DJ Culture Archives - DJcity News - Music and news for DJs and producers

Four Color Zack and DJ Scooter Debate Sync Feature on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’

Four Color Zack at the Red Bull Music 3Style IX World Finals in Taipei, Taiwan on January 25, 2019. (Jasmine Chang / Red Bull)

Former Red Bull Music 3Style world champ Four Color Zack and veteran party rocker DJ Scooter debated the sync feature on this week’s episode of Reflections of a DJ a.k.a. ROAD Podcast. The argument was reignited by none other than Craze, who recently took to Twitter encouraging DJs to use the feature.

Both Zack and Scooter, who come from different generations, made valid points (Zack is pro-sync, and Scooter is anti-sync). The two also discussed topics like juggling their careers and family, “Instagram DJs,” and Lil Nas X‘s breakout hit, “Old Town Road.”

Watch an excerpt below and the full interview here.

Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube.

Anthony Polis | April 19, 2019

DJ Culture

L.A. Leakers on Banning Kodak Black From Power 106

L.A. Leakers hosts Justin Credible and DJ Sourmilk with Nipsey Hussle (Source: Instagram)

The L.A. Leakers have spoken on Power 106‘s decision to ban Kodak Black from the station.

The move came in response to Kodak’s comments about Nipsey Hussle‘s fiancee Lauren London following the rapper’s death. The comments were widely condemned, including by rappers like The Game and T.I.

Speaking with the Reflections of a DJ podcast, Leakers members Justin Credible and DJ Sourmilk discussed how the ban came about and how long it will last. They also shared some memories of Nipsey, among other topics.

Watch an excerpt below and listen to the full interview here.

Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube.

Anthony Polis | April 11, 2019

DJ Culture

DJ Exile and Vegas Promoter Jason Aguilar Talk Latin Music on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’

Jason Aguilar and DJ Exile

Las Vegas DJ/producer Exile and promoter Jason Aguilar were guests on this week’s episode of Reflections of a DJ (R.O.A.D. Podcast). Both have played a key role in bringing the new generation of Latin music to the Vegas strip.

In the interview, Exile and Aguilar discussed a variety of topics related to Latin music and the Vegas scene, including their Thursday night party “Noches Azul” at Blue Martini and bringing Latin stars like Bad Bunny and Anuel AA to venues like Drai’s, OMNIA, The LIGHT, and Kaos.

Watch an excerpt below and listen to the full episode here.

Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube.

Anthony Polis | April 5, 2019

DJ Culture

Watch the ‘Beyond the Music Retreat’ Documentary

In March, DJcity and DJ/producer Vice joined forces to host the inaugural Beyond the Music Retreat in Black Hawk, Colorado.

The event, which took place over two days, featured some of the industry’s brightest minds. The panelists included A-Trak, Chuckie, Z-Trip, Justin Credible, and Miles Medina.

The retreat made an impact on the attendees, including A-Trak, who took to Twitter to reflect on the experience.

Watch the mini-documentary below and check out the photos of the attendees at beyondthemusicretreat.com.

Anthony Polis | April 4, 2019

DJ Culture

Craze Talks Freestyling Sets on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’

Craze at Q Nightclub in Seattle. (Credit: Robee Aquino)

Two weeks ago, Reflections of a DJ a.k.a. the R.O.A.D. Podcast had A-Trak and Roctakon on the show to discuss their recent Twitter debate. This week, the show sat down with Craze, who also took part in the argument.

The outspoken turntablist discussed the altercation, among many other topics, such as touring with Kanye West and working with Four Color Zack.

At one point, co-host DJ Crooked asked Craze how he goes about planning his sets. Craze revealed that he didn’t plan his sets until he started working with Zack.

Watch an excerpt below and the full episode here.

Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube.

Anthony Polis | March 30, 2019

DJ Culture

Watch: ‘Making Mad Noise’ Turntablist Documentary

British creative collective Boom City has released a turntablist documentary, Making Mad Noise – 10 Years of Community Skratch.

The Community Skratch event series brings turntablists together from around the world for showcases and networking. It began with the Community Skratch Games in 2006 in Galway, Ireland. It later expanded to Brighton, UK, with DJ Manipulate‘s Community Skratch BBQ.

As the turntablism community grew, the event series branched out with UK and European tours. Community Skratch has also begun to collaborate with Battle Avenue, expanding the turntablist network even further.

Watch the documentary above.

