JAYPLAY
March 8,2001
entertainment news
For comments, contact Erinn R. Barcomb at 864-4810 or jayplay@kansan.com
www.kansan.com/arts
Spinnin' 'round town
By Meghan Bainum
jayplay@kansan.com
jayplay staff writer
Local DJs keep the beat for the love of music
The first tape Seth Roberts owned was the Beairst Jrovs' License to Ill.
Roberts, who often finishes Gyles's sentences, chimed in
"My Dad brought it home and it all started," the Lawrence senior said. License to Ill ignited Roberts' love of music.
"Exactly," he said, "So we might as well do it in a public place."
"We'd be sitting here playing music anyway," said Gyles, a Lawrence resident.
Both Roberts and Gyles are into hip-hop and underground hip-hop. They throw around names like Ugly Duckling, Jurassic 5, De La Soul and — of course — the Beastie Boys.
"We're trying to get the underground hip-hop out there, trying to keep people away from the crap rap," Gyles said. "I'm really tired of going out to the other clubs and hearing the same songs played day after day, week after week."
After collecting stacks of CDs and constantly playing music for his friends at parties, Roberts' passion for music turned into a weekly disc jockey gig at Brown Bear Brewing Co., 729 Massachusetts St., with his friend and roommate, Jason Gyles.
Hip-hop vibes provide the rhythm for DJ-dedicated revelers. Dis jockeys Seth Roberts, Lawrence senior, and
Roberts, who also is a manager at Brown Bear, and
Hip-hop fans provide the rhythm for DJ-dedicated revelers. Disk jacks Seth Roberts, Lawrence senior, and Jason Gyles, Lawrence resident, began their regular gig at the Brown Bear about a month ago. Photo by Jamie Roper/KANSAN
Gyles said DJing was a hobby he started when Brown Bear bought DJ equipment. Though Roberts and Giles use their own CDs, they said buying their own equipment was too expensive.
"We went over to his house one night and just messed around on his CD player," Roberts said. "Then we just took it from there."
Though Roberts and Gyles have only been DJing at Brown Bear for a month, they said the response to their music style was attracting attention.
"When we started one month ago, it was basically just our friends," Roberts said. "Last week we had a full dance floor, so it's
getting bigger."
"Those other DJs probably don't know Ugly Duckling and Pharcyde," Bailey said. "These guys play stuff that might not be the most recent — but definitely has lasting quality."
Ryan Bailey, Lawrence senior, is one of the hip-hop lovers packing the dance floor. He said he liked Gyles and Roberts' hip-hop style.
Like Gyles and Roberts, Curtis McCoy, Des Moines, Iowa, sophomore, got into the world of DJing because of his passion for music. McCoy said he played at parties and at Open Mike Night at the Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St. He's also the Saturday morning DJ for Breakfast for Beatlovers on KJHK, 90.7 FM.
Although McCoy said he eventually would like to specialize in DJing at clubs, right now he doesn't have a regular time or place. But McCoy said where somebody plays doesn't really matter — a true DJ is just someone interested in getting people to listen to music.
"Everyone thinks that DJs today are just people that will play at a club or bar traditionally geared toward dance," he said. "But true DJs are all about the music, learning about music and playing music on a constant basis."
McCoy doesn't have a favorite type of music to play when he spins; he plays what he thinks best fits the mood.
"Music is so varied," he said. "You can play so many kinds of music. I try not to limit myself."
Unlike Roberts and Gyles who spin using CDs, McCoy uses turntables and records. He estimated that he has spent thousands of dollars on equipment and his collection of more than 400 records.
He said when he was spinning at a party and could see the affect the music was having on people, the price of his equipment was worth it.
Roberts agreed.
Although DJing is fun, McCoy said it could be hard work.
"If there's nobody dancing, I'm still having fun," he said. "But when you know you're entertaining people, it makes it even better."
"Sometimes it will flow and you don't even have to think about it," he said. "But sometimes the record stops and you don't have something cued, or you're digging for another record and the record stops. It happens — you want it not to happen — but there's so much going on. You're trying to listen and pick the next record at the same time."
McCoy said he wanted to have a job in the music industry, and DJing was something he took seriously.
"A lot of people just want to be a DJ because it's fashionable or commercially viable," he said. "But those people won't be DJs 40 years from now that have collections or try to get into music."
Much like Roberts and Gyles, McCoy said music would be a huge part of his life even if he wasn't always a DJ.
"I really couldn't live without music," he said. "That's the one thing that if it was taken away from me I wouldn't know what to do."
—Edited by Jacob Roddy
DJ JP steps in and takes over mix control for Seth Roberts, Lawrence senior, left, and Jason Gyles, Lawrence resident, right, while patrons fill the dance floor. Thursday nights at the Brown Bear Brewing Co., 729 Massachusetts St., are reserved for hip-hop music. Photo by Jamie Roper/KANSAN
Jayplay poll Who's your favorite electronic artist?
Moby ... 17 percent
Fatboy Slim ... 10 percent
DJ Shadow ... 9 percent
The Prodigy ... 9 percent
Other ... 12 percent
I don't like electronic music
40 percent
Number of votes: 64
Which most accurately predicts the future?
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Log on to kansan.com to cast your vote.
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