DJ OF THE WEEK 6.18.12: SANDY RIVERA

“Time marches on never ending,
time keeps its own time
Here we stand at beginning,
and then goes passing us by”

Growing up in New York to Puerto Rican parents, you can say a young Sandy Rivera had no choice but to be awash in a sea of music from birth. Of course, the first rhythms to enter his ear canal were of the Latino persuasion but, sure enough there was plenty of other worldly sounds to inspire and touch him deep inside. In the funky village that is Spanish Harlem, Rivera was exposed to Hip Hop, Funk, Soul, R&B, Electro, and of course, a young genre by the strange name of House music. This is the world from which Rivera sprung forth.

“Time marches on never ending,
time keeps its own time
Here we stand at beginning,
and then goes passing us by,
And I, I, I can dream for us all,
I hope I’m in a better state,
When here and now crumbles and falls and you, you ,
you who make worlds collide
I knew you’d come knocking one day,
unannounced like a thief in the night.”

No longer content with just passively listening, dancing, going on journeys with the music he loved, a 13 years young Rivera began entertaining the idea of becoming a DJ. Then one day he stopped listening, he stopped dancing; Rivera got caught up with the wrong crowd and ended up in juvenile detention for three years. He came out determined to never stray again and set out to become a DJ in an effort to capture that love of music he still possessed, hoping one day to take others on journeys he himself would command.

Rivera first began by spinning mostly Hip Hop but, wanting to avoid the trouble many of the Hip Hop parties attracted and his own attraction for the burgeoning sound with the pounding four on the floor rhythm taking a hold of him, he began spinning House music; he hasn’t looked back since.

“Where do we go from here,
time ain’t nothing but time,
I now have no fear of my fears
And no more tears to cry, tomorrow, tomorrow,
tomorrow means nothing at all
If we don’t hear the line, when today places its call,
and morning, morning,
Morning, won’t ever be the same,
now I won’t make the same mistakes,
Time and time again (x5)”

By 20 years old, Rivera already had his own label Blackwiz, and soon after a few noteworthy tracks under his belt. He then began shopping around a track he had been working on featuring the vocals of a young songstress. Rivera had a hard time getting any label to release the track; it was rejected by big label head honchos and even big time DJ friends. When he finally released it in 2000, the track not only put him on the map but, changed House music itself. The song was ‘Finally,’ featuring Julie McKnight, its lyrics, if you haven’t guessed by now, you see here interspersed between paragraphs.

The song is a conversation between a dead woman and God but, instead of striking a somber or even blasphemous tone, it inspires, uplifts those who hear it. No wonder the track became an instant hit worldwide, with DJs and labels from all over the world clamoring to play it, remix it, and feature it. Till this day, it is a mainstay in many DJs playlists and still gets the crowds moving, throwing their hands up every time it plays; even Avicii did a bootleg remix of it a few months back, and yes, it moved those crowds too.

“So tell me how do you do
Finally I meet you
You don’t know what I’ve been through,
waiting and wondering about you
I had a dream my trip would end up at you,
and now I know paradise.”

These days Rivera continues running his label and is continuously releasing top notch music. Whether under his own name or his equally as famous Kings of Tomorrow moniker, Rivera is never afraid to go beyond what he knows or his surroundings; be it the darker tones of Techno or the deep sexy sounds of House, Rivera simply finds inspiration in every corner of the musical landscape making the journeys he takes us on that much more thrilling, captivating, fulfilling. All we can say to that, is AMEN.

“Time marches on never ending, time keeps its own time
Here we stand at beginning, and then goes passing us by,
And I, I, I can dream for us all, I hope I’m in a better state,
When here and now crumbles and falls and you,
ohh you , you who make worlds collide< br>I knew you’d come knocking one day,
unannounced like a thief in the night.

So tell me how do you do
Finally I meet you
You don’t know what I’ve been through,
waiting and wondering about you
I had a dream my trip would end up at you,
and now I know paradise

So tell me how do you do
Finally I meet you
You don’t know what I’ve been through,
waiting and wondering about you
I had a dream my trip would end up at you,
and now I know paradise”

For a full list of Sandy Rivera’s discography, we suggest you click here. To be taken away on a journey like only he can command, we strongly suggest you sit back, strap on your headphones, and click play on the mix below.