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What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 8:10 pm
by BananaBomber
?

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 8:11 pm
by seckle

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 8:16 pm
by G31
the guy on the reggae soundsystem that did the levels while the selecta selected the records and the deejay did the MCing over the top?
surely?

:D

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 8:19 pm
by seckle
listen to any rodigan or stonelove sets. its used mainly at sound clashs, to try and belittle the next man's tunes. soundbwoy can mean dj or mc, it just depends on the lyrics.

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 8:34 pm
by alphacat
That's not quite right, Seckle. A Soundboy is not an MC or DJ.

OK, so here we go on a little excursion into Jamaican Audio History...

Much of what we today call "DJ Culture" is derived in large part from Jamaican Soundsystem (or just 'Sound' for short) culture.

Basically, because a lot of reggae (and later on, dancehall) was kind of "underground" music it was difficult or impossible to find many club venues that would play it... and also because Jamaica is/was essentially a 3rd world nation, there weren't a lot of clubs with fancy sound systems to start with.

So people would build their own sound systems from the ground up, then use a truck or bus to drive it to The Dance (i.e. an unofficial party often held outdoors). In time, multiple 'Sounds' (or multiple crews) would show up to the same Dance, and this led to the evolution of the Soundclash - an open battle between the Sounds.

In Jamaican musical culture, there was less emphasis on people producing individual tracks unique only to them: instead, producers recorded "riddims" (basic backing tracks w/ beat & melody) and then vocalists would then each do their own take on that track. Certain riddims became more popular than others, much as certain tunes now become more dominant than others until they start influencing tunes recorded after it.

So at this Soundclash, the crew running things in a Sound are basically a 3 man deal; there's the DJ (who is actually what we'd call an MC - the vocalist,) there's the Selector (the guy actually playing the records,) and then there's the Soundboy, who's kind of a runner that pulls the records as requested by the first two. There are actually more roles in a Sound than just these 3, but nobody talks shit about them like they do about these guys.

The deal is that the Sound that plays more of/more popular artists' versions of the big riddims at the time - and before the other Sound does - is the Sound that wins the clash. Once a popular riddim has been used by a Sound first at a clash the other Sound can't play it any longer, even if they cut a dubplate exclusively for that clash. The Soundboy's job is essentially to get those hot tunes up to the Selector first, before the other Sound can play it.

http://reggaelicious.pbworks.com/Sound+System

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 8:42 pm
by seckle
it can be a dj or mc. there's rodigan dub's on soundclash's that are aimed at mc's, not just soundmen, soundsystems, etc.

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 8:57 pm
by human?
afaik, soundboy is exactly what it says.

sound, soundsystem. boy, yout.


an apprentice of sorts. so if you wanna insult somebodies skills...

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 9:07 pm
by alphacat
human? wrote:an apprentice of sorts. so if you wanna insult somebodies skills...
Exactly. Soundboy is usually lowest rung on the ladder in the hierarchy. He'll run errands, do small technical things like help w/ soundcheck, and also go spy (or have others do so) on the other Sound's record selections to keep up with things. And if you're any good at it, they'll call you Soundman and not Soundbwoy...

Again though: SOUNDBOY IS NOT MC OR DJ.

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 9:23 pm
by MUT3
The real question is...

What is the meaning of life?

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 10:23 pm
by alphacat
MUT3 wrote:The real question is...

What is the meaning of life?
42.

:wink:

Image

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 10:41 pm
by djspark
Its definately not a Soundman

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 10:45 pm
by incnic
yeah sandman was in the spiderman movie
i agree.

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 10:46 pm
by Sharmaji
quite simply, if you have to ask-- you're a soundboy ;)

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2009 11:13 pm
by RealityHz
alphacat wrote:
human? wrote:an apprentice of sorts. so if you wanna insult somebodies skills...
Exactly. Soundboy is usually lowest rung on the ladder in the hierarchy. He'll run errands, do small technical things like help w/ soundcheck, and also go spy (or have others do so) on the other Sound's record selections to keep up with things. And if you're any good at it, they'll call you Soundman and not Soundbwoy...

Again though: SOUNDBOY IS NOT MC OR DJ.
But if you were battling or soundclashing with someone and you called them a soundboy, they'd be an MC or a DJ that you were belittling... you'd be calling him your errand boy, so to speak.

If we were battling and I called you a janitor, you'd still be an MC... I'd just be saying you weren't shit and that you should be cleaning my toilets.

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 1:44 am
by alphacat
RealityHz wrote:But if you were battling or soundclashing with someone and you called them a soundboy, they'd be an MC or a DJ that you were belittling... you'd be calling him your errand boy, so to speak.

If we were battling and I called you a janitor, you'd still be an MC... I'd just be saying you weren't shit and that you should be cleaning my toilets.
Right. But then, patois has many other insults that cut waaay deeper than just calling someone a lackey. Heh. I'm surprised by how many people don't know what rasclot/bumbaclot really mean. Now that's some dirty shit!

:lol:

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 7:26 am
by RealityHz
For decedents of slaves, calling somebody BOY is about as deep as it gets I would think. I'm not up on my Patois though by any means. Just an observation.

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 9:18 am
by Shae
Alphacat educating us on his Jamaican roots... good read

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 4:20 pm
by promo
Soundboy is someone who is young but grounded. :lol:

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 4:29 pm
by frank grimes jr.
alphacat wrote:
RealityHz wrote:Now that's some dirty shit!

:lol:
filthy

Re: What Is Soundboy???

Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 4:32 pm
by twentyOneDummies
RealityHz wrote:For decedents of slaves, calling somebody BOY is about as deep as it gets I would think. I'm not up on my Patois though by any means. Just an observation.
That doesn't account for Rudebwoy