The Questlove Show - Joe Kay of Soulection

Episode Date: August 31, 2026

Questlove sits down with Soulection founder Joe Kay live backstage at the 2026 Roots Picnic in Philadelphia. The conversation traces the origins of a global movement that grew from zip files and SoundCloud posts into a worldwide community. Joe reflects on his earliest musical memories—from family deep cuts and white-label promos to discovering J Dilla—and how those influences helped shape the unmistakable Soulection sound. He and Questlove dig into the craft of DJing, from set architecture and “go-to” records to reading the room and balancing nostalgia with discovery. Joe also explains why he left Los Angeles for Miami in search of a new international energy. Along the way, they explore the role of curators as culture-shapers, the artists Soulection helped amplify—from Brent Faiyaz to Kaytranada—and what it takes to build a movement that still feels fresh 15 years in.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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People wake up and go, oh, damn, wait a hold up. They change all of that. Yes. It's real. This is a whole. sale attack. It is targeting black people in every federal agency. It's raw. White folks have never allowed that reckoning to last more than a decade. Catch Roland Martin's daily commentary on the Black Information Network.

And download Roland Martin unfiltered on the IHart radio app, Apple Podcasts. Wherever you get your podcasts. I am talking to a felon right now with face tattoos, and I cannot decide if I like him or not. That was a caller from my podcast, Therapy Gecko, where I speak with a non-a-a-oh. where I speak with anonymous callers about their problems, relationships, and anything else in the depths of their mind. It all happens on my show, Therapy Gecko. So if you're trying to get out of your own head and into someone else's,

this is the podcast for you. Listen to Therapy Gecko on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. You gave everything you could give, and now it's time to take the next step. Hey, it's Emily Tish Sussman, and this season on She Pivots, the podcast where women share bold career,

moves and personal turning points. I sit down with culture-shifting women who share their pivots like Elizabeth Smart. I still feel that drive that I can still make a difference, so I'm going to keep going. And feminist legend, Gloria Steinem. All of us were trying to express women's real lives.

Listen to She Pivots on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On August 4th, 1962, Marilyn Monroe died. Then the rumors started, and she died again. And now, we're going going to set the record straight and learn about the way Marilyn Monroe actually died, the third way.

I'm Jake Brennan, and on my podcast, Hollywoodland, I revisit some of the biggest stories from Hollywood history, separating the myths people want to believe from the reality underneath them. Hollywoodland is part of the Exactly Right Network. Listen to new episodes every Monday on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Questleaf Show is a production of IHeart. Radio. What's up, y'all? Good morning. Good afternoon. This is Questlove. We're here today in what I will say, the Republic of Eladelf. This glorious May 31st of 2026, we are at the Roots Picnic, a gathering of minds and creatives. Name them. Yolanda Adams, J. Z. Andre Day, Erka Badu, Lettesee, Kalani, Adam Blackstone. Oh, the Roots?

DJ Cash Money, Jazzy Jeff, Sasha Kebel, Kareem Bailey Ray. I'm missing names, Waleigh, The Games here, Big Daddy Cain's here, De LaSole. I'm missing crucial names, but I will say that our illustrious guest today is a part of a movement. And you know me and movements, you know, oftentimes founders of the movement sort of go uncredited or unthanked. It's a thankless job. curating, discovering, putting people onto, but our guest does just that, and I think it's rather apropos here at the Roots Picnic that I sort of picked the brain, kind of in a way that I don't think it's been done before in the more traditional sense of the interview to talk to a person

that basically has taken the baton of creative music to the next level for the last 10 years plus, we'll say 15, he's founded selection, which is it a vibe? Is it a movement? Is it a genre? How can you describe it? I know that when you hear it, it's a feeling, you know? I instantly know a selection movement based on even the engineering of the song or whatever, but we'll get into that a little later. I absolutely want to thank you Joe Kay for coming to the show. I've been waiting for this one. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, so tell me what is your first musical memory in life, the first musical memory you had? First off, thank you for saying all that. We're celebrating Roots Picnic here. We're all here today and you should be very proud, man, like what you've built.

You guys have been going crazy on the lineos, by the way, like not just here in Philly. You know what The London lineup, crazy. The range is insane. And you're three decades plus in the game, longer, however long, like, timeless. And so I just wanted to say that. I didn't even know that you knew about selection or me. Not to say that you're not tapped in, I just, you just never know. I've been friends with Andre so long.

Right. And I think in my older age, I might not be as immersed in various cultures or whatnot. not, but just socially, I knew Andre first, maybe months before I seen him DJ before, only because, you know, shout out Gila, hello, if I don't give you your flowers. You know, and so I got the know Andre first, and then I did the research later, like, oh, okay, you say he's a DJ? And then suddenly asking him to put me on the stuff, and then eventually that's how I came in backwards.

Right. But, you know, I'm still coming in, even though backwards. Right. So to answer your question, my first memories, probably growing up in the house, my parents, both of them playing anyone from Badoo to DMX to rage against the machine. I'm sorry. You know, like, there's a lot of difference. Shade.

Okay, so on this platform, when I interview legacy artists, you know, like people are 70, 80 years old. And they'll say like, oh, you know, I grew up on like Little Milton and, you know, whatever. So I forget that my time period. So when you were saying that, I was like, wait a minute. Like, wait a minute, no, that's the end of my train. I feel you. I mean, you were in it. You're part of that.

That's what makes this a full circle moment. But yeah, I mean, I was born 89, so I was just old enough to appreciate it. You know what I mean? But that's what I grew. Like my mom was super big on Charday. and that's why a lot of the music, yeah. That explains everything. Right.

If you say Chatea, then I explains everything. Right. And so that, my uncle's playing house and deep house and reggae all within the same couple hours at the crib. So I was always exposed to a lot of music early on, just a lot of different sounds. And I do feel like a lot of that is what makes up the selection sound because you're hearing a lot of global sounds, but a lot of, it's rooted in instrumental music and the producer, right? And R&B and Seoul is what we're known for. And also the Caribbean sounds.

But as we've gone on, the sounds have become more global, you know? So that's how it started, though. Okay. Do you remember and tell the truth, what is the first record that you purchased with your own money? And tell the truth. And look, this is what I'll say. I think in the beginning, of course, people ask. ask me this question, I'll be like,

all right, yeah, the Jackson 5 was my first, that's the safest answer. Yeah. Or you hear people say like, oh, Steve, you wanted? I already know. I remember. What is yours? Mine was the diplomats, diplomatic immunity.

