“I’ve been in dis game for years-it made me an animal,there’s rules to dis shit..”-biggie
I couldn't agree more, and I've been putting it down since the 1980's here in the "BAY AREA - FRISCO CALI 415" when the NUMARK DM series mixer was the ultimate (still got mine Ha-Ha)... But serious, it made me SICK 2 see that wacked ass, no skill "ON ANY LEVEL" wanna-be D.J. Pauly D, get nominated for an award next to DJ Qbert in Vegas,NV... I MEAN REALLY.....? WTF........? I also hate the NEW-JACK'S with minimal skill, and bullshit ass equipment, under cut the pricing game for D.J.'s and cheapened the whole SKILL, CRAFT, and PRODUCTION we give to those who want and demand it... It's like a wedding back in the day was $1500.00 to $3000.00 with no major lighting (extra trust that), and now these idiot's will do it for $300.00 just to be someplace other than mixing in front of his parents or mirror.....

Let me first say, I am a solid DJ. Always have been. Not saying I’m the best, but I CERTAINLY can hold my own EVERY TIME I play because of the skill level. I love music. I respect the art of DJing. I know my history. I mix.scratch.cut & blend. I even chop & screw..all without the use of a computer program. I am a product of the old school. From the era where there were no DJ crews, cliques, clubs or coalitions. Where the DJ was almost an outlaw, with one mission: to be the best. Where every time you step in front of a crowd, you showcased, you competed, you earned the right to call yourself a DJ. This era, as I know it, isn’t at the forefront anymore. In fact, REAL DJs are becoming extinct. We now live in, what I have been told is: “The New Reality”. And I want to be the first to tell you: I don’t like it.
I can’t respect various aspects of this new generation of people who call themselves “djs”. They don’t respect the art of DJing, the culture of hip hop or anything having to do with upholding the rules, guidelines & etiquette that structures this thing known as “deejaying”. This new generation is like a microcosm of today’s society. Almost like back when crack hit; There were people who dropped out of high school & hit the streets to sell the drug. Starting with a small front, grinding rock for rock, working their way up the ranks in the hood until they stood on their feet, holding weight. And everyone in their hood acknowledged their climb. Some loved them. Some hated them, but they all had to respect that man for the position he had EARNED.
Then you had this mufucka in high school, who’s parents had money. This dude didn’t grit & grind, he took his allowance money or whatever and bought a beeper, found a couple of his buddies who had some hood ties & walaa..he is not only a crack dealer, but a kingpin at that. He skated in the game with weight, but didn’t earn his spot. All the material possessions the crack dealers were copping as they ascended, this dude just bought out right, with his fam’s money. He already looked like he was ballin’. To the naked eye, he was already view as one of the best, one who paid his dues.
The crack game is bad in the sense that if you are REALLY deep in the streets, you are going to take a loss..the difference is the school boy was more likely to get worked cuz he CHEATED to get in the game; He didn’t fully grasp nor adhere to the rules & as a result, he took hella losses. He thought he could make up his own rules. He thought wrong. I would love to see some of today’s generation of “djs” feel those losses, in the same way, cuz to me, they don’t respect the art or the traditions of what it means to be a DJ. I came up in the era where you had to have the respect of your hood, and as you became known, the various hoods that made up your part of the city, in order to actually call yourself a DJ. Otherwise, sum mufuckaz would liberate you from your equipment. You couldn’t buy your way in by simply filling out an application to join a clique, or cuz you knew the promoter real well so he just let you be the DJ, like he let the girl he was fucking at the time be the door person. [Years later, you couldn't even join a record pool if you weren't skilled]. You couldn’t play anywhere except your bedroom until your file could be pulled and your trw came back sufficient.. Or you competed against [battled] a DJ already verified within the community. In “The New Reality”, ANYBODY with the money for equipment can call themselves a DJ, then try to learn how to do it on the job training style. As a result, the people listening to these wannabes eventually accept this as what DJing is..the new dudes come in copying what they see & along with promoters more focused on the swag over the substance of a DJ & crowds demanding nothing but the same stuff they’ve heard a million times on the radio, the DJ scene is as lame as the pro tool acid pro mixes these yelling, growling,sing along push button “djs” slap together, as the hot shit.
As a fellow DJ, how do you feel about the exclusivity of this fraternity being breached by every Tom, Dick & Harry, Mary, Becky & Suzy with a laptop & a pair of Dre Beats headphones? What can WE do to control it, or does it even need to be controlled?
Also, In my day, it also cost to be a DJ. The blood, sweat & tears to not only get your first set of Technic 1200s, but a quality mixer, above average needles and the wax.all the newest & hottest shit starting anywhere from $5.99 & up for a 12″, as well as albums & classics, (which were at least $12.99 & up). You know, there were many a night I would take the money I made from DJing a club or party, or off of mix tapes and the next day, spend my last dollar just for MORE MUSIC. Mane, the feeling of coming home with a new stack of wax, peeling the shrink wrap off of each one, dropping the needle on the groove..it was just like Christmas! Now, with just a couple of clicks, you have all the music-free. (Which we will definitely get into in future blogs). Time’s certainly have changed, haven’t they?
As I view & review this new reality of DJing, I am not only annoyed by aspects of it and it’s participants, but I also feel the need to do my part to help PRESERVE the art of DJing, by giving my opinion, based on years doing this & knowing the code and the rules that make up what it means to be a REAL DJ. By doing this I hope to shed some light on not only the divisions but find ways to bring it back to it’s TRUE & REAL essence, by incorporating what is now with what once was.

REAL DJ’s are few & far between, a dying breed maybe..but WE haven’t left yet. WE are here. WE have been here. WE aren’t going anywhere either..



Brace yourself for opinions, observations & ideas from me DJ TNT..just an old school DJ letting it be known. Follow me on twitter if you’d like [@1djtnt] & much respect to DjServicePack.com for giving me the opportunity to be seen, heard, read & felt. I look forward to all your questions & comments & the exchange with REAL DJs, new breed “djs” & everyone in between. Whether you agree or disagree with the things I say, TOGETHER, we can all be enlightened & entertained & hopefully evoke change from this community, into “The New Reality”.
What do you think? Are you feeling how DJs in 2013 get it in? Are you one of this new breed of “dj”? Or would you consider yourself an “old school”, skills over swag DJ? Do you think the people who go to clubs even care anymore about this art form, or do they just want to “turnup” with familiarity? What role, if any, do you think promoters play in this landscape?