Photo courtesy of Uncut Productions
The White Shadow has over three decades under his belt as a contributor to Hip-Hop culture. The Norwegian battle-tested turntablist is not only a DJ, but a veteran producer with a dope discography. His latest contribution is a star-studded EP for fans of both the golden era and the new era called “The Entity.”
The Entity is 7-track EP released courtesy of Shadow’s Uncut Productions label. The project features appearances by KRS-One, Cappadonna, Kool G Rap, Tenzoe, Atma, Rasco, Maylay Sparks, El Da Sensei, Rucker Pawk, Last Emperor, Son of Saturn, Matlock, Supastition and Snoop Dogg.
The Real Hip-Hop spoke to The White Shadow about his start as a DJ, collaborating with Hip-Hop heavyweights, and his new EP, The Entity.
TRHH: Why’d you call the new EP The Entity?
The White Shadow: Because I was looking at Hip-Hop as an entity. The various elements of Hip-Hop – deejaying, beat-making, beatboxing, emceeing, graffiti, breakdance as one entity coming together. I was also looking at me as the producer, beat maker, DJ, turntablist on the album with the various emcees featured on it from different places, coming together as one unit — one entity. That’s the meaning behind the title of the EP.
TRHH: The EP starts off with the song “Demolition” featuring KRS-One, Cappadonna, and Kool G Rap. That is an elite trio of emcees; how do you determine which emcees you want on a track?
The White Shadow: Well, of course I got a certain idea about what emcees I would like to work with, so, I make moves accordingly. But sometimes verses are available from this emcee and that emcee, but not other emcees. So, sometimes you take what you can get, but I know some of the artists, so sometimes I get the verses from the emcees directly. Sometimes I’ll deal with managers, agents, and other producers on their behalf and everything. It’s a little bit random. As a producer we take what we can get.
Usually I’ll just get one verse separate. Sometimes I’ll get full songs, like two or three verses or one full song and then it’s easier, but usually it’s like one verse. So, I gotta try my best to cut and paste them together into actual songs. That’s how Demolition was made. I had three different verses from Cappadonna, Kool G Rap, and KRS-One. I have an archive of verses, so I had to find the verses that fit the best together and then I can make full songs out of them.
TRHH: Isn’t it very expensive to get all of those verses from these guys?
The White Shadow: Sometimes it can be. I’ve got some good deals now because I’ve been doing this for a long time. I used to live in New York, so I know a lot of people within Hip-Hop from that time and I’ve stayed in touch with all of them. I’ve got some good connections, I got some good friends, but yeah sometimes it can be expensive. I also work with this company selling verses on the behalf of various artists and emcees. So, that gives me a little discount as well. But if I was to pay full price for all the verses, yeah, it would cost a lot of money.
TRHH: A guy from my area, Matlock, is on a song called “Encore” with Supastition and Snoop Dogg. That is a super unique group of guys. How did that song come together?
The White Shadow: Matlock I knew from before because I produced for him before, I did scratches on his albums and stuff like that. We have mutual friends, so we knew each other. Matlock, I got the verse directly from him, Snoop, that was strictly business. The company I work for in L.A., I got the verse from them. Supastition is also a friend from back in the days. He’s been featured on my albums and I’ve done some production for his albums and everything. So, that’s how that came together, but that too was like three different verses recorded on the same beat. Snoop was recorded on another beat, but Supastition and Matlock, that was recorded on the actual beat that’s on the EP. And then I just put them together and made a full song out of it. Usually using cuts and scratching and stuff like that to do the hooks and to connect the verses into actual songs.
TRHH: All of your albums have features from elite emcees. You talked about living in New York; how were you able to build up your status to the point where you’re getting verses from greats across the Atlantic Ocean?
The White Shadow: If I’m gonna go way back I started as a disco DJ in the late 70s. I was a kid. I was 8 years old, so I just deejayed locally in kids’ discos and youth clubs and stuff like that. I advanced to regular nightclubs. I started doing nightclubs when I was like 15, so I did that for a few years and then in 1988 I won the Norwegian DMC. I won the Norwegian DJ Mixing Championship in 88 and 89 and then I went to London and I was in the World Championships. There’s people from all over the world there, so I got to meet and know people there. There was this lady from New York that I became real good friends with and after a while she ended up being my manager. After a couple of years just talking on the phone I was sending beats, I was doing mixtapes, and she wanted to manage me.
