Music Incident at P&L District shocks DJ Jazzy Jeff - Page 46

Deberg_1990 · 06-08-2009, 07:17 AM

Wow......Unreal.

http://www.kansascity.com/226/story/1238798.html

Another day, another racial controversy at the Power & Light District.

For a year, the black community has been in arms about perceived racism at the entertainment district, a place their tax money helped fund. But it’s always rebutted. Everyone is welcome at the P&L, officials say.

Well, those who follow the hip-hop music scene have more to chew on since late Saturday night, when one of hip-hop’s icons, DJ Jazzy Jeff, cut short a set of music and left the stage in a dispute over the kind of music his show was spinning.

I walked in just as he was walking off the stage. He had performed less than 30 minutes.

The crowd booed and I heard people, both black and white, yell about how the Power & Light didn’t want him to play hip-hop. I wasn’t sure what happened, but I knew it was bad.

A conversation I had with him early Sunday confirmed it.

He might be best known as one half of DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, but he is more than Will Smith’s old DJ and friend. The two won the first rap Grammy.

Jeff Townes, his given name, is legendary. He introduced “transforming,” the scratching technique turntablists use. This man has toured for 25 years. He’s an acclaimed producer.

So what exactly happened?

According to his tweets (twitter.com/djjazzyjeff215), he was kicked offstage for playing hip-hop. Jon Stephens, president of the Power & Light District, says it was about the sound levels.

“The issue that arose with the performance last night was completely about the sound levels,” he said Sunday. “His audio tech was maxing out the sound system to a point that risked damage to the speakers and sound system. His sound techs and management refused to bring the decibel level down. They were told to bring it down or cease performance. They refused to go on.”

Hours after he returned to his Philadelphia home, I spoke to Jazzy Jeff on the phone to hear his side.

His set started with sounds of hip-hop and pop favorites — Jay-Z, Biz Markie, Rihanna. His MC, Skillz, hyped up the crowd.

But after 15 minutes or so, in the middle of an R&B hit by Ne-Yo, “Miss Independent,” he was told to stop.

“My road manager walked up to me and said they were having problems with the music I was playing,” Jazzy Jeff told me. “I played three more songs and he comes back. I knew something was wrong. They said I had to kick Skillz off the stage, change the format of the music I was playing or quit. They said if I continued playing they had 30 cops ready to come escort me offstage. So I stopped.”

Jon Stephens says that isn’t so.

“Obviously we have a desire to book a diversity of acts,” he said. “We booked Jazzy Jeff on a Saturday night, the biggest night of the week in the district. We were excited to have him there. It’s unfortunate that his sound and management people had problems adhering to the sound and audio rules. We wanted him to play. That’s why we booked him.”

Jazzy Jeff was excited to play here too.

But it all went wrong. Venue officials said the set attracted the wrong kind of element, he says.

“They said they didn’t like Skillz’s posture,” Jeff said. “They said he made gang-like signs and grabbed at his genitals.”

So P&L officials wanted him offstage. But Jeff felt it was wrong because Skillz is no gang member. He is a father. His hand gestures were the kind of excited movements you make to get the crowd excited.

He wasn’t cursing or being offensive.

“I was playing Rihanna; she is Top 40,” he says. “If they would have let my set play, they would have known I play everything. I play rock, funk, soul, pop, hip-hop, reggae. I don’t play for a certain genre, race or gender. I play for music lovers.”

In his 25-year career, at 44 years old, Jeff has never been told to end a set because of hip-hop. He says he has never felt that kind of racism. The “element” that officials referred to felt like a reference to black people, a hip-hop crowd.

“I’m in shock,” he says. “I didn’t understand what element they were talking about. I looked out in the crowd and it was multicultural, but about 75 percent white. Everyone was having a great time. I wondered what was so offensive. I never had a race issue. I didn’t know how to feel. I was playing ‘Just a Friend.’ Is that offensive? What element? It’s uncomfortable when you feel unwanted.”

