Straight Goods Music is a forward thinking music pushing venture. Originally birthed from a growing frustration with Ottawa’s humdrum music scene, the company first introduced itself in form of a monthly no-format club night in 2007.
The routine showcase, run by long time promoter Iggy Smalls and 4-time national dj champion Drastik, quickly garnered attention and expanded in mission. The co-founders’ parallel music tastes and shared dancefloor aspirations fused to spark a simple concept: spread their favourite eclectic sounds with the help of tomorrow’s finest international talents – with a direct aim to showcase performers that have never graced Ottawa with their sound before.
In October 2008, the Straight Goods family was made a permanent collaborator and co-presenter of “Disorganised” – a notorious, nationally known, club night started by local legends Jokers Of The Scene. A staple in Ottawa’s music scene, the Disorganised camp has hosted some of the world’s most reputable entertainers, from Kid Cudi, Diplo, and Crookers, to Crystal Castles, Girl Talk, and Switch. Given the Jokers’ rigorous tour scheduling & permanent relocation to Toronto/Berlin, the monthly showcase has since been revamped as the Straight Goods run “Frenzy” – and continues to bring in international guests (on the same monthly night) to this day.
Straight Goods Music has since grown to produce, collaborate on, and promote over 100 shows – with a diverse client base ranging from MTV, Redbull Music Academy, and Freshjive, to Adidas, Ottawa Fashion Week, and the Ottawa Bluesfest.
Some of their past guests (alphabetical order):
ASAP ROCKY & ASAP MOB • ARAAB MUZIK • BAAUER • BADMAN PRESS • BARBI • BLOC PARTY • BOK BOK • BONJAY • BRANCHEZ • BRANDON SEK • BRENMAR • CAM’RON • CASHMERE CAT • CASHTRO & MES • COBRA KRAMES • COSMO BAKER • DA-P • DEEBS • DEEJ • DANA D • DESIGNER DRUGS • DIPLO • DIRTY SOUTH JOE • DJ CRAZE • DJ CHAPS • DJ PUMP • DJ ROB SWIFT • DJ SEGA • DJ SLIINK • DJEMBA DJEMBA • DOUSTER • DZ • EGYPTRIXX • ELI ESCOBAR • EXETER • FACE-T • FALCONS • FIVER • FLOSSTRADAMUS • FLYING LOTUS • FUTURE THE PRINCE • GHISLAIN POIRIER • GLADIATOR • GRAHMZILLA • GRANDTHEFT • HATCHMATIK • HERCULES & LOVE AFFAIR • HIGH KLASSIFIED • HUGGS • HOODBOI • HYPNOTIC BRASS ENSEMBLE • ILLO • JACQUES GREENE • JOKERS OF THE SCENE • JUST BLAZE • JUBILEE • KARL HAZE • KAYTRANADA • KEYS N KRATES • KHIASMA • KINGDOM • KLEVER • LADYTRON • LOL BOYS • LUNICE • LA NEW SHIT • LOUDPVCK • LUCIE TIC • MR. CARMACK • MARK FARINA • MARTYN • MARTIN VILLENEUVE • MISS HONEY DIJON • NADASTROM • NEOTERIC • NICK CATCHDUBS • PASE ROCK • PASSION PIT • POMO • PHO • RAMPAGE • RYAN HEMSWORTH • ROCKIE FRESH • ROCKSTEADY • RUSKO • SALVA • SAMO SOUND BOY • SAMMY BANANAS • SHLOHMO • SHUTTLE • SIBIAN & FAUN • SKRATCH BASTID • SOUTH RAKKAS CREW • SANGO • SINDEN • STWO • STEVE AOKI • STRETCH ARMSTRONG • STYLUSTS CREW • TALIB KWELI • TASC • TEAM CANADA • THUGLI • THOMAS WHITE • THEOLOGY 3 • THREESIXTY • TITTSWORTH • TOM WRECKS • TREASURE FINGERS • U-TERN • VITAMINSFORYOU • WHAT SO NOT • XXYYXX • ZOMBIE DISCO SQUAD • 4TH PYRAMID… + more.
This month, FRENZY is going down on Friday May 1st and features Vancouver native, EKALI of Flow-Fi and RBMA. If you think the sleepy town of Ottawa doesn’t have anything going on, sleeping on FRENZY will only feed the misconception.
Photography by Alexander Vlad and Christopher Eades of Captivate Creative Studios
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