"Soon as My Eyes See the Sunshine"

Just what we all needed, some 70s funk baked into a fresh EDM track. Leave it to Pretty Lights to dig up a classic track from The Brothers Johnson and flip it into something more modern. Strawberry Letter 23 was produced by the legendary Quincy Jones and released back in 1971, well before even I was born. Check the original below for reference...



Hard to hate on the quiet R&B vocals, twinkling synths, and funky guitar of the original. As far as Pretty Lights version is concerned, there's a screwed and chopped element to the slowed vocals that sucked me in from the start. The "soon as my eyes see the sunshine vocal sample is catchy af too. My guess is your parents will freak out when you play this for them because it'll immediately dust off a chapter of music that had long forgotten. Plenty of replay value on this dusted off antique, so iTunes or Spotify if you're as smitten with funkiness as I am...#RainbowsAndWaterfalls

BONUS: The video for the track just dropped!!

Pretty Lights - Rainbows & Waterfalls

"If There's a Cure For This, I Don't Want It"

Saying Troyboi is on a roll doesn't really do justice to the momentum he's running downhill with right now. If you're like me, you're still knee deep in Left is Right, which makes this new Diana Ross sampled single all the more surprising and awesome. If your parents never subjected you to her classic, Love Hangover, then shame on them, but also here's your chance to catch up by pressing play below...



It doesn't take a rocket scientist to recognize the funk dripping off the original. Lucky for us, Troyboi was there to capture all that funkiness and reshape it into a form we're much more accustomed to. Leveraging the original vocals, Troyboi chopped, bounced, and clanged all over the original. The remix reeks of funk with plenty of bass to spare, managing to marry old and new in one three minute effort. For the time being, all I can offer is a Soundcloud link, but keep it locked for an official release...#DontWant

Troyboi - Don't Want

Tritonal Dusts Off Dream Academy's Classic Hey Mamama

This might be winding the clock back farther than many of the viewers of this post, but y'all remember The Dream Academy's Life in a Northern Town from back in 1986? If you're drawing a blank check it below...


Yea you remember it because that tribal "Hey mamamama" chanting is addicting af. Now picture that over a melodic Tritonal beat. Now we're talking! Let's just say they dusted off the original and flipped it in a way that amplifies the good vibes while making it accessible to a generation of music lovers that missed the boat on the original. Hey Mamama is a great example of how electronic music is such a potent tool for re-upping classic tracks. The vocals aren't that much different from the original, but when you add in a few vibrant chord progressions, it becomes awesome in a whole new way. Do yourself a favor and head on down to iTunes or Spotify so you can add a bit of therapeautic chanting to your Monday work commute...#HeyMamama



Tritonal - Hey Mamama

"Only Luxury We Have is the Time"

Words can't explain how pumped I was to see the words "new Chiddy Bang track" today. Even better, they took the essence of Kid Cudi's Pursuit of Happiness and transformed it into Full Speed Ahead. Shoot you could even convince me that Cudi was the one singing the hook. Helped with a production assist from Paul Couture, there's plenty of slow bangin' bass to compliment the spit fire bars from Chiddy. It's a cool mix of melodic, sing-songy, and heavy. This is the type of breath of fresh air Hip Hop needs more of as it continues to lack the energy as a genre it did a decade ago. After taking five years off, it's looking like Chiddy and Xaphoon haven't missed a step. If more music from them is on the horizon, 2017 may not be as devoid of quality Hip Hop as I thought...#FullSpeedAhead

Chiddy Bang - Full Speed Ahead (prod by Paul Couture)

90s Flashback: MGK and Camila Do Fastball's Bad Things

As a daily purveyor of music, I've grown increasingly critical of artists when they decide to cover or sample songs. The years of music consumption has made me jaded of artists trying to make a name for themselves by piggy backing the success of others. In other words, it's so easy to take a noteworthy single, make a few changes and call it your own. There's an added level of respect given to original singles and that's the way it should be in my opinion.

All that being said, Machine Gun Kelly and Camila Cabello (of Fifth Harmony) knocked Fastball's Out of My Head sample out of the park on their new single, Bad Things. For those of you who grew up on 90s music, there's a thick slice of nostalgia that's ahead when you press play...

