Damu the Fudgemunk

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Damu the Fudgemunk
Birth nameEarl Davis
Born (1984-06-08) June 8, 1984 (age 40)
OriginWashington, D.C., U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Instrumentalist
  • record producer
  • rapper
Instrument(s)Akai MPC 2000, drums, vibraphone
Years active2007—present
Labels
Websitedamuthefudgemunk.bandcamp.com

Earl Davis (born June 8, 1984), known professionally as Damu the Fudgemunk, is an American hip-hop producer, multi-instrumentalist, DJ, and rapper from Washington, D.C.[1][2][3] Damu is a member of the groups Y Society and Panacea, and he co-owns and operates Redefinition Records.[4][5]

Career

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Davis was raised by two musician parents, and he began making beats in his teens.[6] His official debut album was with Y Society, a duo project with rapper Insight;[7] the record, Travel at Your Own Pace, was released by Tres Records in 2007.[8] The album is reminiscent of true-school hip-hop with its liberal use of jazz, soul samples, and scratching. In 2008, Damu released two free albums primarily composed of instrumental music, titled Spare Time[9] and Overtime. He developed a fan base through his YouTube videos and live street performances around Washington, DC, and New York City,[10] using a portable electricity generator to power his sampler and speakers.

Damu co-owns and operates the vinyl/cassette-enthusiast label Redefinition Records, through which he also releases the bulk of his own music.[11]

In 2019, he collaborated with Raw Poetic and legendary jazz saxophonist Archie Shepp on the improvised album Ocean Bridges,[3] which he released on his label the following year.[12]

In January 2020, Damu visited the London KPM music library,[13] renowned for a collection that has been sampled by artists including MF Doom and Jay-Z.[14] Damu was invited as the first artist to be featured on the Def Pressé / KPM Crate Diggers series, an initiative to release records extensively featuring samples from the library; his work with material from the archives resulted in the album Conversation Peace.[1]

Discography

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  • Travel at Your Own Pace (2007)[15]
  • Spare Time (2008)
  • Overtime (2008)
  • ReVISIONS Madvillain (Damu vs Joe Buck) (2009)
  • The Bright Side (2009)
  • Same Beat Project EP (2009)
  • Kilawatt: V1 (2009)
  • How It Should Sound (Promo EP) (2010)
  • How It Should Sound Volumes 1 & 2 (2010)
  • Supply for Demand (2010)
  • Brooklyn Flower (2010)
  • More Supplies (2010)
  • When Winter Comes / Truly Get Yours (2011)
  • OverThrone (Try a Little Skillfulness) / All Green (2011)
  • Faster Rhyme for Self (2011)
  • Kilawatt V1.5 featuring Raw Poetic (2012)
  • Spur Momento Trailer (2013)
  • Public Assembly (2014)
  • Public Assembly Vol.2 (2015)
  • How It Should Sound Vol. 3, 4, and 5 (2015)
  • HISS ABYSS (How It Should Sound) (2015)
  • Untitled Vols. 1 & 2 (2016)
  • Vignettes (2017)[16]
  • The Reflecting Sea (Welcome to a New Philosophy) (2017) with Raw Poetic[4]
  • Ears Hear Spears (Redefinition, 2017) with Insight[17]
  • Dreams & Vibrations (Redefinition, 2018) with Flex Mathews[18]
  • Ground & Water (2019) with Blu[19]
  • Ocean Bridges (Redefinition, 2020) with Archie Shepp and Raw Poetic (Ensemble: Pat Fritz, Aaron Gause, Luke Stewart, Jamal Moore, and Bashi Rose)[3]
  • Conversation Peace (Def Pressé, 2021)[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Damu The Fudgemunk Announces New Album & Drops Lead Track". Closed Captioned. 23 June 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  2. ^ "Damu The Fudgemunk "Rhythm Roulette" Interview: Drum Breaks". Big Noise Radio. 25 February 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  3. ^ a b c Weiner, Natalie (22 May 2020). "How jazz legend Archie Shepp, his nephew Raw Poetic and a cast of D.C. musicians teamed up for an experimental improvised album". The Washington Post. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  4. ^ a b Keirstead, Zachary (16 January 2018). "Damu the Fudgemonk and Raw Poetic have the master plan on 'The Reflecting Sea: Welcome to a New Philosophy'". EARMILK. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  5. ^ Simpson, Paul. "Damu the Fudgemunk". allmusic. Retrieved September 4, 2020.
  6. ^ "Question in the Form of An Answer: An Interview with Damu the Fudgemunk". Passion of the Weiss. 13 February 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  7. ^ "Y Society (Insight & Damu): Never Off / Pyramids to the Ghetto". Flea Market Funk. 8 September 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Y Society: Travel At Your Own Pace". Drowned in Sound. 10 August 2007. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  9. ^ "Damu The Fudgemunk ·· Spare Time". Silence Nogood. 23 May 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  10. ^ "Damu playing live music in Washington Square Park, New York City". Live Street Performance. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20.
  11. ^ Pedroche, Ben (8 December 2017). "Interview: Damu The Fudgemunk & Raw Poetic + Album Stream". Grown Up Rap. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  12. ^ Minsker, Evan (13 May 2020). "Archie Shepp Shares New Song With Raw Poetic and Damu the Fudgemunk: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  13. ^ "All-Access to the KPM Music Library. First up: Damu The Fudgemunk". The Find Mag. 23 June 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  14. ^ Neyland, Nick (11 April 2013). "Music For Dancefloors: The KPM Music Library". Pitchfork. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  15. ^ "Y Society Travel at Your Own Pace Album Review". Hip-Hop Linguistics. Archived from the original on January 3, 2009.
  16. ^ Lacerna, Michael (18 January 2017). "Damu the Fudgemunk pushes the boundaries of hip hop with 2 hour concept album". RAPstation. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  17. ^ "Album Review: "Ears Hear Spears" – Insight The Truncator & Damu The Fudgemunk". Dead End Hip Hop. 15 May 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  18. ^ Richards, Chris (30 May 2018). "After years on the D.C. rap scene, Flex Mathews is still twisting time". The Washington Post. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  19. ^ "Damu the Fudgemunk Interview". Southsiders. 13 December 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
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