Baltimore club, also called Bmore club, Bmore house or simply Bmore, is a fusion of
breakbeat
Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and UK ...
and
house
A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
genres. It is often referred to as a blend of hip hop and chopped, staccato
house music
House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...
. It was created in
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
, United States in the early 1990s by
2 Live Crew
2 Live Crew is an American hip hop music, hip hop group from Miami, Florida, which had its greatest commercial success from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. The group's most well-known line up was composed of Luther Campbell, Luke Campbell, Fr ...
Frank Ski
Frank Rodriguez, professionally known as Frank Ski (born May 9, 1964), is an American DJ, journalist, philanthropist, radio personality, and public forums host. He also was a Baltimore club and house music artist who recorded as solo, as well as ...
, Miss Tony (known as Big Tony after he stopped presenting in drag), Scottie B. and DJ Spen.
Baltimore club is based on an 8/4 beat structure, and includes tempos around 130 beats per minute. It combines repetitive, looped vocal snippets similar to
trap
A trap is a mechanical device used to capture or restrain an animal for purposes such as hunting, pest control, or ecological research.
Trap or TRAP may also refer to:
Art and entertainment Films and television
* ''Trap'' (2015 film), Fil ...
,
bounce
Bounce or The Bounce may refer to:
* Deflection (physics), the event where an object Collision, collides with and bounces against a plane surface
Books
* Mr. Bounce, a character from the Mr. Men series of children's books
Broadcasting, film and ...
breakbeat
Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and UK ...
. Samples used include theme songs from shows like ''
Sanford and Son
''Sanford and Son'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977. It was based on the British sitcom ''Steptoe and Son'', which initially aired on BBC One in the United ...
Elmo's World
''Elmo's World'' is a segment that is shown at the end of the long-running American children's television program ''Sesame Street'' which premiered on November 16th, 1998, as part of a broader structural change to the show. It originally lasted ...
disco
Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...
record stores
A record shop or record store is a retail outlet that sells recorded music. In the late 19th century and the early 20th century, record shops only sold gramophone records, but over the 20th century, record shops sold the new formats that were ...
of
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...
were essential to the development of the genre. Early adopters included Scottie B, Shawn Caesar and DJ Equalizer during the 1990-1992 time period. They were later joined (1993–94) by DJ Patrick, Kenny B,
DJ Class
Daniel Woodis, better known by his stage name DJ Class, is an American DJ from Baltimore, Maryland. A veteran of the Baltimore club scene, he started his career in the early 1990s and gained attention with his Unruly Records releases, including ...
, Diamond K, DJ Technics and others.
UK breakbeat hardcore records were influential to the genre. The Blapps! Records (UK) label released several British rave classic records between 1989 and 1992 that are often have been sampled by Baltimore producers. "Don't Hold Back", "Too Much Energy" and "Let the Freak" were sampled and played heavily by DJs and producers. Other UK breakbeat tracks cited by Baltimore DJs as influential include "On 33" By
Stereo MC's
Stereo MC's are an English Hip hop music, hip hop/electronic dance music, electronic dance group which formed in Nottingham, England, in 1985. They had an international Top 40, top 20 hit with their single "Connected (Stereo MCs song), Connected ...
, the "State of Mind" EP by Is That It, and "Hoovers & Spray Cans" By Mark One.
The Ensoniq ASR-10 keyboard sampler, released in 1992, was used to produce many tracks in the genre.
2000s
In the mid 2000's, the genre gained crossover popularity in Baltimore's rock underground, due to dance nights at venues such as the Talking Head Club. Baltimore club was featured in '' Spin Magazine'' in December 2005.
Rod Lee
Rod Lee is an American, Baltimore, Maryland-based DJ, record producer,The Washington Post'' in 2005.DJ K-Swift was known as a prominent personality in the genre. In addition to DJing at Hammerjacks and
The Paradox
The Paradox was a South Baltimore dance club from 1991 to 2016. It was originally a home to house music, but later on got more of a hip hop feel. The club was founded by Wayne Davis.
History
The Paradox was an important gathering place for Balt ...
, she hosted a radio show on
WERQ-FM
WERQ-FM (92.3 MHz) is a commercial radio station in Baltimore, Maryland. It features a Mainstream Urban radio format and is owned by Radio One of Lanham, Maryland, the largest broadcasting company serving African American audiences in the United ...
from 1998 until her death in 2008.
