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    6 Hidden Shops in New York Worth Visiting

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    You didn’t come to New York to wander fluorescent aisles hunting for someone to unlock the fitting room. You came for the locked-door city — where nothing’s labeled, the elevator grumbles and whoever buzzes you in has already decided how the afternoon should go.You might leave with a sterling silver carabiner, a fossilized dinosaur foot or a record that makes everything else on your shelf sound flat. Or maybe it was just a book you didn’t know you were missing until it looked back at you.But don’t bother dropping by. These places don’t do foot traffic. You email. You call a landline. You wait. Maybe you DM. There’s no signage, no small talk, no piped-in jazz. What there is: hand-forged armor, prehistoric bones with six-figure price tags, music that’s never been digitized, a jewelry showroom with the logic of a toolbox, and — if you’re buzzed in — a private library (with all the books for sale) that reads like someone’s inner filing system.This isn’t retail. It’s an invitation-only obsession. And if you knock with purpose, that helps.889 Broadway, Union Square, ManhattanGlobus WashitsuA kimono-styling class at Globus Washitsu, near Union Square.Up a nondescript elevator near Union Square, through a quiet hallway and a final sliding door, is something few New Yorkers expect to find above Broadway: a Kyoto-style tatami room meticulously built by the investor and longtime Japanophile Stephen Globus. Think shoji screens, hinoki beams, seasonal scrolls — nothing here is an approximation. It’s the real deal.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      25 Ways to Get in on Dance Music’s Renaissance

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      Dance music is experiencing another boom period, and this time the music is traveling faster and farther than ever, thanks to new streaming platforms and more fans getting access to making (and vibing to) an even broader slate of sounds. Here’s how to get involved.5 Ways to Club AnywhereBoiler RoomWhat began in 2010 as a single livestream called Boiler Room, with a webcam taped to a D.J. booth, has become not just a global proving ground but a rite of passage, and a catchall term for a format that’s changed the course of dance music.Start here: Kaytranda’s devilishly chaotic, often hilarious 2013 Montreal session; a fun hour of soulful dance music that foreshadows big things to come for the artist and the format alike.The Lot RadioStarted in 2016 on a triangle-shaped patch of gravel in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, the Lot has drawn a wide range of top-tier talent to D.J. inside its sticker-covered booth (or as Charli XCX did last summer, dance on top of it).We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Jed the Fish Dead: KROQ DJ Who Pioneered New Wave Radio Was 69

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      With his off-kilter sensibility and deep musical grounding, he brought attention to New Wave and alternative artists at the groundbreaking station KROQ.Jed Gould, the influential Los Angeles disc jockey known as Jed the Fish, who used his off-kilter sensibility and deep musical knowledge to shine a light on artists like the Cure, Depeche Mode and the Offspring at the groundbreaking New Wave and alternative rock station KROQ-FM in the 1980s and ’90s, died on April 14 at his home in Pasadena, Calif. He was 69.The cause was an aggressive form of small-cell lung cancer, Rudy Koerner, a close friend, said. Mr. Gould was never a cigarette smoker, he added, and before he was diagnosed last month, he had thought his recent violent coughing fits were related to the Los Angeles wildfires.For decades, Mr. Gould served as a trusted musical savant — and drive-time friend — to young Angelenos, particularly members of Generation X. He also influenced future broadcasting stars.In a social media post after Mr. Gould’s death, Jimmy Kimmel, who worked on the morning show at KROQ early in his career, described him as “a legend.” On his podcast, Mr. Kimmel’s old sidekick on “The Man Show,” Adam Carolla, a former host of the relationship show “Loveline” on KROQ, called Mr. Gould “an icon.”With his boyish energy, free-ranging musical tastes and maniacal cackle, Mr. Gould helped lead a radio revolution at the maverick KROQ, based in Pasadena, starting in the late 1970s.At a time when FM rock stations were dominated by hyper-produced corporate juggernauts like Styx and Foreigner, KROQ became a sensation for its “Roq of the ’80s” format, which shimmered with fresh sounds from New Wave bands like Talking Heads and Devo, synth-pop groups like the Human League and Spandau Ballet, and local heroes like X and the Go-Go’s.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Tim Mohr, DJ and German Translator Who Ghostwrote Paul Stanley’s Memoir, Dies at 55

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      An American who had lived abroad, he sought out books by up-and-coming German writers, while ghostwriting memoirs for rock stars like Paul Stanley.Tim Mohr, an American who worked as a disc jockey and freelance writer in Berlin in the 1990s, diving deep into the city’s fervent post-Communist underground, before using his experiences to turn out sensitive, award-winning English translations of works by up-and-coming German writers, died on March 31 at his home in Brooklyn. He was 55.His wife, Erin Clarke, said the cause was pancreatic cancer.Mr. Mohr arrived in Germany in 1992 with a yearlong grant to teach English. He did not speak a word of German, so the program sent him to Berlin, a melting pot of cultures where English was often the second language.He stayed for six years. By day, he worked as a journalist for local English-language magazines, including the Berlin edition of Time Out; at night, he was a D.J. in the city’s ever-expanding club scene.He later remarked that his time spent traveling among Berlin’s many underground subcultures gave him a thorough education in a form of street German that set him up to work as a translator.One of his first major translation projects, in 2008, was “Feuchtgebiete” (“Wetlands”), a sexually explicit coming-of-age novel by Charlotte Roche packed with raunchy, idiomatic slang that only someone with Mr. Mohr’s background could render in English.“I read the book for the eventual U.S. publisher when they were considering buying the rights,” he told The Financial Times in 2012. “And I said to the editor, ‘You know, you’ll be hard pressed to find an academic translator who is as familiar with terminology related to anal sex as a former Berlin club D.J. is.’”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      John Peck, Underground Cartoonist Known as The Mad Peck, Dies at 82

