DJ Times 2021, Vol 34 No4 “DJX Issue”

AMERICA’S FIRST MAGAZINE FOR PROFESSIONAL DJs ESTABLISHED 1988 2021 DJX ISSUE

VOLUME 34 NUMBER 4

RAINBOW BRAIN DJ BURNOUT & YOU

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LODATO n VNSSA SAEED YOUNAN JBL IRX SERIES PIONEER DJ DDJ-FLX6 ROLAND DRUM MACHINES

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NOTABLES…MILESTONES NEWS

DJX ’21: INDUSTRY HITS RESTART WITH REBRANDED EXPO

Disco Fries: Studio-session panelists.

Jeremy Brech: Chauvet DJ session.

Joshua Carl: Panelist/performer.

Xavier Powell: Set to sell up.

Biz Markie, 1964 – 2021

“The Clown Prince of Hip-Hop” has passed.

Biz Markie (aka Marcel Theo Hall) died this past July 16 due to complications from Type 2 diabetes.

Biz, shown here at his DJ Expo ’17 Keynote, hit platinum with his 1989 hit “Just a Friend” and brought joy to the world as an MC and a DJ. Nobody beats The Biz – R.I.P.

MetroMix Media

Atlantic City, N.J. – The time has come and the rebranded version of DJ Expo – DJX ’21 – is finally here.

Produced by DJ Times and running Aug. 9-12 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, DJX will bring the DJ world together for an exhibit hall full of the industry’s latest technologies, a deep slate of seminars, keynotes and workshops, and three evenings of sponsored After Dark parties. Launched in 1990, the show remains the DJ industry’s longest-running event.

Three sponsored sessions from show exhibitors will highlight the seminar slate. On Aug. 9, Pioneer DJ will present “Battle Tested, Gig Approved – DJM-S11 & DJM-S7 Demonstration featuring DJ Jay & Pri yon Joni.” Bonus: After the session concludes, Pioneer DJ will give away the units to two lucky winners.

On Aug. 10, Chauvet DJ will present “Lighting the End of the Tunnel – Lighting Inspiration for Your Event Business Revival.” The session will feature Expo seminar favorite Jeremy Brech, President of DJ Jer Events in Sioux Falls, S.D., and he’ll explain how lighting can rejuvenate DJ businesses recovering from the pandemic slowdown.

And on Aug. 11, loudspeaker manufacturer L-Acoustics will present “Discover L-Acoustics Premium DJ Sound Solutions,” featuring Sully Sullivan, the company’s Application Project Engineer. The session will discuss L-Acoustics’ S Series and A Series loudspeakers and introduce L-ISA Studio software, which was created for building immersive audio experiences using multi-dimensional audio.

Additionally, a pair of “Keynote Q&A” sessions will tackle two very different, but nonetheless crucial components the DJ industry – money and music. On Monday, Aug. 9, accountant Gary Orkin, Long Island’s Star CPA, will offer vital tips on finding public funds for your company, smartly filing taxes, and re-evaluating your corporate status. Bring your business-related questions.

Then on Tuesday, Aug. 10, DJ Howard “HK” Kessler will recount his illustrious career, which includes massive success in radio, in clubs and in the record business as an A&R rep with the legendary Tommy Boy label, which released his MTV Party to Go series.

After big successes at his two previous Expos, Jordan St. Jacques of Canada’s Digitera will return with four new sessions, one a day tackling all manner of digital marketing (details on Pg. 7). Prepare to be enlightened.

Looking to flex your brand and seek new heights for your DJ company? On “Selling Up: How to Land an Endorsement Deal & Level Up Your DJ Brand,” Jersey-based DJ/entrepreneur Xavier Powell will show DJs how to connect corporately and better position for bigger and better opportunities.

The show’s annual “Remixer/Producer” panel will be packed with talent, as it will feature successful studio hounds like The Disco Fries (Nick Ditri and Danny Boselovic), DJ Skribble, LODATO, The Scene Kings (Dennis Ciallela and John Feelgood), DJ Shakey & ILLexxandra, and MetroMix’s John Hohman.

In addition to its full exhibit hall of the latest technologies – like Tribe XR’s Virtual Reality system that works with a full Pioneer DJ set-up – DJX demo rooms will include gear from RCF, BASSBOSS and Yorkville Sound.

After Dark events will be plenty and DJ/MCs Jake Jacobsen and Mike Alevras will be busy. On Monday, Aug. 9, they’ll co-host the show’s opening party at the Plum VIP Lounge. On Tuesday, Aug. 11, they’ll co-host “No Judgement Wednesday,” a showcase featuring America’s top mobile talent at DAER nightclub. On Aug. 10, DAER will host “Twitch Tuesday,” featuring some of the top DJ talent on the live-streaming platform – DJs like Joshua Carl, Mike Márquez, who will also helm Twitch-related seminars. (Please see Pg. 7 for details on these events, which will be sponsored by L-Acoustics.) And to close things out, DJ Skribble will weave his magic at the show’s annual afterparty on Aug. 11.

At the trade show’s end on Aug. 12, one lucky DJX attendee will have his/her name called to win the show’s annual “Ultimate DJ Giveaway,” which will include top gear from Bose, Pioneer DJ and RCF USA.

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VOLUME 34 NUMBER 4

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

12 Rainbow Brain

7 Feedback

GRiZ Returns from the Pandemic with Re-Charged Purpose & Big Bass Beats

More Updates on DJX ’21 in Atlantic City, N.J.

22 Sounding Off

JBL IRX Series & Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6

BY BRIAN BONAVOGLIA

18 Burned Out

Have You Lost Your Motivation? Are You Flaming Out on the DJ Scene? Here’s A Few Ways to Get Your Mojo Back

BY DAVID DALLAS BRYANT

20 Master of the Airwaves

With a String of Dance-Radio Smashes, LODATO’s on a Hitting Streak

BY JIM TREMAYNE

24 Making Tracks Roland TR-6S & TR-06

26 Mobile Profile

One MC’s Memorable Skill

27 Business Line

A Solution for Bottom-Feeders

28 Gear

New Products from RCF, Pioneer DJ & More

32 Grooves

Phat Tracks from Miguel Migs, Andrea Benham & More

SAMPLINGS

33 Club Play Chart

The Hottest Records, As Reported by Our Top U.S. Record Pools

8 VNSSA

Talks Twitch

10 In the Studio With…

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Saeed Younan

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FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to Atlantic City

First off, if you’re reading this at DJX ’21 in the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, welcome to the show. After the past 16 months of tragedy, stasis, and uncertainty, we’re glad you’ve made it here and you’ve retained your commitment to the DJ industry. We’re looking forward to closing 2021 the right way and working toward a great 2022.

For the DJX ’21 issue, we bring you the latest from one of our favorite DJ/entertainers, the multi-talented GRiZ (aka Grant Kwiecinski). When the pandemic hit, the Detroit-bred/Denverbased GRiZ took his frustrations to the studio and the live-streaming platforms, then funneled his creative energies into his latest full-length, Rainbow Brain. Loaded with a mosh of well-executed styles – dubstep, R&B, trap, pop, reggae, d-n-b, etc. – Rainbow Brain delivers the sonic goods, but it also celebrates life in a way that only GRiZ can. Our Brian Bonavoglia caught up with him for his second DJ Times cover story.

In another feature, we meet up with talented DJ/producer Salvatore Lodato. Known professionally as LODATO, the New York City-based jock has quite a hitting streak of No. 1 records on the dance-radio charts with his original productions and remixes. And look for his appearance on the DJX “Remixer/Producer” panel Wednesday, Aug. 11.

In our Samplings section, we do some studio talk with Washington, D.C.-based DJ/house-music maker Saeed Younan, who recently finished his terrific debut album, MORPH. Additionally, our U.K. correspondent, Danny Turner, connected with SoCal jock VNSSA (aka Vanessa Barnes) to discuss how, during the pandemic, she successfully pivoted to live-streaming with her Good TV channel on Twitch.

In our tech-reviews sections, we handle four big products. In the Making Tracks studio column, Michigan’s Erik Miller takes on a pair of Roland drum machines – the TR-6S and the TR-06.

Meanwhile, in our Sounding Off pro-audio column, he reviews JBL’s IRX Series – specifically, the IRX112BT top and the IRX115S sub. Additionally in the column, Denver-based Wesley BryantKing handles Pioneer DJ’s DDJ-FLX6 controller.

In our Mobile Profile column, we connect with New Jersey-based MC Ricky G, whose powers of memory are not only incredible, but very marketable. Read on and be amazed. In Business Line, St. Louis jock Scotty O’Brien offers his solutions for beating bottom-feeding competition in the mobile market. And in a unique feature, Michigan mobile David Dallas Bryant tackles “DJ burnout” and offers some tips on how to get your mojo back.

Again, we welcome you to DJX ’21 in Atlantic City. Feel free to peruse the latest DJX offerings in this very issue and via our DJX smartphone app. Whether you’re an exhibitor or attendee, we hope you have a great and prosperous show!

editor-in-chief Jim Tremayne jtremayne@testa.com editor-at-large Brian O’Connor boconnor@testa.com assistant editor Brian Bonavoglia bbonavoglia@testa.com chart coordinator Dan Miller dmiller@testa.com contributors Wesley Bryant-King Chris Caruso Amanda Chavez Shawn Christopher Paul Dailey Reed Dailey Chris Davis DJ Deets Tony Fernandez Tommy D Funk Jennifer Harmon Ryan Hayes Greg Hollmann Josh Kerman Michelle Loeb Erik Miller Lily Moayeri Jordan St Jacques Jeff Stiles Ashley Teffer Danny Turner Phil Turnipseed Travis Wackerly Curtis Zack President/Publisher Vincent P. Testa (1944-2021) FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE AND TO ORDER SUBSCRIPTIONS, CALL 800-937-7678 VISIT OUR WEBSITE www.djtimes.com

Cheers,

DJ Times Sound & Communications The Music & Sound Retailer Sound & Communications ClubWorld Blue Book America’s Best DJ The DJ Expo IT/AV Report Convention TV News VTTV Studios

Jim Tremayne Editor, DJ Times

director of integrated advertising Matt Arnold marnold@testa.com art director Janice Pupelis jpupelis@testa.com production manager Steve Thorakos sthorakos@testa.com digital art director Fred Gumm fgumm@testa.com social media coordinator Cheyenne Chao cchao@testa.com traffic manager art production assistant Jeannemarie Graziano jgraziano@testa.com Circulation circulation@testa.com Classifieds classifiedsales@testa.com operations manager Robin Hazan rhazan@testa.com Editorial and Sales Office: DJ Times, 25 Willowdale Avenue, Port Washington, New York, USA 11050-3779. (516) 767-2500 • FAX (Editorial): (516) 944-8372 • FAX (Sales/all other business): (516) 767-9335 • DJTIMES@TESTA. COM Editorial contributions should be addressed to The Editor, DJ Times, 25 Willowdale Avenue, Port Washington, NY, USA, 110503779. Unsolicited manuscripts will be treated with care an d should be accompanied by return postage.

DJ Times (ISSN 1045-9693) is published monthly except for January, March, May, Septeber and November for $19.40 (US), $39.99 (Canada), and $59.99 (all other countries), by DJ Publishing, Inc., 25 Willowdale Ave., Port Washington, NY 11050-3779.

Periodicals Postage Paid at Port Washington, NY, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to DJ Times, PO BOX 1767, LOWELL MA 01853-1767.

Design and contents are copyright © 2021 by DJ Publishing, Inc., and must not be reproduced in any manner except by permission of the publisher.

Websites: www.djtimes.com and www.testa.com DJX Issue 2021

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FEEDBACK Vinny Testa, 1944-2021: A Tribute to DJ Times/ DJ Expo Founder

AMERICA’S FIRST MAGAZINE FOR PROFESSIONAL DJs ESTABLISHED 1988 2021 TRIBUTE ISSUE

VOLUME 34 NUMBER 3

+1 With Love

PLUS: ZEDS DEAD ■ L-1788 ■ ABLETON LIVE 11 MACKIE SRT SERIES ■ HOW DJs FLEX CONTENT 048JN21_p001-036.indd 1

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This is Feedback, a monthly feature that fields questions from you, our readers, and funnels them out to in‑ dustry professionals. If you have any questions about DJing – marketing, mixing, equipment or insurance, any at all – drop us a letter at DJ Times, 25 Willowdale Ave, Port Washington, NY 11050, fax us at (516) 944‑8372 or e‑mail us at djtimes@testa.com. If we do use your question, you’ll receive a free DJ Times T‑shirt. And remember, the only dumb question is the ques‑ tion that is not asked.

