The DJ. Once the linchpin of hip-hop, of moving the crowd, of dictating the night, the true DJ has been under siege from posers, pretenders, and button-pushers. Fortunately, there are those who unswervingly shove the art forward, asking nothing in return. We, as listeners, reap the rewards. One such stalwart is DJ C-Reality, born Christopher Lawand in Elizabeth, New Jersey. C-Reality came of age alongside the art form itself; he harkens to a 1992 Gang Starr show at Old Bridge, NJ’s revered but now defunct Birch Hill nightclub. And yes, that’s him, rocking the gumby and the goofy grin in the Funkdoobiest/Cypress Hill collab “Wopbabalubop.”
About the same time, C-Reality was making his own mark as part of the underground rap collective Myndcrukz, known best for their timeless single “Remember the Face.” The group enjoyed a good run alongside scene staples such as KRS-One, Company Flow, Scienz of Life, and Natural Elements. Myndrukz fractured, and C-Reality shifted to other musical pursui