Mixed by Erry: A Tale of Grand Fraud and Counterfeiting Jack Daniel’s Bottles

On Netflix is the movie Mixed by Erry. Discover the true story of Italian brothers who in the 80s manufactured bootleg mixtapes and as children were involved in the illegal sale and production of Jack Daniel's bottles.

Mixed by Erry tells the real-life tale of Enrico Frattasio ‘Erry’ who dreams of becoming a successful DJ someday. The Italian is, however, met with a crushing disappointment in Naples; they believe he doesn't have what it takes.

He decides to change course and starts making mixtapes. Naples in the 80s did not have copyright laws like those exist today, allowing Erry and his brothers to freely duplicate a plethora of cassette tapes. Quite shamelessly!

It quickly becomes evident that they were raised on a diet of deceit. Their father, after all, earned a living counterfeiting Jack Daniel's bottles. He would come home every day with empty whiskey bottles that needed constant refilling, a task the whole family was involved in.

Tea was concocted in the kitchen, where debates ensued over the 'correct' color; it had to look like whiskey, after all. And the children, including Erry, were kept busy making the bottles appear as good as new.

Afterwards, the family would head to a market and sell the “tea” bottles as genuine whiskeys.

Erry thus learned from a young age just how easy it was to deceive people. He turned his tape venture into a million-dollar business and served millions of consumers with the latest (copied) music.

Mixed by Erry is a lighthearted film, peppered with humorous moments, released in 2023. The film can be streamed on Netflix and is quite enjoyable for an evening viewing.

Discover how the children sold counterfeit Jack Daniel's bottles and later an array of cassette tapes.

Although a large part of the film is about the cassette tapes, the origin of the story is intriguing. It all started with the scam involving Jack Daniel's bottles.