More DJX Sessions Announced Set for Aug. 9-12 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, DJX ’21is ready to go.

In addition to a stocked exhibit hall featuring the latest DJ-related technol‑ ogies and its evening parties (DJX’s After Dark events), the show’s edu‑ cation-rich slate of seminars will dis‑ cuss the most vital issues to DJs of all stripes. New sessions include: “Live-Streaming: Partnering & Twitching to the Top.” Helmed by Joshua Carl on Aug. 10, this pan‑ el of Twitch Partner DJs will ex‑ plain how the platform has been key to their success. Topics in‑ clude: integrating live-streaming to your current business model; how to generate revenue off and on the platform; how to make Partner status on Twitch and build viewership; livestreaming remotely – hardware and software; must-have apps and soft‑ ware; and tips, tricks and secrets of Open Broadcaster Software (OBS).

“Expanding Your Brand with Twitch: O n e D J ’s S u c c e s s S t o r y. ” L i k e most DJs, Mike Márquez’s club gigs dried up during the pandemic. How‑ ever, utilizing the global audience of Twitch, the NYC-based DJ landed sponsorships with some of the in‑ dustry’s biggest companies, gained opportunities to play on radio sta‑ tions across the country, and inter‑ viewed some of the world’s biggest DJs with his Twitch show. His use of

Twitch also has brought his post-pan‑ demic bookings back in a big way. On Aug. 11, Márquez will explain how you can use the streaming platform to fur‑ ther enhance your brand and optimize your exposure.

“Core Web Vitals: The Latest on SEO & How DJs Can Win the Google Game.” Presented on Aug. 9 by Jor‑ dan St. Jacques of Canada’s Digitera, this session will help you understand Core Web Vitals, learn how to measure it and learn how to optimize for it. It’s the most important aspect of where

you rank within Google Search Engine Results Pages, so take notes!

“Facebook Chat Bots: How to Funnel & Keep New Clients.” Facebook Chat Bots through Messenger are not necessarily new, but the way that DJ companies are using them could be vastly improved. On Aug. 10, Jordan St. Jacques will show you how to fun‑ nel your clients where you want them to go and deliver them the necessary files/links – song lists, event-prep lists, even contracts.

“Workflow Management: How DJs

Achieve Social-Media Efficiency.” On Aug. 11, Jordan St. Jacques will peek behind the curtains and reveal unique ways to boil down your weekly timespend… because in the social-media game, simple efficiency can be the key to success.

“Tool Time: Learn 40+ Methods to Master Your Digital Marketing.” On Aug. 12, Jordan St. Jacques’ rapidfire session will present over 40 of the best tools you can use to boost your DJ company’s digital-marketing efforts.

SAMPLING

VNSSA’S TWITCH TURN Good TV: VNSSA’s pandemic pivot.

A rising star of the Southern California house scene,VNSSA has come a long way in a relatively short space of time.

Initially a drummer in local indie-rock bands, she switched to DJing and began performing at local clubs and house parties before releasing her debut single, “Do You Wanna Play” with Fantom Freq in 2018.

She followed up with a pair of well-received bass-house bangers – “Word” with Walker & Royce in 2019 and “Dazed” in 2020. When the pandemic changed everything, VNSSA quickly realized she needed to adapt. Reclaiming control of her career, her Twitch live-streaming channel (Good TV) was born, featuring an alliance of artists who provide a source of creativity via weekly live sets and production tutorials.

Meanwhile, VNSSA also ramped up her studio output, culminating in the release of her latest dreamy house track, “Sinking,” with Lenny Kiser on Dirtybird. And now with the world opening up a bit, she looks forward to a new gig schedule, which will include an appearance at Atlanta’s Imagine Festival Sept.

17-19. We recently caught up with VNSSA (aka Vanessa Barnes) to discuss her pandemic pivot and more.

DJ Times: When lockdown first occurred, was live-streaming the first thought that came to mind and was Twitch an immediate choice?

VNSSA: I knew everyone would be trying to do something online, but didn’t know too much about Twitch – I thought it was more for video games than a platform for DJs to play on. Learning it all was pretty educational and a bit difficult to figure out at first, but once it started taking off, I knew it would stick around.

DJ Times: Did you encounter any technical problems or other issues?

VNSSA: At first, all you really think about is having a camera plugged into the sound, but when you open the programs you need to use with Twitch, like Streamlabs, it becomes a whole ordeal. I had to order a camera, a tripod, figure out the video bit rate and plug separate sound cards into my CDJs. But as long as the music comes through loud and clear, that’s all that really matters. I know that when I watch live-streams on Twitch, I’m usually listening while doing the laundry.

DJ Times: What can you tell us about the channel you created, Good TV? 8

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VNSSA: I wanted to start a streaming collective with Walker & Royce, Justin Martin, Christian Martin and Ardalan where we’d all share a channel with our own little shows, promoting and helping each other as a team. We called it Good TV and feature DJ sets including other DJs three or four times a week.

We’ve also had other people do takeovers for the weekend. DJ Heather was a part of it, Dantiez and Smalltown Pete, who does a talk show on Thursdays with DJ guests. Also, Walker & Royce have been doing some production tutorials.

DJ Times: Your live sets on YouTube via Insomniac Records seem to have much higher production standards than most live-streams…

VNSSA: Insomniac Records has its own station and has been doing things on a way bigger scale by getting artists to play streams that are themed to the different music festivals they throw. I played one called “Beyond Wonderland” in an empty club with the camera scrolling through all the decorations inside. Good TV is a little smaller; think public-access television [laughs].

DJ Times: How have you found the streaming experience compared to playing in front of live audiences?

VNSSA: I feel like it’s something I’ve had to get used to all over again because I already went through playing to empty clubs when I first started DJing.

I feel a bit camera shy and nervous at times, but the Insomniac streams are really cool because they put you on these big club stages. Even though there’s no audience, it still feels like a real gig because of all the lights and the sound is so loud. When I stream on Twitch, it’s not super-loud or crazy, so I tend to play longer sets and get more into it. The people watching can chat, too, so I can read comments and interact, which is fun.

DJ Times: How important is that community element?

VNSSA: I was pleasantly surprised to have created this small online community because social media has taken a lot of that away from us. Instagram’s not really about uniting people – it’s about commerce. But Good TV has ended up being more about connecting fans who share a common interest, rather than just watching a DJ set.

DJ Times: Presumably, you’ve had more time to produce music during the lockdown period? (continued on page 34)

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IN THE STUDIO WITH...

Saeed Younan is long known in house and techno circles as a true practitioner of the genres. The Iraq-born/Washington, D.C.-based DJ/producer has circled the globe, playing in more than 50 countries in a career that’s spanned more than 25 years. He has also been a go-to remixer for a variety of DJ/artists – from Danny Tenaglia to Loco Dice – who sought Younan’s tasty, percussive-based approach.

And now he’s released MORPH, his first artist album. While house remains its driving force, MORPH represents an evolution of sound for Younan as he explores a wider-ranging set of styles – cinematic soundscapes, gospel flourishes, even drum-n-bass rhythms.

Of course, pumping singles from the album, like “Church of Bass” featuring Born I and “Exist” featuring Robert Manos, should keep the dancefloor hot.

Big grooves mixed with delectable sounds informed by Younan’s personal journey makes MORPH a must-listen for 2021. We recently connected with Younan to discuss the album and more.

DJ Times: How did you manage the pandemic?

Saeed Younan: Living in the D.C. area was tough during lockdown.

Everything was closed – restaurants, bars, music venues – pretty much the same across the board. I spend half of my time improving my health, changing my diet, adding lots of outdoors activities, with yoga and meditation becoming a daily routine. The other half of my time, I spent it in the studio, working on new music, refining my new album MORPH, and doing all-vinyl live streams via Facebook and YouTube Live. I also launched a Patreon account during the pandemic, to have some sort of an income from all the lost gigs.

DJ Times: And, like everyone, you couldn’t play live at all…

Younan: I lost a lot of important gigs. My team had a massive tour lined up in support of my new album. Some gigs were postponed, and others were completely cancelled. Now we are working on make-up dates for the album tour. I’ll be bouncing around from coast to coast playing at every venue that I can and rocking out a few festivals. I’m really looking forward to what 2021 and 2022 will bring. I’m super-optimistic that things will bounce back in a safer and more productive atmosphere.

DJ Times: What was the inspiration for MORPH – and why an album?

SAEED YOUNAN: MORPH

In-studio, Younan works with Logic & Ableton Live.

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Younan: I’ve been in the music business for well over two decades, and I’ve always wanted to write a full-length album to show my fans that I’m not just a one-trick-pony when it comes to making music. I didn’t write MORPH for money, numbers or hit singles. I wanted to write an art record. I find value in writing a full-length album the same way a painter, a sculptor or an architect sees value in a complete piece of art. There is beauty in releasing a full-length album; you give your listeners a chance to hear what you can produce, something that you normally can’t do with club tracks. An album is very personal. You are bringing listeners into your life, showing them the different music you make and enjoy. That’s what makes it so special, compared to a single or an EP. DJ Times: Your brand of house music remains rooted in New York and Chicago. Why do you think that sound still resonates with clubbers?

Younan: I think it’s because it has so much history, especially for the people living on the East Coast – that sound takes you way back! For me, it was in the early ’90s when I first experienced nights at Twilo with Danny Tenaglia, Palladium with Junior Vasquez, of course, Sound Factory with Louie Vega and many others. Those elements are still in my mind and used as building blocks when I record in my studio.

DJ Times: What’s your studio set-up?

Younan: Recently, I’ve moved to a simpler set-up. I’ve sold most of my outboard gear and gone all in-the-box. I find that I’m more productive and my workflow is much quicker when I’m not jumping around the studio from one hardware to the next. So, I use Ableton Live and Logic – but my go-to DAW for full-on production is Logic. (continued on page 34)

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GRIZ RETURNS FROM THE PANDEMIC WITH RE-CHARGED PURPOSE & BIG BASS BEATS

RAIN

BY BRIAN BONAVOGLIA

B

In 2019, when GRiZ last graced the cover of DJ Times, the world was a little different.

Back then, the Detroit-born/Denverbased DJ/musician – aka Grant Kwiecinski, 31 – was still buzzing off the release of his sixth studio album, Ride Waves. The vigorous tour schedule that followed took him to theaters and festivals around America with an energetic and eye-candy-filled spectacle that successfully morphed DJing and live musicianship – both electronic and traditional. Of course, GRiZ had plenty of showstopping moments, whether he was dropping beats, rocking the mic or wailing away on his saxophone to funkier jams like fan fave, “The Anthem.”

Fast-forward a year, and the entire industry’s shut down. But while the DJ/live-music scene struggled with the restrictions that the pandemic imposed, GRiZ made a conscious decision to remain a positive force through music, and he did his best to pivot in the most creative ways. Of course, that included some live-streaming, but mostly it meant that he’d make a new album.

As he was working on the project that became Rainbow Brain, GRiZ made his third-annual Camp Kulabunga wellness retreat a virtual event. He also spun sets for virtual festivals like Proximity and Brownies & Lemonade’s Digital Mirage, Trap Nation and Chill Nation’s Room Service. His executed his annual charitable Christmas celebration, 12 Days of GRiZMAS, and he went live on Instagram plenty.

As for the recently released Rainbow Brain album, it delivers a satisfying plate of cleverly moshed-up genres – silky R&B

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grooves, whopping dubstep elements, Jamaican riddims, all hooks and songcraft with massive sonic moments. In addition to the dubby-manic title track featuring ProbCause and Chrishira Perrier, Rainbow Brain features high points like the classic-ravemeets-dub “Tie-Dye Sky,” the ultra-groovy “Astro Funk,” and the robo-soul-reggae “Vibe Check.”

As GRiZ prepared to embark on an album-supporting tour of big venues, which includes spots like Denver’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre and New York’s Brooklyn Mirage, we caught up with the multi-talented DJ-artist/performer.

