Jitta Riddim – Dub-Stuy Records

Four cuts, one riddim, and a line-up that jumps straight from veteran fire to younger voices: Cutty Ranks, Sr. Wilson, Troy Berkley and DJ Madd each take a turn over Dub-Stuy’s Jitta pattern. Released on April 6, 2018, it was the Brooklyn label’s follow-up to its Kunta Kinte riddim and came from in-house producer DJ Madd, whose production leans on a lilting melody, guitar stabs, slapping snares and a rolling bassline. Cutty’s “Double Trouble” brings the toughest edge, Sr. Wilson’s “Zapatillas” adds a Spanish-English club pull, and Troy Berkley’s “Orange Is The New Black” goes straight at the politics of the moment. The sequencing feels deliberate, with the vocal versions leading into the instrumental closer, so the riddim lands like a short set built for both sound system play and selectors who want the bare pattern at the end.