NOW… when I was speaking on the jumpoff point for the Hip-Hop Soul movement the other day, I was remiss to not ALSO mention a certain DJ who also had a strong influence on it taking shape. Ron G was a teenager and reppin’ the Polo Grounds Projects in Harlem, New York. In ’91, he dropped a tape that spread like crazy, entitled “Mixes #1″. The thing about this tape that stood out was that he blended R&B tracks with hip-hop beats for the entire 90 minutes, continuously, with three turntables. Before that, DJ’s just included blends as part of their tapes, but never based a whole tape around them. After that tape, he continued dropping them, and ended up becoming the top mixtape DJ in NY.
I’ll admit, at 11 years old in Baltimore and not yet up on the mixtape scene, I didn’t hear those at the time. But once I caught on to them (around ’92-’93), Ron G was one of the DJ’s whose tapes I copped. I liked the blend tapes the most, because I thought they were creative and I’d always get amped off the combinations that the DJ’s would come up with. Actually, hearing those (and the movie Juice as well) sparked my own interests in spinning. Something about hearing stuff like Phil Collins’ “In The Air Tonight” mixed with a hip-hop track just made me wanna do it myself someday.
But back to Ron. As time went on, his tapes got so popular that the homie Puff Daddy saw a vision for the R&B artists he was working with… thus spawned the sound of Mary J‘s 411 album, and the rest is history. After a while, Ron not only did blend tapes with instrumentals, but his own beats, and eventually he started producing and remixing tracks for artists in the industry. He’s worked with Michael Jackson, Boyz II Men, J.Lo, Fat Joe, R. Kelly, Lost Boyz, and Mary J. herself, among others. Today, he still does mixtapes, in addition to producing and spinning all over the world.
With respect due to Ron G, aka “The Youngest In Charge” as he called himself then, here’s the tape that in many ways got the ball rolling for what later became the new sound of R&B in the ’90s. No stone is unturned here- not even Otis Redding‘s “Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay” (check out G co-signing on the “whistling part”). Enjoy!
Mixes #1 (1991) NOTE: don’t mind the “tape hiss” either- that’s just authenticity. Ha!
-D!
You really out did yourself with this one. RON G GOT THE FAT BEATS!!! lol In the early 90′s, it was undisputed. Ron G was the mixtape king. Back then, you could throw on one of his tapes at a cookout, in the whip with a PYT on the passenger side driving on the highway, or on the walkman, it didnt matter. Hell, I remember when I was 14, my Mom ask me if she could borrow one of my Ron G tapes so she could work out to it lol
Haaaaaaaa! Yeah man, the blends were on-point… even listening to ‘em now. You weren’t gonna get that on the radio so it made ‘em extra-special. It was also one of those things you could play anywhere cause they were usually clean w/ no cussin’ and whatnot…
Yo Ron G was the illest. It sucks that he don’t get enuff recognition. The mixtape game is so off today (mainly due to the internet). Speakin of blends, I know ur familiar with Nelly Nell right?
Nah, name don’t ring a bell. But back then, blends were mandatory for a DJ to cook up, whether it was on mixtapes or radio shows. Now DJ’s don’t blend anymore. They just let the the whole R&B record ride out, without blending an instrumental under neath to keep sh1t up tempo
Yeeeaaah, I know Nelly Nell, he’s from out here, right? I’ve heard some of his CD’s. He’s def. one of the few I’ve heard that’re still goin’ strong with the blends.
And yeah Newark, you ain’t neva lied. But I guess it’s one of those things where now, the R&B songs are damn near rap songs half the time, LOL. I’d still be pumped to hear somebody do a throwback-style blend joint or somethin’ though. Shit, I might do one for the hell of it, haha.
Wow. Good stuff.
I was one of those dudes that didn’t really have much use for R&B. On that, “hey wait homegirl, you forgot your tape.” I barely tolerated it. Ron G found the middle ground for me. Later Doo Wop…and I wanna say Action Pack.
Uptown chicks could be some powerful religion.
Yep… it was def. a bridge that helped things get a lil’ more connected, for better or worse. As a result, we got a lotta “rap-singers” now… but at least the beginning and middle of the story were good, LOL.
to cosign most of what has already been said when i got to the download part and saw “side a” “side b” i was like whoa
Haha… kept it all the way real, right? LMAO
-D!
this tape is the shit! love that lisa stansfield, craig g blend
Can’t argue w/ you there… once I found this one, I was stuck on it for a whole 2 weeks. It really puts things in perspective to hear that and then hear where that style went.