JUST BLAZE: So in terms of the breakdown, I mean I think this is it right here.
[Plays Jay-Z’s “Hovi Baby”]
When we did “Hovi Baby,” that was the first time that Jay, you know, made the “Blazettes” reference.
That was really because it just felt like such a live record, but I think that goes back to my DJ sensibility.
I was the weird kid that would play at like raves and techno parties, but I was playing it like hip hop.
I kind of developed a following because of that, because I was the weird kid–
probably sometimes the only black kid– that was there playing this kind of music and cutting it up.
RODNEY CARMICHAEL: In hip-hop, sampling is like alchemy.
It’s an art form that rearranges space and time.
And the producers who build on the tradition use sonic DNA from the past to cook up the future.
Even when you know how it works, it can still feel like magic.
Just Blaze might be hip-hop’s answer to James Brown’s eternal question: “Can the drummer get some?”
Whether he’s tapping out sampled drums or utilizing live drummers in studio, his ability to harness energy
is what makes his beats so dynamic.
Especially when they’re backing the most powerful couple in hip-hop.
JUST BLAZE: Funny thing about that, that record like, Questlove hates– we're friends but he hates me–
because I remember he hit me, he was like, “Yo, who played the drums on that?”
I'm like, “Dude, that's me on my MP.“
That was a huge, I guess, booster for me internally,
because one of the best hip-hop drummers ever is thinking that that record's a live drummer.
And it's just me emulating that, you know, with my fingers.
So next up, the record that I have with Jay called “Show Me What You Got.”
This record actually pulls from a few different inspirations, a few different sources.
The first of which would be classic b-boy anthem by Johnny Pate called, “Shaft In Africa.“
[Plays Johnny Pate’s “Shaft In Africa (Addis)”]
After you know we kind of had the “Shaft in Africa” hooked up,
the track at the time sounded something like this.
[Plays Just Blaze Demo]
So just from that little bit of drumming, I'm like,
“You know what, this should actually sound much better with a real drum kit underneath it.”
I called my little brothers, 1500 Or Nothin’, so we all jumped on keys, guitar, bass, organs.
You put all that together...
[Plays Jay-Z’s “Show Me What You Got”]
I'm an excellent drum programmer.
I'm a halfway-halfway decent drummer, but there's no way that I could play that by myself live or program that.
[Plays Jay-Z’s “Show Me What You Got”]
Last but not least, “Freedom” off the “Lemonade” album.
Beyoncé came to me with the sample.
Very rare, very hard to find.
[Plays Kaleidoscope’s “Let Me Try”]
It was just saying this, and she was singing just over that.
And there was a dope tension to it but it, it still felt linear, you know what I mean?
Like it wasn't moving.
So my thing was, “All right, let's leave it raw and tense for the first maybe four bars
and then build that up a little bit.”
So that's when I started to add the extra percussion.
[Plays Just Blaze Demo]
The hits are coming.
In the demo, she's singing about freedom, so I'm thinking about war, drums.
So that's when I went and started to add a lot of the–
[Plays Just Blaze Demo]
It feels like a statement. It feels like a marching band.
Again, I try to create moments.
If you went right from that marching band right into, “Freedom! Freedom!” you almost lose the intensity.
You got to break it up.
Because if you just do straight wall of excitement the entire time, it's too much.
You know what I mean? So you have to kind of create those spaces.
[Plays Beyoncé’s “Freedom”]
I've never really tried to set a trend.
I've never tried to accomplish something or overthrow the sound or change.
I love it when it happens.
That's not what motivates me though.
I'm one of those guys who's just happy to make a living do what I love.
[Plays Beyoncé’s “Freedom”]
It's funny you mention that.
Somebody asked me literally not even 24 hours ago
if I'd be interested in putting together a “Just Blaze and The Blazettes” tour
and like me DJing, full live band and then like different artists that I've worked with over the years.
The “Just Blaze and the Blazettes” show sounds like a fun show.
