Sad follow-up to my previous post on the art of crate digging and beat sampling - another tragically early hip-hop death, as Grand Master Roc Raida died at the age of 37 from spinal injuries sustained in a martial arts mishap. This was no cliched rap death, a consequence of drug abuse or gunplay. This was the snuffing out of a soft-spoken and creative individual well before his time.
The celebrity-blitzed passing of DJ AM last month grabbed more headlines, thanks to AM's more mainstream following (and the bizarre fact that he survived a plane crash exactly a year ago, only to fall victim to a drug overdose). While I wouldn't stoop to comparing two recently dead artists, it is clear that Roc Raida was the more visionary of the two - an innovator and a mentor as well as a great entertainer. A Harlem native and ten-year inhabitant of The Bronx, the former Anthony Williams was dubbed "The Quiet Lion" by friends and associates, an accurate sobriquet given his calm nature and generosity off the stage, which in no way softened his aggressive approach to onstage turntablism. To watch Roc Raida in action (something I was only able to do via video) was not just to witness an inspired and fun-loving set of party grooves, but to marvel at his control, athletic abilities and showmanship. In an era of ever more cerebral approaches to scratching and mixing, Roc Raida maintained his down-to-earth style, yet never seemed anachronistic. Perhaps it was his deep hip-hop roots - his father was an original Sugar Hill label artist - that helped keep him real.
Like many mix djs, it can be difficult to track down his best work. So much of what he and others accomplish is done live, at night, in the clubs, and listening to recorded artifacts of live mixes can be a disappointing act of archival investigation. There are plenty of cds out there featuring his work with the legendary DJ troupe The X-Men (who eventually changed their name to the less-copyright-controlled X-Ecutioners), and one can find numerous documents of his legendary mix sets floating in and out of print on disc or perhaps even wax. But watch some of these videos to get a taste of Roc Raida's considerable skills. Check out fellow DJ A-Trak's blog for some personal memories of Anthony Williams the individual. And by all means give a listen (and a download) to Roc Raida's semi-legendary mix set "52 Beats" - a grand tour of classic funky breaks, inspired by the totally-legendary Kid Capri set of the same name. He truly rocked the party.
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