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This afternoon we saw the debut of the video to Lizz Kalo's latest single "Transition." Our dear friend from South Africa joined us in the studio to talk the new video and discuss her now nationwide Creative Social monthly.
"The Drop with Danno" on GFN 광주영어방송 98.7FM in Gwangju & 93.7FM in Yeosu, Korea. An eclectic radio curation of all things musical spanning the spectrum every week. Broadcasting 8-10pm KST nightly.
June 24, 2022
Marta Acuna – Dance Dance Dance (12” vers)
Monique Bingham & Black Coffee – Deep In The Bottom – of Africa
Thakzin feat Sun-el Musician & Thandazo – ICU
Sio feat Dunn – Reverse Flight
Lizz Kalo – Shoot Me
Lizz Kalo – Tall Girls
Robert Glasper feat HER & Meshell Ndegeocello – Better Than I Imagined (DJ Tunez remix)
Fela Kuti – Peace of Mind (Virgil Abloh remix)
Keleketla feat Coldcut & Antibalas et al – International Love Affair
Tony Allen & Hugh Masekela – Robbers, Muggers, and Thieves
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It is 20 hours past midnight as the weekend begins to lumber out of its weekday slumber, and we have another very special presentation tonight. Danno here welcome welcome welcome, on the mic and holding it down from studio 2, GFN HQ in downtown Gwangju, how do you do? So Friday night is here and tonight we present the return of Lizz Kalo to studio 2 for this week’s guest artist selector session. As any of you listeners who’ve been with the show will know, Lizz is somebody we have a deep relationship, as she is a former weekly contributor to the show for our Round Trip show, but we also collab a good bit on her monthly Creative Social event here in Gwangju, which she has expanded nationwide. We’ll talk with our favorite South African once she’s in studio later in part 3, but that’s not the main reason we have her joining us. Back in April, Kalo released her latest single called Transition, and today saw the debut of the video for the song worldwide. So, we’ll be talking a bit about the production of the video along with how her event went in Seoul and Busan as well. However, we open with heavy hearts tonight as one of the giants of the music game passed away in Patrick Adams, and we’ll discuss more about this absolute legend after we let his indelible brand of disco open the show. This is The Drop.
Marta Acuna – Dance Dance Dance (disco vers)
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The Drop has begun the weekend properly here on our guests and requests Friday night. Welcome to all of you whether you’re with us live or later, this is Danno doing the rather unusual radio thing from the usual place, and tonight’s guest artist selector is an old friend of the show in Lizz Kalo. The South African singer-songwriter is out with her latest single Transition as of April, and today saw the premiere of the music video for the song. So, we’ll talk about that with Lizz along with her fantastic Creative Social monthly, which now goes down monthly here in Gwangju, Seoul, and Busan.
Unfortunately, our history tonight is not so merry but the memories left behind by Patrick Adams are truly incredible. The famed musician and producer responsible for so many hit songs over the decades passed away Wednesday US time.
For those unfamiliar, Adams early in life played in a Harlem band called the Sparks and began orbiting the production world as a teenager. He rehearsed bands, observed engineering sessions, and eventually began to write, arrange, and produce for Perception Records, where, by the mid-1970s, he was executive vice president. A soul aficionado who became known as the “prince of R&B,” Adams was a master arranger for acts such as Sister Sledge and Candi Staton. But, when disco took off later in the ’70s, he truly flourished as a studio mastermind, synthesizer virtuoso, and an inspiration to bands like Chic, whose Nile Rodgers called him “one of [his] greatest influences.”
However, Adams would branch out over the years well beyond disco, although he remained a behind the scenes guy. And that was partly by design, as at a 2017 Red Bull celebration of his work in NYC, he’s quoted saying, “You can tell a Nile Rodgers record a million miles away because it has an imprint that emanates from his guitar. In my case I tried to avoid that. I didn’t want my records to sound the same. Whether that was a positive thing or a negative thing, I don’t know. But at the same time there is a signature in my music—sometimes it’s harmonic, and sometimes it’s just in the quirkiness of things. And sometimes you just don’t hear it until somebody points it out to you and asks, ‘Oh, he did that record too?’”
What a boss. Rest in power Patrick Adams, you will be missed and the tributes from the myriad artists you worked with over the years are just pouring in over social media.
#9870, @gfnthedrop, podcast…
So now that we’ve got the disco ball rolling tonight and we have our South African Gwangju royalty of the mic rolling in, we’ll go more contemporary with some big names from South Africa in the house game. Black Coffee and Monique Bingham team up on the next cut, then it’s Sun-el Musician with a melodic beauty to let ride. We’ll discuss both these cuts after we let the long players play, but for now THIS is The Drop all in transition on your Friday night.