DJ Times: Describe your pandemic experience.

GRiZ: It started as kind of what felt like a big sleep-over. Every single night was like, watch movies and stay up late and no work in the morning, which very quickly turned into: Wow, this is really a huge bummer. And I thought that people are dying, the world is sick. The entire world is sick and scared, and I needed a break. So, the best way for me to do that and to cope is to be creative.

And so I created my own time-machine, my own vessel to be able to get off of this fucking planet, and to be able to create some relief, and some inspiration, and that was this album.

DJ Times: How were you able to keep your mental health in check and stay positive through the lockdown situation? It was a rough one, especially for the DJ community.

GRiZ: Yeah, we were suffering, and a lot of us didn’t make it out. I first and foremost made sure that I needed to take care of my team. So, we did that financially, made sure that they were good – everyone from my lighting director to tour manager to sound engineer etc.Then the next step was letting go. That’s the lesson that I will con-

tinue to learn throughout my entire life. I don’t think I’ve ever fully learned it because letting go is a practice, and not something that you just do once. And I was letting go into the creative process, but this was also letting go of planning, of letting go of my purpose, which was to be a performer, and letting go into the potential of what could I do with my time.

DJ Times: How did you go about it?

GRiZ: That created a new purpose.

That would create that sense of making existence. And that was also letting go into those places with depression and moving through it and not around it. And by way of moving through it, I was able to create music that helps me on my journey. There were these moments of relief, and these moments of celebration and joy in such a dark time. Yeah, Rainbow Brain was the process of letting go and experiencing joy on the other side of darkness.

DJ Times: How helpful was live-streaming for you? What purpose did it serve?

GRiZ: Basically, being like, “Hey, are you still there?” And it was a joy to be able to connect with people in any format. Also, it gave my team a sense of purpose because we created a live-stream. That was a charity live-stream in December for our “GRiZmas” events series. It kind of got rid of some of the stagnation and put our heads in such a positive space. And what that turned into for us was kind of like the first pass, and the inspiration behind Rainbow Brain the movie, which premiered a day ahead of the album release. We did this live-stream and we’re like, “Damn, that was so cool and fun and we really enjoyed it. Let’s do it again, but let’s do it on a bigger scale, with the different kind of intentionality behind it.”

DJ Times: What’s the most surprising thing you’ve realized during this period?

GRiZ: Even without the platform of live shows and being together, it was really beautiful to see how connected people were, how they were attempting to stay connected, and how they didn’t really give up on that. Everyone’s so resourceful and, given that this one thing is being cut out of my life, I was also really surprised to see how creative everybody got. It’s like, OK, cool – let me figure out something else to do… and so many new things came out of that creatively as new career paths or ambitions. Time was spent on the discovery of things that people perhaps didn’t have the time to learn about themselves previously, and I was really surprised to see how much of the effort everyone gave it. We were all taking care of ourselves and supporting each other. I was so delighted. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that happen before.

It’s amazing.

DJ Times: What informed this album, sound-wise. This album is more dubstepforward…

GRiZ: It was the process of letting go of what needed to be, and letting the universe in for me. What I was craving... I was just fucking craving an escape, and exploring that. The whole thing is just letting go, let go of all the bullshit – this is the right path.

DJ Times: This album is best enjoyed when played from front to back and presented in form of a continuous mix. What’s the process like putting together a sonically cohesive body of work?

GRiZ: I’ve been wanting to put together something like this for a while. Besides, like, “Acid Mix,” I don’t really have public mixes or a continuous body of work. I’ve always admired that so much in what I’ve heard

from other people. “Late Night Tales” continuous mixes, especially the Bonobo one, where you can just put it on and just kind of like listen to somebody’s vibe. Putting it together was kind of tricky because they wanted individual songs, each real song, I guess. The album exists in its own way, but I also wanted it to flow. The best way to achieve that was have 10 30-second songs that were the chaperones from song to song, the shamans, that would take you from one idea to the next.

DJ Times: Any favorite tracks on the album?

GRiZ: I feel like that always changes because, at one point, each one of those songs is my favorite song while I was working on it. And my answer today is going to be different from a year from now because I’ll probably get totally sick of some of the songs. But, I am currently partial to “Another World.” I’m partial to “Burn Up the Floor.” I’m partial to “Vibe Check.”

DJ Times: Now there are seven albums in your discography. Are the experiences of releasing an album similar with each record?

GRiZ: Yeah, I think…I just want to get to fast-forward. Once it’s out there, it’s done. It’s really exciting to be able to stand on the cusp of it and be like, “I can’t wait for people to hear all this stuff and interact with it.” At one point, all this music was purely just known by the person that created it. So, for the track, “Rainbow Brain,” apart from [vocalists] Chrishira and ProbCause, nobody had heard it – it’s just our thing. And so, the entire life of this song was only ever created by our three consciousnesses. Once you release something

into the world, the nature of the song changes, because it becomes defined by every single person that’s listened to it and creates an opinion about it and creates a narrative about it.

DJ Times: They have their own experience with it…

GRiZ: Right, they’re enjoying this space and they might say, “Hey, remember when we are camping when we listen to that?”

Or, “Remember that festival – we were listening to that song and then all of a sudden our friend did this and it was such a crazy moment?” And this song means this whole memory for those people and the idea of the songs change. Sometimes I hear these stories and I love the idea of the songs being released out into the world and having people create these brand-new stories and narratives around them, these pieces of audio.The way that people enjoy it is so crazy.

And so, that is the biggest gift to me… to be able to be a part of people’s lives. Yeah.

DJ Times: How has the bass-music scene, specifically, changed since you first emerged?

GRiZ: Completely… this kind of music.

Rainbow Brain is majorly informed from the origins of it. And that’s kind of my development through it. It’s hard to get to. It’s the breakbeat or the jungle or midtempo, which are all different styles, but those kinds of things have found their ways in and out of it – or not at all.

DJ Times: Any examples?

GRiZ: Drum-n-bass is having a small resurgence, like, the style of riddim-rhythm from that world. That was something that just popped up in the past few years. That’s the kind of change – bass music kind of

flowed into dubstep out of some sort of glitch-hop/trip-hop sound or the dub sound and all these things got merged together and kind of turned it into “brostep” and happening around house music.

Then Future Bass happened, like the trap boom that happened, and now we’re kind of on the cusp of possibility of flowing through other different styles – it’s always evolving. What makes it so interesting is how it’s so elastic – it pulls from past things and makes them future.

DJ Times: How would you say that your productions have evolved?

GRiZ: They probably got more explorative. How did they change? I used to be only making glitch-hop sounds, and then dubstep things, and then electro-soul things, and then really wanting to make a bunch of funk jams and really playing saxophone and wanting to incorporate a ton of vocals. Then, I was falling back in love with some of the older sounds that I was making at the time. I was making those more modern and experimenting with blending other styles within that – I was getting better at it through practice.

DJ Times: That’s a big mosh of styles…

GRiZ: Life is so fluid. I don’t think it could ever be one thing because the way that I see myself, the way that I feel into the universe is so fluid. It’s not stagnant. It’s growing and it’s never up or left or right or down or towards the center or behind, you know? It’s in all directions in all spaces at all times, like an expansion within the infinite.

DJ Times: We’re doing this interview at the end of another eventful Pride Month.

As an openly out artist, what do you think

people can do to raise awareness on important issues that impact the LGBTQ+ community?

GRiZ: Listen to more gay artists, listen to them more, and let them talk. Don’t try and recontextualize what people are saying, or try to be the voice of somebody else. Let them talk. It’s their time to tell us what they need. You know, I’m not settled.

I don’t think I know what anybody specifically needs, but if you don’t let them talk or let them be the narrative, then you’re just truncating what people have to say.

And they’ve been misrepresented for such a long time. Let them talk. Let them have the power. Give them the steering wheel to drive.

DJ Times: Now that the world is open-

ing up, what are your feelings about performing again?

GRiZ: This year, this story keeps unfolding, day by day, conversation by conversation. And that’s always exciting to me, as I enjoy living my life, I continue to come out with creative projects because that’s the way that I live. I live through being a creative person. And that’s not always musical, but the majority of the time it comes back to the music.That’s the thing that drives my soul.There’s always more of an adventure – and I invite people to it.

DJ Times: What helped inform your sound when it comes to your more bonerattling bass productions?

GRiZ: People have done it before me.

I’ve always been inspired by my contemporaries and working with them. Collaboration is always being able to work with people, seeing how they work, seeing what they like and the way that they’re raised.

Just having conversations with people is really inspiring – and the way that certain things feel differently in altered states of consciousness.

DJ Times: Final questions: What’s your studio set-up like these days? How do you tap into your creativity there?

GRiZ: A couple saxophones, a couple guitar amps, a Strat, a keyboard, speakers, and the computer. I turned my garage into a new studio. So, I spend eight hours a day here. I made a space that felt really comfortable and really conducive to just being able to check out.You know, this is my spaceship.

This is my place – a space where time does not exist. You know, when I get into a flow state, writing music, there’s just no time. My brain isn’t thinking about that. n

8 Tips to Beat DJ Burnout: 1. Stepping back and taking a few seasons off was the best thing that I could have ever done for both myself and for clients.

I came back with a renewed passion and found joy behind the decks again.

2. Always remember that this can be the best in the world if you let it. If you are feeling burned out, take a step back to re-evaluate yourself and your business model. Maybe even take a break for a season or two. Find a way to balance your life and your career.

3. Don’t be worried that your first year or two back may bit a bit slower than you are used to. It will be — and that’s not a bad thing. Charge what you are worth; don’t try to book every event at any price. Remember, you don’t want to have to re-start your career again, so try to keep your bookings at a pace that is comfortable for you. My number is 50 events a year and I adjust my prices accordingly. When I get close to that number, then my prices go up.You may lose a few gigs, but at this point you should be looking for quality, not quantity.

4. Take as much stress out of this as possible. For me, it was having proper back-up equipment, early event preparation, and early event arrival. It can be a long night if you start it off stressed out. However, if you give yourself time and are prepared for any eventuality, that calmness resonates through the rest of the event. Clients love this. I often get complimented on my “roll-with-anything-because-I-am-prepared” attitude. A stressed-out DJ can create a stressed-out client.

5. If you do take a break, keep up on music, new trends, equipment, programs, etc. Try to find that passion again. Keep connected with other professionals. Sometimes just having a jam session with a couple DJ friends helped me remember how fun this can be. Keep up on some of the forums. Social media can be great for this. Seeing others enjoying that which you used to love can be inspiring. This will help you transition back into the game.

6. Schedule “vacation time” in advance, just like you would a gig.

7. Stockpile cash during the busy season, so that you can take an entire month off in the off-season.

8. Raise prices so that you can effectively earn the same amount of revenue working less jobs.

If you love what you do, it will show in your work. Have fun

MO

HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MOTIVATION? ARE Y

I wish that in my younger days I was mature enough to know when DJ burnout actually happened.

I worked for a large multi-op for 19 years — I started in 1997 at 17, earning about $200 for an event and about $600 for a weekend, which was amazing for a teenager.

And this lasted for a while. I kept getting raises and they kept me working.

It was a great company with honesty, integrity and they provided decent equipment — American Audio dual-rack mount player (not with hot start) and American Audio 4-channel mixer. We used the JBL MR925 15-inch speakers — these things were workhorses and I know a guy that still uses his.

I had the top spot and was requested more than anyone else – they didn’t charge more for me even though I got paid more. Also, they were open about their bookings.

Some shady companies in our area would book their “top DJ” for multiple events, knowing that only one event would actually get that DJ. Not this company. They would always tell potential clients that I was already booked. That was a good lesson to learn as a teenager.

I was also the “mascot” when not working an event — doing bridal shows, local pro meetings, bar/church installations and DMX programming on the side.

I worked a lot. I DJed 106 weddings in 2001. That’s not counting corporate/ schools/bars and other events – 106 weddings! But I was also young, so I appreciated a decent paycheck.

But then it started to feel like work.

I had the best job in the world. I really only had to make one person happy every night. But after a while, I felt I wasn’t getting paid what I was worth. I was already feeling burned out, but also knew that I loved what I did and where I belong at a party.

DJ burnout was gradual, but inevitable. I could go through the bookings whenever I wanted and really noticed that on some nights I was requested for a few weddings.

