Article: ‘Drifting Through Time’ with producer Vin’S da Cuero
The mix ‘Drifting Through Time’ is accompanied by this article, written by Vin’S himself. He tells more about each track and explains what they mean to him. From dancing to De La Soul and being confused by Slum Village, to feeling part of a scene thanks to Hocus Pocus and smoking weed watching funny hip hop videos on MTV. This is Vin’S personal history of hip hop.
Vin’S da Cuero recently released a record full of dope beats called Put It On Wax. To find out more about the French producer, he sat down with us to discuss twelve hip hop tracks that mean a lot to him and that have influenced him the most throughout his lifetime. The songs range from hearing the very first hip hop hit, all the way up to his own official music video called The Drift.
Stream his mix ‘Drifting Through Time‘ below consisting of all the tracks mentioned in this article in chronological order, followed by his selection and an explanation for each song so you can get familiar with Vin’S personal history of hip hop. Enjoy drifting through time with producer Vin’S da Cuero:
De La Soul – Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)
The year is 1991, and I’m only 5 years old. Why did I pick this track? Because my mother loved it A LOT and used to make me dance to it. To be honest, I don’t remember the dancing, but I definitely remember the song, and the cartooned single cover.
Doc Gyneco – Passement de Jambes
This is the very first hip hop record I ever bought, back in elementary school. My friends and I knew all the lyrics by heart. I do not listen to it anymore, but I think I still have it somewhere at home.
Eminem – My Name Is
What a track! I was in my early teenage years when I first heard this. One day, I saw the video on MTV. I was like “Who the f*ck is this blond guy in this crazy video?!” The day after I went to school and I asked my friends if they had seen the video. Of course they had! After this, it was for sure: I definitely fell right into the wonderful world of hip hop music.
Limp Bizkit feat Method Man– N 2 Gether Now
Yes I admit it; I used to love funny hip hop videos. But hey, I was a teenager, I was high all the time, so I guess you understand? (laughs). Anyway, I picked this track because after it, I start focusing on the hip hop scene in New York. Red & Meth, DMX, Nas, CNN…
Reflection Eternal – Move Somethin’
Summertime! I remember I was in the South of France with my family. Just before we left, I bought a hip hop magazine called Rap US. The magazine was accompanied by a compilation CD: fifteen or sixteen tracks of pure madness! Deltron 3030, Big L… and Reflection Eternal. After we came back from holidays I went directly to one of my best friends and, inspired by Reflection Eternal, I asked him to start a hip hop group. The day after, with three more friends we went to a park and started writing down lyrics on paper.
Slum Village – Raise It Up
Raise It Up was the first song produced by Dilla I heard. I was chilling in front of my television watching MTV (as usual), and the video appeared. I thought “What’s that weird song? Why those blue tapes?” I watched the video maybe thirty times before genuinely enjoying it. Now it’s one of my favorite songs ever.
Jay-Z – 99 Problems
It was a huge slap in my face when I heard this song on The Black Album. I thought the drums, the guitars, the flow, the black and white video were incredible! Plus, at this time, I was amazed by the Roc-A-Fella crew and the story behind Jay-Z. After this the Fade To Black DVD was released. I watched it over and over. I was like “I want to do this later… I want to rhyme in front of 20.000 people for a living!” Even now, when I have a bad day or when I don’t like the musical environment we’re in, I watch it.
Kanye West – Through The Wire
Thanks to Kanye West I realized somebody was backing up emcees doing beats for them. The year The College Dropout dropped, I bought my MPC2000xl. The funny thing is I didn’t buy it because of him, but because of my father. I wanted to buy a synth with my first paycheck, but my dad told me to buy the MPC ‘cause it was a good machine for hip hop. He brought me to the store and gave me additional money because I was a 100 euro short.
Hocus Pocus feat. The Procussions – Hip Hop?
When this track came out, for the very first time I felt part of a scene. It was in Myspace’s golden years; we were all in touch with each other. We all were amazed by this ‘20syl guy’ who was signed to a big label releasing dope videos and so on. This song reminds me of this era, when it all started…
Pumpkin – L’Ascenseur
This is my first production released on CD and vinyl. It’s weird because it took so long to be released, that on the actual ‘D-day’, the magic was gone… But it still was a significant step! I learned to work with others, plus, I met my girlfriend, Pumpkin (laughs).
Beatspoke – If You Hunger
Beatspoke are friends of mine from Barcelona. I picked this track because when they came to spend New Years Eve with us in Paris in 2011, Josh came with the NI Maschine. One night, he showed me how it works. 15 minutes later, I was on the Internet buying myself one. CRAZY! Ever since, my music is deeper and more powerful. Sorry MPC users, but the Maschine offers you so many possibilities!
Vin’S da Cuero feat. Racecar – The Drift
This is my very first vinyl, first single and first collaboration with a US emcee. It took a year to release Put It On Wax. All the songs are from the period 2007-2009. Even if my music evolved through the years, I wanted to start my first big release with the beginnings. I rearranged all tracks and RacecaR recorded his voice on The Drift, but I still see it as the beginning (laughs).
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Free Download: Vin’S da Cuero – Drifting Through Time (Mix)
Buy: Vin’S da Cuero – Put It On Wax (Vinyl)