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Back on The Drop as we stretch towards the finality of our first quarter this evening. Lizz Kalo is in studio tonight as we celebrate the release of the video to her latest single Transition. Go and stream it, bump it, and check the visual all done by Kalo and collaborating artists here in Korea. So we just transitioned the transmission for tonight from the disco of Patrick Adams to the modern sounds of South African house music, so let’s run it on the factuals and actuals…
Monique Bingham & Black Coffee – Deep In The Bottom – of Africa (…connecting the dots between the contemporary and early house eras. For those unaware, Monique Bingham is a well-known American vocalist on some iconic early house tunes, and Black Coffee is of course the South African DJ & producer who might just be the most famous name in the game right now, especially with that Grammy win from earlier in the year. This tune dropped in 2016, by the way, for those out there keeping score.)
Thakzin feat Sun-el Musician & Thandazo – ICU (…another cat that’s making South African house music a thing to behold is Sun-el Musician, who’s obviously the producer on this cut. This tune from last year shows the deep musicianship of the artist and his extra soft touch on the beat.)
Okay, so as you know we used to take our weekly flights in our mind with Lizz Kalo every Wednesday, but tonight is a reverse flight with the artist once again in studio, so let’s do exactly that with another bit of South African deepness courtesy of Sio and Dunn. This is The Drop on your Lizz Kalo reverse flight Friday night.
Sio feat Dunn – Reverse Flight
II
The Drop returns as we have open the ice cold 2nd can on our Lizz Kalo Transition premeire Friday night. Danno here, ready to welcome the aforementioned Mizz Kalo back to studio 2 once part 3 starts tonight, and Gwangju’s favorite South African is out with the video to her latest single Transition today, so we’ll talk that and her absolutely smashing Creative Social monthly events, which you gotta put on your to do list first weekend every month. Additionally, Creative Social is now doing quarterlies in Seoul and Busan as well, so mark it if you’re in the bigger cities as well. Unsurprisingly we just opened with old and newer from our guest artist selector tonight, so let’s run it down…
Lizz Kalo – Shoot Me ( …this tune dropped on Kalo’s 2019 debut album Y O U, which is what kind of built our early relationship and collaborations. Do check that LP, it’s still very worthy.)
Lizz Kalo – Tall Girls ( …this one dropped in 2017 on Kalo’s debut EP Ties. Interestingly, both of these songs remain staple favorites for Kalo in her live performances at Creative Social events, which are absolutely smashing stuff to see in person.)
Now before we continue with what we’re doing here….#9870, @gfnthedrop, pod.
So to continue with part 2, we’re gonna get with afrobeat…or is it afrobeats…oh right…it’s both. Up next we have the DJ Tunez remix of Better Than I Imagined featuring HER and Meshell Ndegeocello, then we have an absolutely exquisite Virgil Abloh remix of Fela, finishing with Kaleketla teaming up with Coldcut and Antibalas amongst many others credited on that tasty cut. We’ll talk about all the details on the other side of audio auroras but for now THIS is The Drop on your Lizz Kalo in transition Friday night.
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The Drop rolls ever forward with the clock here on your Friday night jam. Danno here, ready to welcome Lizz Kalo back to GFN to talk about her new Transition video which debuted today, and we’ll also discuss her Creative Social event going nationwide as well. Big doings. Now as to what we just let out into space forever, that was...
Robert Glasper feat HER & Meshell Ndegeocello – Better Than I Imagined (DJ Tunez remix) (…absolutely amazing remix by the New York-based Nigerian producer DJ Tunez right here. Of course, the original of this tune won the Grammy for Best R&B Song at last year’s awards.)
Fela Kuti – Peace of Mind (Virgil Abloh remix) (…just dropped last year, this tune is a continuation of the estate of Fela Kuti continuing to release 50th anniversary remasters and remixes, this one featuring the dearly departed Virgil Abloh, who was of course mainly known as the artistic director of Louis Vuitton, may he rest in power.)
Keleketla feat Colcut, Antibalas et al – International Love Affair (…a tune that’s a good bit of afrobeat than afrobeats right here to close the block. A tune that dropped in 2020 with the express purpose of highlighting our need to come together as one along with the healing power of music. Amen to that.)
So, before we go to part 3 we’re going with the two guys who in many ways symbolize Lizz Kalo’s own heritage. Up next is Tony Allen and Hugh Masekela in a Nigerian-South African team-up for the ages called Robbers, Muggers, and Thieves, off what would prove to be Masekela’s final album called Rejoice. And indeed we do for both, may Tony Allen and Hugh Masekela rest in power supreme. THIS is The Drop going crazy, and it is indeed halftime.
Tony Allen & Hugh Masekela – Robbers, Muggers & Thieves
III & IV: Lizz Kalo
Lizz Kalo – Transition
Kendrick Lamar feat Blxst & Amanda Reifer – Die Hard
Doja Cat – Woman
AUDREY NUNA – Time
Benson Boone – GHOST TOWN
Asa – Show Me Off
Lizz Kalo – Treat Me Better
Burna Boy – Last Last
Lloyiso – Speak
Costa Titch feat C’Buda M, Alfa Kat, Banaba Des, Sdida, Man T – Big Flexa
Stefflon Don feat Ms Banks – Dip
Allen Stone – Consider Me