Discussions
The Train Wreck
Dec 18th
It’s what we DJs like to call the record mixing equivalent of putting hot sauce in your cereal.
It basically means that you don’t know how to beat match two songs and instead you just kinda slap the fader over or put it in the middle, hoping that by some miracle the shit will go unnoticed or blood doesn’t start pouring out of anyone’s ears.
If you don’t know how to mix properly, then bust out the classic smooth segue way thingy that the radio guys do. It’s more respectful to your listeners and makes you look like less of an inexperienced a-hole.
Music is awesome and so are you. If you haven’t learned how to count fours yet then show the marriage some respect and just let it be.
Thanks.
Captain Smarty-Pants
DJ Q-Bert wins “America’s Best DJ” 2010
Sep 10th
http://americasbestdj.net/bestdj/2010.htm
Some thoughts…
First of all, CONGRATUFUCKINGLATIONS Q!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So there’s gonna be a buncha controversy and people talking this and that. I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that as a DJ, coming from the culture that I do, this is on par with Obama becoming president.
Let me explain.
What this says to me is that people (DJs & DJ fans) were fed up, plain and simple. Yes, this competition might be a trivial popularity contest and lack in credibility, but it is voter based. It is also currently the most popular DJ contest out there, replacing the DMC or any other mix contest held throughout the world. Yes, Pauly D was on the list along with a bunch of questionable jokers and a lot of “turntablists” or credible DJs in the Hip-Hop community didn’t make the list & never have, possibly never will.
That’s not the point.
The point is that it happened and that says something. Same way that when Obama was voted into office, despite what you think of him now (that’s an entirely different conversation altogether), it truly meant something because what he stood for was change, something better in the world and a demand for a certain level of intelligence coming back into play. Yes, I know it might not be that deep and how could I be comparing a DJ competition to the US presidency, but for a dude like me who has watched the art form I love more than anything turn into a circus in the decade and a half since I got into it, it means everything.
Side note: I know that the homie Z-Trip won last year and that was a massive milestone, but Q is the only dude on the planet that gets hired to strictly scratch during his performances. Literally only scratch, and he’s the only one!
Think about that.
I only hope that what this does is inspire DJs to go back to fucking it up a bit. Scratching, doubles and all around skills have become a minimal priority in the DJ game, replaced with a lazy approach towards the art.
Once again congratulations DJ Q-Bert! You continue to inspire – thank you for sticking to it.
And the award goes to…
Jun 29th
Just received this e-mail today…
Dear DJ Platurn,
I’m a techie working with a small team on a startup that might be of interest to you. We have developed technology that allows an audience to vote on and influence a DJs playlist in realtime. With nothing more than a cell phone, an audience can vote off tracks mid-play, make requests, and shoot a favorite song up the playlist. It not only leads to better music, but also leads to a more enjoyable experience and more audience interaction.
We’re currently not looking to charge anything for our service…we just want to see it in action and get more feedback. If you’re interested in talking further about potentially trying this out at an upcoming event, drop me a note. Hope to speak with you soon!
I won’t mention who it’s from and I omitted a couple of details leaning towards its source but I figured i’d share this with the DJ world to get some input.
Fire away.
