The Witzard

It is now widely known that Tuxedo is a Nu-Funk/R&B duo consisting of one-time Stones Throw crooner Mayer Hawthorne and super-producer Jake One ; however, at one point in time, surrounding the release of their 2013 Tuxedo EP , Tuexedo 's members' identities were largely shrouded in mystery. I personally believe, that Tuxedo's nom de plume was, initially, a bit of a lighthearted tongue-in-cheek jab at Justin Timberlake's similarly-titled/sounding "Suit & Tie" single with JAY-Z. Tuxedo have since released three full-length albums: Tuxedo , Tuxedo II, and most recently, III AKA Tuxedo III , as well as a slew of Funk-tastic remixes, stand-alone singles, and Yuletide nuggets. For their latest single from III , "Toast 2 Us," Mayer Hawthorne & Jake One have enlisted frequent Stones Throw collaborator and multi-talented director / photographer / editor / creative / VFX artist Ross Harris . Tuxedo & Ross Harris previously collaborated ...

"The sounds of Shuggie Otis & Michael McDonald inspired a man to write a song. A couple of Mondays later, that song inspired an identity. The name is Otis McDonald . The mission? Good music;" that man was "producer, engineer, drummer, singer, bassist, guitarist, and keyboardist extraordinaire" Joe Bagale , now, better known as Otis McDonald . I was fortunate enough to grow up with parents who always had a phenomenal record collection: Billy Joel, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, New Jersey "staple" Bruce Springsteen, Simon & Garfunkel, Lionel Richie, and, of course, The Doobie Brothers & Michael McDonald . So, I feel as though I "get" it... The Funk, that is! While I very much enjoy all of the aforementioned artists from my parents' record collection, I'll readily admit, Michael McDonald has the voice of a silky smooth angel. Nu-Funk sensation Otis McDonald self-released a whopping 30 tracks for free on YouTu...

The Witzard previously deemed Júníus Meyvant as " Iceland 's Answer to Aloe Blacc -helmed Soul-Funk Revival" and his debut, Floating Harmonies , even topped The Witzard 's Best of 2016 Countdown: A Genre-defying List of 30 Albums, EP's & Mixtapes Worth Re-visiting (or Ch-checking Out) Before 2017 year-end list. At the time, I compared Meyvant's style to, and I quote myself, "an Icelandic Rod Stewart backed by a Mark Ronson -produced rendition of Smokey Robinson & The Miracles or even something to the effect of critically-acclaimed Stones Throw New-Wop crooner, Mayer Hawthorne ." Floating Harmonies was nothing short of phenomenal and now, Júníus Meyvant has returned with his proper follow-up, across the boarders. Since, the release of his critically-acclaimed debut, Meyvant has quietly unleashed a number of bonus tracks, left-overs, and B-sides including: "Mr. Minister Great," "Honey Babe, Don't Be Late," an...

"One of the running themes in Eddie Romero can be heard in the opening and closing tracks of the album, when I rhyme "shall I croon or shall I spit?" Basically, I wanted to play with the image of an old school crooner, a slow jam king, that all of a sudden, flips his ballad on its ear and starts rhyming all fast and frenetic. On the first single, "Up to You" this idea is in full effect; to me, I feel like the melody is really sweet and romantic, but I wanted to contrast this with a fast and somewhat hectic beat that hits hard and could be equally at home with Big Daddy Kane rhyming over it," Steven "Sulu" Mallorca wrote within a recent statement included along with my previous Sulu & Excelsior write-up. Mallorca's unique sound has been fittingly categorized as "Johnny Mathis meets Mos Def meets Stevie Wonder meets Nat King Cole," which I would almost equate to something along the lines of Mayer Hawthorne meets Eric B. & R...

"One of the running themes [throughout] Eddie Romero can be heard in the opening and closing tracks of the album, when I rhyme: "shall I croon or shall I spit?" Basically, I wanted to play with the image of an old school crooner, "a slow jam king," that all of a sudden flips his ballad on its ear and starts rhyming all fast and frenetic. On the first single, "Up to You" this idea is in full effect; to me, I feel like the melody is really sweet and romantic, but I wanted to contrast this with a fast and somewhat hectic beat that hits hard and could be equally at home with Big Daddy Kane rhyming over it." - Steve Mallorca (Sulu & Excelsior) Eddie Romero by Sulu and Excelsior New York -based trumpet player, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, producer, rapper, and film-maker Steven E. Mallorca 's Sulu & Excelsior Facebook page self-describes his music as " Johnny Mathis meets Mos Def meets Stevie Wonder meets Nat King Cole ...

