Rob Swift's 10 Scratch Commandments

If you've had any interest in the art of DJing over the last twenty years, you should at least have a passing acquaintance with DJ Rob Swift. As part of the legendary X-Ecutioners turntablism crew (along with the late, great Roc Raida and fellow wax destroyers Mista Sinista and Total Eclipse) he set new standards for what could be done on the wheels of steel. He's also released a string of solo albums and DVDs. More recently he's turned his focus towards giving back to the art form that has given him so much, becoming an evangelist of the craft as a teacher at New York City's Scratch DJ Academy and The New School. Swift is steadily laying what he feels is a proper foundation that future leaders of the culture can build upon and carry forward.

To this end, he has posted what I feel is a very important manifesto on his website: The Ten Scratch Commandments. You can (and should) read them in their entirety there, but I told Rob on Twitter that he should boil them down to a series of one-liners and put them on a t-shirt. I liked the idea so much that I figured I'd dust off my typing fingers and do it right here. Here they are, fresh off the wax tablets that they were almost certainly inscribed upon by the vinyl gods themselves.

Ten Scratch Commandments

1. Acknowledge Kool DJ Herc as the Father of Hip-Hop
2. Acknowledge Grand Wizzard Theodore as the Creator of Scratching
3. Study the Craft of DJing
4. Idolize Nobody
5. Master One's Self
6. Respect the Turntable
7. Practice, Practice, Practice
8. Be Styleless
9. Be Humble
10. Teach

I think Rob cheats a bit here, as #9 actually combines two concepts: being humble, but also honoring the DJs that came before you and paved the way. For my money you could combine #1 and #2 into a single rule honoring both Herc and Theodore (something like "Acknowledge the Pioneers") and then split #9 out into two rules ("Be Humble" as a general rule, and then "Honor the DJs that Came Before You" as another rule). But hey, I'm splitting hairs here. These are a great set of rules for all DJs to follow, and in my opinion they should be as ingrained a part of DJ culture as the "four elements" concept is to hip-hop at large.

Kudos to Rob for shepherding the culture and moving things forward.