Jonathan Shecter on The Source, Street Beat, and Underground Poker

Before there was a comment section, there was The Source. Jonathan Shecter cofounded it in 1988 out of a Harvard dorm, and it became the most influential publication in hip hop history.

On this episode of Mixed and Mastered, Jeffrey Sledge reconnects with his old friend from the Wild Pitch days and takes it back to Center City, Philadelphia. Disco as a first love. Fresh Fest and Public Enemy at the Spectrum. A pre-fame Will Smith working a room backstage. Talking his way into an internship at Power 99 and learning from Lady B's era of Philly radio.

Then Harvard. A knock on the door from Dave Mays in a red Fila sweatsuit. A rap show called Street Beat, named with a little help from Lady B's drops. A listener mailing list that turned into a newsletter, then a trade magazine, then The Source. The Tommy Boy check that paid for the first New York office at 594 Broadway. Chi Modu's legendary covers. And the truth every editor learns: everybody flips straight to the ratings.

After The Source, Jonathan put out records with Eminem, Royce da 5'9" and DJ Premier on Game Recordings, sat at the tables of New York's legendary Mayfair Club, and landed in Las Vegas just as the nightlife boom hit. He tells the story of the player who grabbed his losing bet and sprinted out of the Bellagio, breaks down the EDM money at Wynn, and explains how Playback Prodigy programs music for hotels, restaurants and clubs around the world. He closes it out with Run-DMC, Slick Rick, and KRS-One.

This is Mixed and Mastered with Jonathan Shecter.

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