Dance

DJ Sammy

1/25/2003
Dominick A. Miserandino
If you can remember where you were when you heard "Heaven" for the first time (either by Bryan Adams or later on by Belinda Carlisle), you'll probably want to add the latest version by DJ Sammy to your memory bank, and get to know this new musical genius.

DM) You've gone from a DJ to much more than a DJ, but a producer. How did you take that route in your career?

DS) Actually, I come from a musical family, and I was working very hard in my bedroom, in the house that I grew up in. I love doing music, because I heard my family playing music. I had music around me all of my life. Since my father was playing guitar and my sister was playing piano, I got more into electronic music. So what happened ? That's why all of my songs are a mix between acoustic sounds and electronics.

Gaynor, Gloria

5/15/2002
Dominick A. Miserandino
Who is Gloria Gaynor, and how did she 'survive'? Well for the past 20 years, she's been following Christ and performing around the world. In this interview she tells the story of her survival and the story behind the song.

DM) You mentioned staying power, and the "What have you done for me lately" affect on the music industry. Do you think that's the public or the industry's doing?

GG) Very often, record companies are hiring young people, and the people who are making decisions are very young, and they're interested in what they're interested in. And then again, in other record companies, the decisions are being made by totally uncreative people, and all they know is what's going to be the bottom line, and all they think is what worked yesterday will work today, and they keep doing that thing.

Bim Skala Bim

11/29/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino


DM) What was the start of the band?

JA) The band started in 1983 with the current singer, Dan Vitale, and the bass player, Mark Ferranti. After about a year, they shelved it. Then in 1985, they decided to put the band back together. Bim has had virtually the same line-up since 1985. The singer and keyboard player were roommates and started working on songs. The keyboard player brought in the drummer and guitar player from another project.

Princess Superstar

11/29/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino
Princess Superstar talks about confidence, women in rock, running her own record label, and life in New York City.

DM) Was music your first love or did you have other careers in mind?

PS) When I was a kid, I wanted to be a scientist, an astronaut, and a movie star. So now I am all three!!!

DM) All three?

PS) Yes, all three. Listen to my CD!

DM) But you haven't literally gone into space...right?

PS) Not yet, but it's my dream. I think they are planning space travel for civilians after the year 2000, but you have to be super-rich to be selected.

Skavoovie

11/29/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino
Skavoovie has been playing the Ska scene in Boston for 8 years now with quite a following. Jon Natchez tells how the band has stayed together and what he thinks success means.

DM) What's the story behind the band?

JN) The band's story goes like this... Seven (going on eight) years ago, several high school buddies decided to get a band together. What kind of band? Well, they all liked music you could dance to. They all wanted room to stretch out without any jam-band pretensions. They wanted to play exciting music. They wanted to play music that could somehow reference the incredible variety of music they liked.Out of that, Skavoovie was born. Eight of the ten original high school buddies are still in the band (I'm one of 'em).

Soulshock

11/29/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino
With an inside look at the music industry, Soulshock, the producer of hits from Tupac to Whitney Houston tells us his views of the state of the music industry today.

DM) What was it like working on Whitney Houston's "Heartbreak Hotel?"

SS) It was an amazing experience... I have been a fan of Whitney since I was a kid, and sitting in front her having her record one of our songs! Well it's very hard to describe, but it is still the peak of my career.

DM) Do you anticipate working with her again?

SS) Yes, we have spoken a couple of times since we recorded the song. She is very proud of the song which is why it ended up on her new greatest hits CD.

Cherry Poppin' Daddies

11/29/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino
Steve talks about how it feels to be the most successful swing band in the country, with the hit,

DM) Most of your fans who know you from your hit song, "Zoot Suit Riot", how many do you think will be thrilled and how many will be disappointed by your newest record?

SP) Well, that's a good question. We have a lot of fans who know us from back in those day, because we have been around since 1989, especially on the West Coast, and we have a lot of people who know what we do. At least they know that we don't just play swing.

Mulet, Teddy

11/29/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino
Teddy Mulet of The Miami Sound Machine speaks about his feelings on music, and his previous life as a doctor!

DM) The Miami Sounds Machine has basically brought Latin dance music to the public like it never was before. How does it make you feel being part of that?

TM) I've always been proud of being a member of Miami Sound Machine not for its musical & commercial achievements, but because the guys are great players, very creative, very professional, and fun to work with. And knowing we are apart of music history is one of my most proud accomplishments.

Boomtang Boys

11/29/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino
From Toronto, Canada, the Boomtang Boys have been conquering the Canadian dance chart. Tony Grace answers a few questions about the dance music scene.

DM) From what I've heard, you've had quite a lot of success with your dance hit single "Squeeze Toy" in Canada.

TG) Yes, it's the first time a Canadian group has debuted at number one on the Canadian charts. Now Shania and Alannah Morissette have done that, but they're not considered a group; they're considered solo artists.

DM) Now, I've read some articles which have criticized dance music as not having any musical creativity, and being simply repetitions of other people's works. What's your reaction to criticism like that?

TG) Yeah, I've heard that before.

Wash, Martha

8/16/2000
Dominick A. Miserandino
Martha is known for such hits as 'It's Raining Men', 'Everybody, Everybody' and countless others. Having been the voice behind many platinum-selling artists such as 'The Weather Girls', 'Two Tons of Fun', Sylvester, C&C Music Factory and Black Box, Martha has a new project under her belt with her new single 'Listen to the People' for 'Sounds Of A Better World'

DM) Martha, what is going on with this latest project?

MW) It was a concept of a gentleman by the name of Jim Papoulis and his wife. He wanted to put out this CD of songs, not necessarily based on children but dealing with children in this new millennium, and show how children can fall through cracks of society. Not enough is being done to help children now. And these are the songs that he wrote, dealing with life through children's eyes.

DM) How did you get involved in the project then?

MW) I had worked previously with Jim and have known him for almost five years.

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