In Episode 106, we have a really special treat for you!
Hailing from Miami, Florida, we landed an extra special interview with the ONE, THE ONLY, DJ CRAZE!
For those of you not hip to DJ Craze, he’s an award winning turntablist and record producer, known for his skillful mixing of genres like hip hop and Miami bass, trap, breaks, and drum & bass. To date, he is the only solo DJ in history to win the DMC World DJ Championships three times consecutively…so if ANYONE has anything to say about DJing, this guy is probably one to listen to.
* Note: we apologize for the audio quality, as our call recording app failed on us and we had to recover the audio from a background recording. Thanks to Trip's hours of hard work, the recording is much more listenable... but those who listen to the podcast in their car (or other noisy environments) may want to save this one for home listening.
First we get a little background on DJ Craze, but then we start to cut right to the chase. Back in July, Craze sent out the following tweet:
“The dj culture is a joke cause YALL have made it a joke. We've always been here repping the artform ... lame edm producers made it a joke”
Starting from there, we launch in to a discussion about the phenomenon of EDM blowing up in the US, and the effect it's had on DJ culture.
Then we try to get to the heart of #realdjs - how it became the "battle cry" for those trying to preserve the culture, but it has become misused over time. Craze’s answer to this might actually shock you! It was actually meant to educate people about the art of DJing, rather than those who use DJing as a chance to play some remixes or edits and put their hands in the air to cheerlead for an hour. With high profile DJs who do next to nothing and yet make insane amounts of money out there, Craze felt the need to show people “what real DJing is, TO ME.”
We also talk about a lot of different topics. Why he prefers Traktor, what music is on his iPhone, his current favorite hip-hop artists, thoughts on mumble rap and where hip-hop is headed.
All in all, this interview was an honor, and we had a blast talking with him and we are sure you will love it, too.
"DJing, and hip hop in general, was kinda my escape from the whole world. I come from nothing; you know, five of us in a one-bedroom apartment. Hip hop was a voice for those of us in the inner city who didn't have shit. And that's what I loved about it. So I surrounded myself in hip hop culture. And that's what attracted me to become a DJ and turntablist. I couldn't rap, I couldn't break, I couldn't graff.... but I wanted to be part of this culture that I loved so much. And that helped me to understand the world." — DJ Craze, Passionate DJ Epsiode 106
Episode 235: Bringing Da Funk w/DJ B Funk
Episode 234: 2022 Year In Review
Episode 233: Breaking The Code: When DJ Hardware Gets “Leaked”?
Episode 232: DJ Chris Lutz
Episode 231: Back At It...Again
Episode 230: Low Ball Blues
Episode 229: Back to School (?)
Episode 228: Generational Perspective w/Mitch James
Episode 227: (Return Of) Trip’s Throwbacks
Episode 226: Exploring The (Not So) Silent Disco
Episode 225: Crossroads (The Future of Passionate DJ)
Episode 224: The Great DJ Hardware Shortage (& What To Do About It)
Episode 223: Breaking In The Warehouse w/Entel
Episode 222: Making Melodies and Memories
Episode 221: A Love Affair With Drum N Bass w/MISTER SHIFTER
Episode 220: Exploring New Paths wZAANDR
Episode 219: Beyond The Grid (w/Cryztal Grid)
Episode 218: Light at the End of the Tunnel (Crew Show!)
Episode 217: DJing and Gender Diversity w/Kilma
Episode 216: Spare Change (Competition Turntablist)
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
Immediately Kinfolk
Turned On
Resident by Hernan Cattaneo
Markus Schulz presents Global DJ Broadcast