This past Saturday in Chicago at Soul Summit was indeed a much needed return to beloved long running party and another one for the books which checks off another appearance at this esteemed party. This particular night has a crazy story all around which began back in 2020 when I was booked to play but then suddenly the world came to a full stop and suddenly every city was on lockdown. Fast forward to 2022 and here and we’re doing sort of a do over to make up for the party that never happened and although the night was amazing and exactly what I expected, it almost didn’t happen (once again).
Friday night while doing another gig, I get a late notification on my airline app that said my flight for Saturday morning to Chicago was canceled and that I needed to reschedule my flight. Doing my best to multitask playing records and scrolling the app to find a suitable flight, it was almost impossible to find one that would didn’t have a connecting flight and one that didn’t get in around the 7pm mark. Finally after sorting out a flight which got me in a few hours before the party it, I had just enough time to get a private dig in for records, grab a pizza and salad then soundcheck before doors open. But once the needle dropped, all of my thoughts about delays and cancelled flights ended and the energy of the room filling up took over.
It was a great night seeing a room filled with people on the dance floor and quite a few that I hadn’t seen since the last time in Chicago and played Soul Summit. It felt good and was a welcome home of sorts to a party that I hold in high regards and definitely one of the finest funk & soul nights in the world. Record after record as the Soul Summit DJ’s pulled records from their boxes as the crowd worked up a sweat, screaming as tunes were played I knew that I was in the right place and so were they. At midnight it was go time and I had no problem following up Sloppy White who left me in a very good place with the perfect record to continue keeping the crowd entertained and working the dance floor.
Thank you Soul Summit, Empty Bottle and the good people of Chicago that make this party what it is. There’s a reason why it’s loved by so many and continues to be one of the best in the world. The hospitality and reception is always top notch and definitely looking forward to joining you once again in the near future!