Think You Can DJ: Interview with DJ RamDog

Wed, 03/30/2016 - 3:04pm
Written by ArtistWorks_Help
Topics: Interview, skratch

think you can dj

In this interview we talked with Ramsey Anderson, aka DJ RamDog about his game show "Think You Can DJ."

How did the idea for the“Think You Can DJ” game show come about?

In 1995, while I was working at my first DJ gig I thought about ways to get DJs to experiment so the audience would get more out of the experience. And also I wanted to showcase how amazing these DJs are. My first thought was, 'how about we make a mix while blindfolded?' But then I immediately thought, 'oh that is way too hard.' So then I grabbed a pencil and a napkin drew the turntable but turned it into a "Wheel of Fortune" with genres of music inside the disc: Techno, Gothic, Industrial, Ska, 80s, Hip Hop.

Interview with Dj Claim from Paris

Tue, 02/16/2016 - 4:39pm
Written by ArtistWorks_Help

Back in 2009 when ArtistWorks first launched Qbert Skratch University, Dj Claim was one of the first to sign up. I was always impressed by the quality and style of the videos he submitted - they were original, thoughtfully composed, and musically inspiring. After quickly gaining popularity amongst the skratch community, Dj Claim quietly disappeared from the digital world. Only recently has he resurfaced, refreshed and inspired to make music again. He’s been releasing a series of videos which feature him creating skratch compositions in real time using his QFO turntable and a loop pedal, and he also put out an EP of music called Under Jumper - which I came to learn he made back in 2005. I reached out to him to learn more about his story.

SkratchFest: Art of Turntablism

Thu, 10/15/2015 - 4:06pm
Written by ArtistWorks_Help

skratchfest logoDj Hypnotize is putting together a festival event called SkratchFest. Taking place on Feb. 27th 2016, SkratchFest will be celebrating the DJ and showcasing the Art of Turntablism and Skratching. We caught up with him recently to find out more:

WHY HAVE YOU BEEN SO DRAWN TO SKRATCHING?

Dj Hypnotize: I love it so much, for me it's therapeutic. I love the way music has the power to move people. Skratching is beautiful and a pure form of expression. I like all the endless possibilities and the fact that we are still writing history draws me to help create and spread awareness about it and share my gifts of music with the world... I've been Skratching for almost 20 years and my style is improving everyday. I don't plan on retiring anytime soon so be on the lookout!

 

skratchfest logoDj Hypnotize is putting together a festival event called SkratchFest. Taking place on Feb. 27th 2016, SkratchFest will be celebrating the DJ and showcasing the Art of Turntablism and Skratching. We caught up with him recently to find out more:

WHY HAVE YOU BEEN SO DRAWN TO SKRATCHING?

Dj Hypnotize: I love it so much, for me it's therapeutic. I love the way music has the power to move people. Skratching is beautiful and a pure form of expression. I like all the endless possibilities and the fact that we are still writing history draws me to help create and spread awareness about it and share my gifts of music with the world... I've been Skratching for almost 20 years and my style is improving everyday. I don't plan on retiring anytime soon so be on the lookout!

Thud Rumble and Intel Edison are Reinventing the Turntable

Mon, 09/14/2015 - 10:23am
Written by ArtistWorks_Help

“The modern DJ setup has always required a laptop, and it’s a barrier for the DJ to engage with their instrument - and that’s the first thing we want to eliminate… Our goal right now is to reinvent the turntable. It’s endless what can be done if technology can lift an art form up.” - Yogafrog, Thud Rumble

DJ Qbert is working with Thud Rumble and the Intel Edison team to develop a better turntable for DJs to skratch with. They are building a new design which will eliminate the need to connect a laptop to a mixer in order to run Digital Vinyl Systems like Serato and TraktorThis would be a gamecharger for the DJ industry since currently most everyone uses a laptop to run digital music files through traditional turntables. The final products have yet to be seen, and we are far from seeing anything ready at the consumer level. This is just the beginnings of a very exciting development stage, and we've only just begun to see a taste of what's possible with this new technology.

In other news, Qbert is working with D-Styles and Shortkut on a full length album! Invisibl Skratch Piklz fans have been waiting 20 years for something like this - click here to read more. The plan is to perform the album at the Red Bull Thre3style World Finals in Tokyo on September 20!