"The PVD Breaks [Vol. 1-2] project started as a way for me to hone my skills mixing live drums in my modest Jersey City studio. The goal was to achieve the sound of classic drum breaks using what I had at my disposal, recording different kits in different rooms, with a variety of mics and mic placements, and really taking it a step further during the mixing process to differentiate one breakbeat from the next," Redefinition Records -deemed "ultra-talented drummer, composer, producer, and bandleader" Pat Van Dyke wrote within a recent emailed statement sent to The Witzard . "I always wanted to release the [2010-12] project on vinyl so that producers, DJ's, turntablists, and beat-makers could really manipulate the music in a variety of ways... as they would an open drum break found in the context of an old record. When Redefinition Records hit me up, I was excited to work with a label who’s had such a long run of quality releases with artists like K-...

" Westman Islands singer-songwriter Júníus Meyvant [Unnar Gísli Sigurmundsson] has recently caused big waves in Scandinavia after being the star of the Icelandic Music Awards -winning Best Newcomer and Best Song , as well as being nominated for Best Male Singer and Best Song this year," read the opening of Mystic Sons' "Neon Experience" -accompanying press release. While his music has already been compared to the works of "Wake Me Up" Funkateer Aloe Blacc , Ben Howard, Lucy Rose , Benjamin Francis Leftwich, and Graffiti6 , I would personally liken Meyvant's unique throwback sound to that of an Icelandic Rod Stewart backed by a Mark Ronson -produced rendition of Smokey Robinson & The Miracles or even something to the effect of critically-acclaimed Stones Throw New-Wop crooner, Mayer Hawthorne . Ahead of his forthcoming July LP, Floating Harmonies , Júníus Meyvant has honed in on a trademark sound that's been described as a rath...

" Happy Holidays , everyone. All the best Christmas songs were written by Jews , and Chanukah songs suck. This is my favorite Christmas tune, sung over the Vincent Guaraldi instrumental," New-Wop crooner Andrew Mayer "Hawthorne" Cohen wrote in a particularly tongue-in-cheek gentile-slamming 2010 mini- Stones Throw press release accompanying his sparse "Christmas Time Is Here" Peanuts -assisted cover. Just a few mere years later, Hawthorne and his Disco-Funkateer partner-in-crime, Jake-One quietly unveiled their first slice of post- Tuxedo Funk EP era material; a jittery groove-soaked rendition of Paul McCartney & Wings' 1979 Synth-Rock yuletide favorite, "Wonderful Christmastime." Now, just days ahead of the soon forthcoming 2015-16 holiday season, Tuxedo have unwrapped a completely original, retro-futuristic holiday standard titled "Holiday Love." It appears exclusively within Amazon Music 's recent holi...

"We're dropping a 12" of Tuxedo remixes this summer. Here's one from Jean Tonique , remixing Tuxedo 's "The Right Time," Stones Throw wrote within a mini-press release uploaded this past May; preceeded by a handful of unofficially released remixes haphazardly shared on Tuxedo 's Soundcloud page including Funk -laden re-works from the likes of Nick Catchdubs , Dimitri from Paris, Flaunt Edwards (resident DJ J. Rocc ), Kaytranada, and Tonique. Following a set of unexpected delays, Stones Throw finally unleashed Tuxedo: The M+M Mixes back in mid-September. Mayer Hawthorne & Jake-One recruited self-described "original disco don dada" John Morales , who previously mixed Tuxedo 's critically-acclaimed debut, to painstakingly edit together a 12" collection of 80's Classic -stylized remixes; "I started to do my edits using the pause button on a Teac cassette, [then] purchased a Sony reel-to-reel. It was hard work, w...

" DOOM 's verse was [an] interesting one. DOOM 's concept was that it's a text message. He text messages me while I'm not home, so he comes to my house anyway and starts borrowing all kinds of sh*t, you know, villain-style," veteran Oxnard -bred emcee MED (aka Medaphoar) revealed about his recent sample-heavy collaboration with fellow West Coast emcee Blu , prolific Stones Throw producer Madlib , and masked rhyming supper-villain MF DOOM , "Knock Knock." "I was like, 'what the f*ck is that?' So, there's this whole verse about him going to my house, drinking my beers, [and] going through my DVD's. It's so hilarious and genius," MED ecstatically continued. MED Blu Madlib , as they've been collectively referred to as of late, first linked up on MED -curated Bang Ya Head 3 label comp. cut, "Your Life" produced by Blu 's Below The Heavens collaborator, Exile . Madlib was almost accidentally broug...