Back in 1998, that was everyone's favorite song, hands down. And to their credit, the duo of MGK and Camila did their part by weaving together a stellar Hip Hop ballad. Led by a hook that will lure you in from the start, you want to keep listening. The tempo was perfect for MGK's pitter-patter flow and if there's one thing he does well, it's heartfelt verses. Follow me over to Spotify to put it on repeat for a few laps, y'all...#BadThings

Machine Gun Kelly feat Camila Cabello - Bad Things

Sam Feldt Goes Tropical on R3HAB & Quintino's Freak

For starters, I hold Adina Howard's Freak in extremely high regard. It was one of my favorite 90s R&B songs because it was armed with an element of female sexual sassiness that had never been established in pop music. The fact that the original has now been mixed twice by well known EDM DJs is a whole lot of good news for us.

Let's start with the original Adina Howard version. Check it below for reference if you weren't a child of the 90s like me...
Nothing like that deep bass and those quirky 90s samples. Now fast forward to this year when R3HAB and Quintino took a stab at a more progressive house version of Freak...
Much more bubbly, sped up, and club worthy. Definitely a noteworthy effort from the two Spinnin' Records artists. But that's not the end of the story as fellow Spinnin' artist Sam Feldt decided it was his turn to give it a more tropical personality. Even though the laid back, mellow tropical vibes don't exactly fit with the original vibe of the track, the resulting remix ends up being interesting enough to warrant a few listens. The last part is your choice, you can either go with the new video for the remix or the Soundcloud stream...#ViewersChoice
R3HAB & Quintino - Freak (Sam Feldt Remix)

"I'm Free To Do What I Want and Have a Good Time"

Very few people can resurrect previous hits with a new spin like Pitbull. Some would knock him for his unoriginality, but I've always found myself on the admiration side of the fence when it comes to Mr. 305. This time he put his own spin on the Soup Dragons' I'm Free. Based on the psychedelic, low budget style of the video, you can probably guess it was from 1990...
Those of you who grew up in the MTV era should be feeling a bit nostalgic right now. But even if you're not, you've got to be at least mildly amused with what Pitbull was able to do to the original. He managed to put his own upbeat, party anthem flair on Freedom. There's not much new and novel about it, but if you like previous releases of his, you'll enjoy this one. With his 10th studio album, Climate Change, on the horizon, there are very few obstacles in his way toward yet another platinum album...#Freedom

"Move the Crowd When the Beat Goes Down"

Welp...I guess if there was anyone trying to say that The Chainsmokers weren't a big deal, they sort of lost that leg to stand on this week. I say that because a collaboration with Tiesto means you're officially no longer small potatoes. The best part about it you ask? It's that the song doesn't suck at all. In fact, it's one of those rare tracks that actually live up to the expectations and hype.

If you're like me, you listened to Split (Only U) and thought to yourself how incredibly familiar it sounded. That's because it is familiar...if you're an early 2000s R&B fan...

Shout out to 7 Aurelius for the original production that went much harder in the decks than your average R&B song. Who would have known a decade later it would be flipped into an EDM anthem and released by Tiesto's own record label, Musical Freedom? Enjoy this one at a high volume folks, there's no half steppin' on a track of this caliber...#Split

Tiësto & The Chainsmokers - Split (Only U)

Diplo & Sleepy Tom Don't Walk Away From the 90s

It's only a matter of time before modern artists begin really tapping into the potential of 90s R&B music. It really was a golden age for R&B and a decade that shaped the way I feel about music in general, so I've got a soft spot in my heart for the decade as a whole. Something tells me Diplo feels the same way because this week he managed to refresh an early 90s classic from Jade. Press play below to take a trip down memory lane with me on Don't Walk Away...

Be Right There utilizes the hook quite well and adds a bit of tempo to give it a modern feel. You wouldn't think that early 90s R&B would translate to bouncy Deep House, but Diplo and Sleepy Tom proved that it can be done. This one is targeted directly at the late 20s/early 30s audience and as someone who fits that demographic, I'm taking the bait. Plenty of ways to consume this one, so don't be bashful y'all...#BeRightThere

Diplo & Sleepy Tom - Be Right There

"It's Not Hard to See, the Girl is Mine"

Whoa whoa whoa, wait a minute, hol up! When did Flo Rida start dabbling in deep house grooves? Between he and Pitbull, I never know what to expect beyond delivering a beat that's going to make me want to dance. It just so happens that Flo's latest dance escapade sampled everyone's favorite duet back in 1998 between Brandy and Monica. Check the original video for reference...