I mean, it was like the volume one. That was like, that was the first joint I got that I purchased with my money. Okay. Because my parents were buying me CDs back then. Every time we go to Tower Records, you know, that was my thing. Every week, buying, I remember buying Blueprint. I remember buying the NAS CD. I remember buying.

all those record, the G-Unit albums, like, because, you know, I grew up in that era of the Neptunes. But the first one I bought with my money was a diplomats. And that's still a Rockefeller at the time. So I grew up to listening to all that. So last night was very nostalgic, you know. Obviously, we're here in Philly, but just seeing state property come out, it hit home.

Even though I'm from L.A., I'm from the West Coast. I grew up listening to all that. Yeah. I'm still getting over it right now. So I haven't processed what I just went through. So you mentioned your uncle and your parents and whatnot. What three figureheads would you say are really responsible for your, not your love of music, but just like everyone needs an older figure to put you on this stuff.

Yo, you need to check this out. So like what three figureheads would you credit? I would say, I mean, there's so many people I can name, but I would say off top, one of my, my, my, Godfather's nerve one. He put me on, like, just showing me around, taking me on his promo runs. Right.

Because he worked at Universal at the time. So he would take me with him on his runs, and I was exposed to just, you know, what it's like on a rollout, you know what I mean? So a radio run, so when the artist is in town, he would take me around. So he would take him record to record store to? When Wayne and Juvie first were coming up,

he was taking them around. This is like when those records first came out. I think it was high. 400 degrees. Yeah, all their errors. So anyways, that I remember G-Unit when they were first coming up. So he was taking them around. And so I wasn't around all the time, but he would give me like records.

Promos. Yeah, I would get promos. There's nothing like an uncle that gives you the white labels. Right. I just always had like this nice goody bag of just heat. And I think that's where a lot of my, me being someone that always is ahead with having, you know, white labels and exclusives and demos. things. That's always been my thing. Even since high school,

middle school, I was making CDs and I always had blue legs. So I think that's how a lot of it started. Also, my guy, Eric Coleman, you know, Mo Chilla, and he's, you know, he shot the cover of Mad Villain and so many other legends and he always had, like, was always

kind to play me exclusive MADLib and Dilla early on and his association with Stone's Throw and coming up in that pocket. And me being from L.A., so being exposed, to that sound. So I was like a beathead. You know what I mean? And then, I mean, man, there's so many people I can name.

But I would say those two were like very core to like my upbringing. Yeah. I got it. Yeah. I had a sort of an uncle figure that worked for like Black Radio in the 70s. So I didn't know it then, but he would just always give me his throwaway records. Like I grew up, I was like the receptacle of the records that nobody wanted.

So all the flop singles and And I think it's different when you, the first 15 years of your life, you take in everything. Like, you're not discerning or that's whack or that. I mean, there's things you like and things you don't like. But matter of fact, I would all, like, as a five-year-old, write, like, DJ promotional, like, just because I thought those were special records, like, those black and white, white labels and whatnot. So when did your love of compiling music start? Like, do you remember, like, the first mixtape you made or, like, what was your first creative project that you did? First creative was, I mean, I was already making CDs for all my friends, right?

I was known as that guy in high school. I was on LimeWire, MySpace, all the blog spots, just, you know, downloading records. So you were just making compilations. Did you have equipment as a kid? Not yet. Okay. No, I didn't start DJing until college. So around 2010.

2010, I started DJing. I had got my first turntables, which I still. have and I still use them to this day. They're in prime condition. Damn. Got my technique, 1200s for like 500, you know what I mean? Got like a little DJM, 400 mixer. That's still like my setup at the crew. I still thrive off being in tune with what I started with.

And I made sure like they referred, like I got them, they look brand new. You couldn't tell. But anyways, before that I started doing a podcast, like a musical podcast where I was ill vibes. Ill vibes, yeah. Yeah. That's where it started. ill vibes for me. I wasn't mixing records. It was just more about

track curation and track selection. So from that point, I was making these mixes and within year one I got like 30,000 followers on that podcast, you know, through the iTunes podcast. So I was able to get a nice following. And that was essentially the preliminary era and time of building

my foundation and network. That's even how Andre and I met. He had listened to one of the mixes. And so long story short, I just built this like really global network of producers. We mainly focus on producers. You know what I mean? I came up listening to Flying Lotus and wondering like, oh, who's behind the tribe records

and who's behind Common and Badu? And then that's when I started learning about Dilla. You know what I'm like? Oh, I've been a fan of Dilla this whole time. I just didn't know he was behind the records, right? So this was like 2007 when I was 2006. So you discovered Dilla like around 13, 14? Yeah, pretty much.

And again, I was a fan. Did you know it was special then, or did you just, Dilla was special to me only because he was the timeline, the Mason-Dixon line of, wait, this sounds way different than everything else I'm used to. But I always wanted to know, what was it about his music that attracted you? It was just his swing, his snares.

I don't know. His drums, I'm very, to his day, drums and snares I'm so picky about it has to hit. And he had the crispiest snares. Perfect sounding. And his swing, like we know about his non-quantized swing. It just, he just has that effect. So I think it was his swing and the way he sampled, you know,

and the way he flipped things. And then again, I just realized that all the records I love listening on radio at the time, you know, I would have to listen. There wasn't streaming today. We didn't have control the music like that. So we would have to wait for the top 25, top 40 records to go on rotation so I could record it on my tape deck at the time and I'd have to like wait but I was I was realizing like okay he's he's like the mastermind behind the sound even if he wasn't credited properly because we know about that too you know if he was responsible for the ideas it was him that really I started to study but I was already a huge fan of Neptunes and Tibbol and those were like my top two and still like still are people that I still play in my sets today the Neptunes and and and timbo, those sounds were, so those three were like my holy grail, you know.

How often are you asked to make mixes or curate for special events? Like people coming up like, yo, I need a quiet storm mix or a car trip or like, how often are you asked? All the time. All the time. And even when we're just in the car, like, I'm always, you know, I'm sure you are too. Like, yo, here's like, sometimes I just want to chew. You know what I mean? Sometimes, like, let me pass this and let's give someone else another chance.

