Back in the days, our main source of obtaining great Hip Hop music was through the mixtape. You knew a guy who knew a guy who could get you the hottest mixtape on the street. Whether it was Juice, Ron G, or Tony Touch….you knew you were getting some exclusives and being introduced to the most talented MCs. Fast forward 25 years and that is still the case. Only now it’s through podcasts and online mixshows.

One of the best is DJ Modesty’s Real Hip Hop Show based in France. This show is dedicated to playing the best underground Hip Hop and like the mixtapes of of the past, introduce us to up and coming talent. DJ Modesty’s show is one of many shows keeping the essence of Hip Hop alive. I had the opportunity to interview DJ Modesty and one thing I learned is that he loves this culture. It’s evident in this interview and also in how he puts his show together. So let’s get started.

Stroydnaire: You’ve been a DJ for two decades….What influenced you to start DJing?

DJ Modesty: I grew up during the Golden Years of Hip Hop, so i listened a lot of US Rap artists during the college, high school and university. My first love was Basketball so I played a lot and often watched basketball videos. Many of these were illustrated by some Hip Hop soundtracks. I used to build tapes on K7 as some compilations of my favorite joints to inspire my style on the playgrounds. Hip Hop was an energy all around Basketball and I naturally started at this era to draw, start to dance and watch the Fresh Prince every day. The only one place in my area to discover new Rap joints was on French commercial radios where Dj’s as Cut Killer, Poska, Kost & Goldfingers used to do mixshows. I started to buy some of their albums “Hip Hop Soul Party, What’s The Flavor, Double Face”and was very influenced by the 60 Minutes of Funk series by Funkmaster Flex. Later i also heard about Jr Ewing who had this underground & independent touch I loved.

The common touch I liked in all of them and what influenced me was their way to do blend mixes and bring a few skillz inside their recordings. I wanted to do the same, make my own mixes without to be a turntable killer as Q Bert. My favorite DMC champion was DJ NOIZE in 1996 because he played bangers with skillz and musicality, with a blended routine, as a mixtape.
I started at the end of the 90’s, just after leaving school to buy my first Dj material after trying to do the same with the Hi-Fi system of my parents without success. As I liked to listen artists as Dj Premier, Wu Tang, Biggie, Boom Bap & Grimey music, I started to buy records and naturally mixed all these energies & influences to build my style and create a reputation with my concepts.

You’ve had your show since 2003. Congratulations on a strong 16 years. A lot has changed add since then…..especially how we access music. Do you feel that social media has helped Hip Hop in terms of accessing and distributing music?

Much thanks. In 2003 I used to continue to buy vinyl records in stores and I was glad when a few independent or Majors sent me promos, but vinyl was already replaced by cd’s and quickly by digital music. I sincerely regret this era because real material was better and it was a sign of hard work and to be more professional to be able to release music.

When I started the Mixtape era was already near to end but i saw also this time where DJs had a dope place to represent artists in the streets and after on internet. I was also one of the first to use myspace as an independent artist and in France to create this kind of promo for artist with the radio show but also with interviews on internet.

With digital platforms and with the Facebook, instagram & twitter I saw so many things change. I think it opened many doors for the people to become quickly artists and by the way, the quality changed with too many artist and music released every days. Everybody started to be a Producer, Dj’s or Mc’s and if we go outside of the music industry, it helped also many other style of people to become famous with this internet exposition. I’m not a fan of this evolution but i can’t totally disagree with it because it helped me to do my thing when I started and that’s a way for me to stay connected to the people because I’m far from everything.

From the listener side, it changed the way to appreciate a project and remember it, now people listen and jump from track to track and artists, before we used to collect materials and the work of searching was something nice that we could not see today. It’s different.
The digital music became an evolution and it’s hard for independent artist to continue to drop cds or vinyls but there are few to continue to make it happen. I think it’s more for the love than to build a real business around it, shows are the best way to earn money with music these days, that’s the negative point. Positive point is that our music can be listened worldwide by a lot of people and I can thank internet for all these connections I made with artists and fans during these 15 years.

During the last 15 years of your show, what are some of the most memorable moments?

