Waajeed’s 2022 long player, Memoirs of Hi-Tech Jazz, was an aural love letter to his hometown of Detroit; an amalgam of the city’s history, coalescing the personal, political and, of course, musical past. From the Motown soul assembly line to J Dilla’s musically dense Hip-Hop to The Stooges’ proto-Punk to the birth of Techno, the music of the Motor City has spread across the globe inspiring countless artists who in turn went on to create their own forms and genres. Emulating this movement and transmutation, the Memoirs of Hi-Tech Jazz Remixes 12” sees artists from three continents repurpose elements from across the LP, transforming them into productions stamped with their own trademark styles whilst retaining the spirit of each original: the UK’s Mark Broom loops sections of Right Now while speeding up the BPM for a classic UK-style techno remix; Ghana-born Yazzus takes on The Ballad of Robert O’Bryant adding a surprising number of twists and turns for a five-and-a-half-minute piece; Australians Jensen Interceptor and Assembler Code close the 12” out with their take on the album’s title and opening track neatly closing the loop, bringing us full circle to the start of the LP. More

Heralding the release of Memoirs of Hi-Tech Jazz, the forthcoming album by Detroit-born-and-based artist, Waajeed, the 12” features further examinations of the track’s motifs by the vaunted Detroit collective, Underground Resistance, Zambian producer SHE Spells Doom, and a special reimagining by Waajeed himself featuring live drums. Alongside the LP version the three remixes further explore the links between Techno and Jazz, styles both founded on African traditions that make commentary on the present but are always oriented to potential hereafter. On the People Mover Remix, Waajeed enlists the talents of Zo!, Tall Black Guy, Michele Manzo, and more to explore one extreme of the track’s musical heritage. Syncopated drums, driven by a full and bright snare drum, firmly place this version in the sphere of contemporary Jazz emanating from Detroit and cities across the US. Coming from an album inspired by revolutionary efforts against oppression in Detroit and in Black locales around the world it is entirely fitting that Underground Resistance should provide their take on Motor City Madness. UR’s Mike Banks follows the lead of the original’s melange of genres. By thickening the bassline, peppering the mix with extra brass from the Mad Brass Horn Section, and adding strings courtesy of Six Mile Strings, UR further explore the dynamic intersection of music, history, and geography. SHE Spells Doom closes the remix package with his second release on Tresor after his contribution to 2021’s Tresor30 compilation. The Zambian artist trims Motor City Madness down to the bones of the brass section and infuses them with a gqom beat, simultaneously referring to Jazz and Techno’s deepest roots in Africa, as well as suggesting where they might be headed in the future. More

Inspired by revolutionary efforts against oppressive hegemonies in Detroit, and in Black locales around the world, Memoirs of Hi-Tech Jazz is a sound score evocative of that resistance. It is also a reminder that although violence and injustice looms, it is not the only story: we are much more than what oppresses us. The album celebrates Black leisure and play; the mundane joys that persist in spite of the depleting realities of the world.

Movement, and the very mobility of the car specifically is integral to Memoirs of Hi Tech Jazz. Timed perfectly to match the duration of a round trip drive from Underground Music Academy in the North End, to Detroit’s island park, Belle Isle - the album is undoubtedly best experienced while driving.

That journey signifies the transition from labor to pleasure: from the neighborhood of the Techno Museum in North End to an outdoor park that has long been a destination for Black Detroiters to cookout, park their boats, play spades, and listen to local music.

Memoirs of Hi-Tech Jazz embodies the feeling this place engenders—a reprieve from the midwestern work ethic, and a reminder to ground in the pleasures of your body and the land. More

Repress!

Following on from a string of acclaimed EPs on Planet E and his own label, DIRT TECH RECK boss Waajeed presents his first solo studio album, From The Dirt, due November 9th. This LP will feature 3 pieces of vinyl, manufactured and pressed in his hometown Detroit.

In order to understand Waajeed’s artistic profile, it helps to look at the musical history which informs it. As a child of Detroit who grew up just as encapsulated by hip-hop and soul as he was techno and house, he is driven by a commitment to finding the sweet spot between these paradigms. In a city full of dualities, his productions are underpinned by an inherent awareness of both sides of the coin.

From co-founding seminal hip-hop act Slum Village alongside the late J Dilla and running two of his own labels - Bling47 and DIRT TECH RECK - to producing leftfield soul as the frontman of Platinum Pied Pipers, and releasing collaborative records with Theo Parrish and Mad Mike Banks, his career as an artist has been varied to say the least. This manifests itself gloriously on From The Dirt, in which funk, soul, house, and techno play equal parts across ten dancefloor constructions. Gritty basslines are offset with glistening melodies and heartfelt lyrics, whilst shuffling percussion drives steadily forward. Vocals play an important role throughout, ‘I Ain’t Safe ft. Ideeyah’, ‘Things About You ft. Asante & Zo!’, ‘Too Afraid ft. Lulu’ and the meditative power of first single ‘Strength ft. Ideeyah’. Drum patterns vary between angular, funky and hypnotic soulful house - all with carefully mapped out cycles brandishing an inimitable rhythmic flair with big basslines like his current single, "Power In Numbers".

