Life happens in waves
Franzen, born and raised in the Bay area of California has been making noise in the music business since the age of 14 as intern at KMEL. Finally getting a chance to be on the radio as a DJ in the Bay, he started to make a name for himself. Moving to Las Vegas in 2001 to help start its first all Hip-Hop station he worked his way up to become the #1 DJ in the city. This conversation was recorded in late April of 2021 and covers his Twitch following, how the passing of Shock G affected him, his personal relationships with artists like Drake, Jay-Z and Nipsey, to his 5 year residency at Drai's in Las Vegas.
Trauma is the DJ for Dave Chappelle, Tiffany Haddish and has such an amazing story of how he got there. From being the "Mayor of ATL" with slots on the local hip hop radio stations, being a staple in the Atlanta clubs and the go to for creating flyers he was working 7 days a week. Trauma moved to LA and started working exclusive events for Beyonce and Jay-Z, Nipsey Hussle and so many others! You'll want to hear these stories, tune in!
With a variety of songs written charting on Billboard over the years, vocal coaching some of your favorite talents on X-Factor and America's Got Talent, to being an advocate for songwriter rights, we can easily say Autumn Rowe is utilizing all of the hours in the day. During this conversation we touch on her beginnings in NYC singing in choirs, meeting Swizz Beatz, writing and shopping demos, all while working a 9-5. From her first hit song in the UK (Alexis Jordan- Happiness) to now, we talk about Autumn's love of music, educating others on how to grow as a songwriter, the birth of DJ Aftr Prty (After Party) and so much more!
DJ Swivel is a Grammy award winning mix engineer, producer and song writer. His resume of clients include Beyonce, Jay-Z, BTS, Fabolous, Kanye West, Lil' Nas X, The Chainsmokers, Jay Sean, Dua Lipa and so many more! We had a chance to talk about Swivel's engineering internship under Duro, his year with Beyonce working on the "4" album, the software he created along with some amazing studio stories.
DJ Dubz has toured the world working as the DJ for artists like Ariana Grande, Jennifer Lopez, Mike Posner, Fergie & Cheryl Ann. Before he decided to become a DJ, Dubz started as a background dancer and choreographer for some of your favorite groups of the early 2000's (Mario, 3LW, JoJo, Keyshia Cole and more). He found his way into movies working in front of and behind the camera on classics like Honey and Dreamgirls to the current blockbuster Coming 2 America with Eddie Murphy and the anticipated Space Jam 2 staring LeBron James. This was a great conversation with tons of gems. Tune in!
Drew Ski has been putting in work for years. From paying his dues working under radio vets like Angie Martinez and Cipha Sounds at Hot 97 to getting his own show on the station. Drew recently released his first album "Seat At The Table" so we sat to chop it up about everything connected to that and his rise in the music biz.
DJ D-Wrek is a household name due to the 16 years he's been on your TV screen as the DJ for MTV's Nick Cannon presents: Wild 'N Out. During the conversation we touch on how Wild 'N Out came to be, when he met Nick, how he got the gig as the rapper for the theme song to nickelodeon Danny Phantom, being prepared for parties in different cities and so much more!
DJ Bliss is one of the most important DJ's in the Middle East. From being the first to bring hip-hop music into the high end clubs in Dubai to interviewing elite entertainers during his TV & radio hosting days in the UAE. Bliss was dubbed "The Ryan Seacrest of the Middle East" and his story will explain why. This conversation touches on his celebrity encounters, how he became involved in music, all of his business ventures, how Covid-19 affected him personally & professionally and so much more!
DJ 4our 5ive aka K La Boss has been the tour DJ for The Notorious B.I.G, EPMD, Lil Wayne, Mase, Fabolous, Craig Mack, Lil' Kim, Cam'ron, Puff and so many more in their prime! His touring DJ career alone spans 4 decades and we're going to get in to all of that and more. Some amazing stories from the road to real life situations. Just hit play and enjoy this telling conversation.
Ronnie and his team at CPP have produced concerts and events for some of the biggest artists in the world. From Cardi B, to Boyz II Men, Prince Royce, TLC, Ne-Yo and so many more. This conversation touches on how Ronnie started on the road with people like Usher and Jay-Z to where we are now with Covid restrictions. This was another great conversation, tune in!
