I heard him mix hip hop into garage. At first I just
couldn’t understand how that could work, but over time I have adopted that same style and that’s what helps me to stand out as a DJ. Don’t just dedicate yourself to one genre of music. As a DJ your selection should be widespread, it should be versitile, and should be unpredictable. I hear a handful of good DJs but a lot of DJs with a similar style and if I’m being honest that can be boring. Another DJ I admire is EZ, he had the garage scene on lock for many years!! On an international stage, Tony Touch has stood out for me since I was younger.
Kix: You are a real supporter of UK music, who are you championing at the minute and what do you feel they bring to the table that is different from what’s already out there? Col J: I am really happy to see UK music evolve right now on a more international stage. As you can hear on the radio, a lot of American Artists are adapting the ‘funky house’ vibe and beat in their tunes and it has become widely accepted. There are a lot of UK
1 8 De c embe r 2 0 1 0 K i x Ma g
artists that are dominating the charts, the likes of Dizzie, Tinie Tempah, Professor Green, JLS, Tinchy and Roll Deep. All these guys has started from stratch, given the opportunity and their dreams are excelling. I always look at upcoming art- ists. My boy Casso Blax is a rising star as he his style of music is a mix of just about everything. Got a mix of grime, but it has hiphop, but it also has electro and it also has dubstep, and lyrically can throw a bunch of similies to make you think. It’s like a big cake mix, but its a mix that ticks the boxes to specific markets. I am the official DJ for Young O and he keeps it real with catchy commercial vibes that the european markets would definitely go for. I go to a lot of UK talent shows and I see talent spilling everywhere with different styles. I get different artists inboxing me every week to air their material on radio, so trust me from what I have heard the styles are definitely evolving to what is already out there.
Kix: In general you prefer R’n’B, Slow jams etc, but this hasn’t always been the case, what did you listen to growing up? How
do you feel about the industry being so fickle and and using a genre till it’s dead and then moving onto another, ie funky, do you think that it kills the style for it’s original fans? Col J: The way I see it RnB will be around forever!!! RnB is the music for the soul. It speaks out to you emotionally and it is something that just about EVERYONE can relate to. I grew up lisening to RnB and Reggae. Wasn’t so into the dance and disco that much at the time. When I first started DJ’ing I did start with UKG and house because I was just learning how to mix. However when I grasped it, I wanted to learn how to mix RnB properly. Not everyone can mix RnB because of the com- plex BPM that some of the tunes hold. I find that certain DJ’s in clubs are fashion followers. Of course you have to play for the public and your audience, and clubs may have a strict rule of what genres of music they accept in their clubs. However I get this feeling of DJs playing the odd couple RnB tunes, and if they ain’t grasped the crowds attention that well they move to their ‘comfort zone fall back plan’ which is funky. It’s like ‘when in doubt,
play funky’. Like I said before, you have to be
unpredictable and versitile. Soulful Funky house has elements of RnB and soul in it. I still think Funky will be around for a while, however it is still a ‘newish’ genre of music. RnB has been around for decades. The likes of Usher, Chris Brown and Rhianna have adopted the Funky vibe within their production as that is what sells, but I do find it sad that RnB does not get the recognition that it deserves sometimes. The industry moves forward like everything else. Sometimes we loose sight of the origins, but I still think in the club scene RnB and Funky will still dominate the music taste. The way I see it, one cannot live without the other.
Kix: How do you plan to move your career forward next year? Col J: I am very grateful to be where I am and believe I have no plans in stopping. I am looking to adopt more hosting jobs, I had hosted the T-Fest this August 2010 in front of a sea of 10000 people and caught a real buzz from that and got more some positive responses for me to do Basildon next year.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68