Shortee

Originating from the Washington D.C. region, Shannon Burke, known professionally as Shortee, stood out as the leading female turntablist throughout the final years of the 1990s. Her approach blended hard house, swing, hip-hop, drum'n'bass, and dub, marking her as an influential presence in both ensemble settings and individual performances. Drawing on nearly twenty years of prior experience as a percussionist and drummer, she crafted precise, layered rhythms that treated earlier turntablist techniques merely as a foundation for further exploration. She advanced swiftly in the craft, completing her debut mixtape, Its in My Nature, just three months after first handling turntables. The 1997 follow-up, No Shortcuts, showcased the expertise that earned her the top prize at the Fever/Buzz Battle of the DJs, then the largest techno/house/jungle mixing event in the country. Partnerships with DJ Faust, born Bobby Bruno, who shared both a personal and artistic bond with her, generated some of her earliest official releases. She contributed to his 1998 album Man or Myth, which offered a turntablist salute to admired musicians ranging from the Steve Miller Band to Public Enemy. Faust’s 1999 album Inward Journeys reflected deeper innovation, as the pair reshaped samples until their origins vanished and the records functioned instead as pure tones and textures. Shortee helped form the Citizenz with Faust and T-Rock, joined the Space Kadets Collective, and released the limited-edition vinyl EP Fathomless in 1999 alongside Faust and Craze. Her debut solo album, The Dreamer, became the first DJ/turntablist project by a female artist issued on an established label. The record followed a distinctive premise, building tracks that traced the evolving brain patterns of a dreamer and rendered those visions as sound. The result was striking and unexpected, pointing toward further accomplishments ahead.