All the time. So when you're in the car with other people like me, are you secretly trying to put them on to something that they might not be hip to? All the time, all the time. Okay, so when you make a mix for a car mix, what are your three go-to songs that are like the best for, and depending on what time you drive?

Right. What's the mood? It depends. And a day like this today, which is like perfect weather, where are the three records that come to mind for you? That's a tough one because I was just listening. I was putting my set together in my room today. So I was just providing a lot of different sounds.

Okay. I'm still high off yesterday, man. And so. Yo, I know, I know everyone's hit you. For those that don't know, last, well, yeah, you've seen the news. By the time this comes on, there's not even 24 hours after the Jay-Z performance of which. Yeah. There's still a high that I'm going through right now, so.

Exactly. So, I mean, one of my favorite albums was Blueprint, so, like, I love records, like, all I need. And I love, I'm thinking about freeway, like, what we do. And I'm thinking about records that just nostalgic, but keep me going, you know what I mean? So how often do you prep for a DJ gig? Does it depend on it? Like, is muscle memory intact now where you automatically know what's working for now? Yeah.

Like, I mean, I just played New York on Saturday at Knocked Day. down center in the ruin. So that was more focused on my like Afro-electronics side. So I have a deep love for music from South Africa and Lisbon. And it's this very like deep spiritual electronic sound. You know, it's not just I'm a piano. It's like three-step and and Afro-Tech and and GOM and piano and Batida. There's all these different sounds. So I just did a set there, but I know today's a bit of a different crowd, right? I did Chicago last week. I played a festival. It was like an R&B festival. It was called Forever Mine.

And that's more of my global open format set. So I have different layers to me where today, for example, is an open format set. And I only have 45 minutes, which is hell of short. That is. So is it harder for you to do a half hour set or a five hour set? A half hour set. What is it that you would like to convey to people when you do a half hour set? Because I'm trying to tell a story, but I feel like,

Under an hour is not long enough to let you see what it is that I do. So for you, when you're given an hour or under an hour, what do you feel that you must get across? I mean, when you have under an hour, you have to be a lot more precise, at least for me, precise, intentional. I got to have all my cues and loops in order. I never do a preset type of session. Now you busted me. If I have 50 tracks for today, it doesn't mean I'm going to play them all in order. Right.

I just, I got to just know I can find them. So I try to arrange them in like pockets. So if I know this is more of like my uptempo sound, this is like my Jamaican Caribbean joints. Right. These are like my edits. I try to like group them. And then I just try to, ideally, at least the tracks that I want to start off with, I try to put like the first 10 that I like really love at the top so I could find them.

45 minutes. I got to hit them with like 30 seconds to a minute, 20, like transitions. So you just... I got to wake them up. Okay, I got it. Yeah, and I go all over. My tempos are like, I'm going all over the map. Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave Netflix and Disney Plus from $94 a month.

Price guaranteed for two years on internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. When I was 14 years old, I was kidnapped. and held captive for nine months. I survived, and I've spent my life exploring how other people survive what should have destroyed them. I'm Elizabeth Smart, and these are the Survivor Files. I just remember this low, taunting voice next to my ear saying, shut up, don't say anything.

Every week, I'm with survivors who live through the unthinkable. I knew if he woke up, without a doubt, he was going to hurt me. I started feeling that there was someone at the end of my bed, and I just started screaming. They are abducted, stalked, controlled, and nearly silenced. But these aren't stories about what's taken from them. There's stories about what it takes to make it out alive. Listen to the Survivor Files with Elizabeth Smart on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Hey, this is Hayes Davenport. And Sean Clements. We host the podcast Hollywood Handbook on the Big Money Players Network. Our show is extremely accessible to first-time listeners. Each week we talk to someone in show business, aka the biz, and try to help them with their careers and see what they have to offer us. Everyone has a good time and no one gets mad at their publicists for letting them do our show. We've had a lot of great guests like Sarah Sherman.

Can you help me shape this? How about we flip it on his head, right? How about we flip this script? What is the surprise woman? Actually, you think is the straight man is actually the one who's acting weird. Adam Scott, this entire time you've been expecting Adam Sandler to come to visit the show. I would never expect. I have, I would never set expectations for something like that to happen.

If the universe allows for something like that to happen, I'm open to it. I'm always going to accept. You know, Danny McBride, fine. Yeah, it's all this fragile masculinity exuding. I could smell it walking down the hallway, to be honest with you. I was like, I was like, is that weed? Nope, it's fragile masculinity. Ben Stiller, no.

Because a lot of times out of context, people don't get it or even know what a circle is. You know what I mean? They're so stupid. Everyone's so dumb. And fake. Right, fake and also not interested. or just like, oh, I've got my life, I don't care about your life. And a lot of other big shots that wouldn't be where they are without us.

Oh, and by the way, Will Ferrell told us personally he loves the show and he wants to be a guest on every episode, but he's just so busy. Listen to Hollywood Handbook on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the new podcast Solita, we share the messy reality of traveling alone as a woman. I can wait four hours for the next bus or this random dude is offering me a ride on his I chose option B. I'm Julie Pinheiro, and I travel by myself because it's a rare space where I can say yes without asking anyone else first.

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Our town is small taters by most standards, right? But to the people who grew up here, it's everything. What happens when a quiet Tennessee town becomes the front line in a battle over the future of America. Developers with right-wing ties have purchased hundreds of acres of land in the area. The first thing you see when it pops up is pioneers in Appalachia. But they weren't just planning houses. We need cities on a shining hill that exemplify and embody the Christian way of life. Stop right there. Is that normal? A podcast about what happens when a small town becomes the site of a social experiment. God need men to rule. Great. And decides to fight back. Do not use money.

My hard work to sell your bull. They're not just opposing what's being planned for here. Our hometown is not a test tube. They feel like they're standing in opposition to an entire administration. Guess you didn't move in on a bunch of dumb hillbillies now, did you? Listen to Our Town on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. So for me, I have five bulletproof stalling records. Because sometimes, like, I have to be my own opening act.

