Circa. 2006 when a new wave of beatphreak producers like Dimlite and Jneiro Jarel were beginning to breath new life into their genre of choice, BTS Radio was my main port-of-call for keeping in touch with all things Hip-Hop. Launched in 2003 by Andrew Meza as a local college show, the popularity of Meza's project snowballed alongside its cultural significance, especially when the featured mixes became available online for a global audience to consume. Before long, the show had featured selections from innovative and diverse sections of electronic music's forefront with Four Tet, DJ Mitsu, Flying Lotus and Hudson Mohawke amongst others making outstanding contributions. When Meza teamed up with visual artist Ques (aka Charles Munka), the BTS brand became even stronger thanks to its unique visual identity and also the promise of new ventures from the new creative partnership. Eager to learn more about the project, we got in touch with Andrew who very kindly answered a couple of questions from us.
Photos by Paul Rodriguez.
You must receive a lot of music from aspiring producers who want to get their stuff heard. Is there any temptation to start up a record label?
Funny you ask, because that's exactly what's about to go down. It's been something I've been thinking about for a very long time. It's the right time. I have the knowledge base, backing and energy to take on such a project. All I can say right now is expect the first single in Fall. Expect hip-hop.
What’s the best thing to come out of the BTS project so far?
My partnership with Charles Munka (aka Ques). We connected on MySpace in '05 and his work is incredibly important. He captures the precise feeling of the BTS sound. Finding a person like that is so difficult, I feel like this shit was meant to happen. We better do something with it. They say don't judge a book by it's cover, but I do. It's like when you see a girl the first time. It's what draws you in. And if they got the mind to match, game over. With today's internet attention span, you better hit them with something that's going to get them interested.
If you had to pick one mix from your site that encapsulates everything BTS is about, which one would it be?
My favorite episodes are with KanKick. That dude is so fiercely independent and once you get him talking, no one is safe. One of our most criminally under appreciated producers. He's a legend. Like I heard once, if you know about Madlib and Oh No, you should know KanKick. Listen to that Artz Unknown album. A west coast classic. He was my first guest on the show, so I'm partial to that first mix he did. That day was a lot of fun. BTS lift off.
If you could pick someone (dead or alive) to contribute a mix to BTS who would it be and why?
Dilla. The very first show I did was a Dilla/Madlib tribute, that was '03. No one really knows this, but Dilla was supposed to come in at one time. I met him twice, once at Amoeba records in LA. He was with Common. I was tripping out because I'd never see him in person before. As a fan, you read about and see these guys in album booklets, videos etc so to see him in person, I was tripping out, a total fan boy. I just approached him and gave him respect, told him I did a tribute mix and he didn't believe it. He took a step back and kept saying "What? For real? Me!?". He asked for a copy but I didn't follow through. I look back on it and I should have given him that mix, but I was just too intimidated. I saw him again at a Stones Throw party. This time I asked if he was down to come to the show and he was 100% with it. Sadly, as I was trying to get things arranged, he was very sick. In and out of the hospital from what I heard. BTS Radio is dedicated to Dilla. His music has always driven me.
What's next for BTS Radio?
Aside from the label, Charles and I have another big project ahead of us. But just like anything else, I'm not speaking on it until it's ready to go.
What you need to know:
- Listen to Andrew's 'For The 562' mix to get another representation of the BTS sound > http://www.btsradio.com/html/andrew-meza-562-bts-radio-mix.html
- Paul White's contribution is imminent
- You can keep in touch with Meza & Munka here: http://www.patient307.com/
