Friday, November 12, 2010

Weekend Edition


Music:

Here are a couple tracks that have been bangin in my itunes for the past couple days... The first is a new cut from J. Cole featuring Wale which will be featured on Friday Night Lights. The other is a new 2pac mash-up from Vodka & Milk. Definitely diggin the beat on this one...




TV:

For your viewing pleasure I present you with last night's episode of 30 Rock. There is a guest character played by John Slattery from Mad Men (which is one of my favorite shows) and there are some particularly good zingers in this epi as well...




Nightlife:

To Recap:


Last night at Village Pourhouse was off the hook... I spun a decently long set for a Thursday night (4.5 hours). I was getting some good feedback from the crowd, and I got to enjoy a couple of Blue Point lagers fresh off the tap. I highly recommend Village Pourhouse as a solid watering hole for anybody in NYC. Always a good time...


Tonight:


I'll be rockin out Butterfield 8 (5 E. 38th Street) from 10-close... Open bar wristbands can be purchased from the hostess. As usual, I'll be spinning a mix of classic hip-hop/top40/dance and house tunes. Hit me up for a guaranteed fun night 607.237.7525.

Hollerrrrrrr,

DJ Z

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Huey Newton/Midweek Update


Music: Here's the latest cut from Wiz and the Hot Spitta (Curren$y)... I'm not very knowledgable of 80's music but I think it's a Phil Collins sample on the beat.. Somebody let me know if I'm wrong.



Nightlife: Village Pourhouse tonight, BU8 tomorrow!!!

This has been a hectic week to say the least... I was canceled on last night at Le Souk due to a special event, and I've been called in for tonight at the VP. The only problem is the coffin full of gear at VP tonight will be missing the mixer and certain essential cables, so in order to perform tonight I have a few minor problems to solve first. Between laundry and wrestling practice, I will probably spend the remaining hours of my day searching Radio Shacks and Guitar Centers across NYC for rca/xlr adapters, rca splitters, and rca/.25inch adapters... Wish me luck, because the show must go on!

Here's the remaining schedule for the week:

Thursday: Village Pourhouse (11th and 3rd) - 9-close

Friday: Butterfield 8 (38th and 5th) - 10 - close

Hope to see you all this weekend, and remember call/text 607.237.7525 for details on any DJ Z event...

-$pud Z - "tha hot blogga"

Monday, November 8, 2010

Another Late Submission


Music: Nothing new for today... There's been a lot of crap music coming out lately and rather than subject you to it, I'd rather hit you with some older and lesser known stuff.

To start here is a B-side from Iyaz which I was bumping a lot this past spring... I decided to knock the dust off and give it a few more spins.



The next vid I have today is about a very interesting producer named Amon Tobin. Tobin creates sounds that have never been heard before through the use of everyday items and musical instruments used in non-traditional ways. In this vid Tobin is working on an original score for a video game in which the intensity of the music is customized to the intensity of action in the game. Very cutting edge...



Nightlife: More Le Souk/Butterfield, and hopefully more Village Pourhouse!

Last week was sweet! I had 4 gigs again thanks to Dj Autograph, and I had a great time at all of them!

This week the schedule is the same:

Wednesday: Le Souk (11-4)

Friday: Butterfield 8 (10-3)

Thursday/Saturday: Village Pourhouse (possibly, still waiting to find out officially)

So, mark your calendars because we have another busy week of partying ahead of us! Hope to see everybody at Le Souk on Wednesday!

call/text 607.237.7525 for details on any DJ Z event

-DJ Z

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Joell Ortiz/The Career of a DJ

Music: New Joell Ortiz


^^He's really killin it these days... Yaowa! [no idea what that means]


Nightlife: The Life and Times of DJ Z

My first paid DJ gig was a mere 3 years ago. I played at the Sig Chi Jersey party for $150 and an eighth of beasters, and it was unforgettable... My equipment was a 20 year old Numark mixer and a pair of budget Stanton turntables. I didn't have any flashy technique so I spent the time in between mixes trying to look cool wiping my records off. I'll be forever thankful for Doug G. and Sean D. bringing me in for that gig! who knew what was to become...

