DJ Bobcat
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DJ Bobcat | |
---|---|
Birth name | Bobby Ervin |
Born | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | 13 December 1967
Genres | Hip hop |
Occupation(s) | DJ, producer, music executive |
Years active | 1986–present |
Bobby Ervin (born December 13, 1967), professionally known as Bobcat or DJ Bobcat, is an American
He has worked with
Musical career
Uncle Jamm's Army
Since the early 1980s, DJ Bobcat has been active in the
At 15 years old, DJ Bobcat didn't own professional equipment and wasn't tall enough to reach the turntables, resulting in him standing on a milk crate to DJ. when he began working with Big Daddy Productions and Uncle Jamm's Army, Ice T's DJ Chris "The Glove" Taylor[5] taught DJ Bobcat how to use the Cerwin Vega Mixer.
Roger Clayton, founder[6] of Uncle Jamm's Army,[7] would fly to the East Coast and pick up the hottest new underground records from various record stores in the city and bring them back to LA. Bobcat and The Egyptian Lover would take those records, play them first and break them at the big Uncle Jamm's Dances, drawing over 15,000 people in the early 1980s.
California Catt Crew
As a member of the highly publicized Uncle Jamm's Army, Bobcat[8] was in popular demand, being booked months in advance and doing two to six parties every weekend. After being overbooked week after week, he decided to form a crew of DJs similar to Uncle Jamm's Army, but with his signature sound and scratching techniques. He formed the California Catt Crew, which included Bobcat, Battlecat, Dr. Scratch Kat, Wild Cat, Cosmic Cat, Alley Cat, Courageous Cat and Kitty Kat. Bobcat helped book the DJs all around Southern California and gave them tips about the business.
At this time Bobcat recorded a 12-inch single with Tracy Kendrick and Courtney Branch of Total Track Productions, including the Bobcat Song & the California Catt Crew.
1580 KDAY/Mix Masters
Bobcat,[9] along with Uncle Jamm's Army, Greg Mack and Jack Patterson, helped pioneer the world's first 24-hour hip hop radio station, 1580 KDAY,[10] changing the entire format of radio, introducing and pioneering the Saturday Night Mix Show and Traffic Jam. At the time, radio was traditional R&B and was playing very little rap. Bobcat thought of the idea, concept and name "Mix Masters" for Greg Mack at 1580 KDAY.[11] The new format caused a national and international domino effect, changing various stations' view of hip hop and subsequently their format.
Uncle Jamm's Army and the Wrecking Crew are the forefathers of West Coast hip hop. The Mix Masters were the next generation.[12]
Def Jam/Bigger & Deffer
After dominating the West Coast hip hop scene, Bobcat with his crew
"I Need Love"
Bobcat wrote the melody to "I Need Love"[15] when he was 16 years old. It was originally a song titled "Friends By Day, Lovers By Night", Bobcat's version of "Secret Lovers" by Atlantic Starr.
"I Need Love" has been sampled and remade more than any other rap song in history.[
Def Jam tour
LL Cool J asked Bobcat to go on the now world-famous
The Def Jam Tour was one of the highest-grossing hip hop tours in history, grossing over $20 million in ticket sales worldwide. The tour toured all over the US and Europe, doing huge sold-out shows around the country including at the LA Sports Arena, the Omni in Atlanta and
Cat Got Ya Tongue
In 2022, Bobcat became an Arista recording artist and toured around the country performing his album, Cat Got Ya Tongue, on the same stage with New Edition and Jody Watley.
That same year Bobcat was presented with a proclamation by the Atlanta City Council for making a positive album and being a positive influence and role model for the community.
Business ventures
The Foundation
Bobcat and his wife Chanel Ervin started a global entertainment agency[16][17] and strategic marketing firm titled The Foundation. This global network primarily focuses on DJs and producers, and also markets and promotes new and established recording artists.
The Digital Record Pool
The Digital Record Pool is an online music marketing service and online community for recording artists that has thousands of DJs, MDs, PDs,
Digital DJ team
Bobcat and the Foundation Entertainment Agency launched an international DJ team for the purpose of promoting new music, media, brands, goods and technologies Globally. Bobcat is founder and general manager, His wife, Chanel Ervin, is the President of Marketing.
Discography
Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US |
US R&B |
US Rap |
CAN |
FRA | NL
|
NZ
|
SWI
|
UK | |||||
1990 | "Mama Said Knock You Out" (LL Cool J) |
17 | 12 | 1 | — | — | — | 47 | — | 41 | Mama Said Knock You Out | ||
1991 | "Steady Mobbin'" (Ice Cube) |
— | 30 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Death Certificate | ||
1992 | "Final Frontier" (MC Ren) |
— | 80 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — | — | Kizz My Black Azz | ||
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or receive certification. |
- Bigger and Deffer (1987)
- K-9 Posse (1988)
- I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988)
- Act a Fool (1988)
- Cat Got Ya Tongue (1989)
- Mama Said Knock You Out (1990)
- The Hard Way (1991)
- Death Certificate (1991)
- Black Pearl (1992)
- Kizz My Black Azz (1992)
- 5150: Home 4 tha Sick (1992)
- The Predator(1992)
- Sickinnahead (1993)
- Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z.(1993)
- 14 Shots to the Dome (1993)
- Mitsou (1993)
- State Of Emergency: Society In Crisis Vol. 1 (1994)
- Tha Life of a Hoodlum (1995)
- Mista Grimm (1995)
- Str8 off tha Streetz of Muthaphukkin Compton (1996)
- All Eyez On Me(1996)
- Based on a True Story (1997)
- Ruthless for Life (1998)
- Mean Green (1998)
- J.E. Heartbreak (2000)
- Beware of Dog(2000)
- The Exodus (2002)
- Hip Hop Is Dead (2006)
References
- ^ "RIAA – Gold & Platinum – July 6, 2012". Riaa.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2007. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ Rosen, Jody (June 3, 2011). "How to Love". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ISBN 9780313339042. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- ^ "Uncle Jamms Army". Archived from the original on June 11, 2012. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ Sanchez, Tim (January 28, 2012). "Exclusive: Chris the Glove Taylor Talks Death Row, Aftermath, and Dr. Dre". All Hip Hop. Retrieved July 7, 2012.
- ^ "Hip Hop Loses a key West Coast Pioneer". 11 October 2010. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ "Uncle Jamm's Army". Discogs. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ISBN 9780860914457. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
dj bobcat.
- ISBN 0-634-05833-9. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- ^ "The Mack Attack is Back (Exclusive Interview with the man behind KDAY – July 8, 2012". raptalk.net. Archived from the original on April 30, 2008. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- ISBN 9781101568118. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-19-533111-0. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- ISBN 9780825672101. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
- ^ Beacham, Kevin (June 6, 2012). "Redefine Hip Hop". fifth element online. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ Bachhuber, Daniel (April 29, 2011). "Top 10 Hip Hop Love Songs". The Urban Daily. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ Richburg, Chris (December 6, 2006). "DJ Pooh, DJ Battlecat Coming to Bobcat's First Ever Foundation Meeting of the Minds". All Hip Hop. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ "Rap Talk Sits Down Bobcat in a historic Interview". Archived from the original on August 10, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
External links
- Bobcat – official U.S. website
- The Digital Record Pool – official U.S. website
- The Digital Record Pool Corporate Site – official U.S. website
- The Foundation Entertainment Agency – official U.S. website