DJ Premier and Pete Rock Will Face Off in a Live DJ Battle at Sidebar

With their DJ battle live at Sidebar this Saturday, March 4, DJ Premier and Pete Rock will match the hype of the recent Swizz Beats and Just Blaze battle.

By Tony M. Centeno

March 1, 2017

Pete Rock will face off against DJ Premier for an epic DJ battle at Sidebar in Brickell. 5 Star Entertainment

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This past weekend, New York producers Swizz Beats and Just Blaze made headlines with an epic DJ battle on Instagram Live. This Saturday, March 4, DJ Premier and Pete Rock will match that hype and up the ante with their DJ battle live at Sidebar. Veteran mixers DJ Heron and Self Born will open the historic event.

"I have a huge number of producers and DJs I respect and listen to,” DJ Heron says, “but when two of your most favorite producer/DJs have a chance to go head-to-head, all you do is set the platform and let the vibes roll. This is another one for the history books.”

Since entering the rap game in the 1980s, these producer/DJs joined forces to create incredible records for classic projects such as Nas’ 1994 debut, Illmatic, and Heavy D & the Boyz’ 1992 slab Blue Funk. In recent years, DJ Premier has been the other half of PRhyme with Royce da 5'9". Pete Rock dropped his latest album with Smoked DZA, called Don’t Smoke Rock, before the end of 2016. For more than 30 years, they’ve become pros at making national spectacles of their epic duels. After the 2010 international DJ battle in Japan, DJ Premier and Pete Rock have been squaring off on the ones-and-twos in front of a handful of live audiences across the United States.

They’ve left their mark on cities such as Cambridge, Massachusetts; and San Francisco, California. Now they plan to continue their legacy by going head-to-head at Sidebar in Brickell. Preemo and Pete Rock are expected to hurl a plethora of unforgettable songs and instrumentals from the likes of Nas, Common, the Notorious B.I.G., Jay Z, A Tribe Called Quest, J Dilla, and the Roots at each other all night while the crowd decides who is the better mixer.

5 Star Entertainment and DNA Entertainment, in partnership with Addictive Affairs, are producing the event.

Sidebar will open its doors to all ticketholders at 9 p.m. Early-bird tickets sold out minutes after the link went live. Now tickets start at $35 and will increase to $45 for last-minute buyers.

Pete Rock vs. DJ Premier
Presented by 5 Star Entertainment, DNA Entertainment, and Addictive Affairs. 9 p.m. Saturday, March 4, at Sidebar, 337 SW Eighth St., Miami; 786-703-6973; sidebarmiami.com. Tickets cost $35 to $45 via eventbrite.com.

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