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      Among many other accomplishments, he illustrated a scholarly work on the history of comic books and wrote record reviews in four-panel comic-strip form.John Peck, a cultural omnivore known as The Mad Peck whose dryly humorous style as an underground cartoonist, artist, critic, disc jockey and record collector was accompanied by an ornate eccentricity, died on March 15 in Providence, R.I. He was 82.The cause of his death, in a hospital, was a ruptured aneurysm in his aorta, said his sisters, Marie Peck and Lois Barber.Mr. Peck was not as well known or acclaimed as underground cartoonists like Robert Crumb or Art Spiegelman. That was perhaps in part because his interests were so broad, Gary Kenton, who edited him at Fusion and Creem magazines from the late 1960s into the ’70s, said in an interview.“To me, he would be a Top 10 cartoonist, a Top 10 D.J., a Top 10 rock critic,” Mr. Kenton said.Mr. Peck illustrated one of the first scholarly works on the importance of comic books. And he was perhaps the first cartoonist to write record reviews in four-panel comic-strip form.He also wrote an academic paper in 1983 with the literary commentator Michael Macrone about the evolution of television; its title, “How J.R. Got Out of the Air Force and What the Derricks Mean,” playfully referenced phallic symbolism in the oil-soaked prime-time soap opera “Dallas.” Mr. Peck once called it his “crowning achievement.”His comic-strip music critiques appeared in Fusion, Creem, Rolling Stone and other music publications, and in The Village Voice. He worked in a retro style repurposed from the 1940s and ’50s and wrote with sardonic humor (“Is There Life After Meatloaf?”), while offering trustworthy criticism.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Jam Like a King: Charles Releases a Playlist

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      King Charles III showcased 17 artists, mostly from Commonwealth countries, in a personal playlist. Beyoncé, Bob Marley and Diana Ross made the cut.King Charles III, a classical music fan who has studied the cello, piano and trumpet, released an eclectic playlist on Monday featuring 17 artists, including Beyoncé, Bob Marley and Grace Jones.Music “has that remarkable ability to bring happy memories flooding back from the deepest recesses of our memory, to comfort us in times of sadness, and to take us to distant places,” Charles said in a podcast on Apple Music, “The King’s Music Room,” released in conjunction with the playlist.Charles, who as the British monarch is head of the Commonwealth, a club of 56 nations that were mostly part of the British Empire, put out the playlist to mark Commonwealth Day, celebrated on the second Monday in March with events across member countries.The king, 76, may have had some help in choosing the songs from Errollyn Wallen, a Belize-born artist who was last year appointed Master of the King’s Music. The honorary role was created during the reign of King Charles I in the 17th century.In 2008, Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, played the bongo drums at Bob Marley’s former home, now a museum, in Kingston, Jamaica.Anwar Hussein/WireImageHere are some of the king’s song choices.Beyoncé, “Crazy in Love”While the playlist primarily featured artists from the Commonwealth, he included a few from outside the group, citing a personal connection to their music. Beyoncé made the cut.Charles and Beyoncé at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 2003.Anwar Hussein/WireImageDaddy Lumba, “Mpempem Do Me”In the podcast, recorded at Buckingham Palace, the king recalled a 2018 visit to Ghana, a Commonwealth nation, where he danced to the music of Ghanaian singer Daddy Lumba.Miriam Makeba, “The Click Song”The South African singer Miriam Makeba, widely known as “Mama Africa,” was a prominent opponent of apartheid. “I shan’t try too much to pronounce the title, as it requires a great deal of practice,” Charles said of her 1960s hit “Qongqothwane,” known in English as “The Click Song.”Diana Ross, “Upside Down”“When I was much younger, it was absolutely impossible not to get up and dance when it was played,” King Charles said of Ms. Ross’s 1980 song. “So, I wonder if I can still just manage it?”Kylie Minogue, “The Loco-Motion”Ms. Minogue came to St. James’s Palace to perform this song in 2012. “This is music for dancing,” Charles said of the Australian singer’s rendition of the song, written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin. “It has that infectious energy which makes it, I find, incredibly hard to sit still.”Kylie Minogue met Charles and Camilla at St James’s Palace in London in 2012.Pool photo by Carl Court More

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      DJ Clark Kent, Who Introduced Jay-Z to the Notorious B.I.G., Dies at 58

