The Originals | Clark Kent, D-Nice, Rich Medina, Stretch Armstrong, Tony Touch

Veteran hip-hop producer. Cousin of Foxy Brown.


Rapper who was down with BDP from 1988 to 1991. Has released 2 solo albums and is now a full time freelance photographer for many individuals and labels, including Diddy, Cassie and Bad Boy Records.


For the past two decades, Rich Medina has cemented his reputation as an elite DJ, one of few on the planet capable of taking audiences worldwide on a sonic journey through hip-hop, house, soul, afrobeat, funk, breaks and dance classics. Today, many artists who have been Rich's idols have become peers, and his fans often become his friends, even if just through the shared experience of music. Countless couples and relationships were commenced to the soundtracks he has created time and time again. His eloquence extends well beyond the music he plays???Medina's spontaneous use of language speaks to the fact that he's been a well-respected spoken word artist for over a quarter century, not to mention that he's a journalist who has contributed columns and features to a wide variety of publications, including The Fader, Complex and Wax Poetics. His commanding physical presence is a constant reminder of four years of varsity basketball while at Cornell University, not to mention a brief stint of semi-pro ball immediately thereafter.

Rich Medina's passion for spinning records began at the tender age of twelve, when he played his first party in his hometown of Lakewood, NJ. From that moment forward, he practiced and studied his craft with the focus of a seasoned athlete, quietly developing the skills that made sequencing and mixing music extremely natural to him.

At twenty-five years old, Medina already had an Ivy League degree, a season of semi-pro hoops (dreams of pro-ball dashed by an injury), and two Fortune 500 jobs under his belt. He then made the brave decision to give up a six-figure job at Abbott Laboratories in favor of hauling crates of records between Philly and NYC to manifest his dream of being a well-respected DJ. Right off the bat, he was able to establish himself with residencies in both cities as well as a steady stream of guest appearances with the likes of Qool Marv, Prince Language and Bobbito Garcia, beginning the musical adventure that has now taken him far and wide around the globe many times over.

True to his knack for being in the right place at the right time, in 2001, Medina established an unprecedented nine year run with his legendary party Lil' Ricky's Rib Shack at APT, in NYC's soon-to-be-hot Meatpacking District. APT became a real destination in the City???a place with no nonsense and no bottle service, where folks like Puff Daddy, Kevin Powell, Lord Sear, Mos Def, Talib Kweli and Prince could be seen regularly, getting down on the dancefloor, mixing right in with the crowd. In the midst of APT's heyday, in 2005, hip-hop legend Q-Tip chose Medina to be his partner for a new Friday night weekly called Open, at Santos Party House in NYC, which played to capacity crowds for the duration of its four year run. Using NYC as a catalyst, Rich became what many would call the ultimate DJ-in-residence, with steady established outposts in numerous cities, including Miami, San Francisco, Chicago, St. Louis, DC, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Amsterdam, London and Paris.

One of Medina's proudest achievements has been establishment of JUMP N FUNK in 2001, North America's Original Afrobeat party, dedicated to the late Nigerian icon Fela Anikulapo Kuti. The groundwork laid down by Medina via his JNF brand to raise global awareness (not to mention the dancefloor potential) for Afrobeat was silently vital in setting the stage, literally and figuratively, for the award-winning Broadway and worldwide run of "Fela!". And as with Rich's other branded parties, JNF has been presented around the world, including, Tokyo, Brussels, London, Amsterdam, and over twenty cities across North America.

DJing only scratches the surface of Rich Medina's story. His spoken word artistry has been featured on records by the likes of King Britt, Phil Asher, De Lata, Antibalas, IG-Culture, and Nathan Haines. As a record producer, he has collaborated with the likes of Jill Scott, J Dilla, Platinum Pied Pipers, Martin Luther, DJ Mitsu The Beats, Okada Taxi, Ty, Bobbito Garcia, 4AD, Blue Note Records, and Concord Music Group. He also released his first full-length LP, "Connecting the Dots" in 2005, on the Dutch indie powerhouse label Kindred Spirits.

While attending his twentieth college reunion at Cornell University in 2012, Medina was approached by the school's director of The Cornell Hip Hop Collection to become the first ever Cornell alumnus to join their esteemed advisory board. The collection consists of the largest acquisition of rare and at-risk materials and artifacts covering the beginnings of hip hop culture???the most extensive held by any organization in the US. He has lectured on numerous topics and moderated multiple panel discussions for Cornell's Music and Africana departments. He has also been invited to speak at San Francisco State University, and was a featured speaker at TEDxPhilly in 2011.

Rich is a card-carrying member of the Rock Steady Crew and the Universal Zulu Nation. And he has consistently lent his name to charitable organizations close to his heart, most recently The Africa Center, Room to Grow and GrassRoots.

