Slang Musicgroup News

Commercial Music & Sound: Top ten mistakes agencies can easily make regarding music for spots

2011-09-21T17:21:00.000-05:00

10. “Music is only important if your brand is trying to be cool.“
But who’s not cool? Visa, one of the most conservative brands in the space won accolades for its use of the Pixies Spanish language song “Isla de Encanta” in its 2010 World Cup running man spot, not because it was cool (which it was) but because it so perfectly fit the vibe of the spot, with an energy and strength that really set the spot apart. Cool was only in the mind of the viewer.

9. “The artist and lyrics have to match perfectly with the ad or it won’t work.”
Maybe not always. The song “Pink Moon” by Nick Drake graced the ad that is commonly called the “Commercial of the decade”, the VW Cabrio spot “Milky Way”. The song has an eerie, otherworldy calm quality, which is fitting, since it’s about death and is sung by an artist descending deeper and deeper into a psychosis from which he would not recover. He died from an overdose of amitriptyline, an anti-depressant long before the song went on to win award after award as the defining track in a great campaign. Royal Caribean Cruis lines used Iggy Pop’s “Lust for Life,” a song about shooting up heroin, as a brand building tune for their commercials, earning them some finger wagging from the critical public. But the average person didn’t care. They remembered the track, sales went up and they hummed along.

8. “We have to own the song in its entirety if we want to use it.”
Or Not. Chris Brown's top 10 hit “Forever” was actually an extension of a jingle done for Wrigley's via Translation Marketing. Wrigley's apparently paid for the recording sessions for the updated re-do of the "classic" Doublemint jingle from the 1960s. The campaign also included Ne-Yo doing his take on a Big Red jingle and Dancing With the Stars "country singer" Juliana Huff's take on the Juicy Fruit jingle. Sometimes the fact that a jingle done for your brand has a life afterward can only add to the strength of the song’s positioning and cultural relevance.

7. “Music in our work can’t tackle serious issues.”
Or maybe it can. Will.i.am's release "Yes We Can” teamed artist Will.i.am with director Jesse Dylan to create a powerful anthem detailing Barack Obama’s white house run and the strength of the imagination leading it. Including almost 40 celebrities, from John Legend, Scarlett Johansson, Herbie Hancock to Nick Cannon, the song reached all across the country and drove to a deeper truth. It showed that people can very much enjoy a little serious in their escapist musical selection.

6. “This is going to be complicated.”
Not always. The 2011 Hyundai spot “New Thinking, New Possibilities” came equipped with a simple yet elegant piano track, written and performed by Vanessa James to the commercial. No million dollar budgets or long production cycles- Just a catchy piano piece for a good spot.

5. “I have to hire all the artists personally.”
Or you can work with a composer that knows what he or she is doing. Film composer Alex Heffes, for example, has collaborated with many artists, including Ryuichi Sakamoto andYasmin Levy. On the soundtrack to the Audi A6 “Manipulation” spot, Regina Spektor hums away, creating a powerful mood. Composers like Heffes and Vince Lawrence, a Chicago based film and television composer, often have the connections needed to bring character and life to your spot in ways you didn’t expect.

4. “Our Jingle is classic, we shouldn’t touch it.“
Or maybe you should. The State Farm “Like a good neighbor” mnemonic is one of the catchiest and easily memorable ones in advertising. Most brands would leave it alone. But when State Farm reached out to a new generation with a series of playful that featured hipsters invoking their State Farm agent they wrapped them with a great 8 bit techno version of the mnemonic that created a modern and kitschy appeal perfectly matching the spots.

3. “People will get the idea without sound.”
They might. The PunchDub Volkswagen 2010 Superbowl spot included Stevie Wonder, Tracy Morgan and every possible type person you could think of. It was fun and funny and built flawlessly on an old game that we all remember from childhood. It had everything it needed to resonate. Why bother with “Two Weeks”, the catchy Grizzly Bears track that accompanied it? Because it worked and created that one additional level of entertaining and memorable that brought the spot home.

2. “Music really doesn’t matter.”
Right. But taking a look through the Diet Coke Commercial that premiered on the 2010 Oscar telecast without sound reveals a very different commercial than with sound enabled. Temper Traps “Sweet Disposition” Drives the spot and keeps it from feeling like a series of disconnected stock footage pieces. And when the song picks up and flies, so does the spot. Effortlessly.

1. “This is going to be expensive.”
Or Not. Calling Slang music can connect you to a professional who can try and connect you with the right tone, the right artists and the right price for your project. Many music houses overcomplicate digital rights and placements , making them as costly as large scale campaigns. Slang can work with you to ensure that your work has musical life at a reasonable rate.

Music Licensing & Rights: Please Try to Hit a Nail on the Head While Wearing a Blindfold

2010-10-21T15:51:00.001-05:00

Trying to find a model that ensures a profit in today's music industry is like trying to hit a nail with a hammer with your eyes closed. If you swing with a ton of force and miss, you're probably going to break your fingers, but if you hit the nail on the head, BINGO, your in. Some artists have exploited the market to create success, while other acts have been placed in the closet. Record labels are falling into a sink hole of debt trying to ring out how to make a smashing revenue in today's market. EMI last year declared that it had losses over $800million. That's freaky! Since the rise of the internet and file sharing, trafficking the use of sound recordings has only gotten more difficult. This is problematic for the record labels who seek to distribute music because it cuts out a revenue source. Downloading against the discretion of a song's owner is against the law, even though we all do it. Even when one purchases a CD, he or she has limited rights to use and reproduce the music. This is because the music is copyrighted. A copyright is used by performers, songwriters, publishers, musicians, and performing rights organizations to create revenue and starts by breaking down musical copyright into two categories: 1) a sound recording and 2) a composition. A song's copyright offers five licensing opportunities that can be generated into revenue streams. When someone or some business wants to use a song, he, she, or it must pay for the rights of use. A song creates revenue by licensing it's print rights, performance rights, mechanical rights,master rights, and or synch rights. The funds are then distributed by performing rights organizations like ASCAP, BMI, and Soundexchange to the rightful recipient of funds. Different means of song use call for different persons to be paid. Some rights call for songwriters and publishers to be paid, while other rights call for the performer and musicians to be paid. The process of appropriating funds in the music industry can make one dizzy. Luckily, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry has created a coding system, abbreviated as ISRC, to help hit the nail on the head. ISRC stands for the International Standard Recording Code, and it is a unique code that is imprinted into a music track or video recording upon mastering. It is issued to better track the number of song plays, generate royalty returns, and prevent piracy. The code never changes regardless of where the track is used or if the track changes ownership. The ISRC is registered with download sites, digital distribution companies, and collecting societies in order to manage digital repertoire and track commerce. Nielsen Soundscan is the enterprise that identifies where a track is played so proper dues can be paid. If the track turns up on some place without its ISRC code, or with a false code, then it's a good indication that piracy may have taken place.

At Slang,we encode all of our original works with an ISRC no matter what the track issued for. Perhaps a song gets some radio play, or the track is licensed to an entertainment company to be used for T.V., film, or a videogame. Soundscan keeps track of where the song is used to reassure us that we are receiving fair play. To turn any track into a vehicle in motion, post-production work is a must but all work could be lost if the track didn't include the ISRC. Without it, the track could blow up, be pirated, and the royalty check wouldn't be enough to fill up my gas tank.

By: Jack Holland

Music and Sound:Technics 1200

2010-08-26T14:40:00.002-05:00

If you were to walk into Slang MusicGroup on a regular day, you would pass through the office full of interns cracking jokes as they push the business in a new and innovative direction, past the vocal booth, and through a big wooden door into the control room. Newcomers often experience an overwhelming feeling at the amount of gear that neatly fills this warm and welcoming room. Immediately you realize that, despite the gold and platinum records that decorate the studio's walls, Vince and his crew are down to earth people. Perhaps it is the shelf full of collectors figurines and Star Wars fighters that line the wall, or the video game section equipped with PS3, Wii, and Xbox. Whatever it is, if you're a DJ, you will find solace in the two Technics SL-1200 that proudly sit right under the window connecting the control room to the vocal booth.

The "Tee 12's" have been the go-to turntables since their release in 1978. DJs around the world rely on this instrument to make clubs bounce every night or to hone in on their technical skills at home. With the advent of CD-turntable technology (CD-J) and programs such as Serato, the 1200s aren't used as often, but continue to dominate the vinyl turntable scene. This beautiful square-shaped beast is widely regarded as one of the most durable and reliable turntables ever produced, which explains the more than 3 million sold since its release. While most technology built in the 70s becomes obsolete in today's world, many of the original Technics 1200s are still used today and function like new. It is no wonder that the SL-1200 is on display at the London Science Museum as one of the pieces of technology that have shaped the world we live in.

Although Slang is adopting more portable methods of DJing, these twin Technics will have a permanent spot for everybody who walks in to see and to enjoy their sonic superiority.

by Thomas Beckman

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Slang Music Group launches Free House Music Ringtones iPhone App!