I have nostalgia for the beginning because it was a period where i was very in touch with the labels. Each package I received was like a Christmas present and I stay connected with many of these artists now. I remember a few of their albums as Hip Hop classics and each drops or message I received from them stay in my memory. I collect a lot of drops since 15 years to illustrate my mixes with shout outs. One of my best remember is when I received a drop recorded by Dj Premier, it was an amazing feeling for me to have a shout out from my favorite Dj & producer. Another time I had one by Prodigy recorded when he was incarcerated, that’s was unreal for me. In fact, I’m a fan and listener of many artists that I play in the show and I worked with many of them during all these years. I had Masta Ace, Termanology, Blaq Poet, General Steele, Blahzay, Sadat X and so many other to host episodes of The Real Hip Hop Show and that’s always a memorable moment every time it happens. The show also had a lot of dope feedback from artists and listeners and I’ll always remember this time where I shared the mixshow charts with Dj Premier and Live from the headqcourterz or when we celebrated the 300th episode with a special track feat Milano, NDL, Nutso, Willie Stubz, Mic Handz, Skeezo & many others. I had also the opportunity to mix live in NYC with my homies Shabaam Sahdeeq, M Dot, Meyhem Lauren, J Love, Royal Flush…. or later in France and meet a few mc’s I always supported, it’s something that means a lot to me. I saw the musical evolution of many artists i used to support. A little & funny story , I received a message from Nicki Minaj page during the Myspace era when I worked on my project Kings From Queens, to start working with her and spin her music before she became famous, the suite of this story is that I never replied and I started to hear her music on the radio and tv a few month later. So many memories that I keep in my mind and on my computer. Thanks to all the people who shared something with me during this time.

Those are some great memories right there! You mentioned Kings from Queens… tell us about your next project, Kings from Queens 3.

This episode will be the 3rd chapter of a series I started in 2008 with the 1st volume who was like a blended Mixtape of freestyles & unreleased music. Later in 2012 I decided to work on an album as executive producer and I had the help from a few worldwide producers and MCs from Queens. We dropped it as a double album : Kings From Queens 2 & 2.1 and it’s still one of my best releases.

To speak about this upcoming album, it’ll be something different, a lil bit as my project Brooklyn Kingz County. I made all the beats and cuts for this chapter and I actually finalize everything. The themes are all about the Queens borough, life and vision through the MCs eyes. When I start working on beats, I feel the emotion of the sample and try to add cuts and themes related to this music feeling, it’ll be a mix of Grimey and Boom Bap vibe, with a special touch dedicated to one of my favorite Queens MCs: Prodigy (R.I.P). I had to work with my best people to make it happen, people that I support since volume 1 and some new talents I’m connected with. They blessed me with dope rhymes and tracks and I thank all of them to help me write another page of this history, as a movie, a Queens Soundtrack.

To give you a few names on it, you could hear : Infamous Mobb, Blaq Poet, Crhyme Fam, Willie Stubz, Curt Digga, Lotto, Rafeese, Foul Monday, Satchel Page, G.S.Advance, Eff Yoo, Jay Holly, Lordroc, The Absouljah, Junclassic, Undeniable, Lex, Reap Raw, Thruway, Rap P, Linkz Boogz, Primaa Banks, Apokalypse The Archangel, Moses, Cerebral, Ashley, Willie Maze, K Rime, and maybe some more artists.

I always say that this kind of project will be my last one because it’s some years of hard work to build the collabos but when it drops, it’s always a great moment and accomplishment. I wish the Queens fanatics will appreciate it. The album will be released in early 2019.

We are most definitely looking forward to this project. You’ve been doing this a long time. What advice would you give to up and coming DJs who are looking to take this craft seriously?

I think that the most important thing is to do it for the love first because you have to have fun by making music. Another important point is to use your own personality to create a unique style. You can choose any name or try to look to another DJ, you have to be yourself and make your differences your positive points. A new DJ will have to learn the basic skills, and by the way, to learn how to use turntables, computers and use all the difference techniques that any DJ must have, blend mixes, beat juggling, scratching, you don’t need to be a DMC champion to progress in the music industry but you’ll need to know the basic steps, the musicality and work on original ideas to create concepts to make you different from other DJs. With Youtube and all the videos and advice you can have these days, you can be sure to find what you want to progress.

As any discipline, hard work is the key. To be a DJ seems to be dope but you”ll learn by yourself than it’s not the best thing to be in Hip Hop if you want to be a star. To be a Dj is to do a lot of work for artists, work on promotion and a lot of underground plans in the shadow of the rapper’s lights. Stay positive, practice and try to become a real artist more than a jukebox.

DJ Modesty, I’d like to thank you for taking the time to make this happen. Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?

Much thanks for the interview, Big shout outs to 7th Boro and all the people who support the underground movement, Much love to all my followers and I hope by the way of this interview to be introduced to more fans and artists who could appreciate my work. Salute to all my people, so many to mention here but they know who they are, my family, and friends.

You can follow me on mixcloud to check the Real Hip Hop Show every 2 weeks with 2 hours of Real hip Hop music, on Facebook, twitter, instagram. Be ready for KINGS FROM QUEENS 3 this year and for more DJ Modesty collabos, and mixtapes. Thanks for your support. REAL RECOGNIZE REAL!!!

MUSIC on BANDCAMP
http://www.djmodesty.bandcamp.com

THE REAL HIP HOP SHOW & Mixtapes on
http://www.mixcloud.com/djmodesty

twitter : @DJMODESTY
Instagram : @DJ_MODESTY

Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/djmodestytherealhiphopshow/