DJ Rap finds her Synthesis with a full band on her new album

But that's not all for this woman on the run

By Neil Miller Jr.
Published: August 4th, 2010 | 10:00am

Some may know her as the queen of drum 'n' bass; others as the queen of breakbeat. Harvesting an unparalleled fountain of talent brings many titles unto DJ Rap, but now pop siren and production wizard can be moved to the top of that list.

It’s been many years—eleven, to be exact—since Charissa Saverio sold a million copies of her major label debut, Learning Curve (Sony). Rolling Stone even touted it as “the record Madonna wanted to make." Fast forward a decade later and Saverio is back at it again, only now she’s ditched oversaturated production values for a more organic, full band–oriented sound on Synthesis (Ministry of Sound). For a woman who encompasses so many genres, it’s hard to accurately classify the record, as we discovered during our recent conversation. For her part, DJ Rap calls the new record “smart pop” and goes on further to say “I just loved the idea of making an electronic record using a live band and then producing what we had recorded to make it sound electronic.”

One question immediately comes to mind upon a first listen to the record—why not go the route of so many other DJs (including Tiesto, Oakenfold, and Paul van Dyk) and have A-list vocalists sing these songs? It’s rare in this day and age for a world renowned DJ to actually sing on their own compositions. “Because I'm the real deal,” Saverio asserts. “I push the buttons and I’d rather not pretend like some others in the field. As for collaborations, I am always up for that, but this was not that kind of record. It was so personal to me that it was almost my 'diary,' so no guests were allowed, it had to come from me.”

Lyrically speaking, Synthesis is a huge improvement that builds on top of the foundation Learning Curve built for DJ Rap. Where her debut found her using vocals and lyrics to compliment the production, this record does exactly the opposite—everything is on equal ground on Synthesis, and the results are beyond impressive. One track in particular, “What Goes Around,” is a biting send-off that would make even 1997-era Alanis Morissette jealous. It’s a wonder this record took so long, but according to DJ Rap herself, it’s been brewing for some time now. “It took 3 years from [conception to birth]. I just had to get this album out, I finally had enough money saved where I could take time off from DJ’ing to really concentrate on this album. My head needed to be in the studio, not on the road.”

With a stellar new album under her belt, what could possibly be next for the multi-faceted DJ Rap? For starters, she’s fronting a new band, Metasyn, whose members pop up here and there on the new record. Metasyn is a band that was, in Saverio’s own words, “formed with the intention of fusing drum ’n’ bass and different elements. We have evolved into something quite different from that, however, and are now a truly electronic band.”

Beyond Metasyn, there’s talk of a new DJ mix on the horizon. When there is the suggestion of a two-disc set featuring one disc dedicated to drum ’n’ bass and one to breakbeat, similar to her Touching Bass (Surge Recordings) album, Saverio claims something similar is “in the works,” but keeps anything further on the hush. One thing’s for sure, this is a woman who keeps busy—between her live band, a potential DJ mix, a vibrant new record, helming her Propa Talent label, and teaching at Icon Collective in Los Angeles—what else could DJ Rap possibly have to accomplish? “Marry Brad Pitt.” Well said, Ms. Rap.

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DJ Rap official site

DJ Rap MySpace page

Ministry of Sound