KCRW Exclusive: All 45’s Guest DJ Set from J Rocc!

Written by
J Rocc
J Rocc and his 45’s by Anthony Valadez (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)

You ever see those videos of DJs standing around, having a smoke and just hanging?

This might be the end of the era where the DJ had to match beats based on feeling, rhythm and foot taps. I see it weekly sometimes. And there is nothing wrong with it. You adapt or you fade.

But DJs like J Rocc are of a different cloth.

Constantly moving and thinking 3 steps ahead. What he does – physically – is impressive. You are just as entertained sonically as you are visually as his head bobs and weaves along the bass line.

Playing 45’s (especially during a DJ set) requires lots of focus. Putting the needle right into the groove of that one special part of the song (referred to as “the break”) and then on the other turntable playing the same record and going back forth on the break is something special. It requires practice and patience.

There is also something special about the sound and frequency to a 45.

Music is played back at the right mix as it was recorded. The low end (bass) is always warmer on record versus what you hear on an MP3. DJ’s like Biz Markie, Breakbeat Lou, Stones Throw fabel founder Peanut Butter Wolf and J Rocc are more than just selectors but actual historians who collect these artifacts and play them with skill.

J Rocc stopped by with Wolf for an ALL 45’s DJ set on my show which you can hear below. Check out a behind-the scenes interview and more photos here.

My favorite 45 is actually a white label which means it’s not an official release but something that someone pressed up under an alias to avoid getting caught and having to pay money for the usage of the track.

It’s a live demo version of Michael Jackson’s “Working Day And Night” that I purchased at a record shop in Amsterdam a few years back.

You can hear MJ yelling at Tito for playing the shakers. You hear MJ humming parts that are yet to be written and its just 4 minutes of magic.

Even if you’re not a collector, you can appreciate the art of 45’s — and the DJs who play them — at a show at the Echoplex on November 23 called Ultimate Breaks and Beats, a vinyl-only DJ throw down featuring all of the artists listed above.

Buy tickets here and watch J Rocc in action at KCRW’s studio below.

My favorite 45 is actually a white label which means it’s not an official release but something that someone pressed up under an alias to avoid getting caught and having to pay money for the usage of the track.

It’s a live demo version of Michael Jackson’s “Working Day And Night” that I purchased at a record shop in Amsterdam a few years back.

You can hear MJ yelling at Tito for playing the shakers. You hear MJ humming parts that are yet to be written and its just 4 minutes of magic.

Even if you’re not a collector, you can appreciate the art of 45’s — and the DJs who play them — at a show at the Echoplex on November 23 called “Ultimate Breaks and Beats“, a vinyl-only DJ throw down featuring all of the artists listed above.

Buy tickets here and watch J Rocc in action at KCRW’s studio below.