Not trying to brag here whatsoever, but I've been on the Mayer Hawthorne New-Wop "bandwagon" since day one; I can remember seeing him on what I believe was his first tour behind A Strange Arrangement (2009) at First Unitarian Church in South Philly . Mayer Hawthorne & The County (which then, still included Topher Mohr ) essentially played a church basement to a room full of colorfully diverse concert-goers: Hip-Hop heads, "preppy" kids decked out in suits and ties — much like my buddy Brad and I, Indie Rock hipsters, and a handful of displaced Punk Rockers . J Dilla 's right-hand man, DJ Houseshoes opened the night's show with a barrage of white people-friendly Hip-Hop classics including Dilla , A Tribe Called Quest, Jaylib , and "I don't know why the f*ck I'm f*ckin' with you" (which distinctively sticks out ha). After the concert, I immediately bolted back to my car to grab my pseudo-alligator skin A Strange Arrang...

"I just emailed [Peanut Butter Wolf] : "Would you like to go record shopping?" And I couldn't believe it, but he wrote back and said: "Sure." So, his show [in Austin ] happened to be the night of my prom, so I took my date to his show, her name was Cindy Huckabee . I took her to the show and I met Wolf and was still wearing my tux and we just kind of hung out for the next few days," James Pants lamented to Red Bull Music Academy concerning his first chance meeting with Stones Throw label-head, Peanut Butter Wolf . Pants' debut album, Welcome (2008), which garnered famous fans such as Tyler, The Creator , Gary Wilson, and Mayer Hawthorne , more or less helped spearhead what I'd loosely refer to as Stones Throw 's post- Jaylib "outsider artists" movement. James Pants' first album in four years, Savage , was reportedly "inspired by Martin Denny flourishes, royalty-free breakbeats, Gary Wilson , and Hamburg 's ...

" Tuxedo is Mayer Hawthorne & Jake-One . The mysterious Flaunt Edwards (AKA J.Rocc ) has taken their track "Do It" to his chopping block, and here's what emerged;" Not entirely unlike his Stones Throw label mates Madlib , Quakers, 7 Days of Funk , and Folerio, J.Rocc secretly moonlights as Disco-Funk -indebted DJ, Flaunt Edwards . Although, his sparse alternate discography only includes a few highly sought-after releases: Flaunt Edwards Was Here , a smooth 5-track collection of Soundcloud -issued edits and two seemingly untitled 7-12"s on Puff Puff Records (2013). "Do It" (Flaunt Edwards Edit) marks J.Rocc 's first thinly-veiled remix creation unleashed following a nearly two year-long break. It's a Funk -drenched extended edit of the premier pseudo-single from Mayer Hawthorne & Jake-One 's Tuxedo Funk EP/Tuxedo 's "debut album, [which] will be released on Stones Throw a month from today, March 3, 2015....

"We always wondered what the original sample was for Snoop [Dogg] 's "Ain't No Fun (If the Homies Can't Have None). " Since we couldn't figure it out, we decided we would make it," Tuxedo gloated in a recent Stones Throw statement coinciding with their first non- Tuxedo Funk EP single, "Number One." Mayer Hawthorne & Jake-One previously unleashed their pre- Tuxedo "inspiration" mixtapes , Shoot The Duck and AR Music , on which they forged the group's underlying Disco-Funk backbone. " Tuxedo' s [material] has been nothing short of top-shelf Boogie for the two-steppers, thus far... the sophisticated strutting is back and in full-effect, as the duo lets loose their latest joint, "Number One,'" okayplayer artistically lamented upon the track's release. It's a smooth synth-laden Disco-Funk track creation that doesn't sound entirely unlike something Snoop Dogg would rap over; ak...

" Tuxedo Xmas jam dropping for all my gentiles (Santa emoji)," @MayerHawthorne Tweeted in the wee hours of the morning, preceding his newly unmasked Disco-Funk duo's yuletide single. "Happy Holidays from Tuxedo . Original by some guy named Paul McCartney ," reads the Soundcloud description scribed beneath "Wonderful Christmastime." While most of us have known it since day one, about two years ago, Hawthorne and producer buddy Jake-One just recently revealed themselves as Tuxedo , along with their self-titled Stones Throw -backed album announcement. Jake-One manages to keep the majority of the former Beatles' holiday track intact, but adds a little more Disco-Funk /kazoo-fueled Hip-Hop swing to "Wonderful Christmastime;" while Mayer Hawthorne delivers his now signature buttery smooth New-Wop vocals, without disgracing McCartney's arrangement and even appends a couple Prince -level high notes, for good measure. Now, mind ...