Right. And I'll say that the difference between the way I DJ now versus then is I'm not sure what demographic I'm going to meet. You know, if it's older people, I know exactly what they want. Usually I try to hit people when they're high school age. And sometimes I need a stalling tactic to figure out who my audience is. So I'll say like the Bambom rhythm, like Murder She Wrote. like that rhythm will never die. It works for old people, young people,

so maybe I'll spend my first five records there. Like, is there a bulletproof starting five that you use just to figure out where you are and what your set's going to be? You know, it always changes. For me, depending what type of crowd I'm playing for, I'm always mixing up the records. But I do have a playlist called Go To's.

And in there it's maybe about, 20 to 30 records that I can play at any time, and it'll move. Instantly. And yeah. So I do organize. And when I notice, these records really move crowds, no matter what their preference is. I keep sliding those into that playlist. And it's kind of like one of them everlasting as time goes on.

It just gets bigger. Can you give an example of like three-year go-toes that like absolutely work? Ooh. I have this one right now that I've been playing. Everyone knows the song I've played it so much. it's this Maxwell Ascension edit but it has like a Batida like a Lisbon flow like a house

kind of flow to it and it just has like Andre gave me this You know what I'm talking about? Yeah, yeah I know I played for Maxwell I know exactly what you I know it is Okay

That one I mean it's universal And it gets the women going man Right Like for me I'm trying to move the women Like if you can move the women Everyone else follows Right You get the women

Dancing and you can And records You get them sing along You know what I mean They line dancing I mean, that's the goal. You get them early, too. My method of DJing, like, for three hours is there's 10 songs that I want to be a

pinnacle moment, but I learned early. Like, I used to be an amateur where I would just do killer, killer, killer, killer, killer, killer. But after, like, 11 killers, people are numb. And I feed off the adrenaline of, holy shit, he's playing that shit. So after, like, the 11th record, then it's just like, oh, yeah, he's a good deal. DJ and there's no more, you're just numb. Are you aware of that? Like, are you, must everything be a killer? Or, like, right now, I'm obsessed with bad records. Like, I'm in, oh, I'm in Daredevil mood.

Like, I will play some shit purposely whack where they'll be like, all right, let's go to the bathroom. Knowing my next record's going to be like, holy shit. So for you, do you have that sort of method when you do that? My method, I'm not, no, I'm definitely not a every, I'm not like launching rockets every, every, like, track. I paste it out. I take people on a journey, you know, that's why I like to take people high. I could keep it up here the whole time. I might keep it there for three to ten minutes max, but overall I like to vibe them out. I like to bring them back home and kind of build them up and kind of just take them on this journey versus just high energy wear them out.

Now, again, today, I wouldn't say I'm going to go like super hard the whole time, but there's going to be moments today, but since I have 45 minutes. And it's a festival show is a little different, like how I play my intimate sets or how I play sold out show for a thousand to 2,000 people for like that's, that people are coming to see me. Today, I understand there's a lot of people who don't know who I am. And there's people that do. There's people that don't. So, and it's festive. It's a lot of nostalgic, but contemporary. sounds, R&B, hip hop, you know what I mean? Centric, soul music. So I know the audience I'm

playing for, so everything I have, the edits, the blends, the originals, everything is in pocket for today. And a few left field records that maybe they would never listen to, but I'm still in pocket that I feel like I could still, there's still some music discovery going on. What, in your opinion, is the perfect closing record? Like when you're done, are you just spinning until the cops like the club owners like you got to stop now yeah or do you have an intentional closing record that's like it always changes sometimes i lose track of time and i'm like oh damn i only have five minutes or only three and i kind of just end where i'm at but um every now and then i have a couple but oh for the most part it just depends on the type of crowd like what i

played again in new york the other night is different from how i would end today because that one was in a certain theme in pocket here's more like i said a more global open format set. So it's going to be different from this set to the last one. When you spend, do you watch your audience or are you just focused? I don't want to watch

the audience because I might get in my head if something's not working. So I always keep... You know what I don't like? My biggest peeve is when people are on the leaning against the rails in the front. Oh, trying to get you? No. No, no. When they're just leaning on their phone or they're

kind of airing you out. Because that front crowd, they determine a lot of the energy. You can have people behind you dancing. You can have people on the side and the back. But when these people are up there and they're looking at you and just want to watch. Right. I don't, I can, man, that's personally one of my pet peeves. But yeah, absolutely watch the crowd because I mean, I'm not like staring at them the whole time, but I constantly look up every record to see, are they feeling this? Do I need to take it somewhere else? Right. You know, so, but I feel you. But I also use four CDJs usually. So I'm up there working. Like I'm up there lining all my shit up and by time I look up,

but I'm mostly focused on the mixer and what I'm bringing in. Got you. Tell me your journey of trying to get put on. Did it start with Stone's throw, like trying to join the squad? Yeah, at the time, I had just tried to intern for them. Okay. Yeah, I never got a call back and it's fine. I don't even think they probably even saw the resume.

This was like too tough. All right, Wolf. No, I'm like. And it's cool. Me and Wolf and that crew, we're cool. I've had them on the radio show. we laugh about it now. But the universe clearly wanted you to be the lead of your own life, which this is clearly the better option.

Because I wasn't getting calls back. I had to apply to being interned at Alpha Pub or Low End Theory. For the legendary low-end theory, not the album, but the event in LA that lasted about what, 15, 10, 15 years. I used to go there. That was like my space, my safe space to go to and hear about new producers. and get beat CDs there that no one had. That was another thing that would go there.

And, you know, that's why I would see Flying Lotus or I would see, shoot, even Tyler. It's dope. You know, I saw a video, I didn't even know he's here, but seeing Tyler, the creator here as a fan. Yeah. He's just a huge music fan. He pulled up to Low End Theory back in the day and was just there as a fan. And then he ended up playing when he was on his rise. And, you know, I just appreciate people like that.