‘Growing up in the D, I spent Monday thru Thursday in the studio with Slum Village. Friday and Saturday nights we partied all night to Techno and early Sunday morning I went to church with my pastor. This is what I sound like. This is the sound of Detroit. This is From the Dirt.’ More

Repress!

Waajeed is proud to present ‘Strength’, a cathartic EP on his own imprint, DIRT TECH RECK. For this four-track package he’s enrolled three Detroit natives to collaborate; Ideeyah provides soulful vocals whilst Jon Dixon and Jay Daniel offer two diverse remixes. A Detroit dream team, if you will.

The title track is a radiant, melodic groover that looks to the sky for inspiration. Ideeyah’s lyrics battle with self-doubt, searching for solace in the harmonies around them, yet her vocals exude pure power. For his own ‘String Mix’, Waajeed elevates the delicate sentiment of the original to a sun-drenched dose of uplifting house. More

01. 14Kt – We Out Chea
02. Black Loops – Higher
03. Tall Black Guy – Coffee Room
04. Patrice Scott – The Detroit Upright
05. Scott Diaz – We Reminisce
06. Rocco Rodamaal – Someday (Brian Tappert
Rework)
07. Doc Link – Jackin Jazzy
08. Ninetoes – Stand Up
09. Sergio Fernandez – Urano Beatz
10. D-Love Muzic – Celestrial (Club Mix)
11. Damon Bell feat. Camille Safiya – Mermaid Blues
12. Roddy Rod – Overbite
13. Matthew Law – Minimariddim
14. Joss Moog – 196
15. Teflon Dons – Gonna Tell Me
16. LADYMONIX – WhoRU
17. Harry Romero – Revolution (Deep In Jersey
Extended Mix)
18. DJ Rimarkable – I’m In Trouble
19. Lux Groove – Setup
20. Preslav & C.Scott – Achey Brakey
For the third instalment of Detroit Love’s acclaimed mix series, none other than Dirt Tech Reck label boss and Slum Village co-founder
Waajeed steps up for a 20-track mix paying tribute to the margins of Detroit and beyond More

A1 - Roddy Rod – Overbite
A2 - 14Kt – We Out Chea
B1 - D-Love Muzic – Celestrial (Club Mix)
B2 - Teflon Dons – Gonna Tell Me
C1 - LADYMONIX – WhoRU
C2 - DJ Rimarkable – I’m In Trouble
D1 - Matthew Law – Minimariddim
D2 - Damon Bell feat. Camille Safiya – Mermaid Blues
For the third instalment of Detroit Love’s acclaimed mix series, none other than Dirt Tech Reck label boss and Slum Village co-founder
Waajeed steps up for a 20-track mix paying tribute to the margins of Detroit and beyond More

Echoes of this summer’s ‘Shango’ still shimmer through systems as Detroit’s Waajeed continues to make good on his promise: to “put paint where it ain’t.” After years of soul, funk and hip-hop explorations as a founding member of the Platinum Pied Pipers (among many other innovative escapades) and, most recently, a soulful remix of Amp Fiddler on Kenny Dixon’s Mahogany Music, Waajeed is building on the fresh line of house grooves he commenced this summer. His first pedigree dancefloor tracks in almost 20 years, he taps directly into the source and builds with his own soulful bricks. It’s working, too; DJ-wise he’s playing alongside Moodyman, Mr. Scruff and Carl Craig this fall, while ‘Shango’ has enjoyed heavyweight support by The Black Madonna, Carl Craig, Jackmaster, Gilles Peterson and many notable selectors. More

Echoes of this summer’s ‘Shango’ still shimmer through systems as Detroit’s Waajeed continues to make good on his promise: to “put paint where it ain’t.” After years of soul, funk and hip-hop explorations as a founding member of the Platinum Pied Pipers (among many other innovative escapades) and, most recently, a soulful remix of Amp Fiddler on Kenny Dixon’s Mahogany Music, Waajeed is building on the fresh line of house grooves he commenced this summer. His first pedigree dancefloor tracks in almost 20 years, he taps directly into the source and builds with his own soulful bricks. It’s working, too; DJ-wise he’s playing alongside Moodyman, Mr. Scruff and Carl Craig this fall, while ‘Shango’ has enjoyed heavyweight support by The Black Madonna, Carl Craig, Jackmaster, Gilles Peterson and many notable selectors. More