Matt Roan played piano and in bands as kid. Throughout high school and college he was a guitarist and drummer in rock bands. His bands played gigs and put out albums, but after they broke up, he was trying to figure out how he could still perform on stage. During his band hiatus, he moved in with a friend that had one turn table and a mixer and he taught himself how to DJ from turn table to iPod. His close friends in Chicago were already in the deejay circles, which led to his first residency at a dive bar in Ukrainian Village. That led to other gigs and then into the club scene. At 22 years old he quit his day job and started to DJ full-time. The performance element closely mirrored to being on stage during his rock band days. “The whole idea was to entertain people and that’s what attracted me to wanting to be a DJ. I want to make people have the most fun that they possibly have by any means necessary,” said Matt. He realized that he had the power to make the crowd move during his first real gig. Not yet knowing how to mix, hid goal was for folks to have fun listening to his music. His musical selection turned out to be spot on and he earned his first $100 at the end of the night. At that moment he was hooked and wanted to DJ every night of the week. However his three to four day a week gigs at clubs are no longer, as he has moved on to more corporate gigs. He also DJ’s the Chicago Blackhawks games, which is a unique experience, because he only has three minutes to wow the crowd during ice breaks.
When he’s the featured DJ at an event, Matt likes to take people on a ride by building with a mid-tempo beat and then to a faster pace. He then incorporates a little slower hip hop before taking the tempo back up. “If you’re listening to same tempo for four hours the music will become monotonous very quickly. Keeping things interesting tempo wise makes for an interesting evening,” he concluded. He sees the dance and nightlife culture as big as ever. “People are now just excited about DJ’s as they are about bands,” he exclaims. He points to Vegas as an example where people are venturing out to see DJ’s instead of shows. “It’s pretty wild how popular the EDM
how popular the EDM thing has become, but I feel the bubble may be about to burst soon.” Matt initially learned how to DJ on vinyl, which he feels has made him a better DJ. But he does admit that technology has made being a DJ more fun and creative, especially when he’s able to incorporate loops, cue points and effects in to his mix. He loves the twerk movement going on right now and likes playing hip hop at 130 bpm, which is reminiscent of the hip hop he used to play during his early days. He warns aspiring DJ’s to be passionate about their music, “If you want to DJ to only get drink tickets and live the bottle service life, it’s probably not going to work out. The reason why I’ve been successful is because I love music and I love performing.” Matt has been featured in magazines and numerous events. Trying to land him to DJ one of your gigs could be difficult as his services are in high demand. Next time you’re at a Blackhawks game and bopping your head to the music, it’s most likely that Matt is making you move.