So that was my early stomping grounds. But, again, the formation of celebrity. came because I didn't hear it back. So I'm like, man, I have to show my own proof of concept. If someone doesn't believe in this, I have to create that myself. I can't wait on other people. So I ended up creating, that's how selection, the foundation of it. And the podcast before selection, it was like, I got to just show people what I can do because I can sit here and try to explain or they already have their residents and stuff. I don't expect them to just put me on. But I have to show someone what I can do. And that's how, that's what I started doing. Did you intentionally

say, okay, I want to start this movement. I kind of accidentally just wound up in it. And then someone told me, like, five years into it, like, well, dude, this is a movement you got here. But then it was just like, hey, let's do it in my house, sir. I never, like,

was like, okay, this is going to be a movement. I was just so passionate, more so about the radio. It was always radio first and then the label side. And at that time, there was no streaming or distribution. There was no, you know, the services we have today where anyone could upload a record today. Back then, it was like, if you could put music up on SoundCloud and Bandcamp

and get it up on the iTunes store and get like 100 records press, it was a huge deal for people. But the format at the time was SoundCloud and Bandcamp. That's what we were using to drop every week. And that was our format. Okay, so I was going to say, I mean, you literally started from zip files to this global movement now. In those 15 years, like, is there a nostalgia? for you, like in terms of, I mean, I'm sort of caught in between a digital world and an analog world, but I always want to know for a person that started in digital, is there nostalgia for a digital movement? Like, is there something that you had in 2011 that is not available now that you miss? Like, in terms of a format? Or in terms of...

Well, I mean, is there something along the way that you miss that isn't there? I do miss that cosmic, that Flying Lotus after one sound, you know, that 2008 through 2011 pocket where I feel like they were the poster child of Dilla. They were like young, up and coming, but they had this like new wave sound, but it was still in pocket. I'm like, damn, I really, there wasn't enough music that came out in that pocket. And beyond that, I mean, I just think that era of like I said, 2010 through like 2015. Pre-streaming was special. I started DJing at the end of the analog vinyl era, where it was still there.

But at that point, Sarato was already around. Everyone had their laptop, so you didn't have to walk around with, you know, with crates or bags of 45s and stuff like that, which is nothing wrong with that. It's good to see it come back. How do you feel about this 45 or Surge's movement? Have you jumped on it yet? Yeah, I've been pressing.

I've been laying down some of my white labels and stuff like that. I've been playing at Dante's hi-fi. I've always collected vinyl. Even when I started digital, I always had records. I just wasn't out doing vinyl sets. I wasn't trying to be. I was just like, man, I want this record.

I want to collect it. When I went to Japan, Japan actually re-inspired me to get back and playing records again, like, publicly. You know, so Japan's a special place to me. And so went to some Kis and some listening bars, and I'm like, man, this sound system, this, this, uh, Dev Ohas sound system.

I got, I got to play on this, you know what I mean? So it kind of got kicked back off there. And then my guys at Dante's high-fires really would inspire. So I've been, I've been back on it. I've been, I've been pressing my own records. And, and I, and I, yeah, you're going to force me back in this shit. You have, man, but it's been, it's been, it's been great because I'm such a digital guy. And it's because these records aren't all on vinyl, on wax.

I've just been laying, I've been laying these down. And it's been nice to just have. one of ones for myself to play out. Because I feel like when people listen to a vinyl set, especially the youth, I feel like they're more likely to actually sit there and listen to the record playing. Because they know it's on vinyl.

Versus any of us could switch up a track in 20 seconds, and it's just like, it loses that feeling. People are just like, oh, this is just another DJ set. Anyone can buy FLX4 now, a $200 controller, and now they're playing at your local speakeasy that took you three years to get in. And they're playing that overnight because of a TikTok or a blend or an idea they had. So it's a lot different nowadays, you know?

Tell me about the genesis of starting the selection coalition or movement, like hooking up with Andre and like. Just everything, the whole crew, the sango, like you brought up Taku Karmac. Yeah. But it was literally just finding them on SoundCloud and hitting them up on a message. Hey, I love your music. This is what we do. By that point, we already had X amount of SoundCloud. out in band camp releases,

just unofficial things. It's like, do you want to just, you have a loose record that you're, a demo idea, send it over? We'll come up with the artwork.

We'll put that shit out tomorrow. It was that easy. Man, we just, it was about the music. And remember at that era in 2011 and onwards, videos didn't even exist on Instagram.

TikTok didn't even exist. So I remember it was just like, you had a post a still, the flyer. It was about the music. And that's what I loved. I missed that. era, you know. And so that's how we came up. But it was really, like I said, I started doing this in 2008,

2007, and it was those four plus years of developing and networking that when it came to selection, I already had this network of friends from all over the world that I had already been pushing through my podcast and on my own. So when it came to selection, the foundation, the rapport was already there. And then after that, when I started selection radio, that was like the weekly bulletin that enabled me to promote the records that we were putting out and all my friends and music that I was finding on a weekly basis. Okay, so you're currently living in Miami right now? Yes, yes.

Okay, so I got to ask you this thing. What made you want to relocate down there? Because even to this day, like, I'll reject Miami gigs because it's one of the hardest gigs I've ever had to face because I usually just wind up compromising and saying, oh, All right, let me play what they play just so I can get invited back again. But as of today, what do you consider the sound of Miami? Well, the thing is, is that also when I play Miami, it's also a niche party. Like, if the do-over's there.

Well, first of all, when a music conference was a very active thing, I would go down there. And, of course, it's niche parties, you know, where you can be a hip-hop head and play on South Beach or whatever. But, you know, for the most part, you know, I've always. thought that movement start where there is no culture. Like, Philly's very easy. Now, Philly's like, oh, NeoSoul and all that stuff. But the reason why it works here

is because we had nothing. We were in New York Shadow, and we were consistent. So my thing is that I was very curious to why would you want to leave the comfort zone of California, which everything that you stand for, as far as your movement is concerned, is out there, whereas I did not see any of that in Miami,

and what made you choose that? Right. No, that's a great question. You know, I've been going to Miami for, I want to say, 12, 13 years, and so we've been building this election sound there for a long time, and I built a community of people that support me. And then as I got closer to people like Sven and, you know, the guys at Dante's High Five, 1-800 Lucky,

Coyo Taco, you know, Allen and the crew and shout out Rich and, man, there's so many great guys part of that team. Right. It just, I started to feel more of a connection because Miami's smaller. It's a smaller regional proximity than like, let's say L.A. L.A. is massive. New York, massive geography. Okay. I feel outside of New York, Miami is one of the most international, if not the most international city in the U.S.