It was first-come/first-served – and the other events knew that I was unavailable. The company was still good at booking these events, as the DJ they were getting was most likely trained by me.

It was still a bit disheartening seeing a few gigs that I got for the company that I was never compensated for. Only a little, I was happy the company was doing well, and my friends were working. It was hard to take a night off, though.

One other gradual realization came with the equipment we were using. Decent stuff, nice lights, great speakers and a small CD library of Promo Only’s Platinum Series and a few different Promo Only CD subscriptions. But the company was a little slow when the industry was heading towards digital. So, most of us jocks started buying our own laptops and controllers – if you can call the first controllers “controllers” – then hooking into their analog mixer. Then I wanted new LED lights. So, I bought some of my own. So now half the system was my own stuff, and the wear-andtear was my own responsibility.

That got old after a few years. I’m really not complaining about the company or owner. I think that in the history of capitalism not one person has looked at their paycheck and said, “Wow, I am getting paid exactly what I deserve!” Also, it was never entirely about the money.

I wasn’t giving up on DJing. I needed a break, and always planned on coming out of a break refreshed and ready to work under my own brand.

So, in 2013, I put in a 13-month notice, telling them that I knew that many brides have already requested me for 2015, and I wanted to obligate that. Remember, this company/owner taught me about integrity. Honesty and integrity really helped me here.

There is an awesome bar around the corner from me. It is a billiards hall, and it never had a resident DJ. And never needed one. I was a regular, and I’d DJ there, like, three times a year. I could head home from a wedding at 3 a.m. – last call here is 2

with it, and don’t make it harder than it needs to be.

David Dallas Bryant runs David Dallas Events in Mount Clemens, Mich., and DJ burnout is a distant memory.

BURNE

By David Dallas Bryant

OJ O

YOU FLAMING OUT ON DJING? HERE’S A FEW WAYS TO GET YOUR MOJO BACK a.m. – and still come through the back door and have a few cocktails, while the staff was finishing up. We were friends.

This place really helped my hiatus decision. After I gave my 13-month notice at the DJ company, I got a job at this place as a bartender, while they knew that I still had 13 months of weekends that I’d be unavailable.

They also knew my plans to take a few years off, then go back, full-time, under my own brand.

They gave me manager status, keys to the place, and office codes during orientation. I literally had alarm codes before I knew how to clock in.

So, after my first year of really only working weekday and Sunday shifts, my DJ obligation was done. For two years, I ran that bar while DJing about 10 events a year. It was a great time of my life.

But I always kept updated with my music. Maintained/updated my equipment/ insurance/media. Created my own interactive website.

More importantly, I missed DJing! I was looking forward to the rare weddings. I spent so much time treating this job as a job. But now I was looking forward to this being a career.

The hiatus worked. I looked forward to every event. I was practicing again. I started getting together with other DJs (that I trained years ago) on our days off for jam sessions.

I was really lucky. But I’d like to again thank honestly and integrity.

Then I gave the bar a one-year notice.

They were friends. They already knew my plans. Weddings book early. Regulars became friends.

If I was planning on leaving, and booking weddings a year in advance, and telling regulars my plans, then it would be dishonest to not tell my bosses. It was the right call.

I have learned more in the last two years than ever before.

I don’t think that I would have been as successful on my own if I had made the decision to take a break and come back at a younger age. Maybe a few years ago, but not in my twenties.

Now I run my single-system company and I love it. If there’s DJ burnout, it’s all on me. I even bought myself a “World’s Best Boss” mug. I do mostly weddings, but I’ll DJ anything, really. I do some install/maintenance work — but not too much and it’s not something that I try to do more of. It’s just a few local bars that call me when there is an issue, or they want to change something. And I do DMX programming, which is nice because I can do that from home and then just get the show/scene to them, usually by email, if they have a computerliterate person working there.

I fill in at bars, which I love doing, but not looking for a residency at all. Too much of that and it starts feeling like a job again! n

“I needed a break, and always

planned on coming out of a break refreshed and ready to work

under my own brand.”

ED OUT

MASTER OF T

Salvatore Lodato has been DJing, remixing and producing for years, but in 2016 things began to really hit for the New York-based talent known professionally as LODATO. With originals like “Older” and “One Way Out” and remixes for hitmakers like Clean Bandit, Vassy and Tiësto, LODATO began to gain traction at radio and in the clubs. By 2019, LODATO had made a name for himself with his single, “Home,” which hit No. 1 on the Mediabase U.S. Dance Radio Chart for three consecutive weeks, No. 1 on BPM’s “Top 20 Countdown” on SiriusXM for four consecutive weeks and No. 1 on the Billboard Dance/Mixshow Airplay Chart.

In May 2020, LODATO’s single, “Good,” followed the footsteps of his previous original and also found its way to No. 1 in the U.S. on Dance Radio. His remix of Dua Lipa’s “Break My Heart” was added to rotation on all the major U.S. Dance Radio Stations and hit No. 1 in North America on iHeart’s RT30 Countdown. In late 2020, LODATO signed a 20

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record deal with Spinnin’ Records, and his latest single, “Neon Lights,” is well on its way to a similar radio performance.

A frequent guest and contributor at DJX in Atlantic City, LODATO will be back at it again in 2021, as he’ll participate in the show’s annual “Remixer/Producer” panel on Aug. 11. We recently connected with Sal Lodato to discuss his latest moves.

DJ Times: How did you spend most of your pandemic/lockdown time?

LODATO: It was definitely one of the weirdest experiences I’ve ever been in – I was locked down in Queens, N.Y. Needless to say, our entire industry took a hit, but I stayed positive, and I spent most of my time making new records. Despite the pandemic, I still accomplished a lifelong dream by getting signed to Spinnin’ Records, getting some great music out and getting a few No. 1 Dance Radio and Billboard records.

DJ Times: The gigs obviously dried up, so it must’ve affected your bottom line a bit.

LODATO: Will appear on DJX’s “Remixer/ Producer” panel.

LODATO: To me, every gig is important… so I guess the answer would be yeah. I was on the road when everything got canceled. I actually just got by on the last flight back to New York before they grounded the planes. I was supposed to play the iHeart Pool Party for Miami Music Week where my song “Home” was nominated for “Dance Song of the Year.” I doubt I would have won, as I was up against some stiff competition. However, since the event was canceled, I’m cool with “Home” forever being in limbo for that award, along with those amazing artists and songs. [laughs].

DJ Times: Did you find any new opportunities during the downtime?

LODATO: Yes, I have something cool going on with Oculus/TribeXR DJ. You can actually DJ in Virtual Reality now on the Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000 decks. It’ll be at DJX in Atlantic City, and you have to try it! You would swear the decks are really in front of you and fully functional. In the downtime, I

HE AIRWAVES

2) Daft Punk: “One More Time” (One More Dawn Lodato Bootleg). “I love this one – it’s a classic and always works for any crowd.”

With a String of Dance-Radio Smashes, LODATO’s on a Hitting Streak

3) Oasis: “Wonderwall” (Secret Wonderwall Lodato Bootleg). “This one’s definitely no secret. I think every DJ knows that if you play ‘Wonderwall’ and drop the fader, the crowd is going to sing the rest of the song for you.”

By Jim Tremayne

LODATO’s Best Bootlegs

1) Steve Aoki: “Pursuit of Happiness” (Happy House Lodato Bootleg). “When I play this version of the record, it’s always guaranteed that the walls start to shake.”

learned that you just have to keep working, no matter what gets thrown at you.

There is always a way to move in a forward direction.

DJ Times: From the pandemic on, you never stopped releasing music, right?

LODATO: I connected with Paris Hilton during the pandemic and put out a record [“I Blame You”] with her – definitely a lot of fun. All the proceeds went to a children’s charity, Breaking Code Silence. Out now is my current release, “Neon Lights.” We shot a really cool music video for it, directed by Evan Larson in Las Vegas. Check it out – you can catch me battling some futuristic robots and trying to seduce a hot cyborg vixen.

DJ Times: Tell us about your new studio.

LODATO: Yes, I actually just built my studio and used GIK Acoustics to treat the whole room. For speakers, I just purchased Focal Shape Twin monitors. My computer is a MacBook with an external monitor. My

DAW is Ableton Live. There are so many plug-ins, but I would have to say my go-to is [Xfer Records] Serum.

DJ Times: What’s your creation process in the studio?

LODATO: I’ve always thought about this question, and the creation process changes every day. But the one consistent thing that I do is always bring coffee into my room and start listening to records that I admire.

DJ Times: What’s your typical DJ setup?

LODATO: Pioneer all day. I use USBs, so it’s Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000s and a DJM900NXS2 mixer.

DJ Times: What’s the most surprising thing you realized during the period of social distancing?

LODATO: That I’d been doing it already in the studio… before it was called social distancing [laughs].

DJ Times: Have you gotten involved

“It’s the harder moments in life that define us.”

with live-streaming?

LODATO: I did a virtual festival back in March. It was cool, but I realized that it is more pro-active for me to just focus on making some songs.

DJ Times: What did your experience with the pandemic teach you?

LODATO: I think that it’s the harder moments in life that define us. So, if you are an artist and you didn’t quit during the pandemic, you are automatically already on the right track. To stay positive, I always try to do something productive, even if its small.

If you have writer’s block, organize your music or clean up your desktop. If you feel like you don’t have motivation today, watch a YouTube video about something you didn’t know how to do.

DJ Times: Any theme tunes that fit the pandemic/lockdown moment?

LODATO: “Prisoner” by Miley Cyrus featuring Dua Lipa… my remix, of course n [laughs].

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SOUNDING OFF PLAYBACK…PRO AUDIO…PROCESSING

JBL’S SPEAKER/SUB & PIONEER DJ’S CONTROLLER

By Erik V. Miller & Wesley Bryant-King

For this issue’s Sounding Off column, we bring you reviews of JBL’s IRX112BT and IRX115S speaker/sub combo by Erik Miller and Pioneer DJ’s DDJ-FLX6 controller by Wesley Bryant-King.

JBL IRX112BT & IRX115S For DJs, JBL Professional has always been a reputable company, one that’s provided quality products with often-superior sound in club and mobile applications. So, it’s no surprise that its active loudspeaker-and-subwoofer combo – IRX112BT and IRX115S – offers both quality and value, not just DJs, but also traditional musicians and on-mic presenters.

I have always been impressed by the sound quality of JBL’s pro-audio products and I am happy overall with how well these two perform together.

So, let’s break this system down.

Features: Let’s start with the IRX115S. I found this unit very impressive and I’d like to highlight some of its more notable features. As a subwoofer, you would expect there to be some weight to this; so, coming in at about 65 pounds and filling out a smaller form factor, it’s on the lighter and smaller side, compared to other subs on the market.

Nonetheless, sporting a 1,300-watt amp, the IRX115S ($649 street price) does pack some serious power. With its 15-inch woofer and a 3-inch voice coil, it dips all the way down to 35 Hz and goes up to 147 Hz. So, it definitely brings the bass, and it extends quite far from where it’s placed. It includes 80 Hz, 100 Hz, and 120 Hz for the crossover points, so that gives you some room to play and put the unit where you like it.

Now, being a part of JBL’s IRX series, it is made to go with the IRX112BT and or the IRX108BT (8inch loudspeaker), and they are calibrated together to work very well – and they do! The unit includes your regular inputs and outs for a subwoofer and, while the buttons are a bit clicky and the volume knob pretty plastic, it’s a quality sub with a big sound, great for any smaller-scale event.

Now, looking at the IRX112BT… it brings a lot of clarity in the upper and mid ranges with the unit going from 53 Hz to 20 Hz. This being a 1,300-watt speaker, it also brings some more power to the equation. On the back of the unit, it offers four EQ presets that you can use, depending on your usecase situation – it comes with Normal, Music,Vocal, and Speech. These options help if you’re using this set-up for a ceremony at a wedding, for speeches at a smaller-scale event, or just to play music in your backyard.

Weighing in at only 27 pounds, this unit is a breeze to pick up and move wherever it needs to go – a big positive and a great feature. SPL-wise,

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it comes in at 127 dB, and given its size, the unit certainly does more than you might expect upon first inspection.

A genuinely fantastic feature for mobile DJs that must be mentioned is One-Touch Ducking, which automatically lowers the music’s volume when a speech input is detected. Very cool. The IRX112BT has a street price of $349.