**mikeyis4dcats.** · 06-08-2009, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JASONSAUTO

my point here is if the rules are applied to everyone then what is the problem? and i want to say again i probably have more black friends than most on this site. i grew up in the ghetto .

true. but if your gun is nickel plated, I say **** no you can't carry it in! I hate nickel plated guns! Keep them all in Westport I say!

**Mr. Flopnuts** · 06-08-2009, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reaper16

I have many responses, each of which would be incredibly inflammatory to religious people, so I will refrain. I will say though that it was merely the we're-all-idiots thing that I was calling false equivocation, not any other point you made.

Okay. Guilty as charged. I overuse that word on a variety of levels, and it's a gross exaggeration.

**SAUTO** · 06-08-2009, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyis4dcats.

true. but if your gun is nickel plated, I say **** no you can't carry it in! I hate nickel plated guns! Keep them all in Westport I say!

mine are black or stainless

**mikeyis4dcats.** · 06-08-2009, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JASONSAUTO

mine are black or stainless

oh, well that's fine then, just so long as you don't let them intermingle in the same gun bag. We don't want no black stainless guns running around.

**mikeyis4dcats.** · 06-08-2009, 06:23 PM

btw, do you also find it amusing that mic thinks your last name is Sauto?

**SAUTO** · 06-08-2009, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyis4dcats.

btw, do you also find it amusing that mic thinks your last name is Sauto?

awww hell just something else he "thinks".

just kidding mic. most here call me sauto, i'm actually thinking about telling everyone to call me that from now on. at my age it's probably better than knuckles

**mikeyis4dcats.** · 06-08-2009, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JASONSAUTO

awww hell just something else he "thinks".

just kidding mic. most here call me sauto, i'm actually thinking about telling everyone to call me that from now on. at my age it's probably better than knuckles

people call me Moose. You're welcome to try that on for size.

Mr. Krab · 06-08-2009, 06:29 PM

So is your name Jason Sauto or do you work/own an auto place called Jason's Auto?

**SAUTO** · 06-08-2009, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyis4dcats.

people call me Moose. You're welcome to try that on for size.

no thanks. i'm used to knuckles by now, it just doesnt do well when leaving the bar and the "tough guys" hear someone call me knuckles, usually ends bad for the "toughies"

Mr. Krab · 06-08-2009, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyis4dcats.

people call me Moose. You're welcome to try that on for size.

Because you have a huge Moose Knuckle?

**Reaper16** · 06-08-2009, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Flopnuts

Okay. Guilty as charged. I overuse that word on a variety of levels, and it's a gross exaggeration.

I don't know if that's true. There are a lot of idiots, especially on this board. For what its worth, I actually agree with your point in spirit. "We're all idiots excepting Reaper16" would have been most accurate, but that's just me being nitpicky.

**SAUTO** · 06-08-2009, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Krab's

So is your name Jason Sauto or do you work/own an auto place called Jason's Auto?

i own Jason's Automotive. but for here sauto works fine

Mr. Krab · 06-08-2009, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JASONSAUTO

i own Jason's Automotive. but for here sauto works fine

**Reaper16** · 06-08-2009, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyis4dcats.

btw, do you also find it amusing that mic thinks your last name is Sauto?

I think Hamas started that as an irritant.

**SAUTO** · 06-08-2009, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reaper16

I think Hamas started that as an irritant.

faxy IIRC, never bothered me FWIW, i kinda like it, was thinking about changing my user name to it in fact