And so for me, I can hop on a flight, an hour and some change of that to Jamaica, right? If I want to go to PR, DR, and all the other, the West Indies, I have access. If I want to pop into Columbia or South America, I'm right there. If I want to go to London, if I want to go to New York, I'm three hours out, right? So I think geographically, being on the East Coast time zone is good for my mind. And also, like I said, the community that I built. So I've been able to tap in, and I've been tapping in with the Haitians. There's like the huge Haitian community.

So I've just been learning about their, I knew about their culture and genres and sounds, but now I'm in it. Now I'm going to their parties. Now my boy Jason Pantan's not just invited me to his Afro Beach, Afro-Caribbean party, but then he's taking me to this up-and-coming peer Amma piano party on Sundays that happens in this little shack outdoor spot. And they're playing, it's like the closest thing to South Africa you'll get in my house. Right.

Right. And then we did Club Space for 15 years of selection. We did 15 hours, right? And for us to bring the selection sound and the electronic sound together, having Benjee B, Theo Parrish, J.2G, myself, Sango and J.Rocke, you know what I mean? From the beat junkies and all these legends and Cocoa Roco, right? Having these people at hearing horns in Club Space, you don't hear that. So you're saying it's safe to come back to Miami right now?

It's safe. It's not just, yeah, it's, it's not. And no offense to any of our people in Miami. Yeah, no. I didn't mean like, I'll never go back. But it's just, you know, there's some markets where, at least in the market when I was DJing, Vegas is harder. Yeah.

Miami was one of those things, a little harder, Atlantic City harder. Like, there's some markets that were where I didn't feel like fighting. Like, I'm going to force you to dance to this J. Diller's shit, whether you want to or not, you know what I mean? Right, right, right. Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave Netflix and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability.

Bell, connection is everything. When I was 14 years old, I was kidnapped and held captive for nine months. I survived and I've spent my life exploring how other people survive what should have destroyed them. I'm Elizabeth Smart and these are the Survivor Files I just remember this low, taunting voice next to my ear saying

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we talk to someone in show business, aka the biz, and try to help them with their careers and see what they have to offer us. Everyone has a good time, and no one gets mad at their publicists for letting them do our show. We've had a lot of great guests like Sarah Sherman, not that great.

Actually, can you help me shape this? How about we flip it on his head, right? How about we flip this script? What is the surprise woman? Actually, you think is the straight man is actually the one who's acting weird. Adam Scott. this entire time

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for something like that to happen I'm open to it I'm always going to accept you know Danny McBride fine yeah it's all this fragile masculinity exuding I could smell it walking on the hallway to be honest with you I was like, is that weed?

Nope. It's fragile masculinity. Ben Stiller, no. Because a lot of times out of context, people don't get it or even know what a circle is. You know what I mean? They're like, oh, what's a state? Everyone's so dumb. And fake.

Right, fake and also not interested or just like, oh, I've got my life. I don't care about your life. And a lot of other big shots that wouldn't be where they are without us. Oh, and by the way, Will Farrell told us personally, He loves the show and he wants to be a guest on every episode, but he's just so busy. Listen to Hollywood Handbook on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Our town is small taters by most standards, right? But to the people who grew up here, it's everything.

What happens when a quiet Tennessee town becomes the front line in a battle over the future of America? Developers with right-wing ties have purchased hundreds of acres of land in the area. The first thing you see when it pops up is pioneers. in Appalachian. But they weren't just planning houses. We need cities on a shining hill that exemplify and embody the Christian way of life. Stop right there.

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what's being planned for here. Our hometown is not a test to. They feel like they're standing in opposition to an entire administration. Guess you didn't move in on a bunch of dumb hillbillies now, did you? Listen to Our Town on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. How would you categorize? Because that's the one thing I am confused about, like, in terms of like deep house versus classic house versus South African house versus I'm a piano versus reggae tone versus.

There's so many sublabel now. Like for you, like if I hear a lot of. compression in the sound, like a lot of compression. Then I'm like, all right. So you don't I mean? Like, so how do you categorize and know and are the genres interchangeable or is it the parties that you're playing in? Can you mix of the genres?

Yeah. And I think that's my, my superpower is that I'm not boxed into if I'm playing, like again, if I'm in my Afro electronic bag or if I'm playing for a crowd, even at space, I don't have to limit myself to just. traditional house or tech house or whatever genres, I kind of play all these different sounds

and diaspras from different countries and I kind of bring it all into one because they're all within the same range. They're all, especially 118 to 130, right? Like, they're all within that pocket. They just have different cadences and they have different styles of production. Okay.

But I'm very front-facing and leaning towards the percussion and the tribal drunk, Like we talked about Dilla, I'm a drum guy. Right. So I love dirty drums. I love just some shit that wakes you up. It, like, wakes up the spirit.

And a lot of it has swing. That's why I like Bathita, because it's deep house, but it's soulful. Okay. But it has this Angolan, you know, rooted sound and Cape Verdi and, like, all these different energies and surrounding countries and parts of Africa that people don't know about that the sound, it's. it's a drum. That's why I love the log drum, you know, and I'm a piano because now you're hearing it in Afro beats and you're hearing it in different sounds because I don't know, there's something about that sound electronically. For me, it wakes me up like, oh, what is that? I've never heard. It's like a grown, it's like being at like at a grown rave for real music heads and they're hearing this like newer, not I want to say techno sound, but it's just like a spiritual sound. And so, yeah, there's all these sounds. Now there's, now there's. There's three-step, which is like a form of deep house and AfroTech, right? So there's all these sounds that I'm constantly learning about. And there's always going to be a new one.

But I just take the time to learn about them and about the artist and things like that. Who do you feel right now is the sound of tomorrow? And do you get nervous about it in terms of like not maintaining a lock on your movement, but pivoting, moving forward, you know, Like, and there's a point in every creative's life. She's killing it right now, by the way. I know. K1's killing it.

That's definitely a sound that's been, you got the women on lock. So, yeah, but how do you know when it's time to pivot and when it's time to search for what's next? How do you know what to lead behind you? It's a feeling and intuition. I wouldn't say I leave behind. I still keep my roots.

However, I think it's just where my spirit guides me. It's like magnetic. I just know, this is what I'm feeling. I can't, I'm at my age, I don't feel like I'm not here to fake things. I've been doing selection 15 years, but I've been doing this 18, 19 years now, total. So for me at this point, I stay true to what I believe in. And I'm always trying to make it easier on my audience to be like, hey, I know maybe you're used to this sound through selection or you're, you want to hear your R&B and soul and you want to hear the edits and blends, right? The blend culture that we know today and the stems, like, this is just a full cycle of what has been going on for ages.