Black Dollar Index is a brand new website that is holding major corporations accountable to their pledge of supporting the Black community. Founded by Kelle Rozell, BDI rates parent companies on a variety of factors using public information gathered by her team. From board members, to diversity initiatives to racial discrimination claims, all of that and more is taken into consideration when the BDI team rates these corporations. During this conversation we discussed the how and why BDI was created, the importance of inclusion and transparency, single digit scores and a variety of other related topics. A needed conversation, tune in.
Torae Carr wears many hats. He is a host on SiriusXM's Hip Hop Nation, the Vice President of the New York Chapter of the Recording Academy, a respected MC, an actor and so much more. During this conversation we get a chance to dive into all of his accolades and accomplishments as well as discuss the misconceptions of the Grammy's, his giving back to hip-hop culture, the importance of staying ready and how he arrived in these spaces.
Rob Markman is a well respected hip-hop journalist as well as the VP of content strategy at Genius. Its obvious Rob has a passion for hip-hop music from his impactful positions at XXL & MTV, but it wasn't until 2017 that he decided to publicly share his skills as an MC and released an album. On this podcast we'll discuss his move from working in a mail room to a freelance writer. The highs and lows of being a journalist during his print media days. The jump to MTV working behind the scenes and then on camera. How he made the move to Genius, writing comics for Marvel, his relationships with hip hop elite, what enticed him to start putting out musical projects and so much more. His third and most recent project "If You Don't, You'll Regret It" is available now!
Joel is a writer, author, storyteller, a TED Talk speaker, a suicide prevention advocate and so much more. During this podcast, Reg and Joel get a chance to catch up. They spoke about so many topics. From his days a rapper named MAG, the struggles of being a co parent, his large twitter following, Buddhism, what led to calling the suicide hotline and of course how he made it to a Ted Talk stage. We hope you can pick up a few gems from this conversation on Wave Files.
DJ Suss One is a DJ that works in a variety of spaces. From being a staple in NYC nightlife, to being the tour DJ for Mariah Carey to recently becoming the new DJ for the Wendy Williams Show and of course his radio home of Power 105.1NY. During this conversation we discuss his rise in music business, how Covid-19 affect him, pivoting, being broke and the having the hunger to figure it out and more!
BK Lobster opened its first restaurant in August of 2019 with the aspirations of growing into a franchise. The owners and partners couldn't foresee that growth would be happening in the middle of a pandemic. Ed Williams, the chief operating officer discusses the process of keeping the doors open while launching new locations around the United States during covid-19.
Natasha Aarons is an Adage 40 under 40 recipient and listening to this interview, you'll understand why. From her start in the music business interning at Bad Boy Records. She worked under Harve Pierre getting a front row seat to why Diddy says "can't stop won't stop". At a point she left the music world for tech and found herself at powerhouses like Verizon, Apple, YouTube and currently Google. This podcast is a candid conversation of the struggles, determination, hard work, trials and all around experiences of Ms Aarons on her path. We touch on mental health, being prepared, staying ahead of the curve, knowing your worth and at times the importance of being fearless.
Tank Sinatra makes a living off making memes! His Instagram accounts (Tank.Sinatra, Tank's Good News & Influencers in the Wild) allow him the opportunity to make the world laugh, one meme at a time. We had the chance to speak about our childhood upbringing, his time working on the Ellen Show, therapy, making memes & the division it can cause, meeting Jay-Z, his book (Happy Is The New Rich) and so much more!
Reg West had a chance to sit down (virtually) with multi platinum singer, songwriter Jay Sean. They spoke in detail about everything from the lack of shows due to the covid-19 pandemic, his well received podcast Basement Banter, the viral TikTok remix dance craze to his classic "Ride It" and so much more.
DJ M.I.L is the music coordinator of the NBA's Brooklyn Nets but his career is so much more than that. We discuss his time as lead music coordinator of the NBA Bubble (The 2020 Season), his time at Madison Square Garden with the New York Knicks and Rangers & his time in Rio as the music coordinator for the 2016 Olympics men's and woman's basketball teams. DJ M.I.L also takes the time to share his upbringing and thoughts on the evolution of a DJ career. This is wave files
In this premiere episode of Wave Files I'll be speaking with Dr Sampson Davis. Dr Davis and I discuss his tenure as an ER doctor during Covid-19, mental health, being a mentor and his New York Times best selling books.