DJ Cassidy Pass The Mic [Volume 3] [October 15, 2020] [#ThisIsForTheDJs]

Earlier this year, when it was clear that 2020 was a year like no other, I was inspired to find a way to help people around the world. Remember the time, when they smiled more. When they sang louder, when they danced harder. I wanted to connect people to their musical heroes in a more intimate way than ever before, and in turn, pay homage to the heroes around the world.

With Pass The Mic: Volume One, I celebrated my heroes of soul music from the 1970s and 1980s. With Pass The Mic: Volume Two, I celebrated my hip hop heroes of the golden era. With Pass The Mic: Volume Three, the celebration of my musical heroes continues.

When I was about six years old, the sounds, energy, and flavor of hip hop transformed R&B forever, and a result, some of the most infectious, most funky, most universal, most classic records were created. If you’re like me, you had a dance routine to every one of these songs.  If you’re like me, you know the words to every one of these songs. If you’re like me, these artists are your heroes too.   So turn your speakers up loud. Turn your speakers up proud. Allow this music take you back to that special place. And remember the time. --- DJ Cassidy

DJ Cassidy Pass The Mic [Volume 2] [August 6, 2020] [#ThisIsForTheDJs]

With PASS THE MIC: VOLUME TWO, in association with Rock The Bells, I hope to continue that tradition, this time by uniting my Hip Hop heroes. You see, without these artists you’re about to see, I do not exist. As a child, they influenced the way I walked, the way I talked, the way I danced, the way I dressed, the way I thought, the way I fought. I am a deejay because of them. I am me, because of them. I am here, because they were there. I am forever grateful to my Hip Hop heroes for their decades of music, culture, urgency, and inspiration, and with them, I celebrate the heroes around the world. --- DJ Cassidy

DJ Cassidy Pass The Mic [Volume 1] [Live October 16, 2020] [#ThisIsForTheDJs]

At the beginning of May, in the heat of the quarantine, I was FaceTiming with my friend and mentor, Verdine White of Earth Wind & Fire. While catching up, Earth Wind’s classic record, “That’s The Way Of The World,” came on my speakers. Hearing that song, while on the phone with Verdine, struck a chord and sent chills down my spine. I thought about how fortunate I was to have relationships with so many of my musical heroes. I wondered if I could find a way to share that special feeling with people, so I sat at my turntables and began Zooming with my favorite Soul artists from the 1970s and 1980s. They each sang along to their classic records, literally passing the mic from one home to the next, in effort to honor and uplift the heroes around the world on the frontlines of health, freedom, and justice. The result was PASS THE MIC, featuring my legendary R&B heroes - Philip Bailey and Verdine White of Earth Wind & Fire, Siedah Garrett, Patrice Rushen, Deniece Williams, Ray Parker Jr, Ricky Bell of New Edition, Bobby Brown, Jeff Redd, Meli'sa Morgan, Robert “Kool” Bell and Khalis Bayyan of Kool & The Gang, Steve Arrington, Marcus Miller, Cheryl Lynn, and Howard Hewett of Shalamar --- DJ Cassidy