House of Gypsies "Samba" 20th Anniversary

It all started with spinning Hip Hop, Funk, and Soul at block parties back in Brooklyn in the late 80’s. The journey has covered over 1000 concerts on 6 of the 7 continents worldwide. He has produced songs for Cher, Martha Wash, The Jungle Brothers, Kylie Minogue and Tara McDonald. He has remixed tracks for Michael Jackson, ETBTG, Whitney Houston, and The Rolling Stones. There are over 3000 tracks on his discography carrying the credit “remixed by” or “produced by”. He has been know by many names including Royal House, Masters at Work, Gypsymen, Sound Design, Black Riot, House of Gypsies, CLS, Orange Lemon, Harhouse, SAX, Swan Lake, Lime Life, TNT, and sometimes just “God”. During a layover in his summer tour we take a moment to check in with Todd Terry, the founder of Freeze Records and current label boss at Inhouse Records and Sound Design records to talk about music, collaborations, touring, and the release of 20th Anniversary remixes for House of Gypsies “Samba” which he originally wrote and produced in 1992.

What was behind the House of Gypsies “Samba” 20th Anniversary collection of remixes?
“Samba” was a track that everyone enjoyed for the past 20 years. Since I started doing the remix series last year with Mark Knight and Toolroom I thought it would be a good idea to do some remixes of my other classic tracks, Samba was #1 on my list.

How did you pick the remixers for the “Samba” project?
Picking the remixers was easy. As soon as word got out I got calls right away from, DJ Sneak, MK, Louie Vega, Stefano Noferini, Matteo DiMarr, Kenny Dope and others. That’s why the release has 36 mixes. So many good mixes came in I had to put them all out.

Tell us about Inhouse Records and SoundDesign Records?
The two labels are my direct connection to the fans; I can drop my music whenever and however I want. InHouse leans toward House music, and Sound Design is a bit more Pop.

Tell us about your touring schedule?
I’m out there 75+ dates a year, It keeps me in touch with the fans, but I need a vacation and some sleep every now and then.

You stopped for a while, but are you doing remixes again these days?
For a bit I was focused on my label and my productions, but yes I just recently completed remixes for The 2 Bears, Lana Del Rey, Lianne La Havas, and Black Street.

Any collaborations like the Todd Terry All Stars in the works?
Yes I have done a few tracks lately with J Paul Getto, DJ E-Clyps, and Junior Sanchez. I’m also working on a few artists with Teddy Riley and Charles Dixon

What else are you working on?
Todd Terry vs. Hip Hop is coming for the end of 2012, it’s a mash up of Hip Hop, Funk, Jazz, Soul and my vision of how I would put it together. I have a bunch of new artist I am producing and working with such as, Lea Muses, Brian Cid, Charisse Mills, Scarlett Santana. I’m also co-writing with Teddy Riley on some tracks.

Which records and remixes are you most proud of?
My favorite remix is EBTG “Missing”; my favorite production is “ Black Riot “A Day In The Life”. Other tracks that have stood the test of time for me are Royal House “Can U Party”, Todd Terry Project “Bango”, Todd Terry “Keep on Jumping”, Todd Terry “Something Going On”, House of Gypsies “Samba”, Todd Terry Project “Weekend”