Behind The Lens: DJ Spidaman

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Is being a DJ your main business or do you have another profession/career?  

No, up until 6 months ago, but I guess now that I am fully retired from the Navy and the Postal Service it can be considered my main career now.

How long have you been DJing? 

My DJings days began in 1984 while serving in the Navy, as a Jamaican at that time in San Diego the Caribbean culture wasn’t as strong as what I was use to coming from Brooklyn New York. After a few years of being in San Diego a group of my Navy friends and myself decided to build a reggae sound system to promote our Caribbean culture to the San Diego community.

What kind of music do you play?

I mainly specialize in reggae, soca, and afrobeats but do play all other genres depending on the event that I was hired for.

How do you get the crowd engaged, energized, and in the party spirit?

Rule of thumb for me is if I am hired for an event I will ask my client what is the preferred genre, and based on that I would lead with that genre and adjust according to the audience’s reaction. I will then build from that point with the hype songs and mixes that sends the audience in a frenzy. When playing in a club environment it’s a lot different, I play more mainstream music that the audience expects to hear when they pay to go out partying.

Do you take song requests when you play parties/events? 

Yes and no, depending on the atmosphere and the vibes at the time, I will take a request and if I can fit it in without messing up the flow then I will, if not then no.

Where or what type of events do you normally play at?

My main venues are clubs and occasionally weddings, birthday parties and special events.  

DJs were the creators and inspiration for breaking new records, has this changed in your opinion?  

Coming from a reggae soundsystem point of view I feel like yes it has changed. The reggae Djs were who promoted the up and coming artists, by them coming to the party the DJ would give them the mic so they could showcase their talent and lots of times record producers were at those parties looking for fresh talent. Today, I feel like a lot of new talent is discovered on social media via Youtube, Instagram etc.

In your opinion, what is the most important thing to be a good DJ?

The most important thing I believe is, you must love music and know the music. Once you have that foundation, everything else will require practice and dedication on improving your skill level in order to be successful in your craft.

What would you say is the most rewarding part of being a DJ?  

For me the most rewarding part is the interaction I see between the patrons, and the joy that it brings them while grooving to my music selection. Networking within the DJ fraternity and learning how to navigate throughout the craft from a different person’s point of view is also very rewarding.

Do you have any DJ's that you are inspired by? 

While partying in Brooklyn back in the 80s DJ Carlton was the first person I heard mixing reggae music like how they did hip hop and that fascinated me, so I would say he inspired me.

*Bonus - What are you currently working on? 

             Right now I am working on getting a hotel residency hopefully within the next month.

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