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Although he may not be as talked about as his Detroit peers and fellow 3 Chairs collaborators Kenny Dixon Jr. and Theo Parrish, there’s no doubting Rick “The Godson” Wilhite’s position as one of the central characters in the city’s house music heritage. The record store was his first step along the way, and after learning the ropes of the vinyl industry via his job at Buy-Rite Music, he set about becoming a shop proprietor in his own right. The House Of Music was his first venture, and up until its closure late last year, he was the owner of Vibes New and Rare Music.

Though his work behind the counter may be a thing of the past, his work behind the mixing desk certainly isn’t. His sporadic sample-heavy singles for KDJ and most recently Stilove4music have become sought after slabs of wax, changing hands for serious amounts of money on sites like Discogs and eBay, yet fans looking to get a slice of Wilhite’s production talent will be able to do so at a much more reasonable rate when he drops his debut solo album in the coming months. The final string to his bow is his skill behind the decks, with his much-refined turntable technique working in tandem with an enviable knowledge of disco, house and techno. He’s also not one to shy away from sharing his wisdom, taking a pre-teen Kyle Hall aside to school him on the finer points of deep house.

Links:
http://www.residentadvisor.net/dj-page.aspx?id=4576
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Rick+Wilhite
http://www.myspace.com/rickthegodson

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Rahaan is not only a DJ, he’s the DJ’s DJ. Being a son of the Windy City, he was there, when House and the aftermath of Disco shook the city’s foundation. You know the name of the game: Trax Records, DJ International, Knuckles, Hardy, Warehouse, Muzic Box, Acid, Mr. Fingers and this was fresh. Rahaan got the mixing bug in 1988 and started out doing parties with the Chuck Brothers, before he took a break, moved to Wisconsin and collected records like a madman. ‘Rare like hence teeth”‘ could be a stamp on most of the things in his collection. Back in chicago, he got back on the club circuit again, playing various guest spots like ‘Soul In The Hole’ and a residence at the ‘Budda Lounge’. What got him recognized outside of his devoted fan base in Illinois, were his mixes for Deep House Page or Bring The Heat as well as his customized basement rocking Disco edits. Some of them made their way to the British island via Jiscomusic or KAT. While still cutting and slicing the tape, his unique skills brought him as far as Japan and to the world-renowned Southport Weekender.


Links
http://www.myspace.com/rahaan71
http://www.residentadvisor.net/dj-page.aspx?id=9091

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Nothing short of being the owner of the groundbreaking Stilove4music, Still Music and Past Due records, Jerome Derradji is also a world renowned Dj whose skills have often been compared to the best classic Detroit and Chicago Djs. Having held prestigious residencies at APT in NYC, in Chicago, Detroit and in Europe, Jerome is known for his precise and rare selection of Disco, House and Techno. His disco mix cd “The American Boogie Down” remains a reference worldwide for all disco aficionados while his remix of EWF “System Of Survival” (released on Stilove4music) was immediately compared to productions by Carl Craig and has been on rotation with Dj Harvey, Deetron and more …. it was also voted best edit of the year (2008) in Japan (!!). Still Music was featured as label of the month by Resident Advisor: “Straddling the blurry line between house, disco and soul, Chicago’s Still Music label group is one of the most vital labels operating today”

Links:
http://www.itstillmusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/thestillmusicrecordcompany
http://www.facebook.com/people/Jerome-Derradji/660761084

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From the sounds of old salsa, cumbia and merengue records emanating from his parents’ home stereo as a child to the jacking raw beats of early Chicago house which provided the soundtrack to his teen years, Hernan’s early exposure to the musical output of Chicago’s diverse cultural communities awakened within him a lifelong passion for music and movement. Throughout Hernan’s time at university and beyond, Chicago’s influential music scene & quality record stores fed his voracious appetite for electronic sounds of all sorts- industrial, musique concrète, IDM, film soundtracks- to complement the beckoning throb of Chicago’s house dancefloors. However, it was upon his exposure to the work of artists such as Baby Ford & Ricardo Villalobos that Hernan discovered the sound which possessed the darker character he sought from other genres, but retained the enticing warmth & sexiness which he had previously found solely in deep house.

Over a decade later, this sound still resonates within him and drives Hernan to ignite floors across Chicago’s underground dance scene with his tasteful selection of current and classic productions. Hernan’s sets feature a focused attention to detail as he synthesizes engaging dialogues between tracks, all the while maintaining a sensual & propulsive energy to captivate the dancefloor. The percussive afro-caribbean pulse which held such presence throughout his formative years continues to serve as inspiration, flavored with Hernan’s touches of mood, a thick low-end, and the engaging polyrhythmic musical approach of his Latin background.

An established fixture of Chicago’s thriving techno/house scene both on the decks and on the dancefloor, Hernan continues to play at numerous underground events as well as at high-profile venues including Smartbar, Sonotheque, Lava, Vision, and Lumen. He has also played alongside a diverse range of leading talent, whose names include Akufen, Derek Plaslaiko, Dave Aju, among others.

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Hello. OneTwenty here, and it’s our pleasure to meet you.

We’re a handful of Chicago-based heads culled from an assortment of creative disciplines working in concert with a purpose that is perhaps best illustrated by the following simple formula:

GM + GP + L = 120

(G=Good, M=Music, P=People, L=Location)
Translation: Good music coupled with the right amount of people in one location equates to one helluva party… a party that we’ve dubbed OneTwenty.

We’ve been working on putting together our Round One event, and we’ll have an announcement coming very soon. In the interim, please enjoy this old Ron Hardy mix, courtesy of Bill Hardy and the fine people at DHP.

Ron Hardy, Compliments of Bill Hardy, Chicago

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