2010-06-07T16:12:00.001-05:00

House Music junkies rejoice! Finally, you can enjoy excellent quality House Music Ringtones on your iPhone from one of the fathers of House music, Vince Lawrence.

You can download the application "HOUSE MUSIC RINGTONES" for free and have immediate access to four free house music ringtones. You then have the option to pay $1.99 for 21 more original ringtones in addition to future access to additional libraries of future house music ringtones from other founding fathers of the genre. For anyone who ants an easy way to bring the Chicago House Sound to thier Iphone..

Check out our promotional video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W51M62s6TXU
Support House Music and Slang Music Group by passing this link along!
http://bit.ly/slangmusic

Music & Sound: Pop Music is House Music

2010-04-13T10:48:00.001-05:00

By Thomas Beckmann

It was the early 1980s in Chicago, Illinois and a new wave of music was emerging with a force equivalent to that of the ancient Roman Empire. Within a matter of years, House music conquered clubs worldwide and began to influence the type of music we have all come to identify as modern-pop.

Combining elements of funk and soul-infused disco and the advent of new synthesizers and drum machines, House music catered to African-American, Latino, and gay communities beginning a domino effect that would eventually hit every major city and community in the United States. The up-tempo feel with a punching kick drum on every beat became the recipe for viral dance music and full body liberation in clubs worldwide. House music’s message was simple: a celebratory expression of dance, love, and sexuality.

Upon its inception in Chicago, house music was not initially distributed to the mainstream commercial market. Only select music stores such as Importes, Inc., State Street Records, JR’s Music Shop and Gramaphone Records supplied the original 12-inch vinyl. The advent of drum machines and mixers provided the necessary boost to propel simply disco music into the new house genre. The first house record pressed and sold to the general public was “On and On” (1984) of which Slang Music Group’s Vince Lawrence had an integral part in producing. After this release, DJ’s citywide began producing records that contributed to the rapid growth of this genre. In a matter of years, Detroit, New York City, Miami, New Jersey, and the UK adopted this trend, which in turn, continued to grow internationally.

Today, house music and pop music genres are more similar than ever. Artists such as Justice and David Guetta have contributed to a new emergence of house music in the pop genre. The aforementioned artists not only represent a new trend in the fusion of pop and house music, but they represent the international influence that house music has had. A musical trend that began in teenage basements, changed clubs in Chicago and has evolved into new genres and emerging global artists from France and around the world.

808 Love

2010-04-02T16:22:00.003-05:00

One of the most revolutionary contributions to modern music since the electric guitar is the Roland TR-808.

First introduced to the market in early 1980, the Roland TR-808 began a new style of music around its revolutionary drum machine. Despite its notorious reputation for not sounding very much like a real drum kit, it set a new standard for music beats that would influence everything Including New Wave, Industrial, House & Hip-Hop genres. Introduced by the Roland Corporation in early 1980, it was originally manufactured for use as a tool for studio musicians to create demos. Like earlier Roland drum machines, it does not sound very much like a real drum kit. Indeed, because the TR-808 came out a few months after the Linn LM-1 (the first drum machine to use digital samples), professionals generally considered its sound inferior to sampling drum machines; a 1982 Keyboard Magazine review of the Linn Drum indirectly referred to the TR-808 as sounding like marching anteaters. However, the TR-808 cost US$1,000 upon its release, which was considerably more affordable than the US$5,000 LM-1. Despite these cut-downs, the “808” became the staple sound for the emerging New York hip-hop culture and allowed for further development of house music, which has taken over the club music scene worldwide.

The Roland TR-808’s footprint has been synonymous with great urban music since its inception, with artists such as Blaque paying homage to it in ‘808’s chorus: ‘ ‘Cause I’ll be goin’ boom like an 808.’. The TR-808 was discontinued, in the mid 80’s but its sound again became popular, mostly due to its kick drum sound, which could produce very deep sub-bass. By the end of the 1980s, the TR-808 was popular within the most popular electronic music and hip-hop genres. Across the board, the Roland TR-808’s footprint has been synonymous with great urban music, with artists such as Blaque paying homage to it in ‘808’s chorus: ‘ ‘Cause I’ll be goin’ boom like an 808.’ Kanye West’s Recent album “808s and Heartbreak” is another clear example of the machines posthumous relevance. As with many analogue electronic musical instruments, a great deal of effort has lately been put into sampling the sounds of the TR-808 for use in modern devices; however, due to the nature of analog circuitry, the result is often considered unsatisfactory and can sound unduly static and digital artifacts. Demand for the real 808 sound is so great that street prices for a used TR-808 have stayed close to what the cost of a new TR-808 was upon its initial release in 1980 when adjusted for inflation.

Other famous users include Marvin Gaye, Thomas Dolby, The Beastie Boys, Orbital, The SOS Band, Download, Run DMC, Aphex Twin, LL Cool J, 808 State, BT, Bomb The Bass, Janet Jackson, The Prodigy, Faithless, Skinny Puppy, Bushflange, Jimi Tenor, A Guy Called Gerald, , Dr. Dre, Jimmy Edgar, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Freddy Fresh, Richie Hawtin, Jean Michel Jarre, Cocteau Twins, Luke Vibert, LL Cool J, Ice Cube and Puff Daddy.

Click Here for videos explaining the basics of the Roland TR-808.

>Click Here for a pdf file of the user manual.

“The Roland TR-808 has been instrumental in Slang Music Group’s music making process since 1983.” –Vince Lawrence

Recording Studio News: Slang Records and Mixes New CD To Honor Military at Christmastime

2009-12-21T16:43:00.000-06:00

Proceeds to Benefit Wounded Warrior Project
online at www.SoldiersChristmasProject.com

For Immediate Release

Slang Music Group is proud to have been the chosen studios for the production of the recently released “Soldiers Christmas Project,” (SCP) an 11-cut collection that honors our military through readings of poems, traditional songs and original instrumentals. SCP is a proud supporter of the Wounded Warrior Project. The video supporting the reading of "The Night Before Christmas" is being released today in concert with the CD and is posted on the CD's Web site,www.SoldiersChristmasProject.com.

"I think that the project is a noble effort performed by two individuals who are truly giving,” said Slang founder Vince Lawrence. “SCP Producer Joe Cantafio's continued dedication, along with Executive Producer Paul Brian's, to this cause is inspiring to all of us here at Slang Music Group."

While, Vince and the team a destination for electronic music makers of every genre, but lately, holiday music has been no stranger to the Slang studios as they originated and produced the main theme for “A Christmas at the White House”, Oprah Winfrey’s holiday special. The Harpo Studios broadcast recieved some of the highest ratings this decade. .

“I think that when we stepped up to become a part of the Soldier’s Christmas Project, we showed yet another facet of our broad capabilities,” continued Lawrence. “I encourage all of the fans of our group to check out this new CD. It’s not only great for the holidays, but it benefits military that have been wounded in battle. Nothing could be more honorable—and nothing could be better than to help them out. That’s why Slang got involved. It’s just great to give to others in need.

With Christmas immediately around the corner, the work of Chicago-based Paul Brian and Joe Cantafio and their Soldiers Christmas Project CD, will benefit the Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), a non-profit organization offering programs and services to assist injured veterans during their recovery and rehabilitation.

Chicago radio and voice acting legend Paul Brian envisioned the project while hospitalized with the flu in early November. Taking on the role of Executive Producer, Brian has moved forward at breakneck speed to the point where it can now be either downloaded on the Internet atwww.SoldiersChristmasProject.com or ordered online at the same Web site. Cost is $9.99 for the entire album of 11 selections or $1.29 for each individual cut. The collection is also available on eBay as an album only.

“Anyone else would have thought us crazy to pursue a project like this, but most of us have a military background, so doing the impossible on a crazy timetable isn’t an unfamiliar concept,” said Brian. “If it wasn’t for the quick cooperation and professionalism of Vince Lawrence and the Slang Music Group we would have never been able to pull this off. That the CD was going to help benefit the Wounded Warrior Project made it extra special for us—and for everyone at Slang. They were awesome.”

Cantafio, leader of the 101st Rock Division Band that has entertained troops from Iraq to northern Africa and “anywhere else they’ll have us” brought his amazing guitar talents to the mix and the rest, as they say, was magic.

“Paul’s readings of poems that many of us have read on the Internet took on a very special meaning to me as I played guitar,” said Cantafio. “We knew that supporting the Wounded Warrior Project would be a wonderful way to honor America ’s bravest and those who have sacrificed so much.”

Brian serves on the Board of Directors for Operation Homefront Illinois and also the Grassroots Civilian Advisory Board for the Chicago Battalion of the United States Army Recruiting Command (USAREC). Cantafio is a Gold Star family member, is constantly active in military and veteran affairs and is the Executive Director of the National Veterans Museum .

