
Editor’s Note: The following is an unpublished excerpt from our January 2012 interview with Detroit Deep House producer Rick Wade – an interesting outtake on his seldom-mentioned Ghetto Tech releases which have been issued under the alias “Big Daddy Rick”.
This is something that anyone can look up on Wikipedia if they want, but as you released quite a few Ghetto Tech records, I’d like to get your opinion on the difference between Ghetto House from Chicago and Ghetto Tech from Detroit. Is it a regional variation of the same thing? Or something wholly different?
They have similar elements. Ghetto House and Ghetto Tech are played together here in Detroit – any place that plays Ghetto House plays Ghetto Tech as well. They’re intertwined.
Do you ever plan to revisit that style as a DJ?
The only way I could is if I went digital. I sold all of my old Ghetto Tech vinyl years ago, back around 2005. One of the years I played DEMF, the organizers told me that they wanted to feature a set from me in that style. I actually had to borrow DJ Godfather’s laptop for it, and thank God he had a folder of my tracks on there. I’d never played Serato before that gig. But if you’re a DJ that knows how to mix, you can find your way using Serrato.
What about as a producer?
I actually still make Ghetto Tech. I have a few that I’ve been meaning to get over to DJ Godfather. I’ve released six or seven EPs in the last few years but the last 3 or 4 have been digital-only. They’re released on a site called electrobounce.com, which is DJ Godfather’s site.