Air Adam Podcast

"Rich for a poor man, poor for a rich man..." - Essa What a month - started a new day job, had a couple of photo assignments, plus needed to plan a mix including some Biggie (20 years since "Ready To Die" was released), 2Pac (18 years since he passed), and a few other tracks I've had on standby for a while. So far, all is good - let's get into the notes for the month...

"They plant drugs on us, stamp 'thugs' on us..." - Guilty Simpson Back from a great two-week trip to Barbados, I'm working some West Indian vibes into the selection this month! Got some nice long blends going too, and a bit of a subwoofer test :) Only one link up in this section this month - leave me a drop from the comfort of your own computer!

"I'm scared of Mother Earth..." "...and I'm scared to communicate over the phone."  - KMG Back once again! It's been two years since KMG of Above The Law passed away, so I've got a couple of great ATL tracks in this month's choices. Overall, we have a few recent releases and some gems that I think really have been overlooked. Maybe next month will be the one for the sunshiney summer selection, but for right now...

"God walks the earth as MCs..." - H.U.G. The fifth birthday episode! For someone who once took over two years to finish a mixtape, you might just have an idea of what a big achievement that actually is :) There's a lot going on right now and I really had to dig deep to put together this month's mix, but I think you'll be pleased with it. It's also been five years since Michael Jackson passed, and I've included a couple of pieces you probably don't have. Quick shout out to Scott at Good Podcasts, who gave me a great write-up and was even inspired to jump on the mic ;) RIP to the great Bobby Womack; I wasn't able to include any of his music this time round, but his legacy is carved into what we do.

"Why you wanna ... up my last few days with the news?" - Suga Free I seem to have ended up with a reasonably high proportion of West Coast records on this month's mix, at least nine tunes - didn't plan it that way, it was just how it came out! Tough picks this month but I think there are some interesting ones you may not know - get in touch and let me know how you like it! One link promised in the show - free tickets for the last In The Loop cypher session, and two others - Janelle Monáe controlling the crowd, and then the whole place exploding in the climactic pillow fight and crowd surf!

"...for listeners, blunt heads, fly ladies, and prisoners..." - Nas This April marks both four years since the passing of Guru and twenty (!) years since the release of Nas' "Illmatic," so I had to pay homage to both on this episode. We start the show off at blunted speed and work our way up to the dancefloor! Couple of links I promised you; The Soul Twins new podcast is here - give them some support! Watch Deez' selection for Groovement. Coming up!

"I do shows, I go home, I spell my name in cash like I'm Busy Bee..." - Konny Kon March is here again, and so we celebrate the life of the great Biggie Smalls. Spread love, it's the Brooklyn way! Here are the links for things mentioned in the show; EPMD tickets? If you're in Manchester (or anywhere within reach), you really should... The podcasts I mentioned were Peer Pressure Radio (the URL for subscription is http://feeds.feedburner.com/peerpressureradio/INMq) and In All Airness - both great listens!

"I'm a lion in the day, I'm a tiger at night..." - Illa J It's February again, so once again we remember J Dilla, Big L, and Big Pun, as well as Donald Byrd. Sadly, we add a local name to the roll this month - the man known as Salford John. Each of these men gets their moment in the selection; I hope you find it worthy.

"...and that's what's wrong." - Bumpy Knuckles ¡Feliz año nuevo! Last month's episode was obviously a special one which called for a particular selection, so there were some ...er tunes I couldn't use which I've brought into this one - then combined them with some extra quality material I've managed to get my hands on.  As mentioned on the voiceover, the podcast is now on TuneIn Radio - that link will allow you to stream any episode on your computer, but you should also be able to find me on the search if you use the Android or iOS mobile apps, a Sonos device, or anything else that allows streaming. Just one more way to get me, and makes it easy to send on to other people to check out (hint hint :) ) Shows for the month coming are dead prez and Pharoahe Monch - don't miss out!

"Salute, pay homage, pay your respects" - Rakim With the truly great Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela returning to the essence this month, I decided to dedicate this episode to him. Not every song is necessarily directly relevant, but hopefully the overall arc works. Rest In Power Madiba. Amandla!

"The only test is to survive..." - Patrick Got some interesting combinations this month I think! For a long while I've wanted to do a mix that started and ended with two particular songs that share the same name, and finally I found a good time to do it. There's a good mix of dramatic and laid-back production, a few legends, and some real corner-of-the-shelves finds. With that said, let's see what we have this month...