-end-

Letters: Holiday letter from JQ

2009-12-18T16:39:00.001-06:00

Happy Holidays! To Vince Lawrence and Slang Music Group.

A year and a half ago, I was an artist sitting at home typing out my rhymes on my laptop. Now I'm proud to say I've had a single play on major radio stations across the country, a mixtape (The Official Burbetto Mixtape) hosted by DJ Khaled and DJ Drama with over 10,000 web pages on Google Search, and 10 other records I feel could propel my career to the next level. None of this would have happened without Slang Music Group!

The time and effort Slang Music Group puts forth to its clients and their music is respectable. Each record is treated as its own life and expected to live up to its fullest potential once in the Slang system.

I have been to many other studios, including some of Slang's biggest competitors in the Chicagoland area, and not seen the care for clients or the expertise that I see present in Slang's staff - most specifically top engineer Brian Gaynor. Vince Lawrence has 25 years of mixing experience and IT SHOWS. I feel blessed to work with such an accomplished and talented team. I hope I get the opportunity to do more work with them as we bring in the new year!

Vince, thank you for serving not only as a mentor to me for building timeless music, but for taking me under your wing in the industry. I really appreciate you going out of your way to introduce me to some of your contacts and being a constant supporter of my music career.

>>See No Limits. Hear No Limits.<<

-JQ

In The Studio: Local Artist Ruby Yo! Teams Up with Veteran Chicago Music Producer

2009-12-10T11:27:00.002-06:00

Hailing from Chicago’s southside, Marilyn Camacho p.k.a Ruby Yo! , is no stranger to entertainment. Influential in her music is her theatrical background, as she is one of the founding members of Urban Theater Company, a Chicago based multi-cultural theater group rooted in the Latino community, currently receiving rave reviews for they’re show, “Cuba and His Teddy Bear” directed by Ms. Camacho herself. The show is the company’s 6th production and astoundingly Ruby’s highly impressive official directorial debut, given the fact that the show is currently Jefferson Award’s recommended. In addition, she has been on stage in numerous theatrical productions, featured in multiple national commercials, and voice-over work. Aside from theater, Ruby has been a veteran of the Chicago hip-hop scene for many years and has been seen performing at various venues across the city.

Ruby Yo! and Vince Lawrence, founder of Slang Music Group, have combined theatrics, Vince’s eclectic production, and Ruby’s seasoned rapping style and singing to form a cultural revolution of Chicago style hip-hop. This single release with a video along with a future album release will clearly move Ruby Yo! to the forefront of Chicago entertainment as she forges her way to become a triple threat. Be on the lookout for this Puerto Rican dame, she will be invading the radio airwaves sooner than later.

Hear and Add Ruby Yo! at www.myspace.com/therubyyo

Tweet her at www.twitter.com/therubyyo

Friend her at www.facebook.com/rubyyo

Music Licensing: Slang track main theme song for Oprahs upcoming primetime special, “A Christmas at the White House”

2009-12-08T22:04:00.002-06:00

Slang Music group was recently selected by Harpo Productions to create themes for Oprah's Holiday Special As regular musical contributors for the daytime show, Slang was initially asked to submit original music for a "tenative holiday Oprah special" months ago. Our team submitted several pieces of music presumably along with countless other submissions from competing music venders.

On Friday December 4th we received word from Harpo that our track had been singled out, and would be used as the main theme song for Oprahs upcoming primetime special, “A Christmas at the White House” which will air at 9pm central time on ABC on Sunday December 13th.

After an extremely productive weekend, we have provided the Oprah team with twenty six different interpretations of the main theme that will be used through out the program. Our staff worked all day and all night to provide the quick, high quality customized music, at the direction of Oprah's Music Director. The interpretations are varied and include classical film scoring styles with full orchestra, solo acoustic & classical guitar, operatic/choral performance, patriotic, R&B and dance.

the Oprah Team was very pleased with the end result, stating that we will most definitely be more involved than ever with Harpo. He also said, “Nobody can say Slang MusicGroup is only about dance music after this! You guys did an incredible job, and this makes you look really, really good.”

We are so excited, honored, and proud to have such a major role with this historic broadcast. This is Oprahs first interview with our nations first African American President since his election in November of 2008.

We hope you’ll join us this Sunday night, along with millions of other viewers undoubtly, on ABC at 9pm.

Solange Knowles Remix (Intern’s Perspective)

2009-06-02T14:12:00.002-05:00

Slang MusicGroup takes a simple song from any genre and changes up the tempo, beat, and rhythm to make hot dance music. This makes the artist more popular in today’s culture. Brian Gaynor, Head engineer, said that these remixes are “for marketing the single.” They can be played at clubs and other places where the regular single doesn’t fit.. Remixes of songs are very popular and help the artist reach different types of people and make more money with downloads.

I learned The Slang MusicGroup doesn’t just create remixes of popular music. They are there to help musical artists in any way they can.. If an artist needs help in advertising their music, Slang is there. Connections with radio, iTunes, street teams, videos, whatever. Sometimes the artist wants to just come in and record a new original track. Slang does that as well.

One example of this is with an artist wanting to do a music video of their song. Slang either helps the artist find the right people to produce and direct it or just does it their self.

Artists have come in wanting to create a sound that they are thinking about such as an R&B/Hip-Hop artist wanting to remix their song into a more dance club kind of song. An example of one of these artists is Solange Knowles, Beyonce’s sister.

Under the direction of noted producer and legendary house music originator, Vince Lawrence, the Slang MusicGroup team has been creating remixes for Solange. One of these remixes, I got to sit in on. Slang was remixing Solange’s song “Would’ve Been The One” off her studio album, Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams. Slang made the song more up-tempo and added a powerful drumbeat to make it more of a dance club song. This remix will hopefully make the song more popular among people that don’t like the original song hence giving Solange a wider audience.

While Vince is the head producer/remixer, he has several producers working with & helping him. These producers include Jere McAllister, Brett Owsley, Angel Alanis, and the Milk Bros. Each of them has helped create remixes of Solange for their particular audience.

Eric Ley from Milk Brothers has done two remixes for Solange and says that they are “fresh as hell.” He is all about the energy of the music and has put that energy into the remixes. He explained that he does the drums on some of the tracks and then uses the a cappella to add more to the track. Once a remix is done, he sends the demo to Vince and then Vince selects the best ideas to be submitted to the artist. These are finished in Slangs studio, adding the latest bells and whistles. In the words of Eric Ley, “Vince is my Ari Gold.” “ He really makes it happen for us, bringing our ideas to fruition.”

Angel Alanis, one of the three members from Noise Floor Crew, ran the controls for one of the remixes: “Would’ve Been The One.” He described the kind of sound as “electro house” and that “everything was changed but the vocals. The tempo, feel, and arrangement have changed.” He described the original song as “amazing” and that “we had fun with it.” The process seems to be working out great and in my opinion, the remixes sound amazing.

Julian Seidel
intern

NEW LE CONCORDE SINGLE REMIXED BY SLANG MUSIC GROUP

2009-05-25T11:17:00.001-05:00

Chicago indie-pop juggernaut, Le Concorde, has enlisted Slang Music Group to remix the band’s forthcoming single, “The Movement of Cherry Blossom Shadows”. The “Night Shadows” version will be featured on the band’s upcoming full-length album (late-fall release anticipated). A vinyl release (12” single) is anticipated this summer. Relating the story of a fleeting springtime love set in a Chicago park, the remix of the track prominently features Sharay Reed on electric bass.

No stranger to adventurous collaborations, Le Concorde bandleader/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist, Dr. Stephen Becker, sought out noted producer and legendary house music originator, Vince Lawrence. The two clicked immediately over their passion for perfectly crafted synth-pop and vintage electronic instrumentation. “It is a huge privilege for me to work with Vince and his team at Slang,” says Becker. “The songs on the new Le Concorde album aim to not only express a mood but also to extend an invitation to dance. When it comes to crafting that invitation with unique perfection, Vince Lawrence and his team are master scientists and master magicians.”

Further collaboration and additional tracks on the forthcoming Le Concorde album are anticipated. Le Concorde recently returned from Los Angeles where additional new tracks are underway with grammy-nominated producer, David Gamson (Scritti Politti, Ke$ha, Me’Shell Ndegéocello, Maxwell, Chaka Khan, Roger Troutman) and in Chicago with engineer, Ed Tinley (Liz Phair, Ike Reilly Assassination). Previous releases have included the critically acclaimed “Universe and Villa” (March Records, 2005) and “Suite EP” (Le Grand Magistery, 2007).

For more information on Le Concorde or Stephen Becker please visit www.myspace.com/leconcorde or email leconcorde@comcast.net

DANCE MUSIC PIONEERS JERRY MCALLISTER AND SLANG MUSICGROUP REMIX “EGO” BY BEYONCE

2009-04-25T13:14:00.000-05:00

CHICAGO – Jerry McAllister and Slang MusicGroup are proud to bring you the ultra-hot dance remix of “Ego” by pop superstar Beyoncé Knowles. “New school” meets “old school” in this remix of the new single from her album I am…Sasha Fierce – a sure bet to keep the bodies moving on the dance floor.

