What’s up Scratch Geeks,
Ever wonder what scratch combinations your favorite dj’s are throwing down in their freestyle scratch videos? Can’t quite figure out which scratches these top DJs are doing in their videos? Are you stuck in your development as a DJ and need some inspiration and advice from the best DJ’s out? Well then this post may have these answers for you.
We’ve reached out and teamed up with some of the Best DJs and Turntablists in the world. We’re talking World DMC Champions, IDA Scratch Champions, Red Bull Threestyle Champions and Finalists. If anyone knows DJing and Scratching it would be these guys. They’ve agreed to open the hood and give us some of their favorite scratch combos along with great advice for beginners and intermediate DJs learning to scratch.
This post will also include some exclusive tutorial videos that these Top DJ’s and Turntablists have graciously provided to Scratch Geek. We hope you enjoy these as some of these combos were secrets until now. .
Hope you enjoy these.
Favorite Scratch Combos and Advice for DJs and Turntablists
Junk ThirtyThree (@junkthirtythree)– Wild Cuts 2018 World Vice-Champion, Cut2Cut Greece 2018 Champion
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “One of my favorite combos is, swing flares to boomerang” (its the last combo in the instagram video from 11/7/2018)
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Celly (@cellypdx)- 2018 IDA USA Scratch Battle Champ, 2016 Wild Cuts Solo Scratch Champ:
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “I don’t necessarily have a ‘favorite combo’. I am one of those people who learned mostly by ear and never really got technical with the scratches past the fundamentals. So I don’t really have one I can name in that way.
I would say that something I think is super important and not often considered these days is the importance of drum scratching for building rhythm consistently and phrasing accuracy.”
On Advice for Beginners and Intermediate DJs: “I guess my main advanced advice would be that hand control is where you will find your won flavor and style. Different tears and modulating pitch can make even the basic scratches really funky and interesting”
DJ Throdown (@djthrodowndc)- 2018 DMC US Champ, 3x DMC Regional Champ, 2x DMC Online Wolrd Finalist:
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “I got a combo scratch that I’m pretty fond of lately, I suppose I wouldn’t mind sharing it.”
Its a “snake scratch/tear/whatever you wanna call it – Boomerang combo thats pretty cool I feel like that one is worthy of sharing with the heads.”
DJ Deception (@djdeception)– 2x ITF World Team Champion, 2011 Red Bull 3style USA Finalist, Scratch Geek Tazer Challenge Winner:
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “I always sucked at the name of cuts especially new ones, I just freestyle most of the time” on a
On advice for Beginner and Intermediate DJs: “Put some stank on it…learn the scratches then try to make variations of it by using drags or record control to make different pitches at any given point”
Jon Rist (@JonRist)– Monreal based turntablist/ producer; 2018 IDA Canada Scratch Champion.
Jon Rist provided us with an exclusive video and asked us to break down the names of his cuts. Here he is doing a forward drag with two whip/wave Tear back combo. It sounds super crispy in the flow and heavily appreciate the exclusive video. This can be seen on our YouTube channel and IGTV on our Instagram page.
Jon Rist Exclusive Advanced Scratch Combo For Scratch Geek
Here Jon Rist is doing a forward drag with two whip tear backwards. The fader hand is basically doing an OG Flare scratch motion with the fader opening for the forward drag and then the two whips/wave-tears are getting fadered.
You can find more dope scratch videos and production from him at:
Instagram: @Jonrist
Twitter: @Jon_rist
Bandcamp: www.morbin.bandcamp.com
DJ Flip Flop (@djflipflop)- 2018 DMC USA Runner-Up
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “Honestly I suck at knowing what combos I do. If you can break one down that I do you’re more than welcome to do so.”
From studying some of his videos it looks like he likes to throw a crab-multiple stabs-baby bahn combo. Though we would love for you DJs to add some of his combos in the comment section, he seems pretty modest in the initial response as he is definitely a very technical scratcher and one of the best out doing it.
DJ Dopez (@dopez1200)- 2015 DMC USA Finalist:
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “As for favorite scratch combo its gotta be the Whip Tear with two clicks over it. Two Clicks forward whip tear backwards”
We’ve included multiple Dopez tutorials on this site because he has some of the best tutorials for intermediate to advanced scratchers and turntablists on youtube.
Dopez's Super Secret Scratch Tutorial
We’ve linked this tutorial before on the site in our advanced scratch combo series.
Here Dopez can be seen doing the Whip Scratch he described in many different combos.
