DJ Neil Armstrong puts his own spin on hip-hop

Adidas guy: Fil-Am DJ Neil Armstrong is also an ambassador for Adidas.

MANILA, Philippines - You can’t help but be at least a bit suspicious of DJ Neil Armstrong’s astronomical tag, especially since he’s named after one of the most famous astronauts in history. That’s a pretty tall order. But to hear is to believe, because when he began his set at Skye Lounge — clear skies, sun setting, mini burgers abound and all — figurative space rockets were set off by his fresh take on hip-hop sound.

Not that he really needs our local approval. He’s gotten it plenty outside the Philippines, making waves in the music industry by being Jay-Z’s tour DJ and sharing the stage with Rihanna, Beyonce, Kanye West, P. Diddy and Linkin Park. He’s also the founding father of the DJ Collective: the “5th Platoon.” And over the last nine years, he’s become somewhat of an icon in the sub-genre of hip-hop known as Mixtape Culture, and has worked closely with artists like Coldplay, Kanye West, LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes and Wyclef Jean. His mixtapes represent DJ Neil’s unique music taste and have been featured in the press, most notably by Rolling Stone, Vibe and MTV.com.

While born and raised in the empire state, he’s having somewhat of a repatriation here as brand ambassador of Adidas Originals, as they celebrate originality with the launch of their “Leave a Legacy” campaign. The application is fairly simple, really. Anyone can gear up in Adidas Originals apparel then snap themselves street-style. Share the photo on the site and get your friends to vote for you, and the top 10 will each win P50,000 worth of Adidas products. Neil Armstrong has been part of the Adidas team since 2010, now joined with the likes of designer Jeremy Scott and NBA phenom Derick Rose.

“Back in 1992 in New York, you were either into punk music, pop music Madonna, or hip-hop,” says the half-Filipino, half-American DJ. His childhood in Queens laid out the groundwork for his early love of hip-hop, which hasn’t changed since then. His Mixtape Culture is a mashup of earworms, from Stevie Wonder’s My Cherie Amour to a remix of Jay Z’s D.O.A. “It just grew from being something I did for fun with my friends, like we would battle each other — those mixtapes I made fell into the right hands,” he adds. Those right hands being those of Jay Z’s, who’s kept him busy with gigs at Letterman, Madison Square Garden and Glastonbury — once, even moonlighting as a DJ at US President Barack Obama’s inauguration. Not bad for a guy whose parents wanted him to be a doctor or a lawyer.

Adidas guy: Fil-Am DJ Neil Armstrong is also an ambassador for Adidas.

“When I’m on stage with Jay, I’m using like an eighth of my power. Which is fine because the thing with working with an artist of his caliber, you have to understand — you’re not the star, you’re backing up the star,” the DJ said in one of his YouTube videos about sharing the stage with Jay Z. He may be okay with being an anchor, but the guy’s lived up to his name, anyway — doing anything but bring anyone down.

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To know more about adidas Originals and the “Leave a Legacy” campaign, follow adidas Philippines on facebook.com/adidasphilippines.