As a pioneer of the house music genre and a seasoned veteran of the music industry, Jere has been an integral player in the dance music scene for over 20 years. By beginning his career with the world famous DJ International Records, McAllister has perpetually been the forefront of the cutting-edge dance music scene, working with the best the house music scene offers. Jerry finds a home for his talents at Slang MusicGroup, producing an all-star remixes for the world's biggest stars.. in past months Jere has created remix magic for both Beyonce and her sister Solange as well.

Sound & Music Production:SLANG MUSICGROUP FAMILY TO ENTER “HOUSE OF DIDDY”

2009-04-24T13:11:00.002-05:00

SINGER MORGAN MALLORY AND PRODUCER RICK ROBINSON JOIN THE CAST OF "MAKING HIS BAND"

CHICAGO – Entertainment mogul Sean “P. Diddy” Combs is at it again with another reality television series called “Making His Band,” which is currently in production. Auditions were recently held in New York, Detroit, Chicago, and Los Angeles to select contestants for the upcoming installment of Diddy’s established “Making the Band” program on MTV networks. This season, however, is slightly different than its predecessors and is more intimately attached to Combs himself. While seasons past revolved around creating a superstar band under his Bad Boy Entertainment record label, the upcoming season focuses on potential candidates vying to back Diddy himself, in Comb’s live touring band.

Amongst thousands of entrants auditioning for the chance to be on the new reality show was singer Morgan Mallory, a young artist produced by Slang MusicGroup. Morgan Mallory is a 21 year old native of Chicago, who is currently attending the world-renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston, pursuing a degree in Music Business. Morgan, a rising Hip Hop/ R&B vocalist and songwriter is currently a member of the following ensembles at Berklee: The Neo-Soul Ensemble, The Latin Jazz, Rock, Funk, and R&B Ensemble; The Gospel Ensemble; and The A-Capella Ensemble.

Producer-songwriter-keyboardist Rick Robinson has been working with Slang MusicGroup for years, and has won many awards during his tenure. A Chicago native, Rick has helped progress and develop new trends within the music industry over the last decade and is most noted for his work in soul/gospel music. As a songwriter, Rick has written for many artists which include- Bishop T.D Jakes, Syleena Johnson, Bishop Larry Trotter, Byron Cage, Beverly Crawford, Bishop Eddie L. Long, Marvin Sapp, and New Direction among many others.

Several other independent recording artists at Slang MusicGroup are moving up to the front lines of today’s contemporary music. Rapper/pop artist JQ, singer/songwriter Jana G., R&B hip-hopster Nikki Lynette, and funky house DJ Max Toymaster have been pushing the Chicago underground scene to new heights with help from Slang MusicGroup.

Toymaster to compete @ WMC DJ Spin-Off 2009

2009-03-06T22:08:00.008-06:00

You can download the WMC 09 mix HERE!

Connect With Max

Official Website
http://www.djtoymaster.com

Official Myspace Page
http://www.myspace.com/djtoymaster

Official Facebook Page
Fb

Slang Musicgroup Remix March 2009

2009-03-03T21:52:00.002-06:00

Max Toymaster rocks the Zentra VIP room

2009-02-27T21:39:00.004-06:00

Zentra Night Club - February 27th

Max Toymaster rocked the VIP room at Chicago's Zentra Night Club from 2am to Close last Friday, Feb. 27th. The club was packed with a steady stream of people flowing in and out of Zentra's multiple levels. The VIP guests were in for a special treat when Jamil DeMontmorency of Slang MusicGroup and Max Toymaster distributed free Toymaster CDs, which were popular among the DJs, bartenders and patrons alike.

DJ Toymaster takes over Debonair Social Club

2009-01-23T21:42:00.002-06:00

Friday January 23rd was an explosive night at Wicker Park's Debonair Social Club. DJ Max Toymaster brought the rhythm to a large crowd of house music enthusiasts. In the Debonair basement, the ominous red lights outlining the room gave the venue the vibe of an underground house party. the eclectic crowd, which seemed to include everyone from college-aged hipsters to working professionals, was immersed in the aura of electro-house beats which didn't die until after last call. gorgeous women, great music and tasty drinks made this a night to remember.

Slang and Jonathan Davis "Got Money"!

2008-10-03T11:59:00.003-05:00

Korn 's famed front man, Jonathan Davis, is no new comer to the world of rap music. In the past, his band called upon the services of Snoop Dogg, David Banner, Lil Jon, and Xzibit for collaborative work. Yet, for his upcoming solo project with his new band, The SFA, Jonathan has taken his love for hip hop even further. The first single from his highly anticipated album is a tribute to Weezy F. Baby himself (Lil Wayne, to those of us who are less hip) in the form of a dark, rocked out cover of "Got Money." "I've got to keep playing," Jonathan says. "I got to write music so I don't go crazy, so I decided it would be a perfect time to do this." The track, which features Jim Root of Slipknot, is already generating a massive buzz on the internet. When the time came for the official remix to be produced, they enlisted the services of Slang MusicGroup.

“The records will be released through I TUNES and all of the other popular digital networks,” says Vince Lawrence of Slang MusicGroup, “and it’s going to be an amazing album. We’re getting an exceptional amount of positive feedback about the remixes.” Slang works for top selling acts, producing both remixes and original music. Jonathan Davis says he is planning to write more songs for the album before he resumes recording later this fall. He is working to have the disc out by the end of 2008.

Nikki Lynette African Festival of the Arts

2008-09-11T11:23:00.004-05:00

"I haven't performed in my hometown in a year." Declared Nikki Lynette, as she walked onto the huge hip hop stage at Chicago's historic African Festival of the Arts. "Man, it feels good to perform at home." Nikki Lynette took the stage only moments after a rocking, ten member band exited. Yet, there was no lull in energy when her base driven track kicked in and Nikki began to "rock the mic." In her fifteen minute performance, she remained energetic until the end. The crowd even sang along to some of the songs that she performed from her first official release, The Hard Candy Mixtpe, Volume 1. Nikki Lynette's live performance is definitely worth catching, and her catchy songs will ring in your head for at least a few days after she's done.

Click here for more about Nikki Lynette

Nikki Lynette joins the cast of RAW TV on Fox(WFLD)

2008-09-04T11:18:00.005-05:00

RAW TV, Chicago's own entertainment news show, has added recording and visual artist Nikki Lynette to their roster. RAW TV is shot guerrilla style from the street perspective, and is hosted by Seandale of Chicago's Power 92 morning show. Beating out numerous other applicants, she was selected to join the five member team of co-hosts, "The RAW TV Diva Squad." In addition to conducting celebrity interviews, Nikki Lynette, dubbed the "Super Star Diva," has been allotted her own weekly segment that showcases videos submitted by local artists. In this segment, Nikki evaluates the music from her own perspective and presents the videos to the RAW TV viewers.

Unlike studio based shows, RAW TV uses the streets of Chicago as a home base. This flexibility allows RAW TV to report live from concerts, festivals, premieres, recording studios and any other place throughout the city that requires attention.Viewers can expect insider access to celebrity guests in environments where they are open and more willing to provide a side of their personality not usually seen in public...in the raw!

Tune in to Fox every Friday night at 1am to catch Nikki Lynette on a fresh new episode of RAW TV.

Click here for more about Nikki Lynette

Music Production and Post: Working Over Time!

2008-08-20T00:51:00.000-05:00

Slang remixers have been working over time it seems with remixes being released by major labels on an almost weekly basis... Solange Knowles (sister to Beyonce) is the latest to get the Slang treatment via additional production and remix contributions from Jere McAlister.

Commercial Music and Sound: Second Quarter News

2008-08-18T00:50:00.000-05:00

The second quarter has been busy for all of us here at Slang. "Featuring" seems to be the word with remixes for John Legend (feat. Andre 3000 of Outcast) Wyclef Jean(feat. Will I Am of Black Eyed Peas) slated for release. Firm/EMI artists Savvy & Mandy were in with producer Vince Lawrence, two songs were completed for EP and album releases. Other record work would include Rraphael Saddiq, Adele, and gospel group Mary Mary. Slang Musicgroup producers have been busy in the Music For Advertising world as well, completing commercial spot work for Nationwide Insurance, Tide, AARP, Luster Products, McDonalds and Special Olympics.

TimeOut Chicago March 2008 Vince Lawrence Mention

2008-03-28T07:24:00.001-05:00

Music For Commercials: Advertising Age March 10, 2008 Vince Lawrence quoted

2008-03-10T20:11:00.003-05:00

Indie Act Seeks Backup Brand

In Today's World, 'Selling Out' Is the Only Way to Cash In

By Charles Moran

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- So you want to be Mick Jagger? You're going to need friends to lug your gear, a drummer who knows how to count, a sound-proof rehearsal space and a branding consultant.

