With hip-hop being one of the most tuned-into genres, it makes sense to dedicate a radio platform to it. The platform Hit The Beatz recently launched its 24x7 online radio station which will shine a light on everything hip-hop. Put together by two hip-hop lovers, RJ Toy and his son Nishan from Toy of Team Mam Mam (TMM Media) USA, the platform is the result of a lockdown project. The station covers hip-hop and also R&B, Afrobeats, reggae, dancehall and more, keeping in mind the idea: “Music that will make you MOVE.” It features well-known artistes as well as budding musicians.

Hit The Beatz is available globally on leading radio platforms, like Zeno Radio, Live 365, Radio Garden, Streema, Simple Radio and on Alexa, and a website is also in the works. Nishan, with his execution skills and deep understanding of the new face of the genre, has curated a blended playlist that’s different from most music offerings. Besides being a successful radio host and distributor of media content and technology, RJ Toy has in his corporate career headed the formation of major radio stations and has launched multiple TV channels in the US. Here’s a chat with the curators of Hit The Beatz.

On opening Hit the Beatz app, it takes users to the music section, and shows the name of the song and artiste, besides the artwork. You can pause-play and even leave a thumbs up (or down) on a track. The radio platform also lets you share its content with friends through mail, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and WhatsApp.

How did the two of you begin the journey?

RJ Toy: After the lockdown started last year, Nishan and I talked about starting a radio station called Hit The Beatz and we realised that we have a passion for hip-hop and I have been working in the radio department for some time. So we thought it would be a great idea to make a station that can also focus on inspiring the youth and on positivity.

Nishan: We are from two completely different eras of hip-hop; that is why our music library comprises both old school hip-hop and modern-day trap music; you can see the evolution of the genre within our library.

What have been your roles in putting this together?

Nishan: I am mainly in charge of adding songs to the playlist… I’m more in touch with modern hip-hop, so whenever new songs come out, I find out. And if they’re good I add them to the playlist. I also helped design our app and website and sent some designs to app developers.

How do you select the songs that will be on your playlist?

Nishan: When I add newer songs, I see what’s currently trending, especially if a big mainstream artiste puts up a song. I usually see what’s trending on Billboard, Spotify and Apple Music.

RJ Toy: We also try to promote underground hip-hop artistes, so they can send their music over and in that case, they can get into the mainstream view.

Will the station also feature other genres?

RJ Toy: We are mainly a hip-hop focused station but we also have a lot of pop music, some R&B, some reggae and other stuff. The station is quite progressive and it is catching on without any marketing. In fact, I can see the numbers and there are people just tuning in every day. So far it has just been word of mouth and it’s doing well.