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Scratch: Tell us about your first gig?
PRECISION: My first paid gig was actually
at a gentlemen’s club- (yes... a strip club!)
a good friend of mine's sister was braiding my hair
at the time, and her boyfriend, who owned the club,
wasn’t too fond of her braiding my hair because
she wouldn’t charge me to braid it- so he
figured, “let me get something out of this!”
The DJ who normally DJ'd his spot couldn’t
make it out one week so the owner of the club told
me he needed me to fill in. I was about 16 or 17
at the time, (yep, not even old enough to be in
a club, let alone a strip club!) so before I even
got there I was nervous yet excited.
It was my first time really DJ’ing in public
so I was pretty worried that the crowd wouldn’t
feel me, but I was completely wrong. I can honestly
say the people there weren’t even thinking
about what music was being played. There was even
a point where I was repeating songs and people were
STILL grooving like it was the first time they'd
ever heard it…
Scratch: When did you fall in love with music?
PRECISION: I can’t recall when I actually
fell in love with music, but music has
always been in my blood- my mother was a singer,
and my dad used to call himself a DJ (lol). I remember
when I was really small, my parents would throw
parties at the house. I remember being handed 45's
to give to my dad to play and once he even let me
put the record on the turntable myself! (Hahaha)
to me, that was probably the most exciting thing
I’ve ever done as a small child.
Scratch: When did you really get into dj'ing
and how do you think
Your love for music manifests itself in your craft?
PRECISION: I would have to say I fell in
love with DJ'ing after the first
time I'd heard EPMD's Rampage...the cuts DJ Scratch
performed for that track were like mind blowing
back then, after hearing that I just had to try
scratching. Unfortunately I didn’t get the
chance to touch a real turntable till about 5 years
later....
Scratch: What can people expect when they
come to see you?
PRECISION: For someone coming to see me they
can expect to see more of the technical aspects
of DJ’ing, from body tricks and scratching
to beat juggling and trick mixing. I like to bring
a lot of variety to wow the crowd and give the most
well rounded performance i
can...
Scratch: Describe yourself in five words.
PRECISION: 5 words to describe Precision....Random,
Abstract, open minded, obscure.....
Scratch: In your opinion what is a good recipe
for a successful DJ?
PRECISION: There are too many ingredients
to list for a whole recipe but some good ones would
be;
Practice Practice Practice-
I can’t stress how important it is to establish
your own style and perfect your craft. This is what
will separate you from everyone else in the game.
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Self Promotion -
Having product out is always a plus and is probably
your best bet at getting gigs on your own. Mix CD's,
battle break records, anything that can display
your skills. Just relying on word of mouth doesn’t
cut it!
Stay Humble - Nobody likes
a cocky DJ. If you feel the need to talk some smack,
channel that energy onto the tables!
Scratch: What do you
think makes you unique as a DJ?
PRECISION: Hmm, I’m one of the few
DJ’s that can scratch (fader and record control)
with either hand. The only other DJ's I can think
of off the top of my head are DJ Craze and Spiktacular
of the allies. It’s definitely an advantage
because it adds more versatility to your routines,
like being able to execute patterns from either
side.
Scratch: How much work do you put into what
you do and how would you say that work has benefited
or hindered you?
PRECISION: A lot of people don’t realize
how much practice it takes to get good at this—to
this day I still try my best to bang out at least
2 hours of
practice a day. The worst part is when u spend most
of your time perfecting your craft, then u get that
one shot to show and prove weather it be at a battle,
or your first time performing new material, and
u completely f*#^ up—it can get really discouraging
at times, that’s why it is important to understand
whether or not this is what u wanna pursue.
Scratch: What do you think is the best
way for people interested in Becoming DJ's to get
into the scene?
PRECISION: Well times have changed, when
I was coming up, I tried getting cool with everyone
I could with some turntables. I would go to parties
just to study what the DJ did. When I got into "turntablism",
I bought a bunch of battle videos and just studied
all the different styles and techniques. I then
started to attend battles (as a spectator) and live
performances and it just made me hungry to want
to be that dude in the spotlight.
Now you have the option of
Scratch DJ Academy, where you can take classes and
get hands on training for whatever skill level you
are at. Scratch DJ Academy is probably one of the
best things to happen to the DJ scene.
Scratch: Looking back to the time that
you started DJ'ing, can you point
Out one pivotal moment where if something had happened
differently you would not be doing what you are
doing with your art?
PRECISION: Wow, I was supposed to attend
high school at my zone school, but ended
up going to an alternative school where (1.) I met
a guy that was willing to trade me his old tables
for some shoes and (2.) I was fortunate enough to
meet Rob Swift who later became a music teacher
at my school for a semester.
If I would’ve gone to my zone school, I don’t
think it would’ve affected me becoming a DJ,
because the desire was already there, but on the
flip side it wasn’t until I met Rob that I
even knew scratch music/ turntablism existed....
All in all, I probably would’ve just been
a party rocker as opposed to a tablist.
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