David Mays | |
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Born | 1968or1969(age 55–56) [1] |
Occupations |
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Years active | 1988–present |
Known for | Founder of The Source |
David Mays is an American media executive and entrepreneur who founded The Source Magazine [2] and co-founded of Hip Hop Weekly . He is the co-founder of Breakbeat, a multimedia podcast network launched in September 2021 that is dedicated to serving the interests and perspectives of the hip-hop community across the globe. [3]
Mays created The Source in 1988 as a single-sheet newsletter while a Harvard undergraduate. It soon became a national magazine.
While at Harvard, Mays co-hosted a radio show on WHRB, Street Beat, using the name "Go-Go Dave." Mays' co-host was Jon Shecter, "J the Sultan of Rap." Mays made Shecter a partner in The Source, which provided news and information on hip-hop to listeners of the radio show. After graduation, Mays and Shecter brought The Source to New York, with classmate Ed Young and Harvard Law School graduate James Bernard as additional partners.
Mays, as publisher, guided the rapid growth of the magazine, fostering its role as the champion of and critical voice for hip-hop culture. [4] The Source's “5 Mics” album rating system became the standard by which all hip-hop albums were measured. The magazine's "Unsigned Hype" column was responsible for discovering and helping launch the careers of The Notorious B.I.G, Common, Mobb Deep, DMX, and many more artists who would go on to become stars. In 1991, Mays created The Source Awards, [5] which started as a feature on the TV show Yo! MTV Raps , and later became an independent annual production with some of the highest-rated TV specials for a hip-hop audience ever with the UPN Network [6] and then on BET. [7]
Mays partnered with the mayor and city of Miami to host a weekend of entertainment and community activities, in conjunction with The Source Awards in August 2004, that attracted over 50,000 attendees. The Source Awards Weekend generated over $50 million in tourist revenue for the city.
Mays built a stable of companies around TheSource brand, including a compilation album series (The Source Presents: Hip Hop Hits), two weekly TV shows (The Source All Access [8] , The Source Sound Lab), [9] a mobile content download business and a clothing line, as well as foreign-language editions of the magazine: The Source France, The Source Japan and The Source Latino. Mays was the first entrepreneur to introduce hip-hop to Madison Avenue, opening the doors for Nike, Mountain Dew and other corporate brands to begin marketing to the hip-hop consumer. [10]
In 1999, Mays created The Source Youth Foundation, which raised over $1 million to fund programs and organizations across the country using Hip-Hop to effectively reach at-risk, inner-city youth. [11] Mays co-created the first national hip-hop political summit ("A Special Summit on Social Responsibility in the Hip-Hop Industry") in 2000 with the Reverend Al Sharpton and the National Action Network [12]
Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, known professionally as Nas, is an American rapper and entrepreneur. Rooted in East Coast hip hop, he is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time. The son of jazz musician Olu Dara, Nas began his musical career in 1989 under the moniker "Nasty Nas", and recorded demos under the wing of fellow East Coast rapper Large Professor. Nas made his recording debut on Professor's group, Main Source's 1991 song "Live at the Barbeque".
The Source is an American hip hop and entertainment website, and a magazine that publishes annually or semiannually. It is the world's longest-running rap periodical, being founded as a newsletter in 1988 by David Mays.
Yo! MTV Raps is an American two-hour television music video program, which first aired on MTV Europe from 1987 to mid-90s and on MTV US from August 1988 to August 1995. The American version of the program was the first hip hop music show on the network, and was based on the original MTV Europe show, which first aired one year before the American version. Yo! MTV Raps produced a mix of rap videos, interviews with rap stars, live in-studio performances, and comedy. The show also yielded a Brazilian version called Yo! MTV and broadcast by MTV Brasil from 1990 to 2005.
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Reginald Joseph Ossé, known professionally as Combat Jack, was a Haitian-American hip hop music attorney, executive, journalist, editor and podcaster. He was the former managing editor of The Source. He was the host of the podcast The Combat Jack Show and founding partner of the Loud Speakers Network. He was also the host of the Complex TV show version of The Combat Jack Show podcast.
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Lenard Larry McKelvey, known professionally as Charlamagne tha God or simply Charlamagne, is an American radio host, television personality, and comedian. He is a co-host of the nationally syndicated radio show The Breakfast Club along with DJ Envy, with whom he was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2020 for their work on the show. He also hosted the late-night talk show Hell of a Week with Charlamagne tha God on Comedy Central.
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Jonathan Miles Shecter, an American magazine editor and music promoter, is also known as "Shecky Green" and "J the Sultan." He is the co-founder of the music and culture magazine The Source, former Director of Programming for the Wynn Las Vegas, and current Editor-In-Chief for Cuepoint at Medium.
Karen Civil also known as "KC", is an American music executive and digital media marketing strategist. She gained attention for creating and running Weezythanxyou.com, a website where the rapper Lil Wayne published letters to his fans while he was incarcerated at Rikers Island.
Justina Valentine is an American television host, rapper and singer from Passaic County, New Jersey, best known for her singles "Candy Land" featuring rapper Fetty Wap, "All The Way" and "Unbelievable". She is also known as a cast member on the improv comedy show Wild 'N Out (2016–present).
ItsTheReal, also known as Jeff and Eric Rosenthal, are two brothers from Harrison, New York, who have been active in the hip-hop music scene for over fifteen years.
Deric Michael Angelettie, also known by his stage names D-Dot, Papa Dot, and the Madd Rapper, is an American record producer. He served as executive producer and A&R for the album No Way Out (1997) by Puff Daddy & the Family, which won a Grammy Award. He has since done so for three other albums nominated for the award, and won the BMI Urban Award in 2001.
"Big Energy" is a song by American rapper Latto. It was released through Streamcut and RCA Records on September 24, 2021, as the lead single from Latto's second studio album, 777 (2022). It was written by Latto, A1 LaFlare, Jaucquez Lowe, Randall Hammers, Theron Thomas, Dr. Luke, and Vaughn Oliver, with the latter two handling the production. Adrian Belew, Chris Frantz, Steven Stanley, and Tina Weymouth received songwriting credits since the song samples Tom Tom Club's 1981 song "Genius of Love". "Big Energy" has been described as pop and funk-rap.
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^Inman, DeMicia (March 1, 2022) "Freeway Rick Ross And Dave Mays Host ‘Snowfall’ Series Podcast ‘After The Snow’" [1]
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