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About

Stones Throw Records

Stones Throw Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, CA. The label was founded in 1996 by DJ and artist Peanut Butter Wolf, originally as a means to release Bay Area hip-hop and the music he made with his best friend, the rapper Charizma, who was tragically killed at age 20.

Stones Throw’s early releases included hip-hop classics by the likes of Madlib, J Dilla, Madvillain and Quasimoto, later joined by records by Mayer Hawthorne, Aloe Blacc and Dam-Funk that redefined modern funk and soul. Since then, the label has gone on to transcend genres and expectations. Referred to by the LA Weekly as “Peanut Butter Wolf’s eternally evolving experiment . . .  Stones Throw is just Stones Throw, a genre unto itself”

Today, the label’s hip-hop roots live on in through artists like Knxwledge, Mndsgn, Kiefer and NxWorries (Anderson .Paak & Knxwledge) and are joined by artists as varied as Sudan Archives, John Carroll Kirby, Automatic and Mild High Club.

Peanut Butter Wolf

Recording artist and DJ Peanut Butter Wolf, aka Chris Manak, is the founder of independent label Stones Throw Records and the vinyl bar Gold Line Bar, which houses over 10,000 of his albums. Both are based in the same building in the Highland Park neighborhood of L.A. 

Originally from San Jose, CA, PB Wolf began DJing and making hip hop songs in his bedroom in 1984 at age 14. In the early 90s he and his best friend, the rapper Charizma, signed to Disney’s Hollywood Records, but Charizma was tragically killed at age 20. In 1996, PB Wolf founded Stones Throw to release Bay Area underground hip hop music, including his own w/ Charizma. Wolf’s own debut LP My Vinyl Weighs a Ton, featuring Bay Area MCs and DJs, came out in 1999 and Big Shots, the unreleased album with Charizma, followed in 2003 as a 10 year tribute to his passing.

A vinyl collector since his teens, Wolf has furthered the art form of DJing around the world while concurrently building Stones Throw into an independent powerhouse. Its catalog includes hip-hop essentials by J Dilla (Donuts), Madvillain and Quasimoto, and funk/soul classics by Dam-Funk and Mayer Hawthorne. Its current roster illustrates Wolf’s broad taste in underground music including Sudan Archives, NxWorries, Mild High Club, Los Retros, Sofie Royer, Benny Sings, MNDSGN, and Automatic. He also stays busy remixing artists, both from Stones Throw and outside the camp.

A new album with Wolf on vocals under the name Campus Christy will be released on Stones Throw in 2023.

Novena Carmel

Novena Carmel is a music lover, DJ, host and Voice. She was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area surrounded by her mother’s record collection, sheet music, and a deeply rooted musical legacy. Her father, Sly Stone of Sly & The Family Stone, built the blocks of her funk foundation and passed on the appreciation for “everyday people,” and her family’s connection to Brazil along with Japanese-bilingual elementary schooling, further expanded her world-view.In 2018 Novena was invited to join the music team at radio station, KCRW, and quickly become a popular DJ/Host because of her joyous spirit and expansive personalized music collection, and now co-hosts KCRW’s flagship show, Morning Becomes Eclectic. She is currently not in a band, but enjoys singing with her soul and jazz choir, The Voices of Creation. In August of 2022 they released their debut EP.

Sonrisita

Sonritsa aka Melissa Dueñas is a DJ and record collector based in Los Angeles. She’s known for her boogie, disco and soul sets, although her musical tastes run the gamut from dream house to lovers rock. To name of few she’s opened for artists: Peanut Butter Wolf, Dam-Funk and Durand Jones and the Indications. Melissa is formerly part of WorldWideFM and is the founder of Lowrider Sundays, a show on Dublab that explores the love of soul music by Latinx communities. Through her sets and shows, Melissa’s intention is to connect past and present sounds, building bridges between communities across time and space.

Xica Soul

Daniela Zepeda aka Xica Soul, DJ and radio host is currently based in Los Angeles, CA. Xica Soul knows how to make a dance floor move… A vinyl and dance music specialist, Daniela first made a name for herself in the SF boogie/funk scene, and has been playing parties across the US since 2012. Xica Soul weaves varying genres into her sets with ease, telling stories, and pushing limits with her selections. For two years she hosted a monthly residency on Worldwide FM, most recently hosts her monthly show, “On & On” via Hyde FM, and occasionally provides guest mixes on other platforms such as, Dublab, NTS, Vans Channel 66, Fault Radio, and The Lot Radio. She currently holds a monthly residency in the heart of Chinatown, LA – Funky Little Beat  – a fun, sexy and lush dance night that has grown into a beautiful community in Los Angeles. Xica Soul can be frequently found in Stones Throw related circles playing sets at, Goldline and at The Lodge Room alongside legends Peanut Butter Wolf and J Rocc.