![]() ![]() ![]() “Heroes and Villains set us up with (Atlanta-based rap production team) FKi (famed for Iggy Azalea’s “Work” and Post Malone’s “White Iverson,” among many hits), who introduced us to DJ Spinz (credits with Future, YG, Tyga and more). “Getting to come to Atlanta and work with was huge,” says J2K. “Running with it” included Flosstradamus eventually hitting trap’s “ancestral” home of Atlanta via an introduction to the city’s finest names by (Atlanta-based dance DJ/producers) Heroes and Villains. Because of trap’s popularity, we noticed we started getting more gigs. Guys like Baauer and RL Grime had their own lanes, and everyone was generally doing their own version of what they thought was. “Flosstradamus had been in the DJ scene for awhile, but wasn’t a part of a defined scene or anything,” he says. J2K remembers other producers and current trap stars like Baauer initially sending tracks like “Harlem Shake” to a Meanwhile, producers worldwide were showing an interest in the burgeoning dance genre. Trap’s initial spread was viral and ultra-quick. I mean, Lex Luger put out a sample pack and that’s still the basis for what a lot of trap and EDM producers are using.” As far as with the trap samples, there weren’t that many sample packs out there at the time. “So, we started taking the tracks that Lex Luger was doing with the main beat and blending it with like, what John Dahlback was doing with his buildups and drops. We banged it out really quickly, and it’s so minimal because all we wanted to do was make a rap beat out of the original.”Ĭurt Cameruci, the other half of the duo and also known as Autobot, further breaks down the theory behind Flosstradamus’ early trap hits. We’d been playing the original track in our sets, and we were both like, ‘it’d be amazing to hear this over a half-time track. We were taking our samples from electronic pop and hardstyle records that we were feeling.” Regarding the now SoundCloud-infamous remix, J2K continues, “we attacked our ‘Original Don’ remix like we were making a rap beat. Everything we were making for rappers had a Southern influence. Trap was only understood in the hip-hop context. J2K says, “when we made the ‘Original Don’ remix, trap wasn’t really a ‘thing’ yet. Upon being introduced to Major Lazer’s thumping Dutch house-flavored single “Original Don,” a spark of inspiration hit the tandem and EDM was unwittingly on the precipice of a turnt up future. However, by 2010, Flosstradamus (like many current top trap-as-EDM names) were at a crossroads as DJ/producers, and were as likely to be found spinning sets as being in the studio making half-time tempo bass-laden productions for rappers. Similar to Flosstradamus, DJs like Diplo and Low Budget at Diplo’s pre-Mad Decent head honcho days at the Hollertronix parties in Philadephia, pre-moombahton Dave Nada at Taxlo in Baltimore, and pre-Fool’s Gold Records A-Trak and Nick Catchdubs, were among many artists favoring proto-trap Southern rap productions alongside synth-pop and indie “bloghouse” hits in their DJ sets. It was mainly Southern hood rap (think Memphis’ Three Six Mafia and Atlanta’s Gucci Mane), ’90s hits and R&B.” “My role as one of the openers was to play rap in an ironic sense at those parties. There were Yeah Yeah Yeahs remixes, Soulwax and that kinda stuff was popular.” Young says. “When I first started DJing, it was 2003-2004 and indie dance parties were all of the rage in Chicago. ![]() Josh “J2K” Young - one half of Flosstradamus - remembers his days as an underground trap-dabbling DJ in Chicago fondly. However, when Dancing Astronaut caught up with breakout trap-as-EDM stars Flosstradamus, they pointed to not so much of a timeline being followed, but a happy accident of sound and style that allowed for the creation of next-level music. Chic’s disco hit “Good Times,” for instance, famously underpinned Sugarhill Gang’s 1979 breakthrough OG rap classic “Rapper’s Delight.” Continuing this lineage, modern dance and trap are presently synonymous. and Waka Flocka Flame shouldn’t be at all surprising. The idea that many of dance music’s most successful crossover producers are dabbling in traditional Southern trap-rap tropes made famous by the likes of T.I.
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