Rashad Harden (October 9, 1979 – April 26, 2014), known as DJ Rashad, was a Chicago-based electronic musician, producer and DJ known as a pioneer in the footwork genre and founder of the Teklife crew. He released his debut studio album '' Double Cup'' on

Hyperdub __NOTOC__ Hyperdub is a British, London-based electronic music record label and former webzine, founded by Steve Goodman, a.k.a. Kode9. The label was formed in 2004, and grew out of the UK's early dubstep scene. Artists signed to the label hav ...

in 2013 to critical praise. He died in April 2014 from a drug overdose.

Biography

Career

Born in

Hammond, Indiana Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area, and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. First settled in the mid-19th century, it is one of the oldest cities of northern Lake County. As of the ...

on October 1, 1979, Rashad Hanif Harden was the son of Gloria and Anthony Harden."Pitchfork news"
Amy Phillips and Evan Minsker, "DJ Rashad Autopsy Inconclusive', ''Pitchfork Media'', April 28, 2014 He grew up on 159th Street in the southern part of

Calumet City Calumet City ( ) is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 36,033 at the 2020 census, a decline of 2.7% from 37,042 in 2010. The ZIP code is 60409. Etymology The word ''Calumet'' is the Miꞌkmaq and French word for a ...

, a suburb of Chicago. He developed an early interest in music and began to DJ in his early teens, influenced by

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

and juke. In high school, Harden gained further DJ experience at the Kennedy-King College radio station

WKKC WKKC (89.3 FM) is an educational non-profit radio station in Chicago, Illinois, owned by Kennedy–King College and broadcasting primarily to the city's South Side. The studio and transmitter are at the campus in the school's Englewood neighbo ...

. He also became a member of local dance troupes, including the HouseOMatics, The Phyrm, and Wolf Pac. In 1992 he made his first public appearance as a DJ at his high school dance party jubilation."Billboard – incl. official statement"
Harley Brown, 'DJ Rashad Dead at 34 (Update)', ''Billboard'', April 28, 2014. While attending

Thornwood High School Thornwood High School is a public high school located in South Holland, Illinois, United States. It was built as part of Thornton Township High School District 205. It opened in 1971 to accommodate overcrowding at other District 205 schools, Tho ...

, Harden met Morris Harper (aka DJ Spinn) during homeroom class. The two began to spend time at each other's houses producing tracks and performing at parties. Harden was one of the founders of the Teklife crew and developed the footwork style around dance battles in the

Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hi ...

. His first recording released to vinyl was the track "Child Abuse" on ''Dance Mania'' in 1998. He gained further global attention after releasing his single "Itz Not Rite" on

Planet Mu Planet Mu is an eclectic English electronic music record label created and run by Mike Paradinas. The label started out as a subsidiary of Virgin Records then Paradinas set up the label independent of Virgin. After releasing intelligent dance ...

and being included on their ''Bangs and Works'' album in 2010. In 2013, Harden released the EPs ''I Don't Give a Fuck'' and ''Rollin on

Kode9 Steve Goodman, known as Kode9 (born 1973) is a Scottish electronic music artist, DJ, and founder of the Hyperdub record label. He was one of the founding members of the early dubstep scene with his late collaborator The Spaceape. He has releas ...

label. These were followed by the debut full-length album '' Double Cup'' (2013), which featured collaborations with DJ Spinn, Taso, DJ Phil, Manny, Earl and

Addison Groove Tony Williams, better known as Addison Groove (and formerly known as Headhunter), is an electronic music artist from Bristol, United Kingdom. Noted for his fusion of styles such as Techno, Jungle, Soul, Juke and Dubstep, he released his first alb ...

. He was one of the performers at the

Pitchfork Music Festival The Pitchfork Music Festival is an annual summer music festival organized by ''Pitchfork Media'' and held in Union Park in Chicago, Illinois. Starting in 2011, the festival announced a branch staged in Paris at Grande halle de la Villette. The fe ...

in Chicago in 2013 and completed support-slot on the tour of

Chance the Rapper Chancelor Johnathan Bennett (born April 16, 1993), known professionally as Chance the Rapper, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, and record producer. Born and raised in Chicago, Bennett released his debut mixtape '' 10 Day'' in 2012. He ...

in December 2013. His last performance as a DJ was at Club Vinyl in Denver, CO on April 24, 2014.

