Theres a lot of talk lately about what DJing is becoming. Ive seen it evolve a lot over the years. I started DJing when I was 13, scratching vinyl and playing strictly hip hop, winning championships. The DMC judges thought I was pretty good at it, but think my definition was narrow back then. I remember when my aunts and uncles found out I was a DJ they assumed I was the guy talking on the radio. So to define who we were, we called ourselves turntablists. We wanted legitimacy. As I grew up I got into more sides of the craft. Party-rocking and mastering different musical genres. In the early 2000s I was Seratos very first endorsee. I remember talking to Jazzy Jeff and AM about Serato: was it stable enough? We also had to convert all our music. DJing was becoming digital. Then Kanye hired me to tour with him, because he learned how to perform from Common and Kweli who had real DJs too - shout out to Dummy & Ruckus. We went on an Usher tour and Kanye wanted me to bust solos. My routines were too specialized so I had to make new ones that this new audience would understand. I started seeing the bigger picture. Then I got into electronic music. I remember seeing Mehdi, Boys Noize, Feadz playing on CDJs and thinking: these guys are turntablists too. Surkin was the first guy I saw DJ on Ableton in a way that felt like true DJing too. Now theres a whole new cast in electronic music, and its still exciting to me. Ive seen a lot of fads come and go over the years. And I dont think my way of DJing is the only way. I wish I could also play like Carl Cox and DJ Harvey too. But I have my style and its my passion. I love standing for something that means something, as Pharcyde would say. When you come to my show you know youll see me cut. And take risks. DJing is about taking risks. I represent #RealDJing #YouKnowTheDifference
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 07:47:35 +0000
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