Rock's anti-corporate ethos has softened in recent years (read: totally disappeared in the case of most artists), and labels' opportunities for nontraditional revenue have grown through licensing and branding partnerships. But that hasn't made life any less complicated for musicians trying to retain fans and make a living. As a just-released NPD Group study pointed out, 48% of U.S. teens didn't purchase a single CD in 2007. And while legal purchases of digital music are on the rise, it's not nearly enough to make up for declines in traditional CD sales.

According to 2006 Enders Analysis data, the market for commercial music licensing is in the neighborhood of $3 billion. So while artists in nearly every genre have opened their arms to corporate America, shifting from the polarizing world of "selling out" to the nuanced galaxy of "musical branding" is a challenge many still struggle with.

Last year, indie-rock group Band of Horses licensed a song for a Wal-Mart online campaign only to reverse their decision and cancel further deals with the retailer after a fan backlash. But some say even the slight risk taken by signing on to commercials isn't enough. A recent Forrester Research report recommended, among other things, that pop stars embrace "Nascar-style," logo-splattering sponsorships and get used to promoting their favorite boxer briefs to help make up for the industry's shortfall.

Multiple deals

James McQuivey, a Forrester analyst and author of "The End of the Music Industry as We Know It," said that the days when an artist such as Michael Jackson would cut just one high-profile deal with Pepsi are gone.

For new artists, it's become nearly impossible to develop a major following without a branded tie-in. Many of the major breakout music stars of the past year, from Paramore to Sara Bareilles to Feist, have benefited from corporate tie-ins or licensing of their songs via ads. "All brands have become music-promotion houses," Mr. McQuivey said.

Omnipresent performers Beyoncé and Fergie now can have multiple endorsement deals with different brands as their album sales come in millions below the number they would have even five years ago, Mr. McQuivey told Advertising Age. "They make music essentially as a promotional tool to make sure you want to dress like them and smell like them."

Not everyone agrees. Bands, they say, can't simply take on a patchwork of sponsors with little thought to long-term goals. Jon Cohen, president of lifestyle-branding agency Cornerstone, dismisses this approach, which he sees as counterproductive for many artists.

"The music industry wants to figure out a model where they can make money," he said. "I don't think they're that desperate [to try Nascar-style sponsorships], but they're under the gun and have to think outside the box. It may work with a ridiculous bubble-gum pop act, but those deals will never happen with the credible, long-term-career bands."

Not for everyone

Vince Lawrence, founder of music production and brand consultancy Slang Musicgroup, expressed a similar note of caution.

"If the artist is 'next to' the [Nascar] demographic, yeah, [Nascar sponsorships] might make sense," Lawrence said. "It's not the most cost-effective way to sell records, but it's a way." Still, he said, bands will have to get used to embracing brands. "Artists have to start thinking about exposing themselves, because the big record companies aren't as apt to give away marketing dollars."

When Apple picked Yael Naim's song "New Soul" for its MacBook Air spot earlier this year, the Israeli singer-songwriter didn't even have a record out in the U.S. But thanks to a single in the iTunes Store, the song made its debut on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 9 with 135,000 downloads, and her label, Atlantic Records, pushed the release of her self-titled album forward by two months.

"New artists don't get that kind of exposure," said Livia Tortella, exec VP-marketing at Atlantic, who manages Ms. Naim's licensing and brand partnerships. "We don't have to claw at it, brick by brick, to get people to hear this unbelievable Israeli from France. Apple has done an amazing thing by picking her."

Lots of exposure

According to an executive familiar with music-licensing deals, for U.S. rights, marketers typically pay $150,000 for the master recording of a song and another $150,000 for synchronization -- the right to put the composition in a TV ad. However, because Apple has such leverage in breaking artists, the company paid a total of $80,000 for master and sync rights for Feist's "1234" and another $80,000 for Ms. Naim's song. And those fees are for global rights.

For new artists -- and especially those who are still recouping debt to their labels -- this exposure is well worth the lower fees.

"Apple says to Feist, Daft Punk -- people who want to be associated with a hip, cool brand like Apple, 'We're gonna throw you this bone,'" said the executive. "It's not much of a negotiation. 'This is our deal.'"

Most musicians would want to align themselves with Apple's audience -- according to Mindset Media, Apple users are more likely to purchase music in both physical and digital form than PC users -- but Mr. Cohen said a new artist's career could be threatened by wide exposure.

"Less-established acts make a big mistake if they rely on brands to drive their careers," Mr. Cohen said. "They need to make sure the focus is on their career more than a song in a commercial. That's a fix for quick success but not longevity."

Take the money and run

But sometimes, the short-term cash infusion is impossible to pass up. The Walkmen's Peter Bauer said his band did not expect a Saturn Ion commercial featuring their song "We've Been Had" a few years ago would further their career. Like many emerging artists on small, independent labels, the decision was made out of financial necessity.

"We needed to take the money," the organ and bass player said. "If you don't need the money, why do it?"

Assuming there are no debts to recoup, artists typically retain half of the fee for the rights to a recording master and 15% to 25% of the synchronization fee, said an industry executive. On top of that, the songwriters also earn fees for the broadcast through performance-rights organizations such as ASCAP or BMI. Deals with labels vary, but assuming a marketer pays $300,000 for master-recording and sync-licensing fees and the publisher's cut is 20% of the latter, this could earn a band $195,000 for a 30-second spot -- leaving out performance fees and, again, assuming there is no debt to recoup.

And the deals get more lucrative if a band is willing to go all-in and partner with a brand. According to one music-branding executive, branded partnerships -- including everything from tour sponsorships to original content and often paired with some sort of traditional TV or radio spot -- can fetch from $5,000 to over $1 million for a single artist.

The Walkmen have licensed more of their songs since the Saturn spot, but Mr. Bauer said the idea still makes him uncomfortable. Certain opportunities -- particularly with fashion marketers such as the Gap, who have wanted to dress up the band -- have made them queasy enough to say no. But he also stressed the upside: Money from marketers allows the Walkmen to take some time off from the road and focus on making new music. Since the group's 2002 debut, they've made three more albums and have found a prominent place in the indie-rock festival circuit.

"We're interested in making records and living in a way that we can continue to make records and make other stuff," he said.

Signing to 'Diesel Records'

Those same priorities are shared by the Crystal Method, said their manager, Richard Bishop. But the long-established dance act's lucrative side business in commercial licensing doesn't hurt either, he said, and it creates impressions for new material.

"I can see no reason why artists like Crystal Method or Paul Oakenfold [whom Bishop also manages] should not put their albums out on 'Apple Records' or 'Diesel Records' or 'Urban Outfitters Records,'" he said. "I don't think that, in this day and age, there are that many examples of artists' careers being damaged from commercials early or late in their careers."

Mr. Bishop, the owner of Los Angeles-based artist-management firm Three AM, said he doesn't often turn down marketers looking to license tracks, but he usually works with brands that share Crystal Method's sense of speed and agility, such as auto, tire and video-game companies.

Ultimately, Mr. Lawrence said, whether it's Apple or Nascar, musicians need to stay true to their art when considering branding and licensing opportunities.

"Artists know who they are and who their fans are," he said. "That's what makes an artist valuable to brands: the fact that they have such a visceral connection with a particular segment of the public. There's nothing like that."

~ ~ ~
Contributing: Andrew Hampp

Originally posted here:
http://adage.com/article?article_id=125587

Slang Musicgroup Remix Demo

2008-02-26T12:03:00.004-06:00

Slang Musicgroup Production Demo

2008-02-22T19:04:00.005-06:00

Advertising Age Jan. 2008 Interview with Vince Lawrence

2008-01-31T13:05:00.004-06:00

Accidental Adman: Slang Musicgroup Founder Vince Lawrence
How Brands, Bands Can Benefit From Each Other in Tumultuous Time
By Jonathan Lemonnier

NEW YORK -- "I sit on a fence pole between bands and brands," Slang Musicgroup Founder Vince Lawrence likes to say.

Slang Musicgroup founder Vince Lawrence: 'There are plenty of bands who wear and use brand products every day anyway, but they don't have any money to get out there.'

Mr. Lawrence was co-founder of Trax Records, a legendary Chicago-based record label that is credited with spawning the house-music genre back in the mid-'80s, a sound that has made its way over the years from clubs to commercials. But in addition to the club and music scenes, Mr. Lawrence has long been involved in advertising. "I got into advertising by accident [in 1988]," Mr. Lawrence said. "I went to a studio to pick up a [guitarist] friend who was doing something for an advertisement. The people there asked me my opinion on whether this would connect with the underground culture. I said no, contrary to what everyone else had said, and after explaining my views, they made me a consultant."

