Always Bet on Black!!!

Theres a local monthly here in cleveland called Blkout. Last month Nova Soulz had the pleasure of playing, and I got to tell ya, If you haven't been you really need to go!!! Great time, and a super dope environment! If you need Info check with Justin Nylias on FB And dont worrie, We'll be playing there again very soon!!!

Going Digital........?

It's funny, I consider myself to be an uber-geek. I had no concern about switching over to serato. But when it came to my production tools I was on the fence for a long time...... It seems that for a while I wasn't the geek I thought I was. I started producing on a roland sp-808, then saved enough for an MPC 2000XL. Still to this day I love it, but recently I've moved on. I picked up N.I. Maschine and I must say, Im loving everything about it. Ive been using Ableton for a while now but it didnt have the feel i was looking for when it comes to hip hop. Or even just laying down beats. Im more of a hands on person. Im curious as to what layout other people use, if its the same as mine, or wayyy different. My setup is pretty minimal just the way i like it.... Simple.

Commercial vs underground

So the great debate is weather to be underground and "keep it real" or go commercial and make money. Theres a lot of talk around this city about who's who as far as DJ's are concerned. Some say "DJ SO&SO used to be dope but he sold out" or "he used to be a good D&B dj but now he (or she) play commercial stuff downtown. I can only speak for my crew on this matter. Fact: the "crew" Nova Soulz is as real as it gets, theres no need to keep it real if you stay real. Fact: "The Nova Soulz" the group yes we do play downtown venues and yes we do play commercial stuff often. Does that mean we sold out? No, what it mean is that yes we play commercial stuff, but at the same time we put that "underground' flavor in as well. We r introducing "our" music to an audience that might not ever hear it any other time. These people haven't been to a rave, party or an "event". Now when I say "our" i don't mean just Nova Soulz, I mean everyone that makes up the entire underground scene. Music is intended to be shared, and the more people its shared with the more the scene grows as a whole. Plus as working DJ's having these "commercial" gigs allows us to do the smaller underground events where money isn't always an option. This doesn't happen to us often, but for those that it happens to i say this. Before you call someone a sell out, or knock them for where or what they play think about this, sometimes making a commercial living allows them/us to play the events and parties that we love, your parties and your events.

Great DJ's who dont produce & Great producers who cant DJ?

So I'm starting to notice a trend for the past couple of years. Seems the DJ's that are getting booked alot around the country these days are actualy mainly producers. So I ask the question, WHy is that? Is it because in this day of blogs and internet nonesense theres no money to be made from producing electronic music? Clearly with most media being digital and not wax, not as many DJ's have to buy the single to be able to play it. But what happens when it back fires? I mean lets face it, someone whos main gole is to produce is not going to be as good of a DJ as say, someone whos main goal is to DJ. Chew on that for a bit. Ive seen many acts who are amazing producers, but half assed DJ's at best. In some cases just down right bad. Then you have the DJ who plays his own tracks but they are just plain bad. It goes both ways. So i ask the question, are the days of just being a DJ over? And who should get booked more? The DJ or the Producer?

Is there an age limit on what you love?

So i meet this woman the other night after DJing a gig with my partner (aka JonDoe). She askes me what i do for a living. I answer her "I'm a DJ". She looks at me and says, "Well, how long do you plan to do that?" And that made me think. Is there an age limit on what you love? Is there a point where you should give up our dream and just do what everyone else does? I personally don't believe so. Why is it the things that keep us young at heart are the things we are "supposed" to grow out of? I love house, hip hop, and almost all electronic music. As I get older am I supposed to start listening to something else? Should I stop djing and go work in an office? Dont get me wrong, If you have kids and "need" to provide for your family then by all means do what you need to do. But NEVER give up on what you love for any reason. Also Always chase your dreams, you never know when they will come true.

Big Mo

So we spun a party for someones birthday. Turned out to be one of my fav events that we have done to date. Its great when people come out to dance, and also have an open mind to music. I love it when there are no requests, you know when people just let the DJ do his/her job. Its a rare thing these days, but still fun non the less. Special guest Mo Vaughn was in the place, and also had a blast! He's a big big dude!

Who are we fooling?

In this day and age of blogs, forums, and other internet nonsense is there really such thing as a rare track? I mean who are we really trying to fool anyway? If your not a famous DJ, or producing tracks every other week are you really playing anything different from the next guy? Sometimes it gets on my nerves to hear DJ's talk about what they play and how its so different, or they r bringing a sound that you never heard b4. I think we got away from what our "job" really is, and thats to make people dance. In the quest to be different, or set ourselves apart we lost that very thing. I like pushing the boundaries as much as the next Dj but at what cost? Who cares how many traxx you have in your macbook? Who cares what software you use to DJ? Who cares of you still use vinyl? Who cares how long you have been doing this? All that matters is that you make people DANCE. Read your crowd & Feed your crowd. Thats what my father, the best Dj I've ever met, told me. I live by those words.

New Layout

As you can see ive done a redesign on the site. if you look to the side, you'll see a page for songs now, as well as a page for dj mixes. There will also be a Video page coming also, just as soon as i get some more uploaded. From here on out this page will be the blog, as it was supposed to be in the first place, hahahahaha. just took a while to get it there. Thanks to everyone for sticking around.

New Things Coming

Hey everybody!!!!!!! We are working on given you guys more events,music & of course mixes for your listening pleasure. Djing in an around Cleveland @ alot of the local nightclubs as residents an guest djs.Our ultimate goal is to keep everybody moving an having a good time (I mean everybody) even the haters an the world god willing. peace!!!jondoe

saint.'s adventures in photoshop, part 1

the end result of what happens when one certain DJ has enough free time on his hands and whips up a quick promo