Rundown On The Core DJ’s Atlanta Retreat
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April 29, 2009 | Trill Chris
Tony Neal & The Core Dj’s just wrapped up a highly successful weekend in Atlanta after putting on its 10th annual Retreat. The W Hotel in downtown played host for the event, which was filled with lots of information and networking opportunities for up and coming artists & dj’s alike.
The retreat, which lasted from Friday (April 24) thru Sunday, went very smoothly for the most part, minus the bus delays to Justin’s Restaurant (due to downtown road construction) and the move of the CTE artist showcase to the Loft.
The conferences/panels were no different than any other conference, such as the TJ’s Dj’s conferences, but beneficial to those who have never attended a conference before. Industry veteran Wendy Day was one of many industry insiders for the “In The Know” panel, which provided tips and keys to success in the hip-hop industry, as well as very useful information on how to keep your ass out of trouble with the IRS!
Saturday’s stand-out event was the Bad Boy listening party at Justin’s Restaraunt in Buckhead, which featured a delicious looking buffet (but they closed it down before we were able to get any food!). Cassie was among the first of the Bad Boy crew to make an appearance – and I must say, she’s as fine as ever, even with the half shaved head! A Bad Boy event would be nothing without Diddy, and sure enough he came through, along with the hot new artist Red Café – who is now a part of the Bad Boy roster! Diddy gave a great speech to all of the DJ’s at the event [watch here] and even debuted a hot new song from the Bad Boy family – which features OJ Da Juiceman of all people! [listen here]
[smartads]
Each night concluded with a club event that was followed by an after-party for the late night owls. KeepItTrill did not attend any of these events, but we did attend the Core Dj’s Award Ceremony at Club Dreamz on Sunday.
The Sunday event at Dreamz was a memorable night as many of Atlanta’s hip-hop legends were awarded with the “Jam Master Jay” award. Among the Atlanta recipients were Killer Mike, Pastor Troy, Goodie Mob, Jagged Edge and Bone Crusher, as well as producers Shawty B, Shawty Redd & Polow Da Don. Other award winners included L.A. Reid, whose sons accepted the award on his behalf and an award for the late Shakir Stewart, which was followed by a moment of silence. Shakir passed away late last year and was the V.P. at Def Jam, who replaced Jay-Z after his departure. R.I.P.!
The night also included various performances by many up-and-coming artists, as well as the awarded Atlanta legends Pastor Troy & Bone Crusher. Among the standout performances were Block Life, who performed their hit song “17.5”, which features Shawty Lo & E-40 on the official remix. Rookie R&B singer Chanj (Alistair Records) shut everything down as the final act before the headliners of the night came out. His voice was strong, lyrics were amazing and his stage presence/performance was on point. When we spoke with him in the media room on Saturday, he vowed to bring back real R&B… like Keith Sweat & Teddy Riley. After watching him perform, he definitely backed up those claims.
The headliners of the night included Teddy Riley & Blackstreet, who announced that Blackstreet would be reuniting! They performed many of their hits – including “Don’t Leave Me,” “No Diggity” [watch here] & the song that arguably started modern club music: “Rump Shaker.” It was the first time the entire group had been on stage together in many YEARS, making it a very memorable night. Big ups to Tony Neal for putting this one together!
Overall the entire weekend was a great success. Aside from the groupies who flocked to the several artists who came through, and the self proclaimed “media” who got in the way of real media outlets, I would definitely attend this event again.
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