This is the spot where you’ll get to hear from the man himself–The legendary Egyptian Lover.
He’ll be dropping science on all you youngsters about back in the day and todays hip hop scene.
Each month he’ll share his stories, his views and opinions on hip hop.

Monthly Column
Written by -Egyptian Lover

You all know me from my classics “Egypt ,Egypt”, “And My Beat Goes Boom,” “What Is a DJ If He Can’t Scratch,” “Girls,” and countless others. I’ll be here each month giving my input on various topics in the rap industry. From back in the day to today’s hip hop. I’ll discuss the fun we had when this whole rap thing started: the parties, the rap battles, dance battles, etc..

Well, how do I begin? Let’s start from the beginning. Back in the day when I started making records, there was no one to tell me what to do or how to do it. So, I wrote the records like I D.J.’d. I started with an intro, a breakdown, another breakdown, another breakdown, lyrics, some mixing, and finally a huge breakdown. I was mainly into the beat and the way I could make the people on the floor dance. To me, it was all about making people dance. I was the biggest D.J. in L.A. doing parties with Uncle Jam’s Army at the Sports Arena for 10,000 people. My mixing style was really new to everyone so everyone came to see me. It was an amazing site to see. Ten thousand people dancing to my mixing and scratching. That was “BIG FUN.”

Today, there is nothing out there like that. I feel for people today. They don’t know how to party because they are very limited because of the lack of creativity of today’s D.J.’s. All they do today is go to half ass clubs and go dumb! That’s cool, but not for everyone. What ever happened to the sexy people? What ever happened to classy people? What ever happened to good music that makes you want to dance and fall in love with the D.J. or the person your dancing with? Those day’s are gone. And the music as well.

I listen to the radio now and I see the people needing something more. Missy knows what’s missing! Reggaeton knows what’s missing and Electro Fans around the world knows what’s missing…….It’s that up tempo dance music. You can play Gangsta rap in a club all night and not make half the money as in the same club on an Electro night. Dance faster, Get hotter, and buy more drinks. The club owners know what I’m talking about. When people dance to an up tempo 128 bpm record they have a good time. Happy people spend money. “Hey let me buy you a drink…”The hip-hop Gangsta rap crowd just want to stand there, look hard, and parking lot pimp. we need to mix it up a little and bring back those 128 bpm songs and get this party scene crackin’ again. There are a lot of producers and rappers ready to do it but scared of what other hard core rappers might say. I say just do what you like and the people will listen.

There are many hip-hop songs out there I simply Love. The party songs I love the most, but you can’t give a party playing gangsta rap all night. The party will get turned out! No one will be dancing because they’re afraid someone else will pull their card. Then the ladies…Oh the ladies are so bored these days! I can go to a club and pull any lady there because all the hard homies are into how fresh their new Kobe’s are to even notice the hotties. So, now only the video-wanna-be girls go to the clubs…It’s a shame how far we strayed from the good old days. When all the Dance Promotion teams would do parties all the time and eventually make records. For example, L.A. Dream Team, The World Class Wrecking Crew, and Uncle Jam’s Army. We would do parties, clubs, and things and have an extraordinary time. Was it the music? “Planet Rock,” “Electric Kingdom,” “Al Na Fish (It’s Time),” “And the beat goes on,” “Survival,” “I need a Freak,” “Let’s Work,” “Egypt, Egypt,” “When I hear Music,” and all that really fast up tempo music. I used to play the slower stuff, too, like “It’s Like That,” “Friends,” “Five minutes of Funk,” “Tough,” and many, many more. But the crowd really got off on the fast stuff. We even sped it up two or three more notches on the turntables. The faster it went, the harder they partied. Now were talking about 10,000 hip-hop fans loving it when Run DMC came on stage. The crowd went crazy! But when I played “Egypt, Egypt” and similar songs it was all over…They went into a frenzy and that was the peak of the night.

So let’s do this…All you producers out there that have been itchin’ to do that Old school stuff, but are afraid to do it… JUST DO IT! There are so many people who love this music and want to hear more of it. It’s not even funny. Come on, Dre I know it’s in ya blood trying to get out. JD I know you want more than ever to do some for Mariah, Black Eyed Peas did “My Beat Goes Boom” and “I Need a Freak” and it was just what people wanted to hear. All the Black Eyed Peas need now is a follow up a little more like “Egypt, Egypt.” Wow… BIG HIT!!! Pussycat Dolls are ready for a 128 bpm and down south … Ya’ll killin’ the 808. I’m lovin’ it.The next step is to speed it up! Coldplay? Big thangs await you when you do a 128. Finally, Janet Jackson, you know you used to love all that Old School stuff. Do one 128 bpm song and I see big hit all over it.

For the new producers coming out, there are so many kinds of music for you to do. Hip-hop is not just gangsta rap, it’s all kinds of rap. Electro was rap when I started to do it back in the day. It still is Hip-hop in my book. Club Music is what I call my stuff. As long as you can dance to it, it’s good music to me. Slow, mid, and up-tempo, gangsta, pop, reggaeton, christian, crunk, and rap-metal. There’s a place for it all, but we need more up tempo. MORE!!!!!!! D.J.s of the world, even on the radio, play more up tempo rap (Electro) which I did and became the best D.J. in L.A.. I played what I knew the party people would like to dance to and history was made.

Keeping that Dance Music alive. Music is all we have … Enjoy it!
The Egyptian Lover signing off.

See ya next month…where I break down how we rocked the parties in the 80’s.