Death

On Saturday, April 26, 2014, Harden was found dead at an apartment on West 21st Street, Chicago."Chicago Tribune Newsreport"
Ernest Wilkins and Carlos Sadovi, 'Chicago juke pioneer DJ Rashad reportedly dead' ''Chicago Tribune'', April 26, 2014 An autopsy confirmed that the death was drug related, with

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

and

alprazolam Alprazolam, sold under the brand name Xanax, among others, is a fast-acting, potent tranquilizer of medium duration in the triazolobenzodiazepine (TBZD) class, which are benzodiazepines (BZDs) fused with a triazole ring. It is most commonly u ...

(Xanax) being found in Rashad's system. A variety of artists paid tribute to Rashad, with ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

'' writing that "Rashad will undoubtedly be remembered as one of contemporary dance music's most innovative stylists and most irreplaceable presences." On June 29, 2015, Hyperdub released the ''6613'' EP, a four-track EP of previously unheard tracks by DJ Rashad. ''Afterlife'' was Harden's last album. It featured previously unreleased songs in collaboration with other members of the Teklife crew. It was released on April 8, 2016, as the first release of the new Teklife Records label.

Discography

Albums

* ''Juke Trax Online Vol. 3'' (2006) * ''Something 2 Dance 2'' (2008) * ''Just a Taste Vol. One'' (2011) * ''Teklife Volume 1 – Welcome to the Chi'' (2012) * '' Double Cup'' (2013) * ''Afterlife'' (2016)

Singles and EPs

* 2004: "Girl Bust Down" (with DJ Spinn; Juke Trax) * 2004: ''The White Tees EP'' (with DJ TY; Juke Trax) * 2007: "Jukestacy" (Juke Trax Online) * 2007: "Send It Up" (Juke Trax Online) * 2007: "Get It Shorty" (Juke Trax Online) * 2008: "We Break It Down" (with DJ Chi Boogie; Juke Trax Online) * 2008: "You Know What It Is" (Juke Trax Online) * 2008: ''Juke Trax Online Vol. 13'' (Juke Trax Online) * 2008: "Imma Do Me" (Juke Trax Online) * 2008: "Freakin Me on the Flo" (Juke Trax Online) * 2008: "Tek-9" (Databass Online) * 2010: "Grace" (Ghettophiles) * 2010: "4 the Ghetto" (with DJ Spinn; Ghettophiles) * 2010: "Itz Not Rite" (

) * 2011: "Meet Tshetsha Boys" (with DJ Spinn and RP Boo; Honest Jon's Records) * 2013: ''I Don't Give a Fuck'' (Hyperdub) * 2013: "Its Wack" (Grand Theft Auto V) * 2013: ''Rollin (Hyperdub) * 2014: "We on 1" (Southern Belle Recordings) * 2014: "Don't This Ish" (with

Alix Perez Alix Depauw, better known by the stage name Alix Perez, is a drum and bass DJ and producer, originally from Charleroi, Belgium. Based in New Zealand, his music is sometimes characterised as liquid funk amongst other labels, and released on l ...

and DJ Spinn,

Exit Records Exit Records was an independent record label founded in 1982 and run by Mary Neely, a veteran of the music business and a host of several national rock and roll radio shows, including '' Rock Scope''. The label folded in 1987. Based in a large b ...

/''

Mixmag ''Mixmag'' is a British electronic dance and clubbing magazine published in London. Launched in 1983 as a print magazine, it has branched into dance events, including festivals and club nights. History The first issue of ''Mixmag'' was prin ...

'') * 2014: "Make It Worth" (with Alix Perez and DJ Spinn, Exit Records) * 2015: "6613" (Hyperdub)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rashad, DJ 1979 births 2014 deaths African-American DJs American electronic musicians Cocaine-related deaths in Illinois Musicians from Chicago Hyperdub artists People from Calumet City, Illinois 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people Electronic dance music DJs Deaths by heroin overdose in the United States