In Use: First off, I did have a couple issues. As mentioned, I wasn’t crazy about the clicky power buttons – I’d prefer a dipswitch to know for certain if the unit is in the off or on position. Also, the Bluetooth connections were a bit hit-and-miss. It connected quickly, but it didn’t always hold. Your experience may differ, of course.

On the upside… when directly connected together, the loudspeaker and the sub matched well and brought the very full sound that you would expect from any JBL product. Increasing the levels and the crossover points on the sub, you then find that the sub brings a lot of power and can easily overpower the 12-inch speaker – not inherently a bad thing. Pushing the loudspeaker beyond unity and listening, it did not distort.

The highs are very crisp, the mids can get a little muddy depending on how loud the sub is, and the bass can be varied. When put on a good setting, it’s clear, direct and powerful. Overall, out of the box, these two units performed quite well, with just a couple odds and ends that disappointed – but nothing too major.

Conclusion: Looking past my quibbles, I really enjoyed these units – they’re quite useful for small- to mid-sized events. If run in a pair (two subs/two tops), these could do very well at some larger events and bring a slick, professional look to your set-up. The sub is very powerful and brings a lot of depth to the music.

The IRX112BT and the IRX115S are well-crafted and beautifully tuned. They bring quality and value to users, especially mobile DJs, bar musicians and presenters (like fitness instructors). Bottom Line: If you’re in need of a PA system that’s quick and easy to put together, with that extra bang for your buck, I would surely put these units on your list to check out.

Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6 It’s probably my own selectively myopic view of the DJ universe, but it seems as if so-called “all-in-one” or “standalone” DJ controllers — those that require no laptop, or computer-based software to perform with them — have been all the rage lately. Admittedly, that’s largely to do with what’s recently come across my review desk. But as much as I love a lot of the standalone offerings, there’s still very much a place for DJ controllers that are designed with a more traditional use-case in mind: Connecting them to a laptop

and leveraging a conventional digital-music collection, including all the metadata that comes along for the ride, which many of us have been accumulating for years. That is, in fact, exactly where the Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6 comes into play, and this mid-tier DJ controller turns out to have a heck of a lot going for it.

What You’d Expect: The DDJ-FLX6 unlocks the full functionality of Serato DJ Pro, and Core functions of Pioneer DJ’s own rekordbox, like Performance. (Users must still pay for rekordbox’s Creative mode). It provides support for four audio channels, with the mixer section in the middle offering direct control of all four, while the transport sections are selectable for either of their two respective channels.

Everything you’d expect is present and accounted for, and perhaps more: 3-band EQ, pass filters, track navigation features for mouse-free selection, effects, and, of course, the now-ubiquitous eight performance pads per side. Like nearly every DJ controller, the pads are multi-function; on the DDJFLX6 they can be used for managing cue points within tracks, initiating loops, jumping beats, triggering samples, and more. The exact behavior of the pads varies depending on whether the unit is being used with Serato or rekordbox.

A strip of controls between the mixer section and the right transport controls provides access to the DDJ-FLX6’s effects, and that, too, varies a bit between the two supported DJ platforms, but it provides the usual sorts of things you’d expect.

Pioneer DJ has put some really lovely platters on the DDJ-FLX6. The same size as Pioneer DJ’s CDJ-3000s, they feel, as the company claims, natural.

They also have an LED playhead position display in the center, which is a nice-to-have, for sure.

But while the platters are beautifully solid in feel, the faders on this controller have a fairly considerable amount of side-to-side “play” that starts to suggest component quality tradeoffs. The knobs for things like EQ also seem to wobble a bit more than I might like to see.

I could overlook all that pretty easily, but what is truly noticeable about the DDJ-FLX6 can be seen on the back panel. There, you’ll find only RCA outputs — not just for the booth, where I’d expect them, but the master as well. To be honest, if that’s a move intended to save on manufacturing costs, it’s not what I would have picked to save a buck; either balanced quarters or XLR (in addition to the RCAs) would seem to me to make a lot more sense for the market Pioneer DJ is going after at this unit’s price point.

What You Might Not Expect: But nitpicking aside, the DDJ-FLX6 is still a pretty fun controller and, as Pioneer DJ’s promotional materials lead with, one of the unit’s leading features centers around its Merge FX feature. While you can do the usual BPM-alignment/beat-match/EQ/fade-style of blending tracks, Merge FX lets you just blow the whole set right out of its predictable waters (and make you look like a master of all things DJ in the process) by jumping genres or jumping widetempo gaps with ease. Want to jump from EDM (or anything else) to country, rock, pop, hip-hop or anything else you feel needs to keep your audience electrified? No worries; the Merge FX knob’s got you covered with multiple effects to choose from.

When engaged, you get a beautiful build — “dramatic” Pioneer DJ calls it (and it is) — that takes you out of the currently playing track. When you’re ready, push a button, you get an awesome drop, then just start the next track as the effect plays out.

Simple, easy, and massively effective, especially for mobile DJs spanning genres while trying to maintain an energetic vibe.

The nice thing about Merge FX is that it works in both rekordbox and Serato DJ, although it’s understandably more limited with Serato DJ. With rekordbox (since it’s Pioneer DJ’s own software), the Merge FX can be extensively customized, and you can choose from eight patterns; under Serato, it’s limited to four. Either way, it was incredible fun to play with.

Under Serato DJ, Merge FX is powered by Se-

rato’s FX Pack, and Pioneer DJ include a license code to enable the pack to be downloaded and activated. Worth noting: The company also includes a license key for Serato’s Pitch ‘n Time expansion pack, providing expanded time-stretching and keyshifting support.

Serato Keeps Maturing: While this review is about the Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6, I’d be remiss by not mentioning just how strong a platform that Serato DJ has become in recent years. To be sure, Serato’s been around for a very long time indeed, but it seems that lately, barely a week can go by without me receiving a press release touting a new Serato DJ integration. And it’s not just Pioneer DJ, but virtually every brand in the DJ space.

The software itself seems to keep getting better and better as well. Between the exceptionally wide hardware support and its rock-solid reliability, it seems a particularly wise choice at the moment.

And given that Serato has gotten on the streaming bandwagon (with support for Beatsource Link, Beatport Link, SoundCloud, and Tidal), it seems like an even more salient choice, not just for club jocks, but mobile guys as well, given the Tidal support, specifically. As I’ve noted in previous reviews for these pages, Tidal is sort of a dream come true for handling the myriad requests that characterize the typical wedding gig these days.

Conclusions: The Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6 is available at a pretty appealing price point: $599 on the street. Given its full slate of capabilities, including unlocking full functionality of both Serato DJ and rekordbox, it starts to seem like a bit of a bargain, actually — not to mention being a particularly interesting choice for mobile DJs. It’s capable, fun and easy-to-use, and feature-complete. All you need is your laptop and a music collection (and/or a Wi-Fi connection for Serato’s streaming) to throw down an impressive set with ease.

Feature-Complete: Pioneer DJ’s DDJ-FLX6.

Dual Threat: IRX112BT & IRX115S.

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MAKING TRACKS STUDIO…HARDWARE…SOFTWARE…

VINTAGE, YET MODERN: ROLAND’S DRUM MACHINES

By Erik V. Miller

It’s safe to say that, for most modern-day producers looking to create full-sounding, high-quality drum patterns, they aren’t all out looking for hardware drum machines. But to the VST-lovers out there, I do urge you to look outside of the DAW for a moment.

There are many options in this department, but for this review, I want to bring up two offerings from Roland that have a direct link to electronic-music history, plus they offer a certain ease of use. Hang with me.

One is Roland’s TR-6S Rhythm Performer, which is a smaller version of the Roland TR-8S, with the latter boasting six sound channels and ACB (Analog Circuit Behavior) recreation for the TR-606, TR-707, TR-808, and TR-909 on board. The other is Roland’s TR-06, which is the Boutique version of the original Roland TR-606. It’s fully recreated with ACB technology to sound and react to everything the way that the original 606 did, even down to the button layout and features. These two are quite impressive, but let’s break it down a little bit to help you better understand.

Features: Out of the box, these two units look completely different, but they function in a very similar

way. Starting with the TR-6S… like I said, it has six channels with some moderately sturdy faders that move quite well. They can be a little clunky at times, but I like the feel of them overall. Each channel is labeled for the Bass Drum, Snare Drum, Low Tom, Hand Clap, Closed HiHat, and Open HiHat, along with a differentcolored LCD outlining the edges of the area under the fader. Using those individual channels, you can use the instrument button on the right-hand side and change your sample or ACB sound on each to customize your own drum kits and such.

You can also use the kit button on the right-hand side to change any of the pre-made kits and hear all of the pre-made patterns that the machine comes loaded with. You can also use the PTN Select (Pattern Select) button on the left-hand side to see all the pre-loaded patterns; but it also can get to the open patterns, so you can make and save your own as well.

Running along the bottom of the unit is a very familiar sight – a lighted step sequence that changes its function, depending on which button is

selected above. It includes options for A through H of different variations on each pattern, two options to do a roll on the fly for both 16th and 32nd notes, and one pad for each instrument channel above as well. The pads feel very nice, even though they are quite small. It is hard to use them like you would an MPC to play live (because of their size), but I’m sure it is something you can get used to.

The TR-REC function goes back quite far in the history of Roland and it is the main function button you would use when programming all of your drum patterns on the unit. With the three included greenlit knobs on the top of the unit, you can do so much more than you would think.

The normal functions are for Tuning, Decay, and CTRL (which lets you customize a certain effect that is programed to each individual channel/instrument per kit). But using the shift key, you can also control the Reverb, Delay, and then get into the Master FX. Using the Master FX, you can dial in a whole suite of effects that really can take the drum sounds you pick and truly make them your own,

TR-06: Upgraded version of a Roland classic.

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while giving you the chance to record them in using Motion or play them in real-time.

On the back of the unit, there isn’t a lot, but still enough to impress. The SD card slot offers you the option to add your own .WAV files to it, so you can select them and make/save your own drum kits with your own samples on the unit. That is a truly useful tool for personalizing your production, playing your older songs live, taking your kits to a friends’ house, and personalizing the use of the TR-6S with it being a standalone unit. The rest of the back includes two ¼-inch main outs, a MIDI in/out, and a USB Type B port that you can use to power the unit when connected to a power brick or computer.

There is just so much you can do on this little machine, and I do have to say that I am really impressed by it with its inclusion of the ACB technology, the 16-step sequencer, the faders for each channel, and all of the effects that are on board. It’s the most solid modern drum machine of its size that I’ve had the chance to try out in many years.

It’s an all-in-one unit that houses some of the most iconic drum sounds (re-

TR-6S: Small unit brings whopping beats.

created to act, react, and sound like its predecessors), while being innovative and special in its own right.

Now, on to the Roland TR-06, a very special run on the Boutique line of drum machines. The Boutique drum machines are close-to-exact digital re-creations of original Roland units from the past – these shaped the ones we have today, like the 6S above. This particular unit is an ACB re-creation of the bold Roland TR606. Not a heavy seller in its day in comparison to some of its relatives, but a solid machine with sounds you still hear today in top productions by top artists. Boasting a 32-step sequencer that can have eight different variations per pattern, six different instruments, and going all the way up to 128 patterns, the TR-06 is a beastly little unit that can bring that vintage 606 sound to a modern set-up.

Coming out of the gate with an allmetal top and back of the machine, it brings a little weight and makes you feel like it’s more of a real instrument, compared to all the plastic ones you may come across. Now, the back of the unit and its casing are actually made of plastic, which is confusing – but not a dealbreaker in any way. On the bottom of the unit, inside the outer casing, you find a speaker that isn’t anything to write home about, but loud enough for practice – just really tinny and cheap-sounding to me.

The unit runs on four AA batteries, but can also be plugged in with a Micro USB B cable. The rest of the back of the unit includes a MIDI Out/ In, a power switch, the previously mentioned Micro USB B port, a volume knob for the speaker, an ⅛-inch

TRS output and input (Mix In), and a ⅛-inch headphone jack.