2010s
In 2019, James Nasty & Soohan's club track "Pop!" was featured in Season 5, episode 4 of the Comedy Central sitcom Broad City.
Baltimore club dancing history
Baltimore club dancing works in tandem with Baltimore club music. This wild-legged dance style is native to Baltimore and the dance culture offers the city's youth a platform for self-expression and an alternative to the treacherous realities of life in the streets.
Offshoots
In the 1990s, Baltimore club music developed a cult following in the North Jersey club scene, particularly in the Jersey club genre of
Newark
Newark most commonly refers to:
* Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States
* Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area
Newark may also refer to:
Places Canada
* Niagara-on-the ...
DJ Tameil
Tameil Paynes (known by his stage name DJ Tameil) is an American disc jockey and record producer from Newark, New Jersey. He is credited with pioneering the Jersey club style of dance music in the late 1990s, drawing influence from Baltimore club ...
. This spread stemmed from the distribution of mix tapes by traveling Baltimore DJs. There were also a number of Boston-area radio shows in the mid-1990s that played Baltimore club music. It also spread south to the Virginia club scene, and even further south to Alabama where DJ Seven, formerly known as DJ Taj, developed Bamabounce. It had also started to spread to New York City.
Philly and Jersey club music are both subgenres of Baltimore club music, but they each have their own individual history and evolution. The vocals in Baltimore club music one of the factors that sets this style of music apart from the rest. The vocals are raunchy, repetitive, and choppy, and often based on rap acapellas. For the technical aspect, Baltimore club music incorporates a "think break," which is a bass drum pattern that signifies this style of music. As this style of music has evolved, the tempo has increased, and background noises such as gunshots, "What!", and "Hey!" have been increasing in popularity. As these sounds spread into Philadelphia, the city developed them into their own. This genre became known as Philly club, otherwise referred to "party music." This style is much faster than Baltimore club music and includes elements of hardstyle such as sirens. In contrast, Baltimore club music spread into New Jersey in an entirely different manner. New Jersey DJs were taking runs to Baltimore to pick up the latest club records and bring them back to New Jersey to play at parties. Once this occurred, the sounds began to mutate with what local DJs and producers added on and changed. This style became known as Jersey club, which smoothed out the rugged, raw, and violent edges of Baltimore club music. Similarly, Jersey club dance is simpler and more universal in response to the smoother sounds.
Baltimore club dance
Baltimore club dance became very popular with Baltimore's African-American community. Throughout the city, there were dance crews who battled against each other at recreation centers and nightclubs, and music from famous disc jockeys was at its peak. These dance moves, created from Baltimore club music, were usually high-paced and intense due to the fact that Baltimore club music evolved from house music, with a mix of hip hop, two fast-paced music genres. One of the many moves born out of Baltimore club music is the "crazy legs", a fierce shaking of both legs combined with simultaneous foot tapping and shoulder shrugging. Another dance move evolved out of Baltimore club music was the “what what”, a dance move involving difficult footwork where one raises up one bent leg over the other, in a fast, hopping-like movement. A video featuring girls wearing face coverings while doing versions of the "crazy legs" and the "what what" to a remix of Miss Tony's "How You Wanna Carry It" entitled "Put Your Mask On" went
viral
Viral means "relating to viruses" (small infectious agents).
Viral may also refer to:
Viral behavior, or virality
Memetic behavior likened that of a virus, for example:
* Viral marketing, the use of existing social networks to spread a marke ...
in April 2020. During its peak, Baltimore club DJs received international recognition and were featured on the records of major artists. International recognition given to Baltimore club music and dance was short-lived. Many attribute the downfall of Baltimore club culture to the radio. Limiting club music to less than an hour a day of live radio play, but more than it received during its initial heyday, the formula of going to the club to hear the newest and freshest had been broken. The nightclub experience of going to the club, hearing it on the loud sound systems that it was custom made to be heard on and danced to had been breached, and it started to lose its audience and "cool factor". Though many credit radio with the downfall of Baltimore club culture, it also can be attributed to the closing of major Baltimore clubs, such as Paradox and Hammerjacks, nightclubs where Baltimore club culture was born.Brittany Britto, Keep the Beat ''
Baltimore Sun
''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries.
Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...