Rob Sickelco | March 28, 2019

DJ Culture

DJ Tina T Talks Competing on ‘Master of the Mix’ on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’

DJ Tina T at Backyard Kitchen & Tap in San Diego, CA. (Source: Facebook)

Following their highly anticipated interview with A-Trak and Roctakon, the R.O.A.D. Podcast sat down with veteran DJ Tina T.

Based in Los Angeles, Tina is best known for founding Camp Spin Off, a DJ camp for teens. She also competed on the third season of VH1’s Master of the Mix reality show and DJ competition.

Tina discussed a variety of topics in the interview, including what it was like competing on Master of the Mix.

Watch an excerpt below and the full episode here.

Follow the R.O.A.D. Podcast on Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Twitter, and YouTube.

Anthony Polis | March 26, 2019

DJ Culture

Watch: DJ Jazzy Jeff, A-Trak, and Craze Talk DJing on ‘Drink Champs’ Podcast

From left to right: Craze, DJ EFN, DJ Jazzy Jeff, N.O.R.E., A-Trak (Source: Instagram)

DJ Jazzy Jeff recently sat down with the Drink Champs podcast for a casual yet insightful interview. The Philly legend discussed a variety of topics related to DJing and hip-hop.

Later in the interview, co-host DJ EFN spotted A-Trak and Craze in the audience and invited them to join in. It was a rare discussion with three of the most influential figures in DJing.

Watch the full show below. (A-Trak and Craze come on at the 52-minute mark.)

Anthony Polis | March 23, 2019

DJ Culture

A-Trak and Roctakon Address Twitter Debate on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’

Last Friday, A-Trak took to Twitter to share his thoughts about the struggles of open-format DJs in today’s industry. Inspired by his experience at DJcity and DJ Vice’s Beyond the Music Retreat, he commented on the lack of infrastructure in the open-format DJ community.

A-Trak’s tweets received praise from a lot of DJs, however veteran New York club DJ, Roctakon, was not one of them. Roctakon responded with his own series of tweets, starting by saying that A-Trak “should not speak on the issues modern open format DJs face” because “he’s never been one of us.” He went on to explain why he believes A-Trak’s commentary is wrong.

Roctakon’s criticism drew a lot of attention, including none other than Craze, who defended his long-time ally.

The back and forth has sparked a larger discussion in the DJ community, and on Wednesday, A-Trak and Roctakon addressed the exchange during separate interviews on Reflections of a DJ a.k.a. R.O.A.D. Podcast.

To help facilitate the interviews, R.O.A.D. recruited guest co-host Shecky Green, co-founder of the Source Magazine and former talent director at Las Vegas’ XS Nightclub.

Watch excerpts of both interviews below and listen to the entire episode here. A-Trak and Roctakon’s original Twitter threads are also below.

A-Trak’s tweets:

I'm realizing how much of a hole there is in the infrastructure for DJs in North America, specifically for open format DJs.
The whole DJ business changed DRASTICALLY in the last 10 years.. and there's pockets of the DJ scene that kind of got left out. (cont'd)

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

Those changes happened with the explosion of EDM. Money brings change & infrastructure – like in any sector. When DJs started having huge hit records and the event space boomed (festivals, tours hitting ticketed venues), the business became legit.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

DJs used to get known on the strength of their DJing (duh!). But then DJs started becoming known for their songs and that created serious draw to other markets. That also created a need for proper managers, lawyers etc. The social media boom happened at the same time.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

The old school model was: most DJs had an agent-slash-manager. Which isn't ideal (church & state!). But most of us didn't need managers before. I was DJing for 10 years – multiple time world champion etc – before hiring my first manager.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

That model worked all the way up to the DJ AM era, when bottle service clubs became more prominent and Vegas opened up to more DJs. But those types of venues and clubs don't respect DJs. So DJs need representation.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

After that the music exploded and an entire industry was built… But what about the DJs who weren't producing records? who, truthfully, are better *DJs* than most of those getting known for their hits..? The club scene got caught in a bubble, a time warp.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

And here's where it gets weird: then the EDM bubble burst. Club talent buyers started saying they were going back to booking open format DJs (for those who don't know that just means multi-genre DJs rooted in hip hop). But most of those DJs don't have modern agents, modern biz.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

The DJ explosion that happened earlier in the decade created fast growth but now I find the scene needs some nurturing. And there's a lot of excellent DJs who still need representation.
It's wild: a celebrity DJ is more likely to have a legit agent than a GOOD open format DJ.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

I think part of the problem is also because of the handful of people in a position of power in that club scene, that open format scene: it's very clicky which imo hindered it from riding the big wave a few years ago. Some ppl were too self-content to even SEE the wave…

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

The end result is a bunch of very very good skilled DJs who don't have an infrastructure.
I went to the #BeyondTheMusic retreat last week, organized by @DJcity & @djvice. It's clear that there's a big demand for mentorship, leadership, guidance in the scene.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

It's a great start. We need more though. I don't understand why the main booking agencies aren't picking up more of these DJs. There has to still be a viable lane for DJs whose main focus isn't to produce music or be an Instagram personality, but just to be a great reliable DJ!!

