NEWS

Beat it Up

Photo by Dirk Linder

Josh “DJ Shadow” Davis is hearing voices again. Already known for constructing mostly instrumental albums like his classic 1996 debut, Endtroducing….., Shadow is now working with vocalists from multiple genres on his third solo album, The Outsider. “[I’m doing] something different than I’ve done in a long time, which is embrace the vocal side of [music],” Shadow says. “I don’t think I would be served at all by doing an instrumental album right now.” Shadow’s reacquaintance with words has already received positive feedback. The Outsider’s first single, “3 Freaks,” a Keek da Sneak and Turf Talk collaboration that marks Shadow’s foray into hyphy, has been a hit on Bay Area radio since fall 2005. “I never get my music on the radio,” says the Davis, California, native. “But to hear “3 Freaks’ played next to a 50 Cent song is really gratifying.” And though he stresses the diversity of this album, Shadow isn’t worried about alienating longtime followers. “I think I might lose some fans,” he says. “But hearing 17-year-old kids coming out of school singing “3 Freaks’” is a lot more gratifying than listening to some 35-year-old bitch about what I’m doing and not doing on his blog.”

Interview by Thomas Golianopoulous
From the August/September 2006 issue on newsstands now