Now, looking onboard, you can really see where this unit shines – and you can enjoy all the extras that weren’t part of the original 606. I think that really comes out in the FX sections that you can have per each instrument. You get the opportunity to shape these sounds, because of the ACB Technology, really any way that you would like. Users have options like Tuning, Decay, Panning, Gain, Delay, Drive, the snappiness of the snare, and so much more that’s available through the menu button. These are fantastic for wanting to use the TR-06 in a live set-up because you can adjust and create any kind of sound on the fly that would suit so many different genres – it’s truly a universal machine in that regard.

Three more features added would be the Sub Step options, Step Loop, and the Probability, which are really cool because you can get so much variance with them. The Sub Step lets you divide your note values into smaller divisions that you wouldn’t normally find on a 606 and create different drum patterns. The Step Loop is great for on-the-fly playing because you can press a note and it will essentially create a drum fill based upon where the note falls.

The Probability is talking about the chances of an individual note coming in on that individual step that you changed the setting for. Default, they come in 100-percent of the time; but by decreasing that, you can make your patterns a bit more varied each time around. All three

of these features really make the TR06 something special and fun to just mess around with, creating something off the cuff.

Also worth noting is the set of inputs and outs on the front of the unit – the Trigger Ins and Trigger Outs.

Using a patch cable, you can send the signal from the Bass Drum, Snare Drum, Low Tom, and High Tom to any other unit that has Trigger-In abilities, like the Roland TB-03 synthesizer, for instance. Doing this will cause the other machine to create sounds based on whatever input is coming from the TR-06.

This can be really fun, and it can create sounds and patterns that you wouldn’t have ever considered on your own. The Trigger In for the TR06 is mainly for clocking and keeping track of tempo; but you can also use it for effects that are available to really change things up, based on whatever inputs it receives, as well.

It’s quite impressive.

In Use: Starting with the TR-06… in my view, this unit would be best utilized in a live set-up connected through MIDI along with other MIDI devices (synthesizers, drum machines, FX units, etc.) for a few reasons.

Mainly, all of the unit’s crazy performance effects really stand out and they define its use in a lot of ways.

Also, with the trigger in/outs, it feels like it would favor being used in a live setting over anything else. You can do so much with that feature alone and it would be so much fun to create on the fly and play live like that.

Regarding the TR-6S… in my opinion, it would be best used in a studio.

It has so many ways to customize

each individual sound right in front of you. It has the SD card to build your own specific drum kits and play them on a machine to get the feel, and it has dual ¼-inch outputs for stereo.

While I believe the TR-6S is best used in a studio setting, it definitely doesn’t mean that it wouldn’t be effective in a live situation. There are great reasons that this could be useful in a live session – like all the effects, the rolls, the fills, and the fantastic array of sounds that come pre-loaded. It’s a versatile piece.

Conclusions: Coming in at $409.99 street price, the Roland TR-6S is a small machine with a big sound. It offers many options, effects, on-the-fly performance effects, and so much more that really set it apart from many others. With the 606, 707, 808, and 909 sounds recreated in one machine, it’s just something that should not be missed for lovers of drum machines… or for producers who want to add some flavor to their productions.

The Roland TR-06, now streetpriced at $399.99, is a solid recreation of a classic machine loved by many, especially after its initial release. It appeals to those who loved the original and want an upgrade to that; but it also appeals to any producers who want to add that original 606 sound to their rig for on-the-fly or in-studio production.

In my view, each of these machines is well worth the price – they bring everything I would expect to the table, plus a little more. So, if you are seeking a drum machine for your live or studio set-up, one or both units would be welcome additions.

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MOBILE PROFILE CAREERS…INNOVATIONS…SUCCESS STORIES

MC’S UNIQUE SKILL MAKES HIM MEMORABLE

Prize MC: Ricky G wows guests with his mega-memory.

By Stu Kearns

Hackensack, N.J. – Let’s start with Ricky G’s celebrated ability: He can remember names like a savant.

At a DJ Expo a couple years back, people sat mesmerized as he stood up at a seminar and one by one called the names of everyone in the audience — more than 100.

It’s a unique talent, and Ricky G (born Rickhoven Gunter, Jr.,) who works for New Jersey-based Total Entertainment, uses it to full effect as one of the company’s prized MCs. We asked some questions and Ricky G was nice enough to answer.

DJ Times: Tell us about this ability you have, to remember names and faces. When did you realize you had it? How do you use it at events?

Scott Sain: Loves G: Itofwas birthed from the understanding theRicky efficiency that if I am going to truly serve someone, I needed modern DJing. two things: 1) their name because it’s very personal to them, and 2) to get them to talk about themselves in a super-short period of time, so you can speak back to them according to what matters to them or interests them.

So during the cocktail hour of the event, I walk around and have short conversations with every single kid/child that at the event — to the point I have developed the uncanny ability to not think about stuff that matters to me while they are talking, but I listen with a purpose, so I can gather as much information that I can use to form a connection and/or serve them in a unique way.

I just took it and ran with it in a mind-blowing way, where in an hour or so, I can usually remember 100 to 200 of the kid guests’ names, as well as trivia stuff like… what sports and positions they play,

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where they are from, which friends they hang with, or who they have a crush on, or who their parent or kids are. I’ve trained myself to pay attention to “everything,” so I can hopefully use most of it later in the event to create a “wow moment” for a group or guest, or to simply say goodbye to a specific kid or adult by name at the end of the night!

I’m told you’re among the best interactive MCs in the business. Broadly speaking, what are some of the principles you live by? More specifically, what are two techniques you use to gain control of and keep the room?

That the event isn’t about me and my personal preferences; it’s about using my ability to remind past conversations and meetings before and during the event to put together or build a vision that not only matches their verbalized wants, but to oftentimes exceed their expectations with the knowing of all their kids’ guest names and some of their adult guest names also. Needless to say, if I know all the kids’ names, it’s easier for me to get them to listen, participate, and stop acting up and follow orders because they know that I know their name.

They can’t hide or go off and do their own thing because I will know exactly who they are, and who did what! Ha-ha – poor kids.

You work at Total Entertainment – how did you get there?

Yes, I work for Total Entertainment… the company that I worked for 20 years was Double G Productions, which is the company that allowed me the freedom to reshape the way parties were done, and helped me make an incredible name for myself, as the guy who remembers all the kids’ names. It was bought out by Total Entertainment, so I was

doing parties for both companies and, though the two companies split, I am still doing parties for both to this very day!

The last year has been difficult for many DJs and everybody else. How did you get through it, and did you spend the time getting better at what you do?

With absolutely no gigs, I used my ability to remember large amounts of personal information, and how to truly connect with people in a supershort period of time that was forged from doing high-end private parties and events all over the US. Also, I started a Relationship Life Coaching business, called Soap Box, Stand Up and Speak, were I go by the name, “GunterMan” and teach my “Life is All about Relationships” seminar and private video chatting sessions to people who want to build stronger bonds/connections with the person or people that matter to them most.

What are a few tips on how best to get along with event staff?

For my crew, I tell them that the key thing for me is for them to have fun, too, because you are going to see me acting silly and fun out there. Next, I describe to them what looks best on the dancefloor – group participation over long-term, single-person attention. I then ask them if they can help me to remember some of the client’s special requests, and to please tell me if my breath smells or if I have booger up my nose. And lastly, I never correct them during the party or after, and I make sure to make them a part of my opening speech the next time they are on one of my parties.

Now, if you are speaking about the facility’s staff, (continued on page 34)

BUSINESS LINE

SALES… MARKETING…SOLUTIONS…

ONE DJ’S SOLUTION TO BOTTOM-FEEDING COMPETITION

By Scotty O’Brien

Over the past 15 or so years, our industry pricing has gone to hell.

Unfortunately, becoming a mobile DJ is pretty easy these days with the invention of free (if you choose the illegal way) downloadable MP3s, inexpensive consumer-crappy gear from Best Buy or whatever super-deals website you choose or a local pawn shop, and very basic button-pushing skills.

This culmination of ease of getting the music and equipment have led so many inexperienced and untalented un-professionals to my once revered and respected industry that it truly breaks my heart and makes me sad. I love what I do — but I also have to make a living.

There is an old saying that “you get what you pay for” and I firmly believe that this is true. In St. Louis, a city of two million people, there are 450-plus mobile-DJ companies, many of them sole-operators who will come and go out of business rather quickly. Do you honestly think that there is that much talent in St. Louis? I would say no.

That being said, over the past 15 years or so, I have easily priced myself out of the extremely competitive wedding market here in the STL. I know that the prices here are much lower than the East Coast (and the rest of the great states), but St. Louis boasts an average of $850 per five-hour wedding gig — absolutely embarrassing! Anyway, it is what it has become, and it is not getting any better.

Start-ups that want to make an easy couple of hundred bucks as their part-time weekend gig constantly rob the true professionals that built this once-very-talented industry from the ground up. I am 100-percent sure that this scenario is true around the rest of our country.

As I stated, I have to make a living and feed a family and, of course, would love to continue the insatiable habit of world traveling that my wife, daughters and I enjoy. This year, however, I went from having what was going to be a record year of over a million dollars on my books – that’s a big deal for my size of company – to living off of a government-mandated supplement.

Besides learning about humility and the privilege that I had, I have also watched the already super-low average of the St. Louis wedding mobile-DJ industry price go down even more significantly. Mobile DJ companies are fighting for breadcrumbs that are raked off the table and swept under the rug.

In my opinion, here is what has happened: This generation of consumers that has very little concern about the skill level of who they hire for their once-in-a-lifetime event are just looking for the lowest price available.

“St. Louis boasts an average of $850 per five-hour wedding gig — absolutely embarrassing!”

Somehow or another, these price shoppers have disregarded one of the most important pieces of the puzzle. We are all guilty of doing it! How do you think that consumer-based search engines like Kayak and www.lowestprice-for-your-anything.com thrive so well?

Brides and grooms now just hire whoever can deliver the lowest price, without any concern to the quality of equipment, time spent in planning, or the skillset that it takes to move a dancefloor and rock a mic.

All the above, combined with the COVID-19 pandemic, has calculated a terrible pricing formula that has misguided these already uneducated consumers to believe that we, as a whole in the hospitality, live-entertainment and events industries, are desperate. To be quite honest, we are! I completely understand that many of us are struggling to pay the bills — I am included. But if we, as a whole, want to come out of this horrible 2020 as good as we went in it, we must stand our ground. The goal in businesses is to grow in profit year over year, not to go back 10 to 15 years!

I will speak to my particular industry alone: don’t fight for the breadcrumbs just because they are there on the floor. In a time when we are all hurting and struggling to survive, do your best to have pride in your industry and uphold it and the pricing standards that the true professionals have worked for so many years and so hard to establish. My father-inlaw told me a long time ago to buy the best that you can afford, on anything, at the time when you buy it. As an industry, I plead for you to not let the uneducated and cheap consumer guide your future. If we all stick together, we can make it past this pandemic hurdle and come out ahead. Trust me, people are ready to party!

If, when the bride’s mom or the future groom is assigned his single task of hiring the entertainment, you offer a much lower price to get the contract… this will become the norm. You will, unknowingly or not, add to the devaluing of our proud industry, because you chose to settle for less. Thanks to chat boards, The Knot and Facebook — people talk!

Word will get around and spread quickly that the average price is now much lower than before 2020. That is not the direction that I want to see my business model head.

Have some chutzpah and stand your ground.

Do not settle just because the consumer tells you to. The client does not dictate our pricing — it is supposed to be the other way around. I guarantee you that Paul McCartney’s concert ticket prices aren’t going to drop just because of a crappy search engine or a whiny bride… the live-music industry ticket prices will not fluctuate. Why? Because people are willing to pay for real talent!

The answer, my beloved industry friends, is two-fold. Marketing and sales are the first key.

Your first job is to get your face in front of the people that want and need your services.

A very wise and rich business associate once told me to spend the most when the times are worst. That doesn’t mean don’t feed your family. It does mean to make wise investments in your advertising and future, staying in touch with your clients and industry friends and whatever else it takes. Remember, word-of-mouth will always be your best form of advertisement.

The second is to stand your ground on your pricing. Don’t forget why you, the real professionals, got into the industry in the first place. We are here because we love what we do! The cool thing is that you can make some great cash as a reward! Don’t give in just because times are tight.