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

Roctakon’s tweets:

A Trak should not speak on the issues modern open format DJs face.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

That thread makes 0 sense. He doesn't speak for any of us. He's never been one of us.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

there's no problem, if you can't put bodies in the club or sell tables you're a working stiff. That's fine, it's a respectable thing to be and you can earn a good living, but being good at DJing has NEVER been enough.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

Enough to get you to the next level. Make great music, run a promotions company, be an instagram star, date a reality TV star, do whatever you gotta do to put bodies in the club, but if you can't sell tickets or create the illusion of selling ticks, shit, be happy you even work.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

I've watched so many guys my age and a little older/younger struggle so fucking hard with 'why isn't being good enough' IT'S JUST NOT. NOT IN FUCKING VEGAS, NOT IN BOTTLE SERVICE LAND OF ILLUSION. YOU NEED A HOOK, A STORY, SOME BULLSHIT TO DRAW BECKY IN. HUSTLE. BULLSHIT.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

People out here wishing clubs would start really caring about good DJing, wish in one hand and shit in the other, see which ones fills up first. Half these DJs people act like are good can't even fucking play.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

Nobody is ever gonna give a fuck that you're good, nobody is ever gonna understand the craft for real. A few experienced club managers, a few DJs, a few fans, that's it.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

You have to make them understand but doing stuff that has nothing to do with being a good DJ. It's a nightmare but it is what it is man.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

If you're willing to do the work all the infrastructure is in place for you to succeed. If you can get bodies through the door you will win, I 100% guarantee it. Look at Harvey, he is one of the ultimate working DJ success stories. It took a long time and a lot of work, but…

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

…Harvey found a way to put bodies through the door all over the world. Yea some of it was being good, but some of it was his consistency, throwing his own parties, story telling, branding, etc.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

Buncha babies out here mad cause they can play a couple records together and the clubs don't respect them. Yawn. Been there bro. Good luck to you. End Rant.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

Well, one more thing, I will say you can totally build your core following around being a good DJ, a lot of people have done it, and I think it's a great place to start, but combining good with other salable concepts is where the rain comes.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

tubby lil AM was doing well in LA before Nicole Richie, and if he had only been mediocre he still woulda had steam off her, but being dope and dating her changed everything. He used to act like he got booked cause he was good, but he was good and he was shrouded in celebrity.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

Good is the foundation and mortar you can build a career with but it's not the entire house. Ok I'm done now for real.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

Via @DjSalParadise "Other thing is a great DJ never gets mediocre crowds going. They murder a good night but a name with clout will make a mid room happen better almost always
Just because the crowd feels some pull to like oh yeah I’m here for this"

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

I love my working DJs and want everybody to get money, but if we gonna get more out of these clubs we need hard evidence, clients that know our names, people that pay to see us, not some theoretical idea about who’s a good dj or what real DJing is.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

honestly iconic: https://t.co/Hydx497F60

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

the fucked up shit is in the world i’m speaking on, i’m the OG and trailblazer. These guys were chasing dwindling dnb and turntablisim showcase money when I was 10-4 in NYC. Then bouncing around the hollerboard world while I was in NY, LA, Miami and Vegas getting money.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

I forgotten about more residencies than they prolly ever had combined.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

“I never wanted to be a good nightclub dj” end thread. https://t.co/7FFcAHJGut

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

he’s got me here y’all. I def haven’t learned anything from my mistakes, or 23 years in this thing. Not anything that could benefit an up and coming open format DJ. I am poor. Do not listen to me! https://t.co/VXtaEd57I8

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

today was fun y’all. My door is always open to up and coming dudes who want to talk about their future and place in this business. I’m not here to tear anyone down or keep anybody from getting money, but I will be realistic. roctakon at gmail anytime.

