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Scratch DJ Academy is launching a new term of BM 101 starting Tuesday, August 30th. This course is perfect for students interested in learning about the world of music production. It will focus on the essentials of Reason and Ableton Live 4.0. Each student has access to his or her own workstation equipped with an Alienware Ozma m laptop. At the conclusion of the course, each student will have created at least six of their own original beats. Spaces are filling up fast! Click here to register or for more information.

DJ JOLENE

San Francisco native, DJ Jolene has been churning out her blend of house rhythms for over a decade now. Her funky deep house tunes have infected almost every corner of her adopted hometown of NYC. From DJ'ing in well-known clubs like Centro-Fly to passing her skills on to eager students at Scratch, Jolene is a master of the house sound. If that weren't enough, she now has a global audience addicted to her selections through her internet radio station, Digitally Imported Deep House (www.di.fm/deephouse/info) –the most popular house music radio broadcast on the internet:

Scratch: How exactly did you get in DJ'ing? When did you decide to become a DJ?

 
DJ JOLENE:  I’ve always loved dancing and dance music. In college, I was introduced to house music and had an opportunity to have a show on the college radio station. I noticed there weren’t any girl DJ’s at the time, and I wanted to be one of the ones to break that mold.
 
Scratch: What was going on in your life at the time?
 
DJ JOLENE: I was interested in finding my passion in life. Everyone seemed to know where their lives were headed, and I still wasn’t sure. The first time I played at the radio station, I got goose bumps all over, and I realized then that DJ’ing was what I was supposed to be doing.
 
Scratch: Who was your main influence? What was your inspiration for becoming a DJ?
 
DJ JOLENE: I had a few very strong influences. Tony Humphries was an inspiration when I began because he didn’t limit himself to one genre of house or one aspect of DJ’ing. He was a successful radio and club DJ as well as a remixer. When he played in a club, he would tell a story through his music with valleys and peaks combining many different sounds of house. Jeno from the Wicked Crew (San Francisco) was also a big influence as he seemed to have an extrasensory perception of his crowd. When dancing to Jeno, he would constantly blow your mind with his selections and mixing skills.
 
Scratch: What did you do to practice? What did you do to get better?
 
DJ JOLENE: Since there wasn’t a school such as Scratch to attend, I think the learning curve was much greater. I went out to parties and watched the DJ’s mix. As a beginner, I found that it was very hard to critique myself in the middle of a mix because I was concentrating too hard. I started recording myself practicing, so I could listen to it later and learn what I was doing wrong and right.
 
Scratch: Having been in the DJ game for years, what would you tell people who are just getting into this art form?
 
DJ JOLENE: Play the music you love. It’s important to find a niche for yourself in a world saturated with DJ’s. Everyone has an angle that they could expose to set themselves apart. Instead of imitating others out there, find your own unique sound.
 
Scratch: Tell us a little bit about being a DJ who spins predominantly house music?
 
DJ JOLENE: Spinning house music can be a little tricky because it has always been an underground sound in the US. It’s not played on the FM dial or featured in music videos. With that said, the people who do love house are usually big fans and are more accepting of me dropping a song they’ve never heard. They’re still likely to go bonkers.
 
Scratch: What is it like being a female in a world that has been traditionally dominated by males?
 
DJ JOLENE: I really never think of myself as a female DJ until someone points it out to me. It can be a hindrance because there is an assumption most female DJ’s aren’t very talented. The funny thing is I’ve been DJ’ing more years than most of my male counterparts.
 
Scratch: Has DJ’ing opened the door to some amazing opportunities for you?
 
DJ JOLENE: I've kept myself busy running the largest house music station on the internet—the Deep House channel of Digitally Imported. I select the music, gather the DJ mixes and oversee the live shows on the station. I’m currently working on a mix for commercial release. I am also working on original tracks with my production partner to shop to labels. We have a few of the productions on DI.fm and have been receiving great feedback from them.
 
Scratch: Do you have a website, how can I get more info about what you are doing?
 
DJ JOLENE: http://www.djjolene.com