L.A. Beat Swap Meet

I'm not sure where I first saw the flier for the Beat Swap Meet Record Show. I think it might have been in Wax Poetics Magazine or maybe it was Myspace sometime in early 2008, I don't really remember. What i do remember is thinking how the flier made this show sound like it centers around all the music I collect. You see, BSM is exclusively about urban music. This would mean nothing but soul, funk, rap, reggae, jazz, electro, breaks, & samples. I finally made it to my first show on their 1 year anniversary. Me and the homie Drunk Jeff pulled up to the Grand Star Jazz Club in Chinatown L.A. to roam among the purest of record collectors, producers, and vinyl Dj's. Robby Utmos , the founder of BSM, made us feel right at home after driving 6 hours from Phoenix. We arrived at 11am and dug until 6pm at the shows end. I walked away with a full 2 crates of pure butter! That first show we attended covered both floors inside of the club but has expanded over the years to not only the outside of the club but now wraps around the building with thousands in attendance. The show also outgrew just the dealing of records and is now more of a hip hop festival which includes clothing, art, food, yoga, live dj's and bands, rap cyphers, b-boy cyphers, production battles, open turntables, and sightings of hip hop royalty. I have missed only a few shows over the years and have made some super-homies at this event. This is no doubt the best record show I have ever been a part of. Check them out at www.beatswapmeet.com