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The setting was New York and radio stations permeated the metropolitan area with the sounds of Rock n’ Roll, Freestyle, Rap, R&B, and Pop music. It was the eighties, a time some call the best years ever for music. A time that witnessed the next generation in dance music along with the birth of rap, freestyle and new-wave. About 30 minutes from Manhattan on the south shore of Long Island, Bobby "L-A" La Serra absorbed this powerful mixture of sounds with an eager ear. Little did he know the stage was being set for what was to unfold in the future. At the age of 13 "L-A" began DJ’ing and will never forget the days rushing home from school to record the Battle Of The Disco DJ’s on New York’s notorious 92 WKTU. "I used to love listening to John "Jellybean" Bennitez and Jose "The Animal" Diaz. They were truly amazing... but I had the feeling there was some sort of editing or overdubbing goin’ on. I mean these guys were doin’ more then just spinnin’ records and I was curious". It was at that point "L-A" set course into the world of writing, producing, recording and most of all learning about music. Soon after releasing his first few dance tracks on various independent labels such as Nervous, Warlock, Relativity and Mic Mac his productions were receiving much love from New York’s most respected underground DJ’s like Dj Disciple, Dj Camacho, Hot 97’s Glenn Friscia and WBLS’s John Robinson. With a start like that "L-A" knew he was on the right track. He then progressed into the world of recording vocals spending much of his time writing and producing his next wave of releases on various New York labels. The following year started off with two remixes for Tommy Boy recording artist K7’s "Move It Like This". The ragga mix featured a guest vocal by reggae artist Skeeta Ranx (then unsigned). Tommy Boy released the remixes nationally and the song re-entered and had quite an extended stay on the Billboard dance charts.Without hesitation came the opportunity to work on a song for world famous hip-hop artists House Of Pain and the signing of Skeeta Ranx to Nervous’ newly established reggae label Weeded. With the release of Skeeta’s debut single "I Like" on Weeded Records, radio stations and DJ’s worldwide were picking up on this hot new El Debarge reggae remake. The record captured the attention of New York’s Hot 97 with Funkmaster Flex, Red Alert, and Glenn Friscia all the way to San Francisco’s KMEL. The reviews were also outstanding coming from Billboard’s Larry Flick and Havelock Nelson to the most influential national radio magazines like Hitmakers and The Gavin. In addition to radio the video to "I Like" was on rotation on key video shows including Yo! MTV Raps, The BOX and Ralph McDaniel’s Video Music Box on BET. After releasing numerous more titles including a much respected Freestyle/Dance compilation"L-A" enjoyed the success and fulfillment from both his peers and record charts around the globe. His dance remake of No Doubt’s "Don’t Speak" went to #9 in the Billboard Dance chart and was licenced to K-Tel for their Gold-selling compilation CLUB MIX ‘98, thus resulting in L-A's first gold record. At the same time his radio mix of The Born Jamericans "Yardcore" (a callaboration with Tom Laroc for Delicious Vinyl) went to #12 on the Billboard Rap chart and his work on Jason Nevins & The Krew (a remake of 2 Live Crew "We want some Pussy") also caused quite a buzz overseas". All the recent success he was achieving in reggae led him to remix work for reggae legend and longtime Bob Marley friend / co-writer King Sporty. "Buffalo Soldier" proved to be a big club success combining the energy and drive of progressive house / trance with melodic reggae lyrics landing "L-A" with more remix work for Richard Marley's new single "Jump Dem" featuring the vocals of brother Bob Marley. These two records forged a hot new progressive dance sound for "L-A" and reggae music in the clubs. His in-house nationally distributed label Strong Island Records, releasing music worldwide since 1994, is currently showing the world a taste of what’s to come in the future from this highly creative and cutting-edge label. 4 Strong Island releases have charted in the Billboard Sales Charts including local rap group Sub-Urban's "Ooohweee", a remake of Flashdance... What A Feeling! by Dana, and a punk/techno flavored version of "Man! I Feel Like A Woman!" by punk rock legend Jayne County. The most recent Billboard hit single by Jimi La Lumia "The Anthem" climbed to #7 on the Maxi-Single Dance Sales Chart. The first Top 10 Single for Strong Island. This Disco / Punk / Progressive club banger has already been banned from certain radio stations due to it's contraversial subject matter. In the year 2004, be on the lookout for more releases from "L-A" ranging from progressive style dance tracks to hip-hop/dancehall remixes. Honoring his tradition and style of being involved in all types of music we are sure to be blessed with some powerful tunes from this highly eclectic producer. Also dont forget to stay tuned to L-A's new brainchilds "Strong Island Radio" and the "8mm Mix-Show". Both can be heard at the official web site: www.strongisland.com along with the new startup "Strong Island Talk Radio", currently featuring in-depth interviews with "L-A" and special DJ discussions and forums. More interviews, discussions and forums will be added in rotation as our programming expands. StrongIsland.com currently receives over 200,000 hits per month from over 45 different countries throughout the world each month. Log On and Learn. |