The First Annual Nightlife Culture Expo Special Coverage

By Gamal Hennessy

Your nightlife is an important part of why you live in New York. It gives you a chance to connect with others, escape our normal routines and express our creativity. The Nightlife Culture Expo is a celebration of that part of your life. As the president of the Nightlife Cultural Initiative I’ve tried to collect a diverse blend of attractions, performances and parties for you to enjoy. Here are some highlights of what we have for you if you join us.

The Performers

Little Louie Vega & Kevin Hedge: They created a signature blend of house and Latin music that has helped define the New York dance scene and they have agreed to kick off the Expo in a big way at Cielo.

Maor: The emerging artist will bring his music and his message about gay bullying and discrimination to Stonewall Inn as a part of the LGBT Appreciation Event

Paige Turner: This established queer icon graces the stage for a night of music and comedy as the headline act of the LGBT Appreciation Event

Rakim: He is one of the most respected names in hip hop. His Paid in Full album is a soundtrack its golden age and he will be performing a rare New York set at Sutra.

Rob Swift: The legendary DJ for the X-Men will return from his performance tour of Asia to provide the right music to celebrate nightlife culture and end our Expo on a high note at the double seven.

The Venues

Pleasure Palaces: Bars and Clubs as the Cradles of Nightlife Culture- The spaces that bars and clubs inhabit that become the frame and canvas for every other aspect of the nightlife experience. We have five very different venues all over downtown Manhattan spread out over the four nights

The Speakers

A discussion about the importance of nightlife culture is vital to this type of event. I have collected a panel of very well connected and insightful nightlife minds to discuss this topic during our brunch at Affaire. The panel includes

madison moore: Fashion and Fantasies

Paul Seres: Nightlife operator, advocate and President of the New York Nightlife Association

Shonali Bhowmik: From Nashville to New York

Steven Lewis: Celebrity Waitresses, Sex and the Sin Effect

We hope you will decide to join us for the first of many nightlife culture events. For more information and tickets, visit http://nightlifeculture.org/events/

Have fun.

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House Music: The Home that Nightlife Built

by Gamal Hennessy

One of the main forms of music associated with modern nightlife is house music. While it did not originate in New York, the diversity and energy of the City created fertile ground for the genre and established New York as one of the epicenters of house music.

House music evolved from disco in the late 1970s and early 1980s. This new form of music had distinct elements of soul and funk blended into a tempo and composition structure designed for dancing. House differed from previous genres because much of the music was generated by machines as opposed to live instruments. While this was a source of aesthetic tension between traditional musicians and house DJs, it did give the house artists the ability to create music rapidly and independently from other artists.

House music developed in Chicago in the early 1980s. It didn’t begin to take off in New York until the opening of Paradise Garage. David Mancuso opened the venue because the gays and minorities he catered to were often harassed at mainstream clubs. One of the first DJs Mancuso hired was Larry Levan, who has been credited with not only developing house music in New York, but bringing together disparate groups like Blacks, Latinos and punk rockers, and introducing an environment designed strictly for dancing.

Paradise Garage gave many prominent house DJs their start including David Morales and Francois Kervorkian. Other house venues soon began showcasing major talent all around the city. Grammy winning producer Frankie Knuckles spun with Levan at Continental Baths, Warehouse, Sound Factory and went on to open his own venue, Power Plant. Junior Vasquez progressed from his initial residency at Bassline to found Sound Factory and have popular residencies at Tunnel, Palladium, Exit, Roxy, Twilo and Spirit. He still plays regular sets at at Cielo. Dozens of other artists developed house over the past two decades, including Todd Terry, Danny Tenaglia, DJ Lithium, Mateo & Mateos, Little Louie Vega, Kenny Dope Gonzales and Blue Six.

Although many devoted house fans maintain that house has faded from New York nightlife, there are still several venues supporting house and its artists every week. Venues like Club Love, Sullivan Room, Cielo, Pacha, Sin Sin, Marquee still bring people together on the dance floor. In addition, many mainstream artists have adopted the aesthetics of house and electronic music. Acts as diverse as Kanye West, Usher, Katy Perry and the Black Eyed Peas utilize the energy and technology that was once the province of house producers. While hip hop may have eclipsed house as the dominant music form in New York nightlife, the influence of the music still generates a strong following and crowds of dancers are waiting for you to join them tonight.

Have fun.
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