Mr. Lawrence's involvement in marketing ranged from licensing and product placement (sometimes in hit records) to consultancy, as he penetrated nightlife culture and referred marketers to bands. He formed Slang Musicgroup in 1995. Aside from producing some of the pre-eminent dance tracks of the past two decades, the collection of eclectic music producers also has worked on radio and TV commercials for brands including Pepsi, Sprite, Dodge and Nintendo.

In an era of tumultuous change and uncertainty for the record industry, Mr. Lawrence said he sees great potential for both brands and bands to change music production's traditional business model.

M&V: Why do artists get involved in commercial projects?

Mr. Lawrence:
In this era of digitized content and ad clutter, media dollars need to be more effective. The record world is changing, and opportunities for real exposure amidst the clutter are few and far between, and bands need more and more support to penetrate. Brands have the purchasing power to buy the spots, buy the media time. Artists have a direct connection with the cultures they live in because they contribute to its beauty. Bands need help. ... There are plenty of bands who wear and use brand products every day anyway, but they don't have any money to get out there.

M&V: Why do marketers get involved with music production?

Mr. Lawrence:
Some brands want to attach to bands for additional cultural legitimacy. TV shows sponsored by brand X are being undermined by TiVo, subsequently losing their impact. But music remains such a tremendous medium with which to connect to people.

There are many opportunities for brands to interact culturally [through music]. If a band likes a product, I'll go to the brand [to set up a deal]. It's organic; it's legitimate. This is a great opportunity for brands to hit the core demographic that they are looking for, and there are few other opportunities where consumers actually buy the ad. Pepsi can be the next Arista.

M&V: How can brands help bands?

Mr. Lawrence: The brand can support the band by funding a video, help the band make a record or fund a tour. I think what Doritos is doing with the Super Bowl kicks butt! [Frito-Lay is asking consumers to produce songs that best embody the Doritos brand image. The winner of the contest will receive a contract with Interscope Records.] It's cool for emerging acts. Brands are going to adopt a band, expose them. Some brands also have many retail outlets, and those represent new distribution opportunities for bands.

But the connection has to be legitimate. If a band is already "standing near" those Red Bull bottles, things can work out fine, but forced connections rarely work. There are entire industries devoted to tricking consumers via marketing tactics, usually through attempts to borrow equity from some aspect of culture or another. This works, but both parties must be careful not to lose their respective goodies by getting together for the wrong reasons. If the marriage isn't legit, it will usually fail. I often work with stealth marketers [Mirrorball and Noise Marketing], and helping them navigate the "niche and crannies" we find can make all the difference when trying to make a legitimate connection.

M&V: Aren't bands who get involved with brands often seen as selling out?

Mr. Lawrence:
We used to avoid branding. In the '80s it was the ultimate sellout. Fistfights would break out if you spoke about a band secretly doing an ad. Today it's different. Hip-hop guys do things that are controversial in that regard. But that's a choice everybody makes. The benefit to the brand is that they get to connect in a relevant way. When things work out, everyone should get to be a little more "relevant."

M&V: Is it better for a band to be dependent on brands rather than record companies?

Mr. Lawrence:
As I see it, dependency should never be an issue. If the exposure mechanism does its job for the band, they are independent from that point; vice versa for the brand. If they choose to stay together, it should be to further common goals, not because of some forced need for more exposure. If a band has a good song and is independent, the revenue generated from the ensuing sales of recordings, merchandizing and dates should give them a leg up on their next project. And that works for everyone. I believe Doritos actually gets more cred if the [winning] band goes on to become a huge success.

So in that case, it is better than dependency on a record company for exposure. Record companies in the past have "charged" artists for the marketing, recouping forever and such. This way everyone gets something they need and don't have to pay so much for it.

M&V: What about limitations a brand might impose on a band's freedom of expression?

Mr. Lawrence:
Bands are relevant precisely because of what they say or do. Some brands have to protect their equity this way, so some bands that may be very relevant are not a good fit. Some bands can't touch a product a certain way because it may affect their street cred. It goes both ways. But there are ways to work through it.

Lawrence's QuickTip #2: Taming Vibrato in Remix Vocals

2008-01-15T14:12:00.000-06:00

Vince Lawrence and his Slang team often find themselves either slowing down or speeding up a cappella vocal sections to match the desired tempo in their dance remixes. Here's how he deals with the ugly artifacts caused by increasing the tempo.

"You get what we call, 'the Billy Goat effect,'" he notes. "That's where the singer begins sounding like a goat because the vibrato in their voice speeds up too much when you stretch it too far to match your remix key. To counteract the effect you can fade in and out the original a cappella voices during the portions of the song where the vibrato at the same time is fading in the original vocal on a separate track. Then, fade out the original vocal while fading in the sped-up vocal to keep the cadence and timing of the vocal part together. This move takes time to feel natural with and to get sounding seamless, and you might have to fudge it around a lot to get it right, but it will sound just right when you're done."

+ Originally Posted Here
http://digitalmedia.oreilly.com/2005/10/26/vince-lawrence-slang-music.html

Lawrence's QuickTip #1: Creating White-Noise Swells for Remix Transitions

2008-01-02T14:11:00.000-06:00

The white-noise swell has long been a tool in many remix and dance tunes to add excitement in and around musical transitions. Lawrence says it's easy to come up with the perfect swell. First, open up a new audio track in Pro Tools (or any digital audio workstation), then open a plugin test-tone generator.

"Then find the white noise setting and set a level of about 10 dB," Lawrence explains. "Highlight the length of your song with the cursor and click on 'Process' to stripe white noise from the start of your tune to the end. Now, open a filter plugin—I typically use McDSP's FilterBank F2—and spike up the high-end gain and bring down the frequency to a low midrange level."

Next, says Lawrence, play back the white noise track and slowly move the frequency back up a notch at a time until you get a nice sweeping effect; experiment with the frequency adjustment and "spike" to taste for your own flavor of swell.

"Once you have decided on how you want to sweep the filter, activate the automation on the knobs you want to use and make a pass while moving the sliders around," he continues. "For added flavor, throw a Waves MetaFlanger on the white noise track, or capture the white noise off of a rhythmic hi-hat loop track you have lying around."

+ Originally Postere Here
http://digitalmedia.oreilly.com/2005/10/26/vince-lawrence-slang-music.html

Chicago Fire: A Dance Music Anthology: Vince Lawrence Interview

2007-10-05T14:21:00.000-05:00

Interview by Richard Thomas

Vince Lawrence is a true dance music innovator, and the acknowledged co-author of the first house music track, On and On. Before the age of eighteen, he had co-founded Trax Records, one of Chicago’s most important record labels, and he was pulling in $10,000 a week selling vinyl to shop owners and DJs eager to gobble up the next big thing. Throughout his career, he has exposed some of dance music’s greatest prodigies, including Marshall Jefferson (Move your Body, Ride the Rhythm), Adonis, Byron Styngly, Farley Jackmaster Funk, Ron Hardy, Screamin' Rachel and Jesse Saunders, while inspiring many others.

We sat down with Vince to find out how he went about authoring this collection, and a bit about his colorful history within the dance music scene.

There are five main genres found in Chicago Fire: Drum and Bass, Progressive, Old School, Deep House and Electro. Each of these genres could be subdivided into any number of additional styles. How did you go about deciding which sub-genres would be represented on each disc? Why techy progressive and not anthemic trance? Why roughneck drum and bass rather than the more esoteric, LTJ Bukem flavor?

Our first objective was to make a loop set that people not just could use, but actually would use. We said, "If I was a user and I'm going to go out and buy a loop set of music, what would I need to make my work easier?" When we addressed the sub-genres, we felt that all of the new electro stuff actually was reminiscent of the old new wave and earlier industrial stuff. We assumed that a guy would want to sample from that Eighties style to make his new stuff. Do you know what I'm saying?

Yes. You can't take the new stuff and reprocess it to sound like the classic stuff, but if you're savvy, you can take the old stuff, leave it as-is, or make it into that new stuff.

Right, and with the sample library being 100% royalty-free, we wanted to make parts that sounded like parts you would otherwise have to get clearance to use. That's the number one thing right there: we wanted to make sounds that people would think came from actual records, sounds you would typically have no other way of getting access to other than through obtaining clearance. So we approached the genres in terms of what's going on today, but we were always looking to where these sounds came from.

Does that mean you had a specific approach to gear and recording techniques?

In the case of the Old School disc, all the drum machine loops are 100% [Roland] 808, 909, 626 and 727; those early drum machines. We tried not to wander too far from there. All the synth patches were made with an Oberheim Matrix 6 or a Roland JX-8P or a Korg Poly 61 to try and stay in that area. In the case of some of the old school stuff, we just sampled directly from 24-track masters of songs that I was writing in my sessions at Trax Records. The stuff we did for Deep House and Progressive was different. I've been working with the Akai MPC Series since the MPC 60. I remember conversations with Roger Linn about the way the operating system works and things like that. He was really the only guy who could answer my questions. So I did a lot of work on the MPC 60, and I've just been sampling and sampling. We went through all of my ZIP discs and floppies and pulled sounds and sequences for some songs that I hadn't released or ideas that we had. Sometimes they were just ideas from that time period and we just finished developing those to make the construction kits. For all the one-shots, we took stuff right out of there, then saw how, in this day in age, we could make those sounds better.

