| Running time | 120 minutes (0:00–2:00AMlocal time) |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Language(s) | English |
| Home station | BBC Radio 1 |
| Hosted by | Pete Tong |
| Created by | Eddie Gordon |
| Produced by | Eddie Gordon Wise Buddah Somethin' Else |
| Original release | 30 October 1993 – present |
| Website | Essential Mix |
TheEssential Mix is a weekly radio show onBBC Radio 1 currently broadcast between 0:00 and 2:00 a.m. UK time on Saturday morning. Originally broadcast on 30 October 1993, theEssential Mix features contemporaryDJs and music producers ofelectronic dance music.
The show has been presented since its inception byPete Tong and features an uninterrupted two-hourmix from a different artist each week, overlaid with occasional continuity announcements delivered by Tong.[1] With a broadcast run of over 30 years, theEssential Mix is one of the longest-running programmes in the currentBBC Radio 1 schedule. It is one of very few Radio 1 shows which is not broadcast live.[citation needed]
A detailed list of Essential Mix shows, may be foundhere.
TheEssential Mix is a weeklyradio show broadcast onBBC Radio 1, and features many styles ofelectronic dance music. It was created byEddie Gordon, the producer of the show from the first broadcast in 1993 to 2001. The show has been hosted since its inception in 1993 byPete Tong, who was also the first performer.[2]
In 1993, after months of receiving weekly mix shows on tape-cassette, featuringNew York DJsTony HumphriesWRKS 98.7 Kiss FM andFrankie KnucklesWQHT HOT 97 FM, and recorded and mailed by U.S.Billboard's Dance Editor Brian Chin, Gordon advisedBBC Radio 1 that a weekly dance-mix show with DJs of different genres of music would offer more variety and a chance to promote theUKdance music scene with both notable and upcoming DJs.[3]
Gordon further encouraged the DJs he scheduled to use their musical knowledge; a high number of listeners were recording the show on cassette to listen to later, so a straight out "4 to the floor" mix was not necessarily required, allowing the DJs to include more eclectic music or offer something different from their normal selections.Paul Oakenfold, after sitting with Gordon to blueprint his December 1994Essential Mix, produced theGoa Mix, which won a Silver Award in the Specialist Music Programme category at the 1998Sony Radio Awards,[citation needed] and in 2000, was voted the Best Ever Essential Mix by theBBC Radio 1 listeners.
In June 1997,David Holmes created another two hours in the history of theEssential Mix. His set includedNancy Wilson andJimi Hendrix. In May 1998, Ashley Beedle, known for hishouse music style, completed a two-hourreggae mix.
AnotherEddie Gordon initiative was to take the showon the road withlive broadcasts fromclubs orfestivals, particularly during the summer months (Northern Hemisphere) and atNew Year's Eve. The broadcasts started from within theUK, and soon broadened out aslive fromIbiza,North America,Australia,South Africa,Germany,Hawaii and other destinations inEurope includingRome.
One special broadcast was theBBC Radio 1 - One Worldmillennium celebration starting withCarl Cox fromBondi Beach inSydney, before heading toCape Town, South Africa withDanny Rampling prior to broadcastingDave Pearce fromGlasgow,Pete Tong fromLiverpool, thenJunior Vasquez fromNew York before closing withCarl Cox, who had flown backwards across the dateline to complete aDJ World first with twomillennium gigs by broadcasting fromHonolulu.
The forerunner to this New Year's EveEssential Mix was thetransatlantic three-cities broadcast on the New Year's Eve of 1997 into 1998, with simultaneous broadcasts from three clubs directly to each dance floor withPete Tong at theMinistry Of Sound,London,Todd Terry at theNynex Arena inManchester, and finishing with DJ Eddie Baez at theTunnel venue inManhattan. The broadcast was produced byEddie Gordon, who originated the idea of linking the three venues viaISDN broadcast.
