E213: Michael A. Gonzales on TLC + The Source + DJ Kool Herc

In this episode, the great R&B/hip hop writer Michael A. Gonzales joins us online from Baltimore to look back on his long career. We start with our guest's formative musical memories, from hearing Isaac Hayes' 'Theme from Shaft' and meeting Little Anthony & the Imperials to seeing the Jackson Five live at Radio City Music Hall in February 1975. His earliest inklings of New York's rap scene take us back to his 2008 piece about the trailblazing DJ Kool Herc playing block parties in the Bronx of the early '70s. We hear about Michael's first pieces for The Source, arguably the most important hip hop magazine of the late '80s and '90s, and about his collaboration with Havelock Nelson on the 1991 book Bring the Noise. We also discuss a Barry White interview he did for Danyel Smith at Vibe and learn about his friendships with fellow writers from Barry Michael Cooper to Amy Linden. The latter's audio interview with TLC ties in with Michael's own writing on the hugely successful Atlanta trio, and we listen to clips of Chilli, T-Boz and Left Eye talking to Amy in late 1998 about their upcoming third album FanMail. After Mark quotes from pieces about the Velvet Underground (1967) and Earth, Wind & Fire (1974), Jasper talks us out with his thoughts on reviews of Radiohead's Kid A (2000) and – by RBP's William Pike – the Bug Club live in London last month. Many thanks to special guest Michael A. Gonzales. Find him on Substack at substack.com/@michaelagonzales1 and on Instagram @bigmikeg151. Pieces discussed: Michael A. Gonzales, D.J. Kool Herc: The Holy House of Hip-hop, Barry White: Blackberry Jam, TLC Marks 20 Years of CrazySexyCool, TLC (1998), The Velvet Underground and Nico (Verve), Earth, Wind and Fire: The Sound of the Streets, Orrin Keepnews' Milestones, Radiohead: Kid A and The Bug Club at the MOTH Club.

You can listen to E213: Michael A. Gonzales on TLC + The Source + DJ Kool Herc online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

E213: Michael A. Gonzales on TLC + The Source + DJ Kool Herc is an episode from Rock's Backpages by Rock's Backpages.

This episode is 75:36 long.

This episode was published on Oct 6, 2025.

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