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      He was a producer and club D.J. who helped rappers find their voices and fortunes, and who later became known as a raconteur of hip-hop history.Antonio Franklin, known as DJ Clark Kent, a widely respected hip-hop insider for four decades who had influential relationships with many leading rappers, died on Thursday at his home in Greenbrook, a township in northern New Jersey. He was 58. The cause was colon cancer, his wife, Kesha (Vernon) Franklin, said.Mr. Franklin’s career followed the trajectory of hip-hop itself. He entered the scene just as it was taking shape, in New York in the 1980s, and he reached prime time when rap itself did, in the mid-90s. After being a club D.J. for years, he moved on to work as a producer and took jobs with Atlantic Records and Motown.In 1995, he produced a rap classic — and his first hit song — with “Player’s Anthem” by Junior M.A.F.I.A., a group formed by the Notorious B.I.G., who also appeared on the track. The song became a breakout single for the group and introduced Lil’ Kim to the international hip-hop audience.The next year, he produced three songs on Jay-Z’s debut album, “Reasonable Doubt.” His most noteworthy contributions were to the song “Brooklyn’s Finest.” Mr. Franklin provided the vocals for the hook, and he suggested to Jay-Z and his manager, Damon Dash, that they include Notorious B.I.G. on the track. The two somewhat hesitantly agreed — without realizing that Mr. Franklin had already asked Notorious B.I.G. to wait downstairs. The collaboration took place instantly.That kind of behind-the-scenes orchestration was ordinary for Mr. Franklin. In 1998, he saw a young man who went by Shyne freestyling in a barbershop, then introduced him to Sean “Puff Daddy” Combs, who signed him to a record deal on the spot.“I practically knew every rapper before they made their records,” Mr. Franklin told the pop culture publication Complex. “They wanted to be familiar with the D.J.s and what was happening in hip-hop. I was happening in hip-hop.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Popcast: A Word With John Summit

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      Subscribe to Popcast!Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | YouTubeThe dance music superstar John Summit has become one of the scene’s biggest forces in recent years with a big-tent approach to house music that bridges aficionados and weekend warriors.On this week’s Popcast, hosted by Jon Caramanica and Joe Coscarelli, Summit delves into his rise and the evolution of his career, from spinning at underground semi-legal parties to headlining Madison Square Garden and festivals around the world. Summit discusses his former life as an accountant, his reluctance to take EDM too far into the mainstream and what it’s like being turned away at the door of a nightclub.Connect With Popcast. Become a part of the Popcast community: Join the show’s Facebook group and Discord channel. We want to hear from you! Tune in, and tell us what you think at popcast@nytimes.com. Follow our host, Jon Caramanica, on Twitter: @joncaramanica. More

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      Fatman Scoop, a D.J. and Rapper, Dies at 56

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      He was at the Hamden Town Center Park in Hamden, Conn., when he collapsed onstage on Friday night.The rapper Fatman Scoop, whose hoarse and booming voice brought an electric energy to songs by Missy Elliott and Mariah Carey, and who performed the underground club favorite “Be Faithful,” died after collapsing onstage during a performance on Friday. He was 56.A statement from the rapper’s family posted to his Instagram account confirmed his death but did not provide a cause. The post described him as “the undisputed voice of the club” and as a performer with an infectious stage presence.A video taken at the concert, at the Hamden Town Center Park in Hamden, Conn., appeared to show people performing CPR behind equipment on the stage.Lauren Garrett, the mayor of Hamden, said that paramedics had attempted lifesaving measures.Fatman Scoop, whose birth name was Isaac Freeman III, rose to prominence and international recognition after the song “Be Faithful,” in which the rapper performs over beats by the Crooklyn Clan, became the No. 1 single on the U.K. Billboard singles chart in 2003, more than four years after the track’s initial release.The song, which primarily samples “Love Like This” by Faith Evans, is a constant thrum of bass lines and lyrics from Fatman Scoop as he works to hype up a crowd.“You got a $100 bill get your hands up; you got a $50 bill get your hands up” are the opening lines to the track that goes on to rhythmically instruct a crowd to make noise.Questlove, the drummer for the Roots and the author of “Hip Hop Is History” (2024), wrote his appreciation on social media for the song and Fatman Scoop: “I want to thank FATMAN SCOOP for being an embodiment of what hip-hop was truly about,” he wrote. “To just forget about your troubles and live in the moment and allow joy in.”Fatman Scoop was born on Aug. 6, 1968, and grew up in Harlem, learning the art of hip-hop from his peers and those already making noise in the scene.“I am a disciple of Doug E. Fresh,” Fatman Scoop said in a 2023 interview with Urban Politicians TV, speaking of the New York City rapper who is also known as the Human Beat Box. “He was the neighborhood star.”“Everything that I learned, pretty much, I learned from Doug,” he added.Fatman Scoop was formerly a D.J. on Hot 97, an FM radio station in New York, which described him as a “legendary hype man and radio personality” in an online tribute. It said he helped usher a digital era for the station, bringing a video camera to what had been strictly a radio operation.Complete information on survivors was not immediately available.Missy Elliott recognized his impact in a tribute on social media on Saturday, saying “Fatman Scoop VOICE & energy have contributed to MANY songs that made the people feel HAPPY & want to dance for over 2 decades.” More