By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer
Yesterday, DJ Tarzan intended to release his King of My City mixtape. However, the project had to be pushed back an additional day in order to ensure the quality of the project. Later today, King of My City will be released. DJ Tarzan, a New Jersey-based Blok Club DJ member, has been mixing in clubs for three years, blending the typical East Coast sound with Crunk music.
These years of hard work have taken DJ Tarzan, a wild man on the beats, on a long journey, which has now landed him with the Blok Club DJs. Popular in the East Coast, Midwest, and West Coast, DJ Tarzan says they are just what he needs to get to the next level. While popular on the East Coast, DJ Tarzan is still building his base in the Midwest and West Coast.
As he continues building his base outside of the East Coast, DJ Tarzan continues to give his fans in the New Jersey area what they want. King of My City continues his trend of giving the spotlight to unsigned artists, but the mixtape does feature tracks with Jim Jones, Yo Gotti, and Shawnna. With the official King of My City release set for later today, DJ Tarzan previewed the mixtape with Hip Hop Vibe.
Read the entire interview below:
How are you feeling going into the King of My City mixtape? I’m kinda nervous, not because of the music, mainly because I’m wondering if the public will accept it the way I want them too.
Do you feel this mixtape will help produce more stars in the Tri State area? I feel King of My City will help spread artists into different cities, which is the whole concept behind my projects. I want to help the artists get heard, as most of the artists I work with need that extra push, so I try to give them that.
Where did the King of My City title come from? (Laughs) I was in a meeting with some of the Blok Club DJs and they kept calling me “king of the jungle,” joking because my DJ name is ‘Tarzan.’ My manager, Merc Valentine, said “no, he is the king of the city,” so the name just evolved from there.
As far as big names on the mixtape, you have Jim Jones, Shawnna, and Yo Gotti? Yes, I have Jim Jones, Shawnna, and Yo Gotti, but I also have Waka Flocka Flame and Chief Keef. These big names are actually featured on songs from artists I work with on a daily basis, which is how they ended up on King of My City.
How did you select the artists for King of My City? All of the artists on King of My City are hard-working artists. I like their grind, I like how they work, I like how they are open to new ways. For example, there is a guy on the tape from Harlem, New York named 1 Shot Dealz, who will bring more than fifty guys with him to one of my shows if I ask him to come out and support me at an event. His willingness to do something like that is the hard work I appreciate. The same thing goes for Chase Fetti, who always has a bunch of people around him, not only his homies, either, I’m talking about fans. With both rappers and all of them on the mixtape, their music speaks for itself.
Your mixtapes will always serve as an outlet to unsigned artists? Yes, and this year I plan to release over fifty projects all over. I love music, the biggest thing I hate is listening to the radio and hearing the same songs playing over and over. There is no need for that, especially with all of the talent that is out here.
Can you tell us about New Yitty and his contribution to the mixtape? New Yitty is the big bro, we are both a part of the same camp, 24/7 Blok Club DJ movement. He is a hungry artist and what he speaks about is real, whether it be money, the street life, cars, etc. New Yitty is one of those real artists, he has a dope delivery, dope concepts, and his features are always crazy, be on the lookout for him.
Who are some of the other unsigned artists on King of My City? Chase Fetti, 1 Shot Dealz, Maine Skrapp, Cruch Calhoun, Eastside L Boog, and many more.
Would you consider King of My City your best mixtape, to-date? Seeing how it is my first official mixtape, yes I would. I have hosted a lot of mixtapes on the streets and I have done hosting for artists’ mixtapes, but this is something I wanted to put together to see if it would work. I really believe in it. I traveled almost around the country, meeting the artists featured on the mixtape, building with them, and taking this thing to another level. So, yes, overall, this is the best work, from building friendships in different markets, great networking, and much, much, more.
Who helped you put this compilation together? Merc Valentine, he is a well-connected person and he has been helping me out with a lot of other things. We live twenty-five minutes, driving distance, away from each other, but we meet up every day, working and grinding, moving up and down the highway. Together, we are chasing the dream, going from Chicago to New York City to Indiana, Texas, Atlanta, and everywhere else, grinding.