There's a simplicity in the instrumental of Girl's Mine that's downright addicting. Similar to trance, the rhythms are so bouncy and delicious that you don't even pay attention to the lyrics. Sure the sample is a bit forced, but who cares, I just want to dance to this song. Maybe I'm a sucker for uptempo pop, but after a drink or two at the club you'd be shopping your new dance move to this beat...#DontLie

Update: Ah, so you know that initial surprised reaction about Flo Rida going all deep house? Yea, that might have been too good to be true. This isn't the first or last time Flo may have overstepped his bounds by riding the momentum of a hot new dance track. Below you can check out the original version of The Girl is Mine by 99 Souls. Gotta give credit where credit is due because there isn't much original about Flo Rida's version when you compare it to the original.

Flo Rida- Girl's Mine (Taken down at the request of the original artist)

99 Souls - The Girl is Mine

Vamos A La Playa With Milk N Cookies

No lie, I almost lost it tonight when I came across this remix. Long story short, there was a weekend a couple years back where all we listened to was Righeira's Vamos A La Playa from 1983. Despite being super dated, the track has the earworm element that embeds itself in your brain. Before you pass go, please press play below and succumb to the feel good rhythms...

Unbeknownst to me, Loona gave the original version a facelift a few years back. That is the track that Milk N Cookies remixed below with an EDM twist. I think the duo put it best by saying "listen to this when you are in warm weather with close friends getting hammered." Aye aye captain, I am picking up what you're putting down...#VamosALaPlaya

Loona - Vamos A La Playa (Milk N Cookies 2014 Remix)

Hardwell Makes Crisp, Excitable Dance Music

Now that electronic DJs are coming out of the woodwork on a daily basis, I'm finding it easier to appreciate quality EDM. Case in point Hardwell's new one Everybody Is In the Place. I didn't recognize it at the time, but evidently the vocals sampled on the track come from The Prodigy's Everybody In the Place, which was released about 22 years ago in 1992 on their first album Experience. Wait the 90s were two decades away? Man, that's how you know you're getting old. Check out the awesome non-HD visuals below...
I'd say Hardwell did the sample justice, as subtle as it may have been. At the very least, I appreciate that DJs are starting to sample more in electronic music. Maybe it's because I grew up on Hip Hop, but when someone can pull off a classic sample, it can really elevate a track. Regardless, Hardwell's crisp style packs a punch and needs to be added to your list of favorite EDM DJs...#EverybodyIsInThePlace

Hardwell - - Everybody Is In The Place (Original Mix)

Bobby Ray is Constantly on the Come Up

When B.O.B. puts his mind to it and makes soulful, thoughtful music, there aren't many on God's green earth who can compete with him. The most recent example of that is his church organ aided, take 'em to church anthem Get It. To put it frankly, the sample taken from Jimmy Cliff's Many Rivers To Cross provided an excellent canvas for Bobby Ray to assert himself on. Check the sample below...

The fact that B.O.B. is offering the track up for free leads me to believe that it isn't intended to be a lead single off an upcoming album. Still, it's a great listen because the combination of verses and uplifting vibe isn't something you hear everyday. Man, I hope there's a lot more of this to come from Bobby Ray in 2014...#GetIt

B.O.B. - Get It

"That Awful Sound, My Baby Shot Me Down"

Man, I'm at a bit of a loss with the track below. I'm a huge fan of Skylar Grey and almost as fond of David Guetta, but it's taking me a while to wrap my head around their remake of Cher's well-known track Bang Bang (Shot Me Down). For those of you like me who weren't even close to alive in 1966 when it was released, forgive me for the grainy black and white video I posted below...

As far as the remake is concerned, picking Skylar Grey to do the vocals probably wasn't a bad decision. In general, I like the ebb and flow of the dramatic vocals and the progressive house drops that follow. What I don't like is the extra minute of disorganized electronic madness at the beginning of the track. If you fast forward a minute, the track takes you on an entertaining dramatic roller coaster ride. Take that for what it's worth, but I'm still torn on whether or not they did the sample justice...#ShotMeDown

David Guetta feat Skylar Grey - Shot Me Down

"I Want To Thank You Heavenly Father"

Wow...not sure where the sound of this track came from, but I love it. The beat has a sophisticated, grown and sexy vibe to it, but don't think for a minute that means that Busta and Q-Tip didn't bring their A game to the party on their verses. The bubbly, rolling bassline will get your head nodding and the hook sampled from Alicia Meyer's I Want to Thank You breaks up the intensity of the verses well.

