The Roosevelt Hotel Record Convention.

June 1, 2014 9:27 PM

New York’s golden era had hip-hop luminaries digging in the crates at the legendary Roosevelt Hotel Record Convention. Record dealer John Carraro reflects on introducing old music to the likes of Pete Rock, Q-Tip, Busta Rhymes, Large Professor, Buckwild, Diamond D, Prince Be, Mr. Walt, and DJ Clark Kent, among others.
posted by chunking express (11 comments total)

I once interviewed the Dead Kennedys at the Roosevelt sometime around '85. Slayer was staying there also that night and I managed to bump into them in the elevator. Fun night! I had no idea they had that record convention or that it was popular outside of punk and hip-hop circles. I miss old New York.
posted by cazoo at 9:40 PM on June 1, 2014 [2 favorites]

cazoo: I would like to hear more of this story
posted by clockzero at 10:41 PM on June 1, 2014

To be honest, it reads more like the djs were introducing him to the music, and he was just tracking it down for them.
posted by empath at 11:30 PM on June 1, 2014

Nice post, thanks.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 1:56 AM on June 2, 2014

Gotta know who Sang Woo is...anybody know?
posted by Joseph Gurl at 2:29 AM on June 2, 2014 [1 favorite]

> it reads more like the djs were introducing him to the music, and he was just tracking it down for them.

Sounds like it went both ways after a while: Once he learned from them how to spot good breakbeats, he was recommending more records for them.
posted by ardgedee at 4:39 AM on June 2, 2014 [1 favorite]

If I remember correctly from other stories from the scene, Sang Woo sort of self-exiled into obscurity.
posted by rollbiz at 7:30 AM on June 2, 2014

There's a miniscule bit more about Sang Woo here.

sang was one of the BIG dudes at the record shows... i won't go into his history any further than that because i don't know if he'd want it all out there publicly.

posted by zamboni at 8:22 AM on June 2, 2014

man, i loved when hip hop was nerdy as hell, all denim jackets and gigantic spectacles.
posted by entropone at 11:29 AM on June 2, 2014 [1 favorite]

man, i loved when hip hop was nerdy as hell, all denim jackets and gigantic spectacles.

The production and DJ side is often still pretty nerdy. It's the MCs as frontmen who have to have that "cool" thing going on.
posted by Hoopo at 3:06 PM on June 2, 2014

(by this, I mean I have personally pored over every single item in a series of used record stores for an entire day with an English friend who was a sort-of-established producer back home, trying to find a Mickey Mouse Club record that has a break he desperately wanted. It's one of those things you do as a producer/DJ that doesn't give people the "these guys are pretty cool" vibe. It more likely earns you the "obsessive nerd" achievement)
posted by Hoopo at 3:33 PM on June 2, 2014