I moved to New York and moved in with her and she had some clout in the scene. She knew everybody on the club scene and on the Hip-Hop scene in New York. I moved there and after about a week I had my first first club gig and I made sure that I killed it so I got more gigs, I got more gigs and I got more gigs. This was the early 90s. I lived there from 91 to 94. This was before the internet, so if you wanted to meet people on the club and Hip-Hop scene you have to go to the clubs because that’s where everybody would hang out. You could go to a club and meet KRS-One, and A Tribe Called Quest, and a lot of DJ’s, De La Soul, all of the famous crews because they were hanging out in the clubs. So, when I started deejaying in the clubs definitely I got to know them well.
So, that that was the starting point and then when I left New York after a few years of deejaying there I moved back to Norway and then I just stayed in touch with people. So, that’s how that all started with we me getting verses and everything. I was down with BDP, too, I was in Boogie Down Productions’ crew back then. You know when KRS-One talks about in My Philosophy “My other brother ICU is much darker,” ICU, that’s my man. I used to hang out with him and his crew and became a member of BDP. I got the connections from there, so I got some of the verses from there, but most of them actually I got them later as I hooked up with people on the internet. It’s crazy because I’ve got so much more done through the internet than actually when I was living in the middle of the Hip-Hop scene and the club scene in New York. That’s pretty crazy, but that’s the power of the internet, that’s how powerful it is as far as connecting people all over the world, for any purpose.
TRHH: The song “Illadelph Elohim” has some cool horns on it. Without snitching what genre did you find those horns from?
The White Shadow: Yeah. Oh man, I gotta think a little bit now but I think I snatched it from an Italian soundtrack. I like to use soundtracks a lot. It sounds like I just took it and grabbed it from a jazz record, right? I’m a soundtrack guy, a library of music guy, and I like to dig within that. Any kind of source, any kind of music I can look for samples. I think that one was an Italian soundtrack that I grabbed it from. I just chopped it up and stuff like that. It’s got this really moody, laid back, jazzy feel to it.
TRHH: What’s in your production workstation?
The White Shadow: Well, I used to have the classic SP-1200. That’s what I made my early beats with. I don’t have it anymore, but I’ve got a lot of drum patterns and drum sounds run through the SP-1200. I use FL Studio actually for most things with different plugins and everything, but yeah, mostly FL Studio.
TRHH: On your YouTube channel you not only spin Hip-Hop, but you spin house and other genres. When you perform do you spin all genres or cater to the specific crowd?
The White Shadow: Depends on the gig. I don’t play out that much anymore now than I used to, but every now and then I’ll do a gig and it all depends. I can play strictly Hip-Hop, or strictly house, or mix it up. Or I could play disco classics — I really enjoy doing that. Like you’ve seen on my YouTube channel I have a lot of disco and funk sets because that’s what I started out playing and that’s the music I grew up on, and the early rap records from Sugar Hill, Enjoy Records Tommy Boy, all that stuff. That’s what I really enjoy playing, so those sets on YouTube, that’s me having fun with the music I love the most.
TRHH: You’ve been in the game for a long time. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned during your time in the music business?
The White Shadow: Ohh. That’ a good question. It really is, man. Man, I really gotta think about that one. Are you thinking about the music side of it or the business side of it?
TRHH: Give me both.
The White Shadow: OK. Well, I guess I learned in both the music and the business side of it that it’s good to go for self if you want to get what you want to do done. Try to set up your own label, your own business, which is easy nowadays. I mean, with the internet hardly anyone signs a record deal anymore. Everybody’s got their own little label and they push and promote it themselves and through the people and everything like that. That’s a good thing. And then you end up owning the masters to your own songs, which is a great thing as well. As far as the music biz, first of all you really, really gotta love music. That’s gotta be your first thing.
You won’t ever stand a chance in the music biz if you don’t have like the basics of just loving music a lot more than what’s common. I guess that’s why DJ’s become producers after a while, because we’re the biggest music nuts. We’re crazy about it, we love it. So, the love for it, that’s gotta be there first of all, and then build from that. I guess if I was to give a warning to younger people getting into and stuff like that is that have a clear vision and have a clear goal on where you want to go, and what your goals are in the business, and don’t let anybody talk you into doing something else if you can help it. It’s a tough business, especially when you’re new coming in. Love for the music, and be yourself, and do your own thing.
TRHH: Who is The Entity EP made for?
The White Shadow: It’s made for the Hip-Hop heads predominantly. People that are into that uncut, raw, golden era, boom bap type sound, but it’s a little updated too, I hope. But both – the new heads and the old heads and everyone that’s into real Hip-Hop – hardcore Hip-Hop. It’s not the commercial stuff you hear on the radio or see on the hit charts or whatever. It’s for the Hip-Hop heads, but if other people like it, then I’m good with that, too. I’m a Hip-Hop head and I made it for other Hip-Hop heads to enjoy.
Purchase: The White Shadow – The Entity