A Semi Professional Presentation of DJing

So aside from DJing, in my professional life, I'm applying to dental school. Dental schools are interested in activities that involve manual dexterity, for pretty obvious reasons. UCLA's secondary application asked a question not specifically about DJing or even manual dexterity. However, I felt that mentioning DJing was applicable here. Read my response below:

Q. Describe your special skills, interests, hobbies, or athletic participation that you would like the Committee to consider.

A. Since I was 9 years old, Disc Jockeying has been one of my serious interests, and will always remain a major part of my identity. My eldest brother handed down the pro-audio equipment that I still own today, and over the years I’ve collected thousands of vinyl albums and singles of many music genres. Listening to music is my main form of stress relief, and playing it for other people allows me to express myself and provide others with enjoyment. Throughout my career I’ve performed at several events and popular nightclubs in New York, New Jersey, Virginia, and Southern California.

More recently I’ve dedicated my time to learning and practicing a specific DJ art form known as turntablism. A turntablist is defined as “One who uses the phonograph turntable as a component to make music as well as an instrument to literally play music”. In addition to simply playing and blending records like a regular DJ, a turntablist manipulates the record manually to create new beats and distinct sounds. One example of turntablism known as scratching produces different sounds depending on the rhythm and pattern of the DJ’s hand motions. Scratching has become very popular in modern hip-hop, pop, and rock music. In general, turntablism requires extremely precise hand movements, quick motor skills, and creativity that take years to develop. This aspect of Disc Jockeying has increased my level of appreciation for music and the component beats and sounds that music is made of. In the past I’ve won several local turntable competitions on the East Coast, and have performed at college campuses including St. Johns University, Rutgers University, and Harvard University

A New Generation

So I guess this is all a part of growing up, the phenomenon of becoming dated or outdated. For the past few months, I've been thinking about the signs of getting older. I've been asking the question "When will the 90's become "THE 90s" like "THE 70s" are the 70s? Did that already happen? If so, when did it happen, and how did it happen? I mean, I've heard the 90s referred to before, but I never heard anyone say, "Hey man, let's have a 90s party!" or "Yo... can you play some 90s music?" It's already almost halfway through the first decade of the 2000s, and I think I may have found some evidence, that the years where I scored 4 touchdowns in 1 game, are fading further into the background.

I was hired to DJ a high school graduation party in North Park, an urban section next to Balboa Park in San Diego. I couldn't say NO to $125 could I? The place was an art gallery specializing in African American paintings, and it had the bouncy hardwood floors that every DJ dreaded. Overall, the party sucked, but I know that it wasn't the worst that I've ever been to. My two other friends and I agreed that it could've been much worse. The girls throwing the party were very bitchy and demanding, as if that would help the dancefloor situation. They used the imperative alot, and barked requests like "Play some booty shit", and "Could you play some Ying Yang Twins" (even though Ying Yang Twins was currently playing). After around 11 o'clock, I only rotated about 4 records, Petey Pablo, Usher, Salt Shaker, and some other crap along the same lines, but still, the dancefloor had less than 10 people. I was happy though, because now since I was playing exactly what they wanted, they couldn't blame me. Then, something I never saw before happened. The two girls organizing the party, got up on the mic (headphones 'cause I forgot the mic), and gave the crowd an ultimatum. "If Y'all don't get off the wall and start dancing, we'll shut down the party and y'all can go home" Another thing happened, that I still couldn't believe. The girls negotiated with me, asking how much I would charge if the party were shut down now. I said $100 would be fine. Sure enough, in 5 minutes, they got off the headphones, and told everyone to get the fuck out. It was unbelievable.

The lights turned on, and two female parental figures came up. One of them was really hot, wearing a tight dress and bling around the arm and neck, resembling a Vivica A. Fox type character. My friend Dex, asks that while I'm cleaning up, I play Happy People by R. Kelly. Right when that happens, the two moms, ask my two friends to dance. All of a sudden, I'm DJing for the oldest people at the party, but having fun. I continued to play some smooth shit, with "Step in the Name of Love" (R.Kelly), "For the Night" (Musiq), and "You Bring Me Joy" by Mary J. Blige. The stupid smiles on my friends faces, and these two black moms were enough to keep me DJing. I was feelin the Mary J. so much, that I brought it back 1 time, making it last around 10 minutes.

In that 20 minutes, the young girls throwing the party had enough time to get on their cell phones and call their friends. Apparently, 2 other graduation parties were cancelled and everyone was headed back to this party. Since I didn't break down any equipment, the girl asked me if I would continue to DJ her graduation party. Now what kind of scumbag would I be if I said no? Shortly after I agreed, and while the Mary J. Blige was still playing, she said "OK, then can you switch back to playing music from our generation?" And there it was. I asked her to repeat what she just said, and she verified, that Mary J Blige was indeed from a past generation. In a few minutes, I went back to playing Ying Yang Twins, Lil Jon, and other future soul-less no talent artists, and the night ended about 2 hours later.

Since Mary J Blige has been THE RnB Diva of my entire life, I just couldn't accept the fact that anyone would refer to her music as a thing of the past. In a very big way, I felt dated. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing, and it didn't mean that Mary J was dead, but it indicated that it was time to move on and make way for another diva of the future. My bet is on Alicia Keys. I guess it's inevitable though, to have influential artists begin an era and end an era and quote unquote make their mark. It became clearer when I sifted through my Ipod collection, and I thought about the other artists that I listen to. If you're over 21 years of age, ask yourself the now important questions; When did the time end for Whitney Houston? Chaka Khan? Frank Sinatra? Al Green? Michael Jackon? Salt and Pepa? DJ Mike Intellect? Or better yet, When did the music they made start becoming classics? See you at the 90's parties!