It's been widely speculated since their mysterious 3-song Tuxedo Funk EP drop that illusive Disco-Funk duo Tuxedo were in fact composed of New-Wop crooner Mayer Hawthorne and his producer buddy, Jake-One . It's also been a sort of "music biz" insider joke since day one that Tuxedo 's name itself was a discrete, yet tasteful, jab at Justin Timberlake 's then just-released "Suit & Tie" and apparent assimilation of Hawthorne's whole old-school-meets-new-school Doo-Wop shtick he's adopted in recent years. "The Tuxedo collaboration began with an exchange of mixtapes back in 2006. The fruits of a long-standing kinship were three tracks that mysteriously showed up on Internet doorsteps nearly two years ago. In between personal projects, these three tracks became a full album's-worth of Tuxedo ," Stones Throw exuberantly wrote in a December 1st album press release. " [Tuxedo] are descendants of the one-word moniker ...

" Tuxedo [first] emerged last year with three tracks of smooth, synth-heavy Disco-Funk , and accompanied by no information whatsoever about the group except a greeting – " Tuxedo is here! Stay classy," Stones Throw wrote in an unannounced Tuxedo -centric post Wednesday afternoon (the former label home of New-Wop crooner Mayer Hawthorne ). The 2-pieces' former download-able Tuxedo Funk EP featured vocal effects that sound suspiciously similar to those of Hawthorne, atop rumored Funk -drenched production work crafted by veteran beatsmith, Jake-One . Mayer Hawthorne 's quick milli-second cameo as a valet within Tuxedo 's latest "Do It" video, would seemingly add a little "fuel to the fire." While it's far from solid full-proof confirmation, I recently discovered a Nissan Murano commercial within the depths of YouTube , which features usual suspects Mayer Hawthorne & Jake-One , billed as Tuxedo , performing "So Good" ...

Even though I've been an avid Stones Throw record collector for about 10 or so years now, I still managed to learn a lot of interesting facts and tidbits from their Kickstarter -funded, Jonah Hill -approved documentary, Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton . For example: Aloe Blacc 's HBO -backed "I Need a Dollar" nearly saved the label, Peanut Butter Wolf was childhood friends with Stones Throw employees Jeff Jank and Steve Helmer (aka Baron Zen), Kanye and Roots bandleader ?uestlove are fervent supporters of the prolific label, the years following J Dilla 's untimely death are generally regarded as Stones Throw 's "post-Hip-Hop" phase, etc. It's funny because while I'm pretty familiar with Stones Throw 's ever-growing label roster, I noticed a few names through out Our Vinyl Weighs a Ton that even I didn't recognize; Royal Kush , extraterrestrial songstress Diva , and righteous Punk band The Cliftons in particular. This past Tues...

While I wouldn't exactly go as far as to automatically mislabel Har Mar Superstar 's most recent album, Bye Bye 17 as "Blue-Eyed Soul" or anything resembling lazy new age Neo-Soul genre tags, frontman Sean Tillmann probably owes more to guys like Justin Timberlake , Mayer Hawthorne, and Robin Thicke than he would probably ever willingly like to admit. Tillmann's latest music video/single was directed by frequent Strokes collaborator Warren Fu , who's previously worked with long-time frontman Cult Records founder Julian Casablancas ; at it's core, "Restless Leg" is a charming, yet vaguely disturbing video centered around an interesting man-on-puppet pseudo-love triangle, which was co-directed by contained Viva La Puppet puppeteer Michelle Zamora . No matter how you may feel about a little tasteful man-on-puppet action, Bye Bye 17 is a very easily accessible album, chock-full of white boy Soul-Funk/R&B; something to the effect of mid...

While chances are kinda slim that this was recorded all at once (but you never really know with Stones Throw ), Rappcats gave cyber-birth to an amazing-sounding MED, Blu, Mayer Hawthorne & Madlib track, "The Buzz" around 12-1am Tuesday-Wednesday morning. Not unlike The Burgundy EP , MED & Blu share vocal duties, Madlib produced the beat, and Hawthorne's relegated to the buttery smooth hook; an unreleased Dâm-Funk track will also appear on flip Side B. The Buzz 12" EP will include two vocal tracks, bonus beat, instrumentals, and a cappella. It's currently available for pre-order today (November 5th) at either Stones Throw or Fat Beats . Let's talk about the sheer talent Stones Throw managed to wrangle yup for "The Buzz:" prolific underground king Madlib chopped up a beautiful Boom-Bap -infused Soul sample, the label's former Blue-Eyed Soul crooner Mayer Hawthorne on the hook, and MED & Blu , two of the most talented a...