Biography
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Born
1 June 1977 (age 46)
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Born In
Spring Valley, Rockland County, New York, United States
Statik Selektah - Patrick Baril, born on January 23, 1982 in Lawrence, MA, is an American Hip-Hop DJ and Producer. He goes by the name of 'Statik Selektah' and is best known for his mixed CDs with rappers Nas, Boston rapper Termanology, Royce Da 5'9" and G-Unit Records, as well as his mixshows on FM and Satellite Radio. His partner is Jenny-Marie Miranda, director of Showoff Public Relations.
Statik's love of music led to him to be an aspiring DJ at a young age, playing with his parents' 8-tracks and cassette decks. Around 1993, he began recording freestyle and pause mixtapes, all while studying the music of Gang Starr, Wu-Tang Clan, Dr. Dre, A Tribe Called Quest, Rakim, Nas, KRS-One, and Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, just to name a few. By 7th grade, Statik began djing school dances.
A visit to New Jersey for Thanksgiving in 1995 led him to hearing Funkmaster Flex and DJ Premier Live on NYC's Hot 97. Falling in love with the art of turntablism instantly, he returned home to get started right away. Statik's vinyl collection began growing rapidly with classics that were being released at the time such as Group Home, AZ, Nas, Gang Starr and Common Sense. After learning to scratch basic on his father's turntable, he decided to buy a pair and a mixer in 1996.
Around the same time, Statik began doing radio at Phillips Exeter Academy's WPEA, where he also occasionally DJ'ed some of the Afro-Latino Society Parties. This expanded his musical taste into Reggae and more R&B. His record collection continued to grow after frequenting record stores like Biscuithead (in Boston), Fat Beats and Rock and Soul (in NYC).
In 1998, at the age of 16, Statik expanded into rocking nightclubs and parties across the seacoast, including Hampton Beach's "Heaven," an under 21 club that later became the area's hottest teen spot. He quickly learned the basics and mentality of rocking clubs, no matter what age the crowd.
On March 17, 2009 Saigon and Statik Selektah released "All In A Day's Work", an album that was recorded in 24 hours.
Saigon - (born Brian Carenard, 1978) is an African-American rapper.
Born in Newburgh, New York, He spent his upbringing moving between immediate and extended family members in Spring Valley, New York and Brooklyn as well as parts of New Jersey and Virginia. He cites his mother's inattention towards him due to the new arrival of numerous younger siblings as being the catalyst for his roughly 15-year rebellious period. At age 11 he began selling marijuana and at age 13 he had joined in a neighborhood gang. By the time Saigon reached 15 he had already been involved in at least two shootings for which he received jail time. This would be his home for the majority of the next several years of his life as he was "raised" in the New York Penal System. While incarcerated, he took the stage name Saigon from the influential Vietnam War book “Bloods” by Wallace Terry, which he read while he was serving time in prison.
He is currently signed to Just Blaze's Fort Knox Entertainment record label and is working on his major label debut entitled The Greatest Story Never Told for a November 2006 release, which has now been postponed to a later unannounced date.
He appeared on the second season of the HBO television series Entourage and this is credited as being a big boost to his career to the point where the mainstream U.S. population is beginning to recognize him as opposed to simply his previously small following. He also appears in the third season.
He also performed separate tracks with both Australian hip hop MC Phrase and singer Daniel Merriweather in 2005.
MTV News reported that on January 19th 2006, Saigon was stabbed in the temple with a beer bottle as he left a dinner in the Chelsea section of New York. A man approached Saigon and attempted to steal a chain of his, worth $18,000. When Saigon grabbed it back, a fight started. Saigon, bleeding from the head, tried to hail down a taxi (not wanting to get blood in his Mercedes Benz) but was unable to and drove himself to Bellevue Hospital where he received seventy stitches.
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