DJ OP! – Dubspot interview & podcast

The good folks over at Dubspot have graced us with another one of their exclusive podcasts. This time around they feature an interview and DJ mix by OP!, a dancefloor veteran known for his uplifting blends of Hip Hop, House, Neo-Soul, Broken Beat and other genres.

OP! (photo courtesy of Dubspot)

Dubspot Podcast 018 – DJ OP! by Dubspot

Dubspot: How does your hip hop background shape your music selections?

OP!: Hip hop was the gateway to me learning about so many different genres of music. When I was a kid, I used to dig through my father’s vinyl and I would find all of the samples that were used in hip hop songs in the ’80s and ’90s.

As I grew older, I started to find some of those same samples in house, drum n bass, broken beat, and other electronic based music. Drum samples, vocal loops, chords, etc. Those sounds where able to help me open my mind to other genres, but also aided in expanding my hip hop sensibilities. So I now can play a set that is a mixture of various genres (hip-hop, disco, house, broken beat, soul, dancehall) but play them from a hip hop perspective – always blending beats, at times cutting and scratching, fluctuating tempos and still keeping it head nodding, grooving, and soulful.

Dubspot: Do you find more value in the styles that early hip hop breaks were drawn from than current hip hop?

OP!: I find value in both. I grew up on 80’s and 90’s Hip Hop so I have a certain affinity to that sound. But I am equally as excited about sounds that push them limits via technology in electronic based music. There is still new hip hop and R&B music that excites me just as much as finding old disco records that I have never heard before.

I do think that with every generation, the filter for good music is becoming a bit watered down. There are not as many gate keepers protecting the sound from the decline and acceptance of wack music from the general public. The rules break down (or change depending on your perspective) over generations, but good music still prevails through out it all. I focus on playing good music regardless of time period and genre.

Read more of the interview at Dubspot