THE SIDEBAR #23: DJ CHRIS READ

Beginning in 2010, DJ Chris Read, in collaboration with Nick Armitage, began to put together a monthly party/mix series called “Classic Material.” ¹ The basic concept was that each month, they’d put together a party and a mix celebrating a year in the life of hip-hop music, finishing in 2000. For 14 months, this was one of the things I looked forward to since Read brought great creativity and song selection to each of these mixes. To top it all off, they created special boxsets, including a custom-designed logo, riffing off of hip-hop labels. ²

This month marks the end of the journey, with a special photography exhibit in effect in London. Chris and I spoke over Skype to discuss the birth of the project, how it evolved, and what some of his favorite years in rap music were.

The Sidebar #23: DJ Chris Read
[podcast]http://latinboogaloo.com/sounds/podcasts/Chris%20Read.mp3[/podcast]

Portions of the Classic Material mixes used in the podcast were from the following years:

• 1988
• 1990
• 1997
• 1996
• 1994
• 1993