A dancer’s best friend!
Because the most indispensable person at a Line dance event is THE DJ, I had to fi nd out a little more from DJ Daniel Steenackers, who is Belgian and is one of these people for whom passion equals work. When he proposes a new song to an old dance, you can really see stars in his eyes if the dancers pay him tribute with a round of applause. He just loves what he does so well.
MG : How did you become a DJ?
DS : When I was 14 I started to get interested in the music thing! I bought my fi rst hifi and then I started working
with sound for an event organised by the likes of Rank Xerox and IBM Belgium. I love all kinds of sounds from my beloved Tamla Motown Soul to the Beatles to Grieg and Mozart!
MG: So why Country ?
DS: In 1992, my wife Marlene discovered ‘country dancing’ and the music made a real impact on me. My favourites became the likes of George Strait, Alan Jackson, Tanya Tucker and Reba McEntire. In 1996, we opened our dance club called Wild Horses Country Dancers. That is when I really started looking into the perfect sounds for Line dance
MG: So you did start right from the beginning. How did you get to the music this well before the Internet revolutionised all our habits?
DS: Finding CD’s in Europe at that time was near impossible. I still remember whilst I was on a trip in the USA, I went in a music store with a list of 100 cd’s and not much hope. 96 were in stock! I won’t tell you the bill but what joy…. Now thanks to the Net I still buy from the same shop and my collection ears 600. Though one does not have to buy whole CD’s any more, when someone like George Strait has a new album I have to have it!
MG : Out of all the Dj-ing you did, why did you choose Country ?
DS : I started out as a DJ when the US group ‘The Ranchhands’ came to Belgium. I was supposed to be a DJ in between breaks from the band (the custom in Belgium where bands take a lot of breaks) but this group never stopped. So I decided to call different dances for the songs they were playing. Dancers loved it and the group too. I had started doing something I really enjoyed totally by chance. I love being able as a DJ to travel and go from Mirande to Spain to the Netheralnds and Switzerland too. Mirande and Spain have a common point though…. The enthusiasm from the dancers and the kindness of those who are in charge… for me as a DJ it is vital!
MG : I remember you winning the DJ contest in Spain. I had loved your alternative takes….
DS : I live for the fact that Country music is so rich and varied that it would be so sad to always listen to the same few tracks and dance them. With a little research and love, so many alternatives exist. The real work for a DJ is to innovate. This eventually leads to musicians, dancers, choreographers fi nding even more pleasure in what they do and love doing.
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