"Amerigo Gazaway is a Nashville based MC, turntablist, and hip-hop producer. Son of renowned trumpet player Gary "El Buho" Gazaway (Phish, STS9, Tito Puente), Amerigo specializes in his own brand of laid-back soulful hip-hop for the modern music enthusiast.

His influences range from a wide variety of producers such as DJ Premier, Pete Rock, and Jay Dilla to more experimental artists such as DJ Shadow, RJD2 and Blockhead. He also draws much of his inspiration from greats such as Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones and Isaac Hayes.

Like the great explorer for which he is named after, Amerigo has always been fascinated by the unknown. To him, life is all about discovery. Through sampling, he explores the world of sound, literately taking listeners along with him on his musical journey through time and space. Combining everything from ethnic instruments to vintage synths, soulful vocals to oldschool video-game soundtracks - Amerigo transcends genre altogether while at the same time offering something for everyone to enjoy. And when he isn't busy DJing or digging through dollar bins in search of that perfect sound, he's probably either playing some kind of instrument or recording the lyrics to his latest hip-hop track.

Oh yeah, he's also been known to rock a red keytar from time to time.

Band Members:
Amerigo Gazaway, a laptop, two technics turntables and a mixer, Domo's Triton LE synthesizer, a funky old drumset, a rusty old trumpet, a bamboo flute, and a Yahama SHS-10 keytar

Influences:
DJ Premier, DJ Shadow, J-Dilla, Madlib, Hi-Tek, Pete Rock, 9th Wonder, D.I.T.C.,Diamond D, RZA, Blockhead, RJD2, EL-P, Nas, Slick Rick, Black Thought, J-Live, Phonte, Andre 3000, Jigga, Talib, Mos Def, AZ, Ghostface, Doom, Big L, Booker T. and the MGs, Herbie Hancock, Issac Hayes, Miles Davis, David Axlerod, Roy Ayers, Quincy Jones, all Stax recordings



Sounds Like:
The future. Thumpy oneshots programmed sloppily on top of grimy rearranged drumbreaks. Choppy slices and funky basslines layered with top-secret flute and chant recordings from inside the Taj Mahal. Jazzy horns and soulful vocal samples triggered repeatedly using tempo-synced delays. Thought-provoking lyrics and hooks combined with the occasionlal scratch-quote from Herbie Hancock or Esther Hicks.....the list goes on"
-http://www.amerigomusic.com/about.html

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Artist biography from last.fm