Mar 07 2024 91 mins
For the third episode of There Is No Planet Earth Stories I'm joined by guest King Britt representing stories from Philadelphia, New Jersey, New York, and San Diego. We discuss a range of topics from his from his 30+ year career as a Dj and Producer, his experiences in the club and rave scene in Philadelphia in the 80's & 90's, Silk City - Back 2 Basics , his partnership with Josh Wink and the creation of Ovum Records, and his lecture course Blacktronika : Afrofuturism In Electronic Music at UCSD.
"Philadelphia born and Pew Fellowship recipient, King James Britt (his real name) is a 30+ year, producer, composer and performer in the global advancement of electronic music. As a composer and producer, his practice has lead to collaborations with the likes of De La Soul, Madlib, Kathy Sledge, director Michael Mann (Miami Vice) and many others, as well as being called for remixes from an eclectic list of giants, including, Miles Davis, Solange all the way to Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa. Most recently collaborating with MacArthur Fellow recipient , Tyshawn Sorey for their recently released album project.
In his role as performer, he has travelled globally playing thousands of venues and festivals, including, AfroPunk (NYC), Berghain (Berlin), MoogFest (Durham), Le Guess Who Festival (Utrecht) and Public Records (NYC).
King was also the original DJ for the Grammy Award winning Digable Planets.
His curatorial work has been seen in many collaborations with the likes of MoMA PS1, Philadelphia Museum of Art and most recently Carnegie Hall.
As Teaching Professor in Computer Music | University of California San Diego, King carries a unique perspective, bringing a non-linear approach and knowledge to the department by focusing on various modern forms of electronic music pedagogy, while continuing to be an active force in the music industry.
Blacktronika : Afrofuturism In Electronic Music, is a new lecture course at UCSD, created by King, researching and honoring the people of color, who have pioneered groundbreaking genres within the electronic music landscape. Genres span from Chicago House, Detroit Techno and Drum & Bass music. Using his position in the industry, the class has been attended by many, including Questlove, Herbie Hancock, and Flying Lotus. King remains one of the go to authorities on Afrofuturism in music. "