So as you can probably imagine if you watched the video clip in the previous post, B-Boying and everything that went with it completely took over my life for a solid 3 years...most of it has stayed with me to this day.
Now...I dont exactly know HOW I found these radio stations that played these (then VERY foreign) DJ mixes, (WBMX, WGCI and a VERY fuzzy WNUR) but I knew that that's all I wanted all day, every day, and couldnt wait until the 12 o'clock lunch mix, or, better yet, Friday and Saturday night!
If memory serves me correctly...there was quite a bit of uptempo hip hop being played (early standouts include Its Like That by Run DMC among others)...and then the DJ's would play these REALLY stripped down instrumental tracks...well...not really instrumental...because they were just tracks of drum patterns....which were some of the earliest House tracks....i HATED those tracks because they essentially didnt do anything except repeat the same beat for 3 or 4 minutes...BOOOORIIIING (back then of course, because i was pretty much a straight Hip Hop head at the time)
Around 1984 / 85, I, along with my partner in crime Tom Bustos, began to venture out going to parties at the local community center in our area here, and a place called Kristof's that held a "teen night" at their nightclub.
I had been listening to the DJ's on the radio for about a year or so, but could never exactly understand how they mixed songs together, until I started attending these parties and teen nights...yeah, we would go to hang out...check out the girlies and whatnot....but I increasingly found myself sitting near the DJ booth and watching the DJ...like...at a certain point, when we would walk in, I went straight to the booth, and didnt really move for the rest of the night.
One of the DJ's that played at the teen night, also DJ'ed our school dances...I remember sitting in Mr. Gibson's 7th grade classroom one Friday afternoon...the day of a dance...and saw a couple guys bringing in the DJ equipment to get set up...i asked a friend of mine who sat near the door if they were "scratch dj's"...meaning....did they have turntables....with an affirmative nod, my heart started beating a little faster.
Again...I was still a B Boy, so when it came time for the dance to start, it was straight to the middle of the circle to do our thing. (now that i REALLY think about it....me and my crew were really the only ones doing any type of dancing...weird)
So that whole scene, the community center parties, the teen club and the school dances was my life until 1986.
Now, as you may, or may not remember...back then, to most of rural America, Breaking was just a fad...and when a fad dies, or isnt deemed "cool" anymore, you dont really have a choice but to find something else to do...being that you just dont want to be made fun of....if I only knew then what I know now...
So my crew and I were left with a dilemma in 1986...the last year of grade school...."what now"? Someone had the idea of starting a rap group....cool....whos going to do what? Everyone wanted to rap....but not me.
I said.."ill be the DJ"...and to this day, im the only one who stuck with the original plan.
Next post, 8th grade graduation, and my first DJ Battle (before I actually had my own equipment)
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