Audio/Video : The Halftime Show 18th Anniversary / Series Finale (March 2, 2016)
Wednesday night was the end of an incredible journey. The 18th anniversary and final show of Halftime. It featured live beats by Large Professor, Evil Dee, Marco Polo, DJ Skizz and some new unheard Pete Rock flavor, DJ routines from Rob Swift, Mista Sinista & Precision and WAY too many MCs to name (see pic below). Although I’ll still be doing my Rap Is Outta Control show on Sirius XM, Halftime was the baby of the family that is now grown up and moving out of the house. I did all I could do there and thought it was time to officially make it part of NYC radio history. I am sad, however, that the state of radio in NYC is where it’s at.
Outside of Jay Smooth I’m not sure if there are any remaining Hip Hop shows on the FM dial.
The 90’s were so important to us not only for the radio shows we grew up on and the type of music being made, but for the vibe and relationships that existed between artists, stores, labels….people. It really was a feeling in the air that doesn’t exist anymore (R.I.P. Fat Beats). Sure, there’s still good music being made which I play every week on RIOC, but there’s something about the aura that just isn’t there.
Much, much love to the Awesome Two, Red Alert, Marley Marl, Kevy Kev, Clark Kent, Pete Rock, Mr. Magic and a handful of others that laid the blueprint for us in the 80s.
Thanks to Stretch and Bobbito for being the first ones in NYC to allow me to get on their airwaves and start making a name for myself. And thanks to DJ Riz who I started Halftime with (along with Lynn Gonzalez) who used to let me tag along with him to BAU and once in a blue moon get on the wheels and mess around.
And to my Halftime crew past and prese….past, thank you all for seeing my vision of how a show should sound in NYC and adding your input to make it what it was. Riz, Lynn, Petey, Marz, Skizz, Navani, Soe, Zoo and our extended fam who held us down on numerous occasions, D-Stroy, Torae, JS-1, Ready Cee, Boogie Blind, PF Cuttin, Evil Dee, DP-One, Boo, Suce, Mr. Len and Photo Rob.
Now, here’s a shot from Wednesday night’s grand finale show covering the most artists at one time. photo by Rachel Winn.
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