Over the subsequent years DJing at Bucknell I played parties for Sig Chi, Fiji, SAE, KDR, Phi Psi, Pi Phi, KKG, Alpha Chi, and Kappa Alpha Theta. I played at Puirseill's Irish Pub, Ard's Farm Market, La Primavera, Parkview, the Lewisburg Club, the Smith Quad, The Taj Mahal Brotel, Red Box, 109, and possibly some more places I can't even think of... Last but not least - The Bull Run Inn. After two years of doing frat parties I became the first DJ to obtain a Wednesday night residency at the Bull Run Inn. The parties thrown there will live in infamy in my mind at least, and I can only hope those who shared those moments with me will find them just as memorable years down the road. Two things I'll always remember about gigs at the Bull Run are rapping my "single" Stunt Double, and the other is the triple g&t's Alan and Dave would black me out with - a memory/non-memory if you will.

After a long and g.p.a.-murdering DJ career at Bucknell I've decided to go pro and try out for the league... A career DJing in New York City or an alternatively large and bustling urban environment is what most DJs consider the big time, and I am lucky enough to be able to pursue this dream. Since starting my career in NYC just a few months ago I've played at Butterfield8, Saloon, Le Souk, and The Village Pourhouse.

The things I've learned since making the move to NYC:

1) DJs are hustlers... It's less about the music you play and more about you're business skills. In order to get gigs you need a following of at least 20-30 people, a website, and an all around hustler's mentality. It doesn't matter what kind of music you play... If you can convince the manager to hire you and pay you in cash you've done your job!

2) No requests! Prior to moving to NYC I always thought it was courteous to take requests. I always new they fucked with my set but I would just play them to keep people happy. What I've learned... fuck people. DJs are independent contractors which means we work for ourselves and not the bar. If you ask me for a song and I say no, feel free to go tell the manager that the DJ won't take your requests. HE DOESN'T EVEN KNOW MY NAME! and he doesn't care either, trust me.

3) DJing is HARD! Sometimes I would DJ two nights in a row at Bucknell and be exhausted for a week after. This past week I played 4 nights in a row and I have 3 nights this week. It may not be a 9-5, but it's hard as hell... Not to mention, 3 or 4 gigs a week doesn't cut it. To make the kind of dough I have my eyes set on, I'm gonna need 5 or 6. Hustler's. Mentality.

So, tonight I'm lucky enough to have the gig at Village Pourhouse thanks to fellow Bucknell grad, DJ Autograph. Come by and check it out... Set starts at 9 and the beer selection is money. Tomorrow night I'll be at Butterfield8, set starts at 10 and open bar wristbands can be purchased from the hostess. Call or text 607.237.7525 for details on any DJ Z event.

Hope all is well on the other side of this computer monitor... Thanks for following!

DJ Z


Monday, November 1, 2010

R Les/Nightlife Update



Music: For this portions of today's post I thought I'd share some dope Ryan Leslie videos and a dl link for his latest hit with Fabolous. He's really on top of the game right now... Too bad somebody jacked his laptop! check dis ish out...











Nightlife: Le Souk/Butterfield/TBD


First I'd like to start by saying last week was awesome! We started the week out early at Le Souk on Wednesday night and it was off the hook. Big ups to Immodice Productions and DJ Mark Larush... Le Souk is going down again this Wednesday at 11:30 courtesy of Immodice Productions so rest up the next couple nights cuz you're breaking out the dancing shoes on Wednesday!



Last Thursday was my first night at the Village Pourhouse thanks to DJ Autograph who was kind enough to let me fill in for him.. I had a lot of fun, and my favorite part was my bar tab was comped and they had one of the best beer selections I've seen in NYC. I definitely recommend checking it out and thanks to Autograph I will probably be back soon... I will be sure to keep everyone posted.


Friday's Butterfield 8!!! Last week went great and I'll be there again this Friday performing my usual duties as resident dj (i.e. killing the mix). Open bar wirstabnds will be available per usual so if you're looking for a relaxed place to post up on Friday hit me up.

Saturday night was the Homecoming/Halloween register at Sig Chi (Bucknell) and as most DJ Z registers are - SHIT WAS CRAZYYYY!!! Big ups to Greg Stewart for bringing me in for the event and I hope we can put something else together in the future. Saturday nights in the future are currently open in my schedule but will be filled in the near future. So stay posted for more info on Saturday night gigs.

For details/questions about any DJ Z event call/text 607.237.7525

Hope to See you all at Le Souk (wednesday) and Butterfield8 (friday) this week!!!

Check back soon for up to date info!

-DJ Z