— Roctakon (@Roctakon) March 9, 2019

Anthony Polis | March 16, 2019

DJ Culture

A-Trak on the Challenges That Open-Format DJs Face and How to Overcome Them

A-Trak speaks at the Beyond the Music Retreat in Black Hawk, Colorado. (Credit: Julian Melanson)

DJcity and DJ Vice‘s inaugural Beyond the Music Retreat went down in Black Hawk, Colorado this week. The conference brought together DJs from around the world, including A-Trak, who spoke on the “$kills vs Bills” panel alongside Miles Medina, Kayper, and DJcity National Director, Styles Davis.

With such a long history in the DJ business, A-Trak had plenty of experience to pull from. He, along with the other panelists, spoke on topics like playing for crowds that may not understand the technical aspects of DJing, losing gigs to celebrity DJs, and more.

After speaking at the conference, the Fool’s Gold boss took to Twitter on Friday to share more thoughts about the challenges that open-format DJs face and how they can overcome them.

Read what he said below.

I'm realizing how much of a hole there is in the infrastructure for DJs in North America, specifically for open format DJs.
The whole DJ business changed DRASTICALLY in the last 10 years.. and there's pockets of the DJ scene that kind of got left out. (cont'd)

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

Those changes happened with the explosion of EDM. Money brings change & infrastructure – like in any sector. When DJs started having huge hit records and the event space boomed (festivals, tours hitting ticketed venues), the business became legit.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

DJs used to get known on the strength of their DJing (duh!). But then DJs started becoming known for their songs and that created serious draw to other markets. That also created a need for proper managers, lawyers etc. The social media boom happened at the same time.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

The old school model was: most DJs had an agent-slash-manager. Which isn't ideal (church & state!). But most of us didn't need managers before. I was DJing for 10 years – multiple time world champion etc – before hiring my first manager.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

That model worked all the way up to the DJ AM era, when bottle service clubs became more prominent and Vegas opened up to more DJs. But those types of venues and clubs don't respect DJs. So DJs need representation.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

After that the music exploded and an entire industry was built… But what about the DJs who weren't producing records? who, truthfully, are better *DJs* than most of those getting known for their hits..? The club scene got caught in a bubble, a time warp.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

And here's where it gets weird: then the EDM bubble burst. Club talent buyers started saying they were going back to booking open format DJs (for those who don't know that just means multi-genre DJs rooted in hip hop). But most of those DJs don't have modern agents, modern biz.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

The DJ explosion that happened earlier in the decade created fast growth but now I find the scene needs some nurturing. And there's a lot of excellent DJs who still need representation.
It's wild: a celebrity DJ is more likely to have a legit agent than a GOOD open format DJ.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

I think part of the problem is also because of the handful of people in a position of power in that club scene, that open format scene: it's very clicky which imo hindered it from riding the big wave a few years ago. Some ppl were too self-content to even SEE the wave…

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

The end result is a bunch of very very good skilled DJs who don't have an infrastructure.
I went to the #BeyondTheMusic retreat last week, organized by @DJcity & @djvice. It's clear that there's a big demand for mentorship, leadership, guidance in the scene.

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

It's a great start. We need more though. I don't understand why the main booking agencies aren't picking up more of these DJs. There has to still be a viable lane for DJs whose main focus isn't to produce music or be an Instagram personality, but just to be a great reliable DJ!!

— Basement Jacques (@atrak) March 8, 2019

DJcity Staff | March 8, 2019

DJ Culture, DJcityTV, Videos

Four Color Zack and DJ Scooter Debate Sync Feature on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’

Four Color Zack at the Red Bull Music 3Style IX World Finals in Taipei, Taiwan on January 25, 2019. (Jasmine Chang / Red Bull) Former Red Bull Music 3...

Anthony Polis | April 19, 2019
DJ Culture, DJcityTV, Music Industry, Videos

Watch the ‘Beyond the Music Retreat’ Documentary

In March, DJcity and DJ/producer Vice joined forces to host the inaugural Beyond the Music Retreat in Black Hawk, Colorado. The event, which took pl...

Anthony Polis | April 4, 2019
DJ Culture, DJcityTV, Turntablism, Videos

Craze Talks Freestyling Sets on ‘R.O.A.D. Podcast’

Craze at Q Nightclub in Seattle. (Credit: Robee Aquino) Two weeks ago, Reflections of a DJ a.k.a. the R.O.A.D. Podcast had A-Trak and Roctakon on the...

Anthony Polis | March 30, 2019
DJ Culture, DJcity News

DJcity and DJ Vice Team Up for ‘Beyond the Music Retreat’

DJcity and genre-bending DJ/producer Vice have teamed up to host the Beyond the Music Retreat, an educational conference dedicated to helping DJs from...

Anthony Polis | December 13, 2018

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