Merlin Bobb, New York native and celebrated DJ, producer, and music executive is widely recognized as a pioneer of house music. His groundbreaking contributions continue to earn acclaim, including his highly anticipated Boiler Room debut DJ set in 2023.

Merlin’s career began on the airwaves with his first mix show on WBLS, where he quickly became a favorite among dance music fans. His show became a landmark for introducing early Chicago, New York, and New Jersey house music to a wider audience. Constantly pushing boundaries with new sounds and techniques, Merlin helped redefine the art of DJing and laid the foundation for a remarkable career in music.

Beyond the decks, Merlin shaped the direction of house and dance music as an executive at Atlantic and Elektra Records. He was instrumental in bringing house into the mainstream while collaborating with and championing legends like Frankie Knuckles, Timmy Regisford, Roger Sanchez, Kerri Chandler, David Morales, Louie Vega, Tony Humphries, and DJ Spinna. At the same time, he worked with some of the biggest names in hip-hop and R&B—Missy Elliott, Brandy, Busta Rhymes, Pharrell Williams, Timbaland, Outkast, Dr. Dre, and more during his tenure as Senior Vice President of A&R.

Merlin also helped shape New York nightlife as co-founder of Club Shelter in 1991, a cultural institution whose influence continues to resonate across global club culture today.

Now, after years behind the scenes, Merlin has returned to DJing and producing, reigniting his connection with longtime fans and reaffirming his role as a vital force in the house music movement.

Follow him: @merlinbobb4

Official SoundCloud account for Blue Note Records
www.bluenote.com

OKeh short history: 

OKeh was founded by Otto K. E. Heinemann when he set up his own recording studio and gramophone record pressing plant in New York City in September 1918. Heinemann formed the name of the record label "OKeh", from his initials.  OKeh began by issuing popular songs, dance numbers, and vaudeville skits similar to the fare of other labels, but Heineman also wished to experiment with music for audiences neglected by the larger record companies. OKeh produced lines of recordings in German, Czech, Polish, Swedish, and Yiddish for the USA's immigrant communities. In 1920, Ralph Peer's recordings by African-American blues singer Mamie Smith were a surprise smash hit for Okeh. The company perceived the significant, little-tapped market for blues and jazz by African American artists. Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Bix Beiderbecke are only a few names of jazz greats that have recorded for the label. By 1926 Columbia Records bought the label and kept it running into the 60's with jazz and R&B recordings. 

In 1994, Sony Music reactivated the OKeh label as a new-age Blues label. Okeh's first new signings included Keb' Mo, Popa Chubby, and Little Axe. By 2000, the Okeh label was again retired, but in 2013 it will see its re-launch as a jazz label once again.

The multiple Grammy-winning catalog division of Sony Music Entertainment.

Born in Brooklyn, Tony Humphries first fueled the world of house music with his epic stint on KISS FM, as one of its greatest Mastermixers; paired with his residency at the legendary club Zanzibar.
Tony & Zanzibar were synonymous with a new soulful electronic sound.  His signature eclectic mixing talent led to Tony’s own production of what became known as The Zanzibar Sound or the Jersey Sound, with his hands on nearly 500 productions, including several gold hit remixes for the likes of Indeep & Janet Jackson.  

Tony's musical talents are rooted in a creatively diverse and musically driven performing family; including his father, a Colombian émigré Rene ‘El Grandé Combo’ Humphries, a prominent bandleader in New York, who worked alongside peers like Tito Puente and Eddie Palmieri.  This creative diversity inspired his lifelong passion and direction. 

In 1998, Tony founded his own imprint Yellorange Records, a subsidiary label of Strictly Rhythm. Yellorange releases were renowned for fusing soulful vocals, Afro-Cuban flavors & Italo-grooves.  After Strictly Rhythm's closure, he launched, Tony Records showcasing younger artists and producers of soulful music with a modern form.  

After a sabbatical from Tony's own production, Frankie Knuckles enticed Tony back into the studio, where he has been going strong, with releases on Nocturnal Groove, Moulton, and his own label, with a two part EP HouseWork, blending blues, gospel and  worksongs into a brilliantly contemporary setting.

Over the years, Tony has stretched his mixing arm across the globe, playing in countless clubs and festivals, with residencies and guest spots throughout the years in the likes of Ministry of Sound, Pacha in Ibiza, Echos in Rimini, Fabric, SmartBar and his Le Bain in NYC. 

Tony Humphries has remained timeless with his signature lure of the dance floor, blending the new house sound into his gospel, deep, tribal sound.

The Strypes are 4-piece rhythm and blues band hailing from Cavan, Ireland, formed in 2011 by Ross Farrelly (lead vocals/harmonica), Josh McClorey (lead guitar/vocals), Pete O'Hanlon (bass guitar/harmonica) and Evan Walsh (drums).

The group has spent the past 18 months launching their explosive R&B assault on the clubs and festivals of Ireland, the UK and Europe, viciously hammering out a no-nonsense blues repertoire drawing from the songbooks of Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, Slim Harpo and more with the passion and venom of British blues groups such as Dr. Feelgood, The Yardbirds, The Rolling Stones and The Animals. 

Having already been met with critical acclaim from greats such as Jeff Beck and Paul Weller and been tipped by NME as the No. 1 new band to watch, it seems things can only get better for The Strypes.

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