Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Brooklyn rollerblader killed in shooting

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He wanted to go pro.

But at 18-years-old, dreams of ripping down ramps on his rollerblades came to an early end for Brian Scott Jr., when he was shot and killed on Park Side Avenue Tuesday night.







Police say that Brian, a well known black rollerblader in Brooklyn, NY, had no affiliation with the gun fire that hit him twice in the chest and his friends in the arm. At the time of the shooting, Brian was sitting in a bodega, eating and enjoying his youth with his friends.

There is no word yet on the gun man, but a surveillance camera recorded the scene.

Many condolences to Brian's family from Afro$punky and the Afro-punk community.

-a$


Black Stacy - Saul Williams

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Harry's $till hitting it hard

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Celebrating 30 years of spinning tunes in New York's hottest spots, DJ Hard Hittin Harry proves that even in his 40s he's still the party's most important guest.

By Afro$punKy

In a city that ditches more DJs faster than it can sell an I Love NY t-shirt, DJ Hard Hittin Harry has a lot to celebrate.

On Saturday night Harry splashes Sky Vodka in the glass of friend and fellow NYC promoter, Trina Sunshine, at Deity Lounge-- right after blowing out the candles on the vanilla iced birthday cake for his 43rd birthday.

His cake says, "Happy Earth, Strong DJ Hard Hittin Harry" with two musical notes dressed on the side. He says he has tried to shake the Hard Hittin Harry name several times, but it has stuck. He acquired the name in the 80s when Chicago House music was big and many of the DJs had three-part names such as “Farley Jack Master Funk.”

"My friends used to say I go hard at parties," he says. "And it kind of stuck."


Harry with NYC model and actress, Khayriyyah Muhammad


Harry's finished birthday cake

He smiles warmly at everyone. A tiny labret piercing accents his chin and has a subtle resonance of a time when the labret was once reserved for male members of the higher castes in Mayan ancient civilizations. His neatly combed salt and peppered beard hangs four inches down from his grinning chin. Haiti-born, Harry is a Brooklyn resident by way of Canada and New Jersey.


Dressed in an orange ti e-dyed t-shirt and a black hat perched on his head, Sunday night was day two of his month long birthday celebration. He has a weekly DJ'ing gig at Deity Lounge-- along with a weekly gig at one of NY's hottest clubs in the Meatpacking district, Hotel Gansevoort, along with DJing events for Adidas/ Heritage, Sketchers, Diesel USA, and Nike Town.

He has DJ'ed at several Afro-Punk functions, including this year's block party along with several days at last year's festival. (Did I mention he also has his own weekly online radio show called "Global Jam Session" at axiomonline.tv.

Instead of being glued to his usual post this Sunday night, Harry casually broke away from the DJ booth to mingle with the large crowd that gathered to celebrate not only his birthday, but the marking of his 30th year in the DJ'ing arena.


Harry with friends and business partners

Harry, who says he plays for the crowd, not for himself (although he admits he gets personal satisfaction of playing 80s hiphop tunes), has DJ'ed at more parties across the country over the last 30 years that he's lost count. He does remember one of the first tracks he ever spun, The Sugarhill Gang's, Rapper's Delight, and he placed it as the first song on his 30th anniversary compilation c.d. that he passed out for free on Sunday night. The c.d. takes a journey on his career, serving as a musical timeline over the last three decades.

Saturday night he started his celebration by throwing a birthday bash at the grand opening of Littlefield, a new performing arts center in Brooklyn. That night Harry was presented with a plaque from hiphop pioneer, DJ Kool Herc, transcribed with "in honor of 30 years of keeping the masses dancing through the decades."

"I was like, wow, man," Harry recounts of Saturday night. "I look up to DJ Kool Herc, he's a legend."

But meeting with DJ Kool Herc was not his first encounter with a musical legend. Harry's career took off in 1993 when he was hired as the resident DJ for the Fugees and toured with them, with their debut album project, “Blunted on Reality.” After the tour, his career took several turns, including starting his own PR company called Meridian Entertainment where over the past decade, his company has represented numerous record labels, artists, producers, actors, special events, clothing lines, and the beauty industry. But he never stopped DJ'ing.

Along with his weekly gigs, Harry recently shot a pilot for an upcoming DJ reality show tentatively called "Rock Star DJ." Right now he's listening to Jay-Z's new album, The Blueprint 3, and considers himself a mush of music tastes.

"I like it all," he says, "the reggae, the rock, the pop, the hiphop, all of it."

And when asked if he thinks he fits the afro-punk mold, he says "yes."

"I definitely don't fit that corporate mold," Harry says with a faint laugh. "I've learned in my life, if I want something done, I'll just do it myself."




Dancin Til Dawn - Lenny Kravitz