One word of caution, don't expect to hear much from Lil Wayne or Kanye on the track. They play a cameo role at best, which is fine because of how well the back and forth of the duet worked. Stay tuned for Busta's upcoming Extinction Level Event 2 album due out soon...#ELE2

Busta Rhymes feat Lil Wayne, Kanye West & Q-Tip - Thank You

Feelin' Good is How Flo Rida Feels

Somehow, some way, Flo Rida keeps finding ways to release music that I just can't help but post. True, the formula for his success hasn't changed much at all throughout the years, but his uptempo delivery and high quality beats he's able to rap over have been the model of consistency. On his newest effort, DJ Frank-E cooked up a dope beat that samples one of the most heavily sampled tracks in Hip Hop, Nina Simone's Feelin' Good. Check the original below for a refresh...

How I Feel is the third single (Tell Me When You're Ready, Can't Believe It) to come off Flo's upcoming album, The Perfect 10. Most artists would feel blessed to have three total singles on an album, but most artists are not Flo Rida. In other words, Perfect 10 is shaping up to be pretty awesome and headed toward front to back greatness...#HowIFeel

Flo Rida - How I Feel (DJ Frank-E)

"You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone"

Admittedly, I'm a sucker for nostalgic music. No matter who the artist is, I'm like a large mouth bass staring down a worm on a hook when an artist successfully samples a track that reminds me of a period in my life. With that in mind, Akon nailed the Phantom Planet sample of their hit California (below)...
Now that we're on the honesty bandwagon tonight, I'll cop to passively watching more than a few episodes of The OC back in the day. Even though they'll be reluctant to admit it, every man has that one show that they'll watch because their kid or girl or someone who holds some sort of power over them wants to watch it. The good news is, I get to relive it in a not as harsh way vicariously through Akon's sorrowful sing-along...#Memories

Akon - Wanted Man

"Look At Me, Look At Me, How Much Vanity You See"

Now that Wale's album has officially hit shelves and I've had a chance to take a few laps around it, I've found myself gravitating to a favorite in Vanity. The beat's piano backbone lays the foundation for Wale's more than skin deep introspective effort. The best part about it is the re-purposed Gary Jules Mad World sample (original below)...

I've always found it interesting when artists openly wax poetic about the reality of being famous. Lines in the track below like, "these broads jocking me is validating my conceit" are the introspective thoughts that give fuel to Vanity. I know to the Hip Hop outsider, you may feel like you need a big shovel to dig for meaning in most Hip Hop tracks, but if you choose to listen closely you might just find some thoughtful nuggets just below the surface. I'm gonna give a big Sample Justice thumbs up because Wale didn't even use the original sample. Instead, he flipped the sample and took it another original direction. Mad dap is in order for that and while on the topic of ordering, feel free an cop The Gifted while you're at it...#TheGifted

Wale - Vanity

Toro Y Moi Mixes Up Disclosure

A big reason why I write daily about music is to forecast what is coming in music so that I can somehow influence your opinion of new music that I enjoy. If I didn't have a vested interest in being right, I would probably post any old song that ended up in my mailbox daily. As a result, I pride myself on being on top of new stuff, but there are times when I'm like "man, I know this artist is dope, but I'm behind on his music." Case in point Toro Y Moi who has steadily developed an army of followers that I hope to soon join.

His latest creation is a remix of British electronic group Disclosure's track You & Me featuring Eliza Doolittle. For some context, below is the video for the original...

The original is probably more well suited for radio consumption, but if I was in the mood to cool out and listen to something that is smooth and relaxing, I'd go for the remix. If you aren't up on Toro y Moi, he's an graphic designer turned Indie/electropop singer, song-writer, producer who helped pioneer the Chillwave movement, which is more or less a proper name for looped synthpop. There are plenty of good reason why Toro was listed as one of the top 30 must see acts of 2013 SXSW. I know I'm going to be keeping tabs on him from here moving forward...#ToroYMoi

Disclosure feat Eliza Doolittle - You & Me (Toro y Moi remix)

Smooth EDM: Kill Paris - Baby Come Back

What do you get when you mix a timeless hit from the late 70s with new school EDM? You get a surprisingly smooth, refined mix of old and new thanks to the creativity of @KillParis. If you're thinking to yourself, I really like dance music and there is no chance I was alive back in 1978 when Player's song Baby Come Back was released, check the original below...

Mixing classic soul with Dubstep is not an easy thing to do, which is even more reason this will probably be a mainstay in my electronic playlists for the next few months...#BabyComeBack

Kill Paris - Baby Come Back