome to the show one of our favorite people in this modern beat culture: Vanese Smith AKA Pursuit Grooves. Originally from Maryland, now residing in Toronto, Vanese first came to many people's attention - including ours - via the Beat Dimensions compilation before going on to collaborate with fellow beat scene alumni Onra as well as making inroads into the dance music world with releases on Bristol's Tectonic label. Rocking live shows with two SP-505s back when everyone was moving to laptops, Vanese left a lasting impression on the scene and has remained active as an independent artist with multiple album projects as well as mentoring work as part of Loop Sessions Toronto. Most recently she worked as DJ consultant and instructor on Spin, a Disney movie about DJ culture.

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This episode was edited and produced by Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower.

This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

Episode one, part two. Sweatson Klank, Kutmah, and Laurent continue their remembrance of the early days of the L.A. beat scene including first meeting Ras G, the Sketchbook residents, moving to the Little Temple, and how Poobah's eventually replaced Aron's as the record store of the scene. 

For the first episode of A Beat Happening we welcome Tom Wilson FKA Take and now known as Sweatson Klank. A part of the L.A. beat scene since the early 2000s, Tom first met Kutmah at Aron's Records and the pair eventually became the DJ duo at the heart of Sketchbook, a club night Kutmah started in Hollywood that set the ground for what would come next with Low End Theory. Tom is also responsible for introducing Laurent to Kutmah and schooling him on the historical importance of Aron's and Sketchbook. 

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This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower.

This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.

For the first episode of A Beat Happening we welcome Tom Wilson FKA Take and now known as Sweatson Klank. A part of the L.A. beat scene since the early 2000s, Tom first met Kutmah at Aron's Records and the pair eventually became the DJ duo at the heart of Sketchbook, a club night Kutmah started in Hollywood that set the ground for what would come next with Low End Theory. Tom is also responsible for introducing Laurent to Kutmah and schooling him on the historical importance of Aron's and Sketchbook. In part one of this episode, the three of them reminisce about these early days and their formative importance to both Tom's and Kutmah's careers. 

In this episode we discuss...

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This episode was edited and produced by Laurent Fintoni and Will Horrocks. Intro and outro music by Duke Westlake. Artwork by Kutmah. Design assistance by Paper Resistance and Brandy Flower.

This show is a labor of love and if you enjoy what you hear and would like to support us in being able to continue, you can donate via PayPal at https://paypal.me/abeathappening.