Desi Beats for DJs: How South Asian Music Moves Global Crowds

Desi 101: What Exactly Is Desi Music? Let’s clear something up: Desi isn’t a genre. It’s a cultural identity. “Desi” is how South Asians across the diaspor...
Veteran Los Angeles DJ/producer Spider is one of the busiest and most experienced open-format DJs in the scene. From holding residencies in Las Vegas and Atlantic City to DJing for worldwide brands like Nike and NBC Universal, Spider is constantly on the go. Starting in July, Spider will join Blink 182 and A Day To Remember on a 46-date tour around the US. Check out his five must-have travel items below.
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Bose QuietComfort 20 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones For a traveling DJ, I think this is the most crucial thing you can have. It will cut out all the noise from the airplane and everything around you. It’s the best! I can work on beats or my Serato library on the plane and can have my computer volume on low and hear perfectly. I love it! If I leave home without this, I’m more upset than if I leave anything else. |
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Pioneer DJ DDJ-SP1 Controller I’ve been using the DDJ-SP1 for clubs that don’t have Pioneer DJ’s DJM-S9 mixer, and I love it. It makes it more fun to DJ! It gives me easy access to my library so I don’t have to touch my computer as much. I can also trigger samples and scratch them, use the slicer mixed with a braker, activate slip mode, etc. I can do so many crazy things. I’m not gonna do all of them at a Las Vegas club as much as a club where I can be more creative, but the SP1 is so much fun. |
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USB Extension Cable I always bring a USB extension cable with me because Novation’s Dicer cable is never long enough. |
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USB Sticks With Pre-recorded Mixes I have USB sticks with my best sets in order and ready to go in crates that I can just plug into any device and play. |
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DJ AM “As I Am” Documentary and Mixes I always seem to have this in my bag just ’cause sometimes I get sick of the same old stuff, and I like listening to his mixes for inspiration. They’re all from his movie. I’m always like, ‘Damn, this fool was always coming up with new stuff. |
Follow DJ Spider on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud and Twitter.
Related: Listen to DJ Spider’s Mix for BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra
Desi 101: What Exactly Is Desi Music? Let’s clear something up: Desi isn’t a genre. It’s a cultural identity. “Desi” is how South Asians across the diaspor...
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