It's just more commercialized and digitalized now because of technology. You know what I mean? But I get off more. I'm putting people onto the unknown, the deeper sounds. I'm all about discovery and putting things on that they may recognize but are still unfamiliar with. And I think about finding that balance. So I'm sure you've been asked this before. you released your first EP

like kind of 15 years into your career what took you so long to finally put yourself in the spotlight instead of you discovering the next person one I got out on my head my management I have a man shout to my management team they're the best

they just really coached me through it and they're like man you have everything on lock but you're missing music you know think about at the time, if I would have put out a record with Bryson Tiller or Brent Fias or Snow Allegra or Sir, Daniel Caesar, right?

Like, Masego. Like, it's not about trying to attach my name and take credit for everyone, but it's like artists that we were really early on when they had less than 5,000 followers, hundreds of followers, and taking that risk and then having records out with them, imagine where those records would be now.

Even the records that I've helped push organically that weren't through selection, but I just loved them so much. And whether we played them over and over and made them help grow them organically or flipped them and made them even bigger through remixes in the edit culture, those are still like things that it's like marketing that an artist you could only hope for. Especially when you get a crew like selection and myself organically pushing something, it makes those records reach millions of more people. So there's a lot of records like that that we got behind early on

that I personally know and feel that I wouldn't say we are the sole reason these artists became who they are. But we were really early part of the foundation of these artists becoming more widespread through these edits or through how I was playing them on the show and then having a moment online or something like that. Who would you say? And I know there's like a, I know it's probably asking you what's your favorite breath you ever took. but of all the people that you've put on or gave shine light to, who would you say was like the shining light of like that made it into the spotlight that you'd feel like, wow, I helped seed them, even if you don't get the credit for it,

but who were some of the people that you, that you're co-signed? I mean, some of the ones I just named, but when I look, I think about Sonder Brent Fayas. Yeah. You know, I think about Snow Allegra already had motion and she was already with no ID on the label side. But I feel like she had like a rebrand. And man, like it was amazing to see her rebrand and us pushing that. You know, again, Bryson Tiller, when he put out don't and trap soul. Yeah.

There's actually Sango, J. Lewis and a couple other people that came from the SoundCloud era that came up in the selection pocket. You know what I mean? and I feel close to that. Again, Masego being really early on that. And then who else? There was another name. I had mentioned sir. I remember sir early on.

You know what I mean? Before he got signed to TDE. Yeah. That was, it's just been a moment watching all these artists develop. And then one I can't forget. And again, this is a collaborative thing. He's done all the work. But just till this day, still play at least a couple of his records in my set is K. Trinada.

You know, when he was Ketra Damos pushing his records early on. But as Ketra, that's someone that I feel is, he's the face of this all. I mean, he can literally do 10 to 30,000 people at his own show sold out. He was headlining here last year. That's what I'm saying, you know. And so we just played together. He did the mainstack. Same setup.

He did main stage. I did the B stage in Chicago. And it was fire. Like I closed out. When I finished, he was coming on. So it was like a staggered thing. I'm like, this is a perfect way to end the festival. Yeah.

You know what I mean? So what's a part of your creative life that we're unaware of that you have to go through in order to make this story work? It's a great question. To make this, um, lately for me, it's been, it's been a lot of traveling. When I travel, I'm getting inspired by different sounds and people. Yes. And ideas.

Or it's just life moves. Honestly, my move from from Al-A. to Miami, it was a, you know, I didn't just, like, sell everything and start over. I moved my whole house over. So it was very difficult to do that in the midst of our 15-year anniversary. This whole year has been a campaign for us. So those challenges and these, like, time blocks really put me in a position where I'm like, I might still be getting settled into my home, but I got to hop on a flight to do this thing. So these challenges, they make me more.

intentional with my time and my who I have around me and things like that so I think the move has put me in a different headspace because I got out of my comfort zone and so the creative has been like in my home because I spend the most time in my home so I need to make sure that my space feels inspiring and motivational so me just being there being able to think as soon as I go home tomorrow I'm going to sit there in my house and sometimes I just I'm in silence I just stare I'm an introvert at heart But I'm social by association and by my career. But I'm really an introverted person. So when I go home, I'm just, I need to sit.

Like, you haven't even had a moment to reflect on what just happened. I don't know when you will. But hopefully you get at least half a day or like a day to yourself this week. And then it can kind of all just hit you. And I'm talking about like now where you're reflecting with your friends or the crew or with Jay. I'm talking about where you just get to sit there and just be present with what just happened. But then it's tough because this happens and then like you said you have that thing with Nas

you know what I'm saying? Or the whole the Hollywood Bowl right? You're always on to the next thing so I think the biggest thing for us is finding ways to still be present and take it all in because there's always going to be the next thing

like fuck I got to hop on the next flight the next show, the next set the next rehearsal so I'm even wondering like how do you find time for yourself or to take it all in? Well okay well my last question And you is going to be, what's your self-care routine?

You know, with me, I have a daytime routine and a nighttime routine, and both those routines require silence. I initially was the person that kept music playing when I fall asleep, keep music on when I, you know what I mean? You stop that? Yeah, so once, well, my life changed during the pandemic where I discovered silence and meditation and only when silence came, did other ideas come? And, you know, as a result, this is kind of why I'm in the lane of where I didn't expect to be, which is movies, you know what I mean?

But for me, it's just having a routine that I stick to, which is, you know, I got to spend my first half hour of the day just sitting in silence, not looking at my phone. So you don't check your phone when you wake up? I haven't talked to Jay yet, you know what I mean? Wow. Like I still have to allow myself to sit down. You know, I have so many questions. We got to do a session where you come on my show, but I would say... I would love to do that.

Because I have, man, we don't have enough time, unfortunately, today. But I was going to say, the main question for you is how long did it take to rehearse what y'all did? The Jay-Z thing? Yeah. Okay, so I'll say that around January. First of all, asking Jay-Z to do the picnic has been. been an ongoing 18-year joke.

And this year, usually we plan for the picnic. The picnic, we give ourselves a month off. This year will mark the first year in which I'm not taking a break in terms of more picnics.

