Dee Jay Mack
10
MAN OF THE YEAR DJ MACKIE INTERVIEW.....
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN A DJ?
OVER FOURTEEN YEARS
WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT BEING A DJ?
MAKING THE CROWD SWEAT AND GIVING PEOPLE A GOOD SHOW
WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO BE A DJ?
"I HAVE A LOVE FOR MUSIC, I REMEMBER WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, MY MOM AND I USED TO LISTEN TO OLDIES BUT GOODIES AS SHE CLEANED THE HOUSE ON SUNDAYS".
HOW DID YOU GET INTRODUCED TO DJ'ing?
I HAD A SINGLE DECK TAPE PLAYER AT SEVEN YEARS OLD AND I USED TO PLAY A SONG, KEEP REWINDING IT AND PLAYING IT BACK AND THEN I USED TO HIT THE PLAY BUTTON DOWN TO MAKE IT SOUND EXTRA SLOW AND THEN LET IT GO SO IT WOULD PICK UP SPEED AGAIN". "THAT'S WHEN I ORIGINALLY GOT INTRODUCED TO BEING A DJ WITHOUT REALLY HAVING A CLUE THAT THAT WAS WHAT I WAS DOING".
HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING SIGNED TO 10TH LETTER ENTERTAINMENT?
"GREAT, I STILL DO ME, THE ONLY THING THAT HAS CHANGED ARE THE CHECKS".
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE PROJECTS THAT YOU ARE WORKING ON FOR 2011?
"A CD/DVD MIXTAPE COMPILATION WHICH WILL FEATURE THE SHOWTIME TEAM FAMILY, PEEDI CRAKK, JADAKISS,YOUNG JEEZY, T-PAIN, MEEK MILL AND A COUPLE OF ATRIST'S THAT I WORK WITH…SUCH AS YAZZ THE GREAT BABY DOLL DOEBOY AND THE LIST GOES ON". ALSO THE DVD WILL BE A DOCUMENTARY OF DJ MACK, FROM BEGINNING TO NOW".
T: I HEARD YOU JUST RECENTLY PURCHASED A NICELY PRICED HOME OUTSIDE OF THE CITY, WHAT KEEPS YOU HERE IN PHILADELPHIA?
M: MY FAMILY KEEPS ME HERE IN PHILLY.
T: HOW MANY CLUBS HAVE YOU DJ'ED FOR IN THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA?
M: "I HAVE DJ'ED AT EVERY CLUB IN THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA".
T: I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU GREW UP IN A HOUSEHOLD WITH NO MALE ROLE MODEL UNTIL YOUR LATE TEENS, HOW DID THAT MAKE YOU FEEL?
M: "I DIDN'T CARE; I HAD MY MOM AND GRANDMOTHER TO TEACH ME TO BE RESPONSIBLE, AS WELL AS A GREAT FATHER WITH MY KIDS. ALSO, I WAS SPOILED SO I DID NOT WANT OR NEED FOR ANYTHING IN MY LIFE, THAT HAS HELPED ME TO HAVE AN OPEN RELATIONSHIP WITH MY KIDS AS WELL".
T: WHAT HAS BEEN THE PROUDEST MOMENT IN YOUR LIFE TO DATE?
M:"WHEN MY CHILDREN WERE BORN AND HEARING THEM CALL ME DADA, I ALSO LOVE TO SEE MY KIDS SMILE, IT MAKES ME PROUD KNOWING THAT I HAVE AN IMPACT ON MAKING THEM SMILE".
T: WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE THAT YOU CAN GIVE TO THE YOUTH?
M:REALIZE THAT WHEN YOUR LOOKING FOR A FRIEND, HOPE THAT YOU DON'T FIND YOUR ENEMY…"STICK TO YOUR BOOKS AND KNOW THAT ''REAL IS REAL AND FAKE IS FAKE".
--- ARTICLE WRITEUP ---
WHO WOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT THE SON OF ONE MS. CLAUDIA CERDAN WOULD GROW UP TO BE THE TRI-STATES NUMBER ONE D.J.? YES THAT'S RIGHT, NONE OTHER THAN D.J. MACK. MACK SPENT MOST OF HIS EARLY CHILDHOOD YEARS GROWING UP IN SOUTH PHILADELPHIA BEFORE RELOCATING TO NORTH PHILADELPHIA. DJ MACK HAS TURNED DOWN THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND COLLEGE AT BRYANT COLLEGE IN RHODE ISLAND, WHICH MOST PEOPLE WOULD SAY "ARE YOU CRAZY"?! WELL WITH HIS REPETOIR OF EVENTS IT’S NOT HARD TO SEE WHY HE CHOSE THE ROAD AND PATH HE CHOSE.
HE WAS VERY INTERESTED IN MUSIC AT THE YOUNG AND TENDER AGE OF 7 YEARS OLD AND HAS BEEN A LEGEND IN HIS OWN RIGHT, WAY BEFORE HE BECAME THE TRI-STATES NUMBER ONE DJ. DJ MACK HAS NOT LET ANYTHING STAND IN THE WAY OF HIS LOVE FOR MUSIC. HE RECALLS AND STANDS FIRM THAT "HE WILL BE A DJ UNTIL HE DECIDES HE'S NOT WORKING ANYMORE". DJ MACK'S GOD BROTHER, DJ STORM WAS HIS MOTIVATION; “DJ STORM IS THE REASON THAT RADIO IS WHAT IT IS TODAY" AND IT'S CLEAR THAT MACK WILL CONTINUE THE LEGACY. MACKIE WILL NOT LET ANYTHING STAND IN THE WAY OF HIS CAREER, HE HAS OVERCOME OBSTACLES SUCH AS NOT HAVING A FATHER IN THE HOUSEHOLD AND HAS STATED THAT "EVEN THOUGH HE DID NOT HAVE A FATHER FIGURE IN THE HOUSE HE DIDN'T CARE, HE HAD HIS GRANDMOTHER AND MOTHER" AND HAS GROWN UP GREAT AND ALSO VERY SUCCESSFUL. HIS MOTHER AND GRANDMOTHER HAVE SHOWN HIM HOW TO BE A RESPONSIBLE FATHER AND MAN TO HIS CHILDREN...
DJ MACK HAS BEEN A HOUSEHOLD NAME SINCE HE WAS THIRTEEN YEARS OLD AND OPENING FOR THE HEAVY HITTERS SUCH AS TUPAC SHAKUR, BIGGIE SMALLS, JACKAL THE BEAR, LIL' KIM, LIL' CEASE, METHOD MAN AND REDMAN, AS WELL AS RUFF RYDERS AND KENNY SMOOV JUST TO NAME A FEW. HE HAD THE GAME MASTERED AT TWELVE YEARS OF AGE AND AT THIRTEEN HE WAS OPENING FOR SOME MAJOR NAMES AND YET HE IS STILL VERY MODEST AