MIA - Bad Bunny ft. Drake

tempo: 97 bpm

bpm range: 95 to 100 bpm

the dj's take: Song #3 in our Session 17 mix (6:14):



The first of four straight Drake tracks in a similar key & bpm - I should get a medal for that, right? Or a stint in prison, depending on your taste in music. Anyway, feel free to do a variation (or a carbon copy) in your next pop set - easy way to drop a few hits in a row and keep things moving.

download or stream MIA:

amazon

spotify playlist

Hold On, We're Going Home - Drake ft. Majid Jordan

tempo: 100 bpm

bpm range: 95 to 100 bpm, 100 to 105 bpm

The DJ's Take: Song #6 in our Session 17 mix (16:11):



Lot of covers of this song are floating around. One of the funner versions:



Sounds like when you decide to hire a local band instead of a dj for a wedding, and they do an impression of Daft Punk doing an impression of Drake.

As for the original, I think it'll have a long shelf life. Worth a permanent spot in the rotation.

Try mixing with:

Sober - G-Eazy ft. Charlie Puth
You're All I Need To Get By - Method Man ft. Mary J. Blige
Find Your Love - Drake
What's My Name - Rihanna ft. Drake
Galway Girl - Ed Sheeran
Alive - Sia
Talk Dirty - Jason Derulo
Do What U Want - Lady Gaga
It Girl - Pharrell
Opposite of Adults - Chiddy Bang

download or stream Hold On, We're Going Home:

amazon

spotify playlist

itunes

dj mix: Session 17 (ft. Drake & Rihanna)

Made with Logic Pro X at 98 bpm

23.6 minutes of pop & hiphop

Want to check out some more mixes? Click here.

Tracklist (start times in parentheses):

1. Talk Dirty - Jason Derulo ft. 2 Chainz

2. Pon de Replay - Rihanna (2:48)

3. MIA - Bad Bunny ft. Drake (6:14)

4. Find Your Love - Drake (9:20)

5. What's My Name? - Rihanna ft. Drake (12:06)

6. Hold On, We're Going Home - Drake ft. Majid Jordan (16:11)

7. I Can - Nas (18:23)

8. Forrest Gump - Frank Ocean (22:05)

Worth It - Fifth Harmony ft. Kid Ink

tempo: 100 bpm

bpm range: 95 to 100 bpm, 100 to 105 bpm

The DJ's Take: Song #9 in Pop Sampler 1.0 (11:47):



First Problem, then Talk Dirty, and now this. Just goes to show - when you're a producer in doubt, throw in some heavy horns, set to around 100 bpm, and hope you have a hit.

On a side note, the title makes me think of the buzzfeed guys who try & compare the affordable vs. expensive versions of food. This one would've made a good theme song:



Key-compatible tracks from 95 to 100 bpm:

Sexual Healing - Marvin Gaye
Taste - Tyga ft. Offset
The Greatest - Sia
All The Stars - Kendrick Lamar, SZA
Say Something - Justin Timberlake ft. Chris Stapleton
Fancy - Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX
Water Under The Bridge - Adele
Bonita - J Balvin, Jowell, Randy
Let Me Love You - DJ Snake & Justin Bieber
Sorry - Justin Bieber
Try Me - Jason Derulo ft. Jennifer Lopez & Matoma
Sexual Healing (Kygo Remix) - Marvin Gaye
You Know You Like It - DJ Snake and AlunaGeorge
I'm Sprung - T-Pain
Stuck On A Feeling - Prince Royce
Sexual Healing - Maxamillion
Honey - Mariah Carey
Ball - T.I.
Get Low - Lil Jon and the East Side Boyz

And between 100 and 105 bpm:

I Miss You - Clean Bandit ft. Julia Michaels
Is That For Me - Alesso & Anitta
Let Me Love You - DJ Snake, Justin Bieber
Friends - Justin Bieber, BloodPop®
Get Low - Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz
False Alarm - Matoma, Becky Hill
Invitation - Yellow Claw ft. Yade Lauren
Hymn For The Weekend (Seeb Remix) - Coldplay, Seeb
Promise - Kid Ink ft. Fetty Wap
Try Me - Jason Derulo ft. Jennifer Lopez & Matoma
Sexual Healing (Kygo Remix) - Marvin Gaye
Stay - Kygo ft. Maty Noyes
Here For You - Kygo ft. Ella Henderson
Omen - Disclosure ft. Sam Smith
About You - Trey Songz
You Know You Like It - DJ Snake and AlunaGeorge
Worth It - Fifth Harmony
Honest - The Chainsmokers
I'm Sprung - T-Pain
Stuck On A Feeling - Prince Royce
Electric Feel - MGMT

download or stream Worth It:

amazon

spotify playlist (95 to 100 bpm)

spotify playlist (100 to 105 bpm)

Get Low - Zedd, Liam Payne

tempo: 108 bpm

bpm range: 105 to 110 bpm

the dj's take:Song #5 in our Formula 15 mix (7:05):



Is it possible for any song to call itself Get Low without getting overshadowed by Lil Jon? Because even if it turns into a moderate hit, we all know second place is first loser:



Anyway, decent filler on a pop night as you build up into something bigger.

If you're staying key-compatible around 106 bpm, try mixing or mashing up with:

thank u, next - Ariana Grande
One Dance - Drake
Questions - Chris Brown
For Free - DJ Khaled ft. Drake

In My Room - Yellow Claw & DJ Mustard ft. Ty Dolla $ign & Tyga

And if you don't feel like slowing down:

Me Rehúso - Danny Ocean
Let's Talk About Sex - Salt N Pepa
Piece By Piece - Kelly Clarkson

download or stream Get Low:

amazon

itunes

One Dance - Drake ft. Wizkid & Kyla

tempo: 104 bpm

bpm range: 100 to 105 bpm

The DJ's Take: Song #3 in our Formula 15 mix (3:13):



Couldn't find a legit video for the song, so I embedded the live performance from SNL. Props to Drake - voice is wavering a bit, which proves he's definitely not pulling an Ashlee Simpson:



Anyway, we all know how big this was when it came out. Should have a solid shelf life in the years to come.

Try mixing with:

Me Rehúso - Danny Ocean
thank u, next - Ariana Grande
Questions - Chris Brown
My My My! - Troye Sivan
For Free - DJ Khaled ft. Drake
Let's Talk About Sex - Salt N Pepa
Colors - Halsey
Piece By Piece - Kelly Clarkson
Lose Yourself To Dance - Daft Punk
In My Room - Yellow Claw & DJ Mustard ft. Ty Dolla $ign & Tyga

download or stream One Dance:

amazon

spotify playlist

iTunes

Send My Love (To Your New Lover) - Adele

tempo: 82 bpm

bpm range: 80 bpm to 85 bpm

The DJ's Take: Song #5 in Episode 14 (13:03):



The hook sounds like DJ Screw chopped and screwed a professional yodeling album:



Not really recommended during prime time in a Top 40 set; better employed as background music in a more low-key setting, unless you can do a little editing / re-mixing.

Some other key-compatible tracks:

Paper Planes - MIA
We Don't Care - Kanye West
Ether - Nas
Downtown - Anitta & J Balvin
Chainsaw - Nick Jonas
Messin' Around - Pitbull ft. Enrique Iglesias
Be As You Are (JordanXL Remix) - Mike Posner
The Man - Aloe Blacc
Live Your Life - Rihanna
Royals - Lorde
Dipset Anthem - The Diplomats
Genius - LSD (Labrinth, Sia, Diplo)
American Oxygen - Rihanna

download or stream Send My Love (To Your New Lover):

spotify playlist

iTunes

amazon

Me Rehúso - Danny Ocean

tempo: 105 bpm

bpm range: 100 to 105 bpm, 105 to 110 bpm

the dj's take: Song #4 in our Formula 15 mix (4:44):



Fits like a hand in glove coming out of Drake's One Dance (and going into Zedd & Liam Payne's Get Low). Easy to get down to in the club, at a house party, or on a random dock with a buddy:



Some other key-compatible tracks:

thank u, next - Ariana Grande
Questions - Chris Brown
My My My! - Troye Sivan
One Dance - Drake
For Free - DJ Khaled ft. Drake
Let's Talk About Sex - Salt N Pepa
Colors - Halsey
Piece By Piece - Kelly Clarkson
Lose Yourself To Dance - Daft Punk
In My Room - Yellow Claw & DJ Mustard ft. Ty Dolla $ign & Tyga

download or stream Me Rehúso:

spotify playlist

apple music

itunes

Tom Ford - Jay-Z

tempo: 72-73 bpm

bpm range: 70 bpm to 75 bpm

the dj's take: Song #4 in our Sweet 16 mix (7:15):



Heard this again recently, and figured there has to be a re-mix featuring the late mayor of Toronto, right? YouTube did not disappoint:



Probably better than the original. And the original is a banger.

Try mixing with:

1st Day Out Tha Feds - Gucci Mane
Without Me - Halsey
God is a woman - Ariana Grande
Talk Up - Drake, JAY-Z
Everyday - Logic, Marshmello
Love Lies - Khalid, Normani
I Get The Bag - Gucci Mane ft. Migos
Sky Walker - Miguel ft. Travis Scott
T-Shirt - Migos
Panda - Desiigner
Purple Lamborghini - Skrillex & Rick Ross
Long Time - Ty Dolla $ign
Ride - twenty one pilots
King of Everything - Wiz Khalifa
Bake Sale - Wiz Khalifa ft. Travis Scott
Kiss Kiss - Chris Brown ft. T-Pain
TKO - Justin Timberlake

download or stream Tom Ford:

amazon

spotify playlist

1st Day Out Tha Feds - Gucci Mane

tempo: 69 bpm

bpm range: 65 bpm to 70 bpm, 70 bpm to 75 bpm

The DJ's Take: Song #3 in our Sweet 16 mix (5:14):



Got a little creative for the transition - isolated the section starting at ~1:51 of the song, did a copy-and-paste, and made it overlap with the end of Halsey's Without Me. Then you get the standalone beat (without Gucci Mane's vocals), and the notes match up better.

Definitely worth a spin on a hiphop night. One of the more underrated rap tracks in recent memory.

Try mixing or mashing up with:

Without Me - Halsey
God is a woman - Ariana Grande
Talk Up - Drake, JAY-Z
Everyday - Logic, Marshmello
Love Lies - Khalid, Normani
I Get The Bag - Gucci Mane ft. Migos
Sky Walker - Miguel ft. Travis Scott
T-Shirt - Migos
Panda - Desiigner
Purple Lamborghini - Skrillex & Rick Ross
Long Time - Ty Dolla $ign
Ride - twenty one pilots
King of Everything - Wiz Khalifa
Bake Sale - Wiz Khalifa ft. Travis Scott
Kiss Kiss - Chris Brown ft. T-Pain
TKO - Justin Timberlake

Download or stream 1st Day Out Tha Feds:

Spotify playlist

Apple Music

iTunes

Amazon