HKR August 19 2013: As we celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the First Jam thrown by Hip Hop pioneer Kool Herc, we’ve been reaching out and talking with a number of other fore-fathers and fore-mothers to this vibrant culture we call Hip Hop. One of the people we got to build with is Bronx legend DJ Disco Wiz who many consider to be Hip Hop’s first Latino DJ.
Wiz back in the mid 70s teamed up with his best friend Grandmaster Caz to form the Mighty Force Crew.. Caz would evolve that crew to become the Cold Crush Brothers. In the early days Wiz and Caz would go to battle the man who inspired them.. DJ Kool Herc.. They would later go on to battle the man who nurtured and mentored them Afrika Bambaataa.
Wiz chronicles much of went down in those early years in a book called ‘Its Just Begun The Epic Journey of DJ Disco Wiz Hip Hop’s First Latino DJ‘.. To say the least the book is incredible and is basically written in 3 parts. One talks about the early days of Hip Hop. Two, talks about the rough and tumble street culture that gave birth to Hip Hop and how Disco Wiz was involved. Three, speaks on how he survived the challenges after prison on the road to redemption.
As we noted in our interview, Hip Hop was not born in a vacuum. It was born out of the pain and hardships many were enduring at the time. The triumph people had in the backdrop of that hardship and Hip Hop flourishing as a culture is what makes it so special
Wiz’s take no prisoners honesty about his involvement in the street hustles, his eventual incarceration, his battles inside prison and the long road to overcoming bad habits, shaking an addiction to cocaine both as a user and seller and two bouts with cancer, is what makes him remarkable and his book an absolute must read.
We cover that and so much other ground in our compelling Hard Knock Radio interview with DJ Disco Wiz
Click the link below to Listen