You can find more video tutorials from him at: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaaxvVQk3HYQ1NxGNNH1Leg
Instagram: @Dopez1200
Twitter: @Dopez1200
Nabarret (@nabarret)- Clash of the Titans Spain 2018 Finalist, Scratch Geek Tazer Challenge Finalist:
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “One of my favorite combos is Chirp-orbit-chirp-boomerang”
Miles Medina (@milesmedina) – 2017 Goldie Awards DJ Battle Champion:
On Favorite Scratch Combo/Advice: “I’ve never been too big of a technical scratcher. I respect and love hearing it but I’ve always been more musical with the few techniques I know. Mostly stabs, transforms, crabs every now and then in a rhythmic way to compliment the song I’m scratching over. My main thing is feeling the soul of the dj who’s playing.”
DJ Myke aka Micionero (@djmyke_micionero_)– 2 x DMC Italy Team Champion, 2x DMC Italy Champion (Solo), 4x DMC World Finalist, 2nd Place ITF Team Eastern Hemisphere 2003
On Favorite Combos: He sent us multiple videos, had us break it down and confirmed. Scribbles into a delayed two click flare as well as “Chirp Boomerang, 2 Click Tazer, 2 Click Bubble Tears”
Funk-Ra(@_Funk_Ra)- Bay Area/Zurich Based Turntablist
DJ Eprom (@djeprom)- 2x IDA World Champion
On Scratch Combos and Advice for Beginners and Intermediate DJs: “Spend as much time on basics as possible: baby, tears, transforms and flares. These 4 elements are key to outstanding combos.”
DJ Fong Fong (@djfongfong): DMC Online World Champion 2012
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “Chirp-two click-chirp”
DJ Kutreal (@djkutreal)- Redbull 3 Style Albania Champ 2015, DMC Italy Vice Champ 2015
On Favorite Scratch Combo: “I’m down with swing flare, delayed flare, autobahn combo”
“I’m really down with delayed flare, autobahn, boomerang combo”
DJ Kut Real Exclusive Boomerang-Delayed Flare (Baby Bahn) Combo
In this exclusive video that Kut Real provided us for our Youtube and IGTV Channels he is doing a Boomerang into a what some call a Delayed Two Click Flare (what he calls a Deleted Flare and what we call a Baby Bahn in our advanced scratch techniques tutorial)
If you followed our advanced scratch technique tutorial in order to perform this scratch you need to know how to do a Boomerang and a Baby Bahn. It is one full boomerang flowing directly into one full Baby Bahn. Its a dope combo to throw into the flow, and from here you can even add Autobahns into the combo.
DJ Knockers (@djknockers)- 2018 DMC Tampa Champ, 2017 WMC Spin-off Champ, 2017 IDA USA Finalist
On Advice for Beginner and Intermediate Dj’s: “Practicing tears can open a lot of doors. They can be stiff rigid pauses or a quick more bubbly sound. And of course the natural progression to the whip tears already covered in the blog.
Adding fader stuff on top of tears lead to the “wet” sound we associate with some of the dopest cutters.
Learning Prizms and Whips played a big part in molding my style.”
DJ Soak (@djsoak)- 3x Champion DMC Spain Champion, ITF Spain Champion 2006, IDA Spain Champion 2006
Provided us with an exclusive video for our IGTV and Youtube channels where he demonstrates some of his favorite combos.
DJ Soak Exclusive Scratch Geek Combo Demonstration
In this video DJ Soak is using the Boomerang-Baby Bahn combo that Kut Real demonstrated in the previous video as the starting point for his flow. He frequent adds Skribbles or quick baby scratches before the combo, and throws autobahns in the mix. Since he is freestyling and flowing in this video it is difficult to just point to one combo that defines the sound here, but it stems from this delayed triplet sound you get from knowing how to do delayed flares, Baby Bahns, Boomerangs and Autobahns. He also accentuates the sounds extremely well with strong tears.
Jose Rodriguez (@JoseRodriguezDJ)- Wild Cuts 2018 Champ, Clash of Titans Spain 2018 Champ, IDA Scratch Spain 2017-2018 Champ
Provided us with an exlcusive video for our IGTV and Youtube Channels where he demonstes one of his favorite scratches that he seamlessly throws into his scratch combos.
Jose Rodriguez Exclusive Scratch Combos Demonstration
Here he is demonstrating his fast clover tear (2 foward and 2 back) that he uses in between chirps, one click flares, crescent flares as well as og flares. The tear is not fadered, but is extremely versatile in adding extra sounds between scratches.
More Exclusive and Tutorials Coming Soon!
We will continue to edit this post and add new exclusive videos as they come along. We just couldn’t keep this post on hold anymore because there is already so much value here.
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