With the changing hip hop landscape, DJs are having more power than ever in the discovery and promotion of new talent.
One of the DJs doing a great job differentiating himself from the rest of the pack is Michigan native, DJ Benzi. Through hard work, Benzi has become known as a tastemaker for upcoming hip hop talent.
Given this status, any artist that DJ Benzi co-signs will immediately gain attention from all the industry talent scouts. This gives Benzi a great deal of influence and helps to build his buzz.
Outside of working with new talent, Benzi has also built up a reputation around remixes, and blends, to some of hip hop’s biggest songs. The DJ Benzi and Willy Joy remix to Wale’s “Chillin” is a great example of Benzi’s work.
That remix, coupled with the video created by Jordan Laws, makes the hit song that much better. Another example of Benzi’s work is the Sky High mixtape, where Benzi and Plain Pat put Kanye West remixes into what was considered the best mixtape of 2008 by Current TV.
That is a mixtape all Kanye fans need to have in heavy rotation.
Last week, DJ Benzi flew into New York City to DJ for Donnis at his 10.Deep Diary of an Atlanta Brave mixtape release party. HipHopAtLunch.com met up with Benzi after his set, to speak about emerging artists, and his secrets to success in the DJ game.
As Benzi mentioned, Mike Posner, XV, and Donnis are all emerging artists about to make a big name for themselves in the hip hop world. Unsurprisingly, these are also artists whom Benzi has recently worked with.
For all of you upcoming DJ’s, as simple as “work with good people and people that have good music” may sound, it’s not so easy to stay patient until you find that perfect fit. However, being patient and listening to what you truly feel, is the only way to find success in co-signing.
Outside of hosting mixtapes and putting together remixs, Benzi is also rocking parties world wide. Here’s a taste of what DJ Benzi spinning live sounds like:
If you like what you hear, and want to book DJ Benzi for your next party, hit up his manger Peter at PeterOasis@LivenDirect.com.
His upcoming album, Get Right, on Amalagam Digital, is something to keep an eye out for, but in the mean time, keep checking DJBenzi.com to stay up on all of Benzi’s latest work and get exclusive new downloads.
Artists Tagged
Mike Posner
Mike Posner
Label: J Records, RCA
Hometown: Southfield, MI
In March of 2009, Mike Posner released A Matter of Time, one of the year’s biggest mixtapes, from his Duke dorm room. The impressive project, hosted by DJ Don Cannon and DJ Benzi, helped land the emerging artist his current record deal with Sony Music Group.
Mike Posner aims to make a name for himself in pop music, while staying relevant within hip hop circles, similar to Justin Timberlake. This goal is not too far fetched, as his fans already enjoy the artist’s feel-good, pop-rap music and smooth hooks.
Since graduating from Duke at the end of 2009, the talented artist and producer, has been working on his upcoming 31 Minutes to Takeoff album, set to be released in the fall of 2010.
XV
Donavan Johnson
Label: Warner Bros.
Hometown: Wichita, KS
XV’s stage name represents the age at which he first started to pursue a career in hip hop, fifteen. Despite coming up in the small city of Wichita, Kansas, this video game and comic book fanatic was able to grow a nationwide fan base through a string of successful mixtapes and online promotions. On July 31, 2009, XV released his biggest project to date in the Everybody’s Nobody mixtape hosted by DJ Enuff and DJ Benzi.
Almost a year later, on July 26, 2010, XV announced that he had signed a record deal with Warner Bros. and would finally have a chance to release his long awaited album, The Boy With The Green Backpack. The debut album’s title comes from the high school nickname given to XV by kids who didn’t know his real name.