"You too near me not to hear me." - Big Boi What a month! Podcast out in the nick of time, and with it being Halloween I decided you deserved a treat more than a trick - hope you enjoy it :) Things have been hectic this month with the opening of the Manchester Marauders exhibition, which went as well as I could possibly have hoped! Here and here you can find a few photos of the exhibition, and if you'd like to buy one of the prints from the collection, then click here to get the print catalogue. It's been a lot of work, but good work lasts forever...

"Calling for the freedom of the backs that you steppin' on..." - Boots It's been an outrageously busy month, and I've really struggled to get this episode out but got there in the end! What's the problem, you ask? Well, of course there's always the months when the tune selection doesn't come easily, but this month I've had the added complication of being the sole hand planning the "Manchester Marauders" exhibition which opens on October 17th - come to the opening and make a very overworked DJ/photographer happy :) Anyway - let's talk about this month's tunes...

"I've been...to places never seen..." - Sheyenne Rivers With involvement in two upcoming photo exhibitions, plus work and the podcast, this month has been off the scale for being busy! Nevertheless, managed to put together what I think is a quality mix, and the fact I've been going around listening to it heavily before release hopefully means it'll be an enjoyable one for you all! A couple of links; September 13th - I'll be one of the hosts for the second Example photo exhibition, and I have some good pieces to show. This opening runs until late with a heavy DJ roster, so would make a great night out! October 17th - my first solo photo exhibition - "Manchester Marauders" opens. It's all about the Manchester Hip-Hop scene from my personal viewpoint, with the centrepiece being a Manchester recreation of A Tribe Called Quest's "Midnight Marauders" album. The opening will be heavy, do come down! Anyway - let's get to the music...

"I dance and dance and dance and dance and dance and dance and dance...then I sat on the toilet" - Ced Gee Fifty episodes. Power Cipher. A lot of nights trawling the shelves and slaving over a hot mixer. With A Tribe Called Quest and Nas being recurring themes on this episode, this selection has some classic A-sides, ...er remixes, some little-known gems, and top local talent. This is what it's all about. Let the world know! One more thing - friend of the show Watch Deez has just started a blog. Quality posts on the regular, get on it!

"Peace to Mandela..." - Erick Sermon The fourth birthday episode! Out of the nursery now and getting into real school. I've got some mixes on here I've been wanting to do for ages and with a landmark episode coming around (and once more having a mixer with 3-band EQ), it was the time to bring them out and combine them with some more recent ideas. For the most part this episode has the kind of laid-back feel that's just right for the summer...as though we're having a major one here!

"Scattered records, had Aretha Franklin in the Pun case..." - Rise Four complete years of episodes! A lot of nights fretting over the right tunes to play, hunching over the turntables, digging up interesting links, and buried in recording software. Hope you're enjoying the journey! I just had a good portion of the show notes I'd slaved over wiped out - Libsyn, why is the browser session length so short? I'll give the notes another browse soon and fill in any links I've missed in my lightning re-write...

"...try to re-educate ones who are lost." - Guru Crazy month. Had to make sure to get a Boston track into the selection, and that's not even counting the Gang Starr track, with Guru - a native Boston MC - kicking classic lyrics. Just over an hour long, but it took me more than twice that to write all the show notes and find the links... Thanks to everyone who came down to the Example photo exhibition this month! If you'd like to buy yourself one of my prints, follow this link and get at me :)

"Old school, new school need to learn though." - Biggie I recorded this on a brand new PC setup, been a bit fiddly but got it done! March is here again, so of course there's some Biggie Smalls in the selection. Besides that, got a couple of great Camp Lo tracks (saw them live this month), a new tune out of Manchester, and plenty more - enjoy this while you eat your Easter eggs :)  In other news; check out some of my nicest Hip-Hop photography at [Ex]hibition #1, opening on April 11th at 2022NQ Manchester, and follow it up with a night at More Bounce with Maseo (De La Soul) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest) on the wheels!

"You thought I fell off? You smokin' somethin'..." - Tim Dog Big dedication episode. February is the month where we mark the passing of J Dilla, Big L, and Big Pun, but this year we also lost Donald Byrd, Cecil Womack, and Tim Dog. Allow me to pay tribute in this month's selection the best way I know how...putting them into a quality mix.