So how did you go about updating them?

We saw places where we could up the gain. We always went for more gain. Put it this way, there's just stuff that you can do with Pro Tools. There are things that you can do to sounds with Pro Tools that you couldn't do then. So we took those steps in every case to make things fatter or louder or clearer or more dynamic.

How did you break up the production of each library and organize the workflow?

That's an interesting question, because at first we weren't very organized. We just went at it. The first thing we did was to go through everything that required a two-inch tape machine, and we dealt with those things tape by tape. Some things were more suited for Electro than were suited for Old School, so we would put the results of that work in a file marked according to the disc it was going to go on. After we were done with the two-inch tape, we went though the MPC loops, the 808 and the Matrix 6. We took a session from an MPC and coordinated that with Pro Tools. I've got a huge MIDI rig. At any given point it's got 30 or 40 synthesizers, and I've got four of those MIDI I/O units that Pro Tools provides. We put together a kit with the MPC, the Matrix 6, the JX-8P and a Yamaha DX-816. You remember that?

No, I can't say I do.

It's eight Yamaha DX-7s in a rack. We whipped that puppy out. We put together our session kit, restored sequences from the Eighties in the MPC, played all that stuff through and captured it in Pro Tools, and that was our process. Later on we had days and days of just bouncing. After we got through that, we had sessions for the Progressive disc where we just made all new stuff. Separate from that, we had sessions of just guitars, sessions of just percussion, then two days of just vocals. We did some of the vocal sessions for various genres stylistically and other ones according to tempo. The Old School vocal sessions, although they may be used in other kits, are typically slower. As we moved through time, the grooves got faster.

In approaching each genre, we decided that we were going to up the tempo from disc to disc, but we didn't want all the vocals to be in the same key. We wanted to randomize that so users could use it to their advantage, so what we did is this: in the Eighties I used to like this record, old school wise. I whipped out the record, played it, and we'd take my favorite part and loop it.

What record did you use?

(Laughs) I don't want to give you any particulars, but let's say my favorite record from the Eighties. We'd loop a piece of it and create it in Pro Tools. Then we wrote new background parts for that song in that style. If I had a favorite Marvin Gaye record, and Marvin is singing my favorite part over and over again, I'm trying to write a counterpoint background to go with that.

And once you have that counter-vocal written, you suck the music out. Then it can sit on something that sounds like it was from that era, yet not sound derivative because…

Because it's totally new. We did that over and over again. Jeff Morrow, Yvonne Gage and Joan Collasso…the three of them are just the most amazing singers. You'll see their names on all those choirs that R Kelley has on his records. Jeff directs those choirs. Those two vocal tracking days were fun for us because we got to reminisce on records that we liked and why we liked them. Then we'd talk about background vocals, how we approached them, and how vocals were approached in the Eighties. Jeff was actually around in the sessions for Earth Wind & Fire back in the day, so he set me straight if I was off, historically, about the technique. "Ooohs" and "Ahhhs" were necessary, the appropriate "Babys," and so on. Counting "1, 2, 3, 4," because you need numbers (laughs).

What did you take from this whole process?

I learned a little bit more about what's going on out there. We really wanted to make a library that people would actually use a lot of. In doing that, it challenged us to say, "Okay, we only use this library for their one-shots, and I only like the percussion from this library." It really helped me organize stuff, especially drum-wise. I think we're able to find things a little better. Because the two inch machine was here, we could snag what we needed at the time. We catalogued tons of stuff. We know where everything is now, and we know where everything came from. It made us look at how we approach reverb and gain and things like that. It was a refresher course in that sense, but mostly we learned how to organize ourselves. My record collection is now catalogued alphabetically according to label (laughs).

How many people worked on the project?

About eight or ten, and it took two months to finish.

Did you write individual songs for these sessions, or just cut specific licks and phrases?

Every construction kit is a song with a verse and a chorus.

What did you want Chicago Fire to exemplify that other collections didn't?

For our purposes, it would have been wrong to make things all in one tempo. It would have been wrong to make things all in one key. I think that sometimes libraries aren't wrong, but I think it's hard to find what you're looking for because they're not telling you what it is. They give you a name like Gabba Goa, and you're like, "What the heck? What is that?" Eventually, once you've reviewed the library time and time again, you start remembering, "Okay, there was a track I listened to called Gabba Goa on this disc, and it was appropriate for what I'm doing right now." But to try to find a specific sound at any given moment is difficult. I'd just say forget it. We have a Roland TR-808. I'm going to EQ it the way I always EQ it for the records, and I'm just going to sample every last one of those kicks and snares the way I record them — with the reverb and with the flanger or whatever. And here you go: here's that classic drum module the way we made our records with it, and you don't have to hunt for it. You don't have to look it up. There it is.

What makes you so qualified to put together a "Dance Music Anthology"?

I've been making house music — making records for dance clubs, records that weren't intended for radio — since 1979. I made my first successful record in 1980. I wasn't even out of high school yet. It was by a group called Z Factor called "I Like To Do It In Fast Cars."

Nice title.

Well, you know, pubescent teenager; got right to the point. So I've been making house music since 1980. It's 2005. I don't think that many people can be more qualified…to say that they've seen it come from where it came from and get to where it's gotten.

How difficult is it for young entrepreneurs to do today what you did back in the day, basically out of the trunk of a car?

I believe the Internet is the new trunk of the car, but I think that works in conjunction with the trunk of the car. I see guys everyday that are making records, and they're distributing the records to the clubs. I would say right now this is mostly in hip-hop and R&B, but they're making records, they're getting them out to the clubs, and they're getting them on mix shows in more than one city and more than one state. From there, they're trying for regular rotation, and when the spins get high enough and they get some semblance of sales, the majors pick 'em up. That's kind of the new A&R pool — local mix shows and club play. I feel a major is more apt to notice your BDS than your hot press kit.

Tell me a little bit about your label, Trax Records. Wasn't Wax Trax! in the same space?

There were three "Trax" in Chicago: Chicago Trax Recordings, Wax Trax! Records and then Trax Records. The last to form was Trax Records; the quintessential beginnings of house music. Wax Trax was making industrial, and I think the common thread initially would be me. I was hanging out with Al Jourgensen and those guys at Chicago Trax recording studios, watching what they were making. I was fascinated by industrial. I started a band called Bang Orchestra, which got signed to Geffen, actually.

How did your styles intermingle?

I started making this harder, industrial house, around 1986. There were people recording for Trax Records at Chicago Trax Recordings that had nothing to do with Wax Trax! There were artists on Wax Trax! recording at Chicago Trax Recordings.

Was it a big building with all these sub-studios in it?

Initially it was one studio in a coach house, and then it became two studios, and then it became four studios. R Kelley cut his chops there and eventually bought part of it. There are so many great Chicago artists that passed through there. Marshall Jefferson, Ten City, Ministry, LARD (featuring Jello Biafra), R Kelley, the Smashing Pumpkins and Twista have all had their stint there.

Can you tell me a little about your company, Slang MusicGroup?

What happened was we started being approached by corporate America for one thing or another. I met some guys that led me into advertising, and I had made some commercials for TV. The music was hip-house, house music with rapping in it. We made these for the phone company to encourage kids to use the public phones in their high schools. From there we made some commercials for Anheuser Bush and Company and some of those were house music-based, but we made some hip-hop stuff as well. I wanted to get outside of myself in trying to service my then-regular clients. So I went to other producers that I knew from the studio and I would say, "I'm working on this thing, could you help me out with it? You know this music and this art form better than I do, because you live it just like I live house music." And it started there. When I got a commercial that was based in hip-hop or based in industrial, I would look to that guy for his input on that commercial and I'd pay him. Once it got regular, it turned into regular jobs. After a while I tried to formalize some of these loose associations so that I could know what to expect and they could know what to expect. We tried to create expectations and commitments based on that, and that's how the loose group came to be formed. I think that stems from the fact that I never liked working alone. I've always been a collaborative artist, so whether I was the producer or an artist in Bang Orchestra or Z Factor, I've always preferred a collaborative approach to getting the work done. It feels better to me to have someone to bounce things off of. So Slang MusicGroup effectively came to be to satisfy that internal feeling. It gives me the opportunity to work with other people, to get other thought processes involved, and to get fresh input and creativity outside of my own. I've been working with this group methodology for a long time.

What do you think about where dance music is going today? What does it need to do to take itself to the next level?