We wanted to always expand the picnic across the world. So this, you know, we're doing Philly, L.A., London. We're doing Rotterdam. Oh, damn.

And there's one more we might consider. We might do Tokyo. I don't know. So the thing is that usually we take a month off just to no more curating, no more listening to who's next and all those things. And then come August, we got to work on next year. And usually it starts with calling the big guns. Hey, Mariah, you want to do this year? Hey, Jan, do you want to do this year?

Are you making those calls yourself? Some of them? The only, listen, relationships are everything. Because this is... But only you could lock in J. Well, yeah. I mean, the thing is,

is that for this event and the types of acts we do, number one, we always wanted to keep the price down under... Well, before it was like until three years ago, it was always under $100.

So, and we don't have much sponsorship in those things. So a lot of this. is look out for the cookout. Okay, we'll, we'll, uh, I mean, I'm not, I want to get people ideas like, hey, I'll drum for free on your next 12 albums, but it's really friendship. You know what I mean? Like, I'm friends with Usher.

I'm friends with, like, anyone that's Erica, yo. And so, you know, one, it's relationships, but really it's just constantly, I'll say the hardest part of it now is figuring out who's next. Now, thanks to the Tonight Show, I'm forced to know who's next. Because the thing that makes the Tonight Show special is knowing an unknown Ariana Grande or an unknown, like anyone who's A-List now were unknowns back then. And here's a network debut, you know. So kind of being in the Tonight Show and by default, the S&L ecosystem constantly puts you in. the mix with other people.

So at the end of the day, this is about your ears and what you like. One, can you still listen to music as a fan? Now, you know, when you talk about Dilla, Dilla taught me how to actually absorb music, because before

I would just buy a record and then skip. Constantly searching and you're just like, skip, skip, what's the next one? I need that. What's my next record? Right. And he, Sundays at his house, he would clean the house, he would drive around, he would listen to complete songs, four, five, six, seven, eight times until he says every song has something to reveal to him. He just has to subconsciously, oh, that baseline and make a note of it.

And there was a part where I started being a machine and stopped being a music fan. Where are you versus being a machine and a human in terms of music is concerned? I'm definitely a machine. I was listening to music and digging for some music for today that I didn't have in my library, still always finding new records. But what's been helping me listen fully is actually playing records at home. So every day when I wake up, I have my setup right where I spend 90% on my day. I have my turntables and I buy new records still.

Right. So I've just been hitting play and stuff that I might skip on streaming or if I'm in the car. Since I'm moving around, it just plays. And it's kind of caused me to be a bit more patient and let the music speak and flow. So I'm in the middle because my job, I have a radio show every week that I do. And I have to find new music to play and program every week to my people that listen. But also... Are you numb to that process?

It's muscle memory. But I would say I'm numb Is it's very difficult Because I've gotten busier And it's hard to still Get these shows in every Friday I pre-record them And then they air Sunday

It's hard while I'm in the middle of touring But what's helped is when I have special guests And takeovers That would take filling the show for me So like I had I had a Someone filling for me this week Yeah but it's real And you're next

Come on I definitely want to do it I definitely want to do it now And we need another real conversation because I have 45 questions for you off top that I just, I feel like the people in the world, I know people who have asked this, but I feel like you laugh when I start talking about what generation I'm from. I feel like the generation I come from plus older folks, I feel like there's a bit of an angle

I can hit you with that maybe others. I've seen the Red Bull, the RBMA ones, like killed it. But there's just some things, man, especially with new life events. I'm so curious where your head is at, you know? So anyways, yeah, thank you for taking you for taking it. the time and being here after an incredible night like that, you could have easily been like, man, I love you, Joe's selection, but like, I'm a chill. Like, I just had one of my biggest nights last night with this, it's a rarity for Jay to play.

And, like, for you to still show up, show up on time. I pay attention to that stuff, man. This guy was on, we were walking in together. Do you know what I mean? So, like, getting, getting to you, to me is even more important because, like, I'm a fan of curators. So in this state's bad, like, a, like, a. curator put the roots on like jiles peterson you know what i mean and the way that he put on benjee b and seeing you do that and so forth like i can only learn from that and the thing is i don't want to

be the the all-knowing know at all i want to be the student so yeah i appreciate that thank you sir thank you for coming on the show yes appreciate you yo this is the quest left show thank you joe okay i appreciate this and i will see you on the next go-round peace all right Questlove show is hosted by me, Amir Questlove Thompson. The executive producers are Sean G., Brian Cahoon, and me. Produced by Brittany Benjamin and Jake Payne. Produced for I-Heart by Noel Brown. Edited by Alex Conno.

I-Heart video support by Mark Canton. Logos, graphics, and animation by Nick Paloie. additional support by Lance Colvin. Special thanks to Kathy Brom. Special thanks to Sugar Steve Mandel. Please subscribe, rate, review, and share the Questlove show wherever you stream your podcast. Make sure you follow us on socials. That's at QLS.

Check out hundreds and hundreds of QLS episodes, including the Questlove Supreme shows in our podcast archives. Watch some of shows and production of IHart Radio. Didn't catch the latest Roland Martin Unfiltered podcast? Here's what you missed. People wake up and go, oh, damn, wait a moment, hold up. They change all of that? Yes.

It's real. This is a wholesale attack. It is targeting black people in every federal agency. It's raw. White folks have never allowed that reckoning to last more than a decade. Catch Roland Martin's daily commentary on the Black Information Network. And download Roland Martin Unfiltered on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcast. wherever you get your podcasts.

I am talking to a felon right now with face tattoos, and I cannot decide if I like him or not. That was a caller from my podcast, Therapy Gecko, where I speak with anonymous callers about their problems, relationships, and anything else in the depths of their mind. It all happens on my show, Therapy Gecko. So if you're trying to get out of your own head and into someone else's, this is the podcast for you.

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Listen to She Pivotts on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On August 4th, 1962, Marilyn Monroe died. Then the rumors started, and she died again. And now, we're going to set the record straight and learn about the way Marilyn Monroe actually died. The third way. I'm Jake Brennan, and on my podcast, Hollywoodland, I revisit some of the biggest stories from Hollywood history, separating the myths people want to believe from the reality underneath them. Hollywoodland is part of the Exactly Right Network.

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