The broadcasts fromIbiza have taken place every summer since the firstEssential Mix live broadcast fromAmnesia. The first everEssential Mix from Ibiza came in the summer of 1995 Ibiza as a pre-recorded broadcast ofNicky Holloway playing live at nightclub Ku (todayPrivilege) on 2 July 1995.[4]
On 29 July 2007, theEssential Mix broadcast mixes fromGlobal Gatheringfestival featuringDavid Guetta,Erol Alkan,Sven Vath andPaul van Dyk.
31 December 2009 marked the specialEssential Mix event that carried ontoNew Year's Day of 2010, at theO2 Arena inLondon, featuring artists likeDeadmau5,Eric Prydz,Calvin Harris,Justice,Example,Dave Spoon and Plump DJs.[5]
On 16 November 2013, on the 20th anniversary of the show,The Warehouse Project inManchester hosted theRadio 1's Essential Mix for a liveevent. The talent included the show's hostPete Tong, amongst guestsEats Everything,Sasha,Booka Shade,Paul Woolford,Steve Lawler,Hot Since 82,James Zabiela,Skream b2bJackmaster,Derrick Carter, amongst other residents of theclub.[6]
In January 2016, Pete Tong initiated a series of live club-basedEssential Mix shows. The first event was in Los Angeles and featured DJRichie Hawtin.[7] On 3 September 2016,Cirez D,Chase & Status andEric Prydz played atCreamfields.
On 20 October 2018, theEssential Mix featuredThe Martinez Brothers,Pete Tong andEats Everything fromThe Warehouse Project inManchester. In October 2021, theEssential Mix broadcast fromADE 2021 featuring mixes by Cinthie and Luuk van Dijk.
On 30 March 2019,Essential Mix featuredChris Liebing,Charlotte de Witte, Themba and Mele fromMiami Music Week.
On July 7 & 8 2021,Essential Mix recorded mixes fromElrow at Circus inLiverpool featuring Yousef andPaul Woolford, with another mix recorded from Shindig inNewcastle featuringCarl Cox.
On 24 June 2023, theEssential Mix recorded mixes from theGlastonbury Festival, with Salute,Annie Mac andThe Blessed Madonna billed for theevent.
Radio 1's Essential Mix broadcast severalIbiza specials fromnightclubs on the island since the show's inception. Usually, the show is held around theIbiza weekend of theBBC Radio 1 broadcast, in July and August.
 | Parts of this article (those related to New technologies) need to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(November 2024) |
The advent of theinternet brought the programme to an international audience for the first time (theBBC Radio 1 website launched in 1996).[citation needed] In 2002, theBBC launched their 'listen again' onlineradio service and theEssential Mix (along with theEssential Selection) and became consistently the most popular specialist music show of the wholeBBC Radio network amonginternet users.[citation needed]
According to BBC server logs,[citation needed] the show receives around 50,000 online requests per week (though this can be significantly higher, with the 2003Ibiza show attracting more than 96,000 requests), which compares to the show's "live" audience of 80,000.[citation needed] Whilst demand for apodcast of the show is high, the BBC has resisted making the show available in this way due tocopyright issues, but the development ofpeer-to-peer internet technologies has spawned a new trend in which fans of the show make recordings of mixes available to users of services such asBitTorrent andeMule.[citation needed] Although illegal[where?], the BBC has taken little action against such activity.[original research?]
Manytorrent sites and internet forums still continue to provideMP3download links to past shows, which can be found easily through internet search engines.[citation needed]
At the end of each year, a shortlist of the most popular Essential Mixes from that year is drawn up by theBBC. Listeners were previously invited to vote for their favourite shortlisted mix in a poll on the Essential Mix website around two weeks before the final show of the year; and now, the mix of the year is selected by the show's team.[citation needed] The mix with the majority of the votes is given the title ofEssential Mix of the Year and is replayed in the final show of the year.
The exception for the propernomination of theEssential Mix of the Year award was in 2007, whenvoting and competitions were suspended onBBC Radio 1 until further notice, due to failures in variousBBC competition voting systems. In 2007, the title (High Contrast) was chosen byPete Tong and theBBC Radio 1Essential Mix team.[25]
To mark the 500th DJ/artist to appear in the series, in April 2010,BBC Radio 1 selected ten classicEssential Mixes to reflect the show's history:[29]
|