I have a very specific opinion, and it's just my opinion. This is a great time for dance music because everybody is more or less accepting the fact that it's here and it's not going anywhere. But I don't feel that dance music has really had its chance. It's not been really, truly promoted. There's been no Sire Records making house music. There's been no Motown of dance music, where they're developing artists. When I say dance, I'm talking house, techno, electro, all of it. Dance music has no face. There is no Beyoncé of dance music. There is no Gwen Stefani of dance music. There's no artist we hold to the same standards that other people who are in the business of developing artists do. We're not telling our top talent to get in shape and look better and learn how to talk to the public. We're not giving our talent the same appreciation and training that the R&B artists — or a lot of the rock artists — are spending to develop their art. Subsequently, when we step into that arena, we've been unable to compete. We're unable to compete with the quality of the records, and when I say the quality of the records, it's not just the songwriting, but it's the production as well. We're not able to compete on the whole personality level. When you put a 50 Cent or a Beyoncé or a Steven Tyler out in public, they generate fans.

Because it's a persona and a talent.

Yes, they pick up fan base. Put our artists out in public and they blend in with the rest of the public. We're not creating these role models for people to want to be like, and I think that that's coming, but I don't think it's there yet. That's my personal vision for our art form, that we have a Missy Elliot of house music, or we have artists that are making songs and filling seats.

Moby could be someone like that.

Moby is someone like that in his own regard, but Moby's just Moby, and that's the beginning. Where's our Mick Jagger?

We just have Keith Flint from Prodigy.

And that's getting somewhere, but as that becomes more commonplace, we're going to be able to compete to be legitimately heard on the radio. We're going to compete with some of that time on Conan O'Brien and Jay Leno. We're going to compete for those billboards in the trendy neighborhoods. And when our albums come out — as albums — then we're going to truly be recognized. Until we come out of the underground we're going to be underground. "I want to be underground" is an excuse for "I don't want to get in shape" or "I don't want to make better records."

As long as you stay underground, there's not going to be a critical set of ears saying, "You've got good songwriting ability, but your production is horrible."

Yes. I'm buying a PC this week, because a guy that's interviewing for a job here said he made his first record in ACID software. What's funny was that he saw Chicago Fire sitting on my desk and he said, "I've heard about this and I was gonna get it." We like the fact that ACID can be an entry-level music composition device, and that it's really easy to use. In continuing to try to spread the base of house music and bring it out of the underground, we hope to find that Gwen Stefani, and in order to find her, she's going to have to make some music. The only way to enable people is to give them the tools by which they can do that.

Chicago Fire: A Dance Music Anthology was produced for Sony by Vince Lawrence of Slang MusicGroup, and John Guccione of Sound Genius Studios.

+ Originally posted here
http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/loop_libraries/liner/chicagofire.asp

Vince Lawrence in Time Out Chicago

2006-11-16T07:25:00.001-06:00

Class reunion

Hit house remixer joins forces with the lost legend who inspired him.
By John Dugan

“Fallen Heroes: The Resurrection” which takes place Wednesday 22, sounds like a straight-to-DVD action flick, but it’s actually a lesson in Chicago’s prehouse club history. In the early ’80s, you might have seen three characters at the Gold Coast nightclub Dingbat’s, now O’Toole’s pub: Mr. T was the bouncer, Michael Ezebukwu was the DJ, and a teenage Vince Lawrence was talking his way in. On Thanksgiving Eve at Four, Ezebukwu—who’s been missing in action for years—spins with Lawrence, Ron Trent, Jevon Jackson and Brian Bai-EE. The event pays tribute to Ezebukwu, a contemporary of greats Ron Hardy and Frankie Knuckles. We tracked down these local legends—Lawrence in the studio and Ezebukwu by phone—and got some perspective on the reunion.

The legend is even older than house music. Ezebukwu took his first residency in June of ’77 at Private Sculpture Room at 64th Street and King Drive. “Disco was at its peak,” he says, “but for us it was just dance music; a lot of it was R&B based. We played a wider range of music back then. People would come out four and five times a week.” More residencies followed for him at the Jeffrey Pub, Dingbat’s, Larays and the Club House. He became known for his aggressive style and was often spinning seven nights a week but “just squeaking by” with the rent.

Ezebukwu is known for his humility. “He never felt the need to run his talent up a flagpole to see how many folks would salute it,” Knuckles says of the DJ. But he gigged hard, took only a couple months off from deejaying between ’77 and Christmas of ’99, and hasn’t really played since. He quit to care for his Alzheimer’s-afflicted mother, eventually moving in 2002 to Florida, where she was in a nursing home. Since her passing, he’s been “regrouping,” and has returned to the South Side.

Ezebukwu is sly about what he might play at Four next week, but it won’t be a classics set. “Most of the guys now have raided the barrel. They come up with old stuff that can make me shake my head,” he says. “I’m trying to bring some material that may have been overlooked recently.”

While Ezebukwu was busy in the clubs, the young Lawrence went on to work on house milestones such as “Virgo Tracks” with Marshall Jefferson and “Love Can’t Turn Around,” co-written with Farley Jackmaster Funk and Jesse Saunders. “I was actually the resident lyricist for Farley and Jesse back in the day,” Lawrence remembers. “I wrote all the lyrics, mostly about one girl who wouldn’t date me.” Today, at his Slang Musicgroup in West Town, he runs a 24/7 music factory with pianist-bassist Frayne Lewis (son of Ramsey Lewis), engineer Brian Gaynor and project developer Eric Sheinkop.

Lawrence’s dream—to make dance music popular—has in some ways become a reality. His remix of John Legend’s recent single, “Save Room,” is getting some heat. Slang also does some ghost production on tracks for time-strapped dance producers. “I can’t talk about the specifics,” he says, “but when I see that hot couple shaking it at three o’ clock in the morning, I’m happy.”

Slang has become a one-stop for radio artists needing a club advantage. “We were working on Beyoncé yesterday,” Lawrence says. “Can we say that?” Lewis asks. “Yeah!” Lawrence says before rattling off a list of upcoming projects: remixes for Lupe Fiasco, Blue Note Records, R. Kelly, Amerie; and a Slang compilation that features a lead-off track credited to “Slang Musicgroup featuring the Artist Unknown” who sounds a lot like Michael Jackson. Slang is also developing its own rap and pop artists. The hustle goes beyond music. Lawrence—whose tipple is Red Bull—is launching French Champagne brand Cattier in the States.

Lawrence says Ezebukwu’s style inspired debauchery and good times that cut across racial lines. Lucky for us, Ezebukwu’s return to the DJ booth is more than a one-off. “It’s a passion,” he says. “I always figured it would reawaken in me. Music brings about a focus and when your focus is lost, everything else kinda falls apart.”

“Fallen Heroes: The Resurrection” takes place Wednesday 22 at Four.

Originally posted here:
http://www.timeout.com/chicago/articles/clubs/17804/class-reunion

Sony, Chicago Fire: Dance Music Anthology Review

2005-03-07T23:22:00.000-06:00

By Craig Anderton | March, 2005

The video producer calls. “We’re doing a movie where this senator’s daughter is on the run, and melts into the underground club scene. We need a bunch of music — some deep house, some electro, drum ’n’ bass for the big car chase, a little progressive, and some old school for a couple love scenes. We need it in a week. Whaddya say?”

If you have Vince Lawrence’s Chicago Fire, take the gig. This ambitious, beautifully packaged boxed set has one CD-ROM for each of the musical styles just mentioned. The CDs average around a couple dozen “themes” (except for progressive, with a whopping 73), which are basic construction kits. Each kit has at least one full mix, which makes auditioning easy. But you’ll also find lots of additional sounds in other folders, like looped licks and phrases, some vocals, and one-shots (mostly drum sounds and effects) so you can throw in your own accents. Acidization is up to Sony’s usual high standards, so mix and match is a given. Even the example files, which include additional “promo” loops, provide value.

Deep House and Progressive are outstanding. Give me Ableton Live, the Progressive CD, and a laptop, and I bet I could keep a clubful of dance fanatics entertained for hours. Electro is a little house-ish for my taste; I prefer the harder, Kraftwerk-style machine soul. But once I accepted it wasn’t as robotic as I’d hoped, I could make some fine music on its own terms.

Drum ’n’ Bass is the least consistent. It has its moments; when it’s on, it’s really on — I just don’t quite feel it like the others, which pretty much hit a home run every time up to the plate. On the other hand Old School is sheer delight, especially the vocal phrases (which work pretty well with the other genres, too). While House lays the groundwork for mating ritual mode and Progressive oozes late night club vibe, Old School is just plain feel-good irresistible.

You might blink at $249.95, but this set is great value for money if you need all the genres represented. Even if you just need some of them, the quality of the individual CDs make the entire package a cost-effective contender.

Bottom line: A lot of my other sample CDs just got retired.

+ Originally posted here

http://www.eqmag.com/article/sony-chicago-fire/Mar-05/7218