06-08-2009, 07:17 AM
Deberg_1990 In Search of a Life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: San Antonio Tx. Casino cash: $3534454	Incident at P&L District shocks DJ Jazzy Jeff Wow......Unreal. http://www.kansascity.com/226/story/1238798.html Another day, another racial controversy at the Power & Light District. For a year, the black community has been in arms about perceived racism at the entertainment district, a place their tax money helped fund. But it’s always rebutted. Everyone is welcome at the P&L, officials say. Well, those who follow the hip-hop music scene have more to chew on since late Saturday night, when one of hip-hop’s icons, DJ Jazzy Jeff, cut short a set of music and left the stage in a dispute over the kind of music his show was spinning. I walked in just as he was walking off the stage. He had performed less than 30 minutes. The crowd booed and I heard people, both black and white, yell about how the Power & Light didn’t want him to play hip-hop. I wasn’t sure what happened, but I knew it was bad. A conversation I had with him early Sunday confirmed it. He might be best known as one half of DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, but he is more than Will Smith’s old DJ and friend. The two won the first rap Grammy. Jeff Townes, his given name, is legendary. He introduced “transforming,” the scratching technique turntablists use. This man has toured for 25 years. He’s an acclaimed producer. So what exactly happened? According to his tweets (twitter.com/djjazzyjeff215), he was kicked offstage for playing hip-hop. Jon Stephens, president of the Power & Light District, says it was about the sound levels. “The issue that arose with the performance last night was completely about the sound levels,” he said Sunday. “His audio tech was maxing out the sound system to a point that risked damage to the speakers and sound system. His sound techs and management refused to bring the decibel level down. They were told to bring it down or cease performance. They refused to go on.” Hours after he returned to his Philadelphia home, I spoke to Jazzy Jeff on the phone to hear his side. His set started with sounds of hip-hop and pop favorites — Jay-Z, Biz Markie, Rihanna. His MC, Skillz, hyped up the crowd. But after 15 minutes or so, in the middle of an R&B hit by Ne-Yo, “Miss Independent,” he was told to stop. “My road manager walked up to me and said they were having problems with the music I was playing,” Jazzy Jeff told me. “I played three more songs and he comes back. I knew something was wrong. They said I had to kick Skillz off the stage, change the format of the music I was playing or quit. They said if I continued playing they had 30 cops ready to come escort me offstage. So I stopped.” Jon Stephens says that isn’t so. “Obviously we have a desire to book a diversity of acts,” he said. “We booked Jazzy Jeff on a Saturday night, the biggest night of the week in the district. We were excited to have him there. It’s unfortunate that his sound and management people had problems adhering to the sound and audio rules. We wanted him to play. That’s why we booked him.” Jazzy Jeff was excited to play here too. But it all went wrong. Venue officials said the set attracted the wrong kind of element, he says. “They said they didn’t like Skillz’s posture,” Jeff said. “They said he made gang-like signs and grabbed at his genitals.” So P&L officials wanted him offstage. But Jeff felt it was wrong because Skillz is no gang member. He is a father. His hand gestures were the kind of excited movements you make to get the crowd excited. He wasn’t cursing or being offensive. “I was playing Rihanna; she is Top 40,” he says. “If they would have let my set play, they would have known I play everything. I play rock, funk, soul, pop, hip-hop, reggae. I don’t play for a certain genre, race or gender. I play for music lovers.” In his 25-year career, at 44 years old, Jeff has never been told to end a set because of hip-hop. He says he has never felt that kind of racism. The “element” that officials referred to felt like a reference to black people, a hip-hop crowd. “I’m in shock,” he says. “I didn’t understand what element they were talking about. I looked out in the crowd and it was multicultural, but about 75 percent white. Everyone was having a great time. I wondered what was so offensive. I never had a race issue. I didn’t know how to feel. I was playing ‘Just a Friend.’ Is that offensive? What element? It’s uncomfortable when you feel unwanted.”
Posts: 66,914

06-08-2009, 06:23 PM	#680
mikeyis4dcats. Scarlett Johansson's boytoy Join Date: Nov 2006 Casino cash: $9555998	btw, do you also find it amusing that mic thinks your last name is Sauto?
Posts: 12,526

06-08-2009, 06:29 PM	#683
Mr. Krab Big Red Nuts Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Kansas City Casino cash: $10004900	So is your name Jason Sauto or do you work/own an auto place called Jason's Auto?
Posts: 3,512