While Medina could rest on all of his past accomplishments, he has retained the energy of a prizefighter, constantly seeking something greater as both an artist and a businessman, steadily building a respected brand with his own two hands. Rich is one of those rare people who has built himself a platform on his own terms, in his own way, achieving success with every step he takes and enriching countless souls with incredible music and unique wisdom.


NYC native Adrian Bartos p/k/a Stretch Armstrong is an internationally recognized DJ with an incomparable career. The 1990s hip-hop legend programmed the "Stretch And Bobbito" radio show, which received high praise from the NY Times and was recognized as "The Best Of All-Time" by the Source Magazine. Stretch produced artist Lil' Kim's first single off of her platinum selling debut album, collaborated with Jay-Z and Eminem, music supervised the film Boiler Room, and made national television appearances on the "Arsenio Hall" and "Conan O'Brien" shows. As a club DJ, the progenitor of "open-format" (incorporating a multitude of musical genres) has spun in 20 countries for clients including Calvin Klein and Red Bull. Currently, Stretch consults brands via his Music Dept platform, and contributes a column on cassette culture to Medium.com's Cuepoint.


The Legacy Continues. Tony Touch A.K.A Tony Toca continues to be a force to be reckoned with. Tony Touch, an icon in Hip Hop and in the Urban Hispanic genre plus seasoned player in the game, is a true innovator and has revolutionized the DJ game over and over. From his legendary mix tapes, to his skills on the 1's and 2's, he has become one of Hip Hop's most recognized DJ's. This C.E.O/Artist/Producer is now currently working on his 7th commercial release titled "The Piece Maker 3???Return of the 50 MC's" and is expected to make history once again.
Tony Touch began as a B-Boy during the rap music renaissance era of the early 80's. Heavily influenced by pioneers like the Rock Steady Crew, Grandmaster Flash, Red Alert, "Little" Louie Vega, and Jam Master Jay, he quickly shifted his interests towards the turntables. Toca is known for his legendary mix tapes like the original 50 MC's parts 1, 2 and 3. Included in this series are some of the hottest artists in the game such as KRS ONE, Kool G Rap, Big Daddy Kane, Wyclef, M.O.P., Big L, Mos Def and many more all coming together for one collective piece. This along with the countless other mix tapes, Tony became recognized in the streets and industry as the real 'Mix Tape King.'
Tony Toca evolved his mix tapes to record releases. In 2000, Tony released "The Piece Maker" on Tommy Boy records. This album sold over 400,000 units worldwide and featured legendary artists like Big Pun, Cypress Hill, Wu Tang Clan, Busta Rhymes, Eminem, Gang Starr, and much more. The video for the single "I Wonder Why" featuring Total featured cameos from John Leguizamo, Rock Steady and more. Since then, Tony Touch has released the "Piece Maker 2" which also had an all-star line up with features such as P. Diddy, Fat Joe, Sean Paul, Snoop Dog and even the legendary Ruben Blades.
Toca is also known to represent the Latino community to the fullest. It is the result of growing up with Salsa at home and Hip-Hop influence in his lifestyle. In 2005 Tony inked a deal with EMI Records and revolutionized the game once more with his Latin album called "ReggaeTony". The hit single, "Play that Song" featured Nina Sky and B-Real of Cypress Hill. The cd had an all star line up including Tego Calderon, Ivy Queen, Zion y Lennox, N.O.R.E, Voltio, and Soni just to name a few. The album went GOLD and with that success, EMI records moved quickly to release ReggaeTony 2 which featured more heavyweight appearances.
Touch continues to be in demand globally. The proof is in the passport as he has toured over 30 countries including Japan, Australia, Puerto Rico, London, France, Greece, Russia, Brazil, Germany, Columbia, Switzerland, Italy and Cuba. He's also acted as tour DJ for acts like Cypress Hill, Gurus' Jazzmatazz, Rock Steady and the Beatnuts. You also may have caught Tony on TV shows such as "Saturday Night Live" and "The Dave Chapelle Show" spinning for Eminem. And you may have heard him on the airwaves in New York City on such stations as Hot 97, Power 105, and 107.5 WBLS. In 2004, Eminem and manager Paul Rosenberg closed a deal for their own radio station on Sirius XM Satellite called Shade 45. Tony Touch was quickly recruited to host TOCA TUESDAYS from 8pm to Midnight. TOCA TUESDAYS is also a weekly classic Hip Hop party in which he invites legendary DJ's to guest spin.
And if that weren't enough, another weekly party Tony sparked was the FUNKBOX where he plays deep house music with celeb guest DJ's. Both parties have been running over 4 years strong.