In the end, as I write this article, I amuse myself by thinking I will give in and start my own lazy website to offer price-bidding to mobile DJ companies in my city. Think of the benefits that I am giving the consumer… less phone calls, no in-person meetings, and I am saving them tons of money for the single, most-important day of their life that they have dreamed about since they were a kid.

Maybe we should also give them coupon codes and run Black Friday specials? Hmmm, if I have the lowest price in the market… I will book the most shows. No! If you are worth a damn, have any DJ talent at all, and care about our industry — then Stand. Your. Ground.

Scotty O’Brien owns Sunshine Entertainment Group in St. Louis, Mo. DJX ISSUE

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GEAR AUDIO…LIGHTING…STUFF

JUST DUET Apogee Electronics 1715 Berkeley St. Santa Monica, CA 90404 (310) 584-9394 www.apogeedigital.com Apogee Electronics’ Duet 3 is a 2 IN x 4 OUT USB audio interface that is compatible with both macOS and Windows 10. Duet 3 comes with a padded travel case and sports a low-profile design with an aluminum body and scratch-resistant top. It comes with an on-board hardware DSP that powers the Symphony ECS Channel Strip for zerolatency recording with FX. Additional features include ⅛-inch Stereo headphone output, two USB Type C ports for connection and external power, precision balanced backlit knob and more.

ART PIECES RCF USA 110 Talmadge Rd Edison, NJ 08817 (732) 902-6100 www.rcf-usa.com RCF has released its ART 9 Series of versatile, active loudspeakers, which consists of six new models, ranging from 10- to 15-inch woofers and sharing the same 2,100-watt, 2-channel, Class-D amplifiers with advanced DSP. Including the ART 945-A, 935-A, 932-A, 915-A, 912-A and 910-A, all models in the range can be used as a main sound system, fill speaker or stage monitor. Each unit has ergonomic handles for transport and includes a steel pole socket for mounting on a stand or subwoofer pole, and each model can be flown, wall- or truss-mounted.

OFF-WHITE Pioneer DJ Americas 2050 W. 190th Street Suite 109 Torrance, CA 90504 (424) 488-0480 www.pioneerdj.com Pioneer DJ has released the Limited-Edition DDJ-1000-OW DJ controller made in collaboration with Italian luxury fashion label Off-White. Based on the concept of “SOUND ENGINEERING,” the design for this fully functional model features fluorescent orange and matte white asymmetrical colors and tagline printing. In line with the release of this special unit, Off-White plans to launch a “SOUND ENGINEERING” capsule collection of clothing, also in collaboration with Pioneer DJ.

STRUCK BY LIGHTING Blizzard Lighting N16 W23390 Stoneridge Dr. Suite E Waukesha, WI 53188 (414) 395-8365 www.blizzardlighting.com Blizzard Lighting’s Hemisphere is a new 15-watt 4-in-1 RGBW lighting effect fixture. The unit is fitted with a single LED light source and powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that has a 10-hour runtime. Hemisphere has an 8-inch beam angle and comes with both 15- and 30-degree beam diffusers. There are 15 built-in chase and fade presets, as well as speed control, strobe effects and smooth dimming. Additional features include a translucent PC dome cover, an 8.5V 2000ma charger and a virtual color wheel with 15 static color presets plus RGBW color mixing.

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AUDIO…LIGHTING…STUFF

GEAR

HEAD OF THE CLASSIC Gibson Pro Audio 309 Plus Park Boulevard Nashville, TN 37217 1-800-444-2766 www.gibson.com KRK added new 7- and 8-inch models to its CLASSIC line of active two-way studio monitors.

The CLASSIC 7 and CLASSIC 8 sport a 1-inch textile, soft-dome tweeter paired with either a 7and 8-inch glass aramid woofer. Both models come with a preinstalled hi-density foam pad to decouple the speaker enclosure from the surface, as well as a front-slotted bass port, which the company says reduces boundary coupling and allows for flexible positioning within a room.

PLANTING SEEDJ SEEDJ https://seedj.app/ SEEDJ is a new online platform that aims to be a virtual academy for DJs, offering exclusive content produced by more than 80 artists and labels.

Available through monthly or annual subscriptions. SEEDJ offers a variety of video courses, lectures and workshops, as well as a library of downloadable resources such as samples and loops for music production. Users can create complete profiles that the company says are searched by management agencies and partners, who will offer periodic reviews in order to build new partnerships.

ARRAY OF SUNSHINE Peavey Electronics 5022 Hartley Peavey Drive Meridian, MS 39305 (601) 483-5365 www.peavey.com The LN1263 Column Array from Peavey delivers 1,200 watts of power, with 127 dB maximum SPL and frequency response of 35 Hz to 20 kHZ. The unit sports 12 2.75-inch custom drivers in the mid-high column and a custom 12-inch driver for the subwoofer.

Additional features include seven onboard EQ presets, eight onboard effects and an onboard six-channel mixer that includes four combo inputs. Each channel also offers a compressor, as well as mute and line indicators, while two additional media channels feature stereo ¼-inch inputs and streaming audio Bluetooth in.

STATION TO STATION American Music & Sound 925 Broadbeck Dr. #220 Newbury Park, CA 91320 (800) 431-2609 www.AmericanMusicAndSound.com The Glorious Vintage Music Station combines a DJ table with a studio workstation.

The unit is made of solid MDF wood, particle board and honeycomb panels, and comes with adaptive table legs in two different lengths. There are numerous ducts located underneath the removable tabletop for flexible cable management, and the unit also features a laptop storage area centered in the middle. Two additional storage compartments with removable cover plates are included for practical vinyl storage and space for up to 100 records.

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GEAR AUDIO…LIGHTING…STUFF

BEATSTREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS Beatstream Box Office LTD c/o CommunicorpUK XYZ Building Hardman Boulevard Manchester, M3 3AQ www.beatstreamboxoffice.com Beatstream is an audio streaming app and audio platform that allows venues, DJs and musicians to earn revenue by selling tickets and streaming live performances to an unlimited global audience. The complete plug-and-play solution is available via the app or on desktops. It offers secure streaming that restricts sharing and sits behind an embedded paywall that allows events to be free, ticketed, pay what you feel, tip only, or a charitable donation.

TAKE A STAND Guillemot Corporation BP 2 56204 La Gacilly Cedex France +33 (0) 2 99 08 08 80 www.hercules.com Hercules released three new products as part of its DG Adaptive Series. The Universal Podcast Mic & Camera Arm Stand holds a microphone, pop filter and a smartphone or tablet, and features the company’s signature TightVice 360-degree rotation. The Smartphone Holder supports phone sizes of 4.7 to 6.9 inches, while the 2-In-1 Tablet and Phone Holder supports tablet and phone sizes 6.1 to 13 inches. The 2-In-1 Tablet and Phone Holder also has an option to mount directly into a tripod stand.

MONA L-ISA L-Acoustics 2645 Townsgate Road #600 Westlake Village, CA 91361 (805) 604-0577 www.l-acoustics.com L-Acoustics released its L-ISA Studio software suite, which takes the spatial audio and room engine algorithms from the company’s L-ISA Processor and adds new features for room enhancement, a fully augmented scale simulation mode and binaural output capabilities that allow users to create and monitor their spatialized audio content anywhere with headphones and optional head tracking. L-ISA Studio comes with an upgraded engine that lets users “hear content in any virtual space of any given size and shape,” according to the company.

BIT BY BT PreSonus Audio Electronics 18011 Grand Bay Court Baton Rouge, LA 70809 (225) 216-7887 www.presonus.com The PreSonus MicroStation BT Bluetooth 5.0 stereo monitor controller easily pairs with Bluetooth-enabled devices to receive audio from a phone, tablet, or other Bluetooth source and send it to full-range powered speakers. The unit can also be hardwired to a powered subwoofer via either the balanced ¼-inch TRS or unbalanced RCA Subwoofer outputs. Additional features include Sub Bypass and mute buttons, a large, ergonomic Volume knob and a ⅛-inch stereo headphone/aux output.

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GEAR

TIME AFTER TIMELESS FabFilter Software Instruments Keizersgracht 467 1017 DK Amsterdam The Netherlands www.fabfilter.com FabFilter Timeless 3 is the latest version of the tape delay plug-in, offering a host of new and updated features, including a streamlined interface with an easy workflow and new modulation engine. The latest version comes with six multimode filters for sculpting delays, with each filter offering a choice of high-pass, lowpass, band-pass, bell, shelf and notch modes. There are five feedback circuit effects, up to 16 delay taps, improved filter and saturation algorithms, and a revised preset library. FabFilter Timeless 3 supports Windows and macOS in VST and VST 3, Audio Units, AAX, and AudioSuite plug-in formats.

HEARING VOICES Accusonus 17 Carley Rd Lexington, MA 02421 (617) 982-1241 www.accusonus.com Voice Changer is a virtual sound designer from Accusonus that includes three individually customizable elements for sculpting voice tracks—Character, Element and Effect. Using these three combinable elements, users can emulate walkie-talkie chatter, a radio, vintage-style news broadcasts, space transmissions, and more, as well as lay fresh landscapes beneath their voice, including rainstorms, caves and stadiums, among others. Alternatively, users can create their own voices from scratch, then save them as a custom setting for even faster voice changing.

US VS. STEM AudioSourceRE Rubicon Centre Bishopstown Cork City T12 Y275 Republic of Ireland www.audiosourcere.com

DeMIXER.com is a web-based vocal removal and music separation website that is available on all browsers. Users can upload a track in WAV, MP3, M4A, WMA, AIF, FLAC and OGG formats supporting up to 16bit 44.1 kHz, and the website will utilize AudioSourceRE’s AI stem separation platform to deliver clean vocal, drum, bass and instrumental tracks in either Karaoke or 4 Stem formats. A free 30-second sample of any track is available before exporting the separated stems in high-quality WAV, MP3, FLAC and M4A formats.

JUST MY TYPEFACE Native Instruments 6725 Sunset Boulevard, 5th Floor Los Angeles, CA 90028 (866) 556-6487 www.native-instruments.com Native Instruments and Dinamo today launched MASCHINE Dinamo, a limited-run MASCHINE MK3 that sports a silver and black screenprint with Dinamo’s Inktrap typeface on every surface. The typeface wraps the edges of the unit in “a double nod to ’80s and ’90s-era throw-up graffiti and marquee news tickers,” according to the company.

Only 750 MASCHINE Dinamo units will be produced, marking the latest in a series of limited-edition runs.

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TRACKS…MIXES…COMPILATIONS

u Miguel Migs u Soulfuric Deep An LP loaded with goodness – jazzy elements, soulful melodies, downtempo moments, vocal-house, etc. Top cuts include the funky “To the Other Side” and the Lisa Shaw-fronted “Promises” and “Running With You.”

SHAPING VISIONS

– Tommy D Funk “ALL MY FRIENDS” (RC BIG HUG REMIX)” u Roland Clark

u Get Physical With his authoritative, iconic voice out front preaching love and camaraderie, Clark delivers clubland’s post-pandemic message: “I can’t wait to see all my friends.” Soulful and funky, the new remix takes this feel-good anthem higher.

Roland Clark

– Jim Tremayne “INTO U” u Magnus Asberg

u Viva Recordings A jazzy, vibe with slightly unsettling chords, vocal snippets on top and punchy sub-stretching bass underneath – proper deep house. Then, Jay Tripwire’s “Deependdub” pushes an even more disorienting techy flavor.

– Tommy D Funk

“YOU MIGHT BE THE ONE” u Andrea Benham

u Taste the Jam A hooky pop-dance joint that jumps and pumps. Check the “John Kano Extended Mix” for main dancefloor grooves; but if you’re down with some late-night tribal action, go for the Cheyne Christian’s “AM PM Remix.”

Miguel Migs

– Jim Tremayne “TALK TO GOD ’BOUT IT” u Ron Hall

u Quantize Every once in a while, a track comes along that you cannot help but nod your head to, shuffle your feet or throw extraordinary shapes to. It’s here… in particular, DJ Spen’s “Sunday Service Re-Edit.” Pressing play on this gospel-house rouser lifts the spirit mightily.

– Kenny Jaeger

“NEW YEAR’S DAY ACID” u Josh Wink

u Bedrock This groovy, rolling tech-house track builds until it reaches its breaking point – then it fires off into a mad acid jam. John Tejada’s soulful remix gets warmer and goes deeper. Serious late-night action.

– Jim Tremayne

DJ Spen

“DON’T LOOK BACK” (REMIXES) u Tommie Sunshine & Disco Fries u Vicious Recordings For this 2012 hit, check the Gerd Janson remixes – a rugged, Moroder-esque effort and a sublime dub. The “Sgt. Slick Extended Discotizer” meshes funky house and disco for an uplifting experience.

– Tommy D Funk “JONSON’S PLAY” u Sander van Doorn & Armin van Buuren u Armada Starting with a strong mid-range, this trance track’s trippy build drops into a heavy, electroflavor with a driving, stuttering techno kick. The heavy soundscape again shifts gears and rebuilds into the anthemic sound that’s AvB’s hallmark – driving tempo, whirring synths, tasty effects.

Josh Wink

– Jennifer Harmon

GUEST REVIEWER: HENNA ONNA

“SLIGHTLY WIGGLE” SCRUSCRU Deeppa Records I immediately fell in love with this deep-house track from the very first minute. It has a very warm jazzy vibe that I really like – and can’t shake. First time I played it out was in an outdoor location and, as the soft wind touched my face, it felt like I relocated to a secret shore with waves welcoming me. Beautiful.

Henna Onna

John Tejada 32

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NOW! Listen the DJ Times National Dance/Crossover Chart on SPOTIFY! LISTEN NOW!

Compiled As July 20, 2021

TRACKS…MIXES…COMPILATIONS

C LU B P L AY C H A R T

NATIONAL CROSSOVER POOL CHART 1 Regard / Troye Sivan / Tate Mcrae 2 Justin Bieber 3 Olivia Rodrigo 4 Doja Cat F/SZA 5 Ed Sheeran 6 Anitta 7 Lil’ Nas X 8 Olivia Rodrigo 9 Calvin Harris F/ Tom Grennan 10 Dua Lipa 11 BTS 12 ATB / Topic / A7s 13 The Weeknd & Ariana Grande 14 Tiesto 15 AJR 16 Sawettie F/ Doja Cat 17 Nelly Ft. Florida Georgia Line 18 Marshmello F/ Jonas Bros.

19 Kali Uchis 20 Rita Ora & David Guetta 21 Kim Cameron 22 Cheat Codes & Tinashe 23 Duncan Laurence 24 Joel Corry / Raye / David Guetta 25 Masked Wolf 26 Allegra 27 Coldplay 28 Bebe Rexha 29 Arty 30 Dua Lipa 31 Laidback Luke F/ Raphi 32 Robin Schulz & Felix Jaehn F/ Alida 33 Tai Verdes 34 Galantis & Guetta f. Little Mix 35 DJ Khaled & Friends 36 Lime & Jacques Greene 37 P!NK 38 Ashni 39 Riton & Nightcrawlers 40 Doja Cat & The Weeknd

Most Added Tracks

1 Allegra 2 Dua Lipa 3 Post Malone 4 Shane Codd F/ Charlotte Haining 5 Topic F/ Bebe Rexha 6 Alessia Cara 7 The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber 8 Kim Cameron 9 Ashni 10 Coldplay

You Epic Peaches Def Jam good 4 u Interscope Kiss Me More RCA Bad Habits Atlantic Girl From Rio Warner Montero Columbia Deja Vu Interscope

By Your Side Columbia Love Again Warner Butter Columbia Your Love (9 PM) Capitol Save Your Tears Republic The Business Atlantic Way Less Sad S-Curve Best Friend Warner Lil Bit Columbia Leave Before You Love Me Republic Telepatia Interscope Big Warner Dont Give Me No Side FX Lean On Me Cheat Codes Arcade Capitol Bed Big Beat / EMG Astronaut In The Ocean Emg Used To Miss You Radikal Higher Power Atlantic Sacrifice Warner Take Your Time Armada We’re Good Warner If There Is Love Total Smash One More Time Big Beat / EMG A-OK Arista Heartbreak Anthem Big Beat I Did It Epic Babe We’re Gonna Love Unidisc All I Know So Far RCA Floating Love Made2Dance Friday RCA You Right RCA

Used To Miss You Love Again Motley Crew Always On My Mind Chain My Heart Sweet Dream Stay Don’t Give Me No Floating Love Higher Power

NATIONAL LATIN DANCE POOL CHART

1. Karol G ft Mariah Angeliq 2. Chrissy I-eece 3. Luis Fonsi & Mike Towers 4. J Balvin x Skrillex 5. Nacho & Arcangel 6. Concept Of One ft Tony Moran 7. Bad Bunny 8. Alsikiatra 9. Alexandra Y Monchy Capricho 10. C+C Music Factory 11. Tainy y Yandel x Saint Jhn 12. Lunay 13. Don Perignon 14. Marlow Rosado y Frankie Negron 15. Monster Taxi 16. Luisito Rosario 17. Rinaldo Montezz Pres. Caleb Huntsberry 18. Jessi Campo 19. J Alberto “El Canario” 20. La Fuga

El Makinon Universal Se Acabo (Remix) Chu-bano Ent. Besame Universal In Da Getto Universal Saco de Boxeo Universal Dance With Me (Remix) Cutting Yonaguni Rimas Ent. Hablador Alsikiatra En Cada Aniversario J&N Yo Soy Latino (Vamos A Bailar) C&C Factory Deja Vu Neon16 Sin Ropa INGrooves El Cantante Andujar Music Depende de Ti J&N Miami Toy Robots Quien Dijo Miedo Sunflower Ent Be-otch B Gone Montezz Lagrimas Negras Javi Prod.

Por Ti No Morire Babel Discos Te Digo Adios (Bye Bye Ciao) Slammin’

Most Added Tracks 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Raulin Rosendo Charlie Maldonado Tito Puente Jr Tito Cruz

No Saben Nada Se Vive Una Vez 20 Años Llego La Negra

Oye Mi Musica CM Doral Music JJ Prod.

REPORTING LATIN POOLS n n n n n n

Latinos Unidos Record Pool Salsamania Latin Record Pool Lobo/Bass Record Pool North East Record Pool Mixx Hitts Record Pool Ritmo Camacho Record Pool

n n n n n n

Ritmo Internacional Record pool DJ Latinos Record Pool MassPool Record Pool Latino Latin Beat Chicago Record Pool All In Music Pool

ATTENTION DJ TIMES READERS: DJ Times is currently looking for DJs that are interested in reporting to the DJ National Dance/Crossover chart and the DJ Times National Urban Dance chart. Reporterships are open to Record Pools and individual DJs. For more information contact: Dan Miller, dmiller@testa.com

Radikal Warner Republic Polydor Capitol Def Jam Columbia Side FX Made2Dance Atlantic

REPORTERS n n n n n n n n n n n n n

Gary Canavo Blake Eckelbarger The Dance Environment Manny Esparza Howard HK Kessler Brian Stephens Peter K. Productions Kidd Leow Randy Schlager Alan Chasen Miss Joy Dan Mathews Chris Egner

Masspool Dj Stickyboots Powered By Spectrio Nexus Radio In The Mix With HK Mixxmasters Peter K Vindictive Vendetta KNHC 89.5FM/Powermix OMAP TAO Group KRYC-FM Victors

Saugus,MA Syndicated Los Angeles, CA Chicago,IL Minneapolis,MN Lithonia,GA Syndicated Tampa, FL Seattle, WA Washington, DC Las Vegas, NV Sacramento, CA Milwaukee, WI

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VNSSA

(continued from page 8) VNSSA: At the beginning, it was really hard because I felt a bit depressed and lacking drive and inspiration. At a certain point, I had to just pull myself together, and now it’s really good because I’ve been experimenting with different genres that I wouldn’t normally. Like a lot of DJs, I’ve not been in the spirit to make big club bangers. I’ve been making deeper, moodier music and that’s expanded my horizons.

DJ Times: How did you go about it, then?

VNSSA: I had a hard time with my studio because I lived really close to my neighbours and, when ever yone started working from home, I couldn’t because the music would be

too loud. Now I’m finally in a good place and starting to dive into all the synths that I wasn’t able to experiment with. I’m finally using my Novation Peak, which I’m going to be using a lot on my music. I’ve also been using the Novation Bass Station 2 and Behringer TD-3, which is basically a knock-off of the Roland TB303. That’s been on almost all of my tracks for the past three or four releases.

DJ Times: What can you tell us about your latest track, “Sinking,” with Lenny Kiser on Dirtybird?

VNSSA: Lenny’s a great producer and I play his stuff all the time.

He hit me up to collaborate and I was really excited. So, we made

Younan

(continued from page 10) I love Rob Papen SubBoomBass 1 and 2 – they are my go-to VSTs for 90-percent of my basslines. I still have a TASCAM DA-40 [DAT recorder] to play and I reuse some of my sample libraries that I’ve saved on DATs throughout the years.

DJ Times: What’s your creation process?

Younan: I always start with an idea in my head from tracks that I layer while I’m on tour. I create a groove based on what I played and layered, and work around that to build something. Creating hooks are also fun for me. Most of the time, I just plug in a mic and make crazy sounds with my mouth and then manipulate the wording with some plugins. That’s always the funnest part of making music, in my opinion.

DJ Times: And your DJ set-up?

Younan: Just like everything else in my life, I like keeping things simple

four tracks that came together really fast then dialled in all the final details and narrowed it down to the best two for an EP out on Dirtybird.

DJ Times: The flipside , “Cue the Rhythm,” sounds very electro and computer gamey…

VNSSA: I like that [laughs]. It’s a breakbeat track and the drums are classic-’80s, vintage-sounding with a freestyle feel to them. “Sinking” is more of a dreamy house track, with ethereal synths and vocals.

DJ Times: Ultimately, how will club culture be affected by the pandemic?

VNSSA: I feel that a lot of people weren’t going to clubs with the right intentions. They were going to party

and hook up with others who didn’t care about the music. Now I think a lot of that will be weeded out and people will just be there for the music.

DJ Times: Do you see still yourself using Twitch moving forward?

VNSSA: Yes, but probably a bit less because of all the time constraints of travelling. But I think Twitch is going to be around for a while, and a lot of shows and festivals will be live-streamed from now on. That’s kind of neat because not everybody can go to a festival. Some of the big DJs are going to take their experience with live-streaming and try to make it better from that perspective.

Mobile and comfortable to work with. I normally use three decks, two for playing and one for sampling. The third deck is always hooked up to an external delay pedal going to a Pioneer mixer for added special effects on dry a cappellas or sounds.

DJ Times: What did you learn during the pandemic downtime?

Younan: That you can do so much to improve your skills as a DJ and producer – also, finding time for yourself to reflect inward and better yourself as a person, both physically and mentally. I learned this global pause was extremely necessary for humanity, in general. It was a time for reflection, looking inward, and figuring out what’s really important and what’s really at stake here. I took the time to do some personal “inner engineering” to better myself as a human for this planet.

– Jim Tremayne

(continued from page 26) I introduce myself to them with you ginormous “bring down their defenses” smile – I’m known for my infectious smile. Then, I make myself available before cocktail hour to talk about their needs. I tell them I’m going to memorize all the kids’ names during cocktail hour, which usually gets a “yeah, right” or an “oh my God, I heard about you or saw you do that at so and so party.”

It breaks the ice and makes them admire how hard I will be working during the event. And finally, I tell them that I’m following their lead and to just give me a five-minute warning to close out a set!

Describe the perfect gig.

A perfect gig for me is a party where the client – parents and the guest of honor – are all known for their ability to party hard, with a sweet injection of family love in the

middle of the madness.

So… 1) their guests all come to the event knowing that they better be ready to participate 2) most people love to see some short display of family connection and respect/honor filled togetherness… that warm and fuzzy moment is a memorable “cherry on top” for the perfect gig.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

Well, I tend to book two years in advance, but now with my relationship business taking off nicely, I see myself still traveling from New York to Cali and making clients’ dream events come true as Ricky “The Memory” G, as well as lending my life to the serving of the world as GunterMan, using skills developed from MCing to help heal hearts and mend family situations one relationship at a time.

Wreckno: Rising Bass Talent

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I spin dub, trap & wave, so…

Tatiana Chausovsky

Tatiana Chausovsky

It’s Wreckno, not techno…

Here’s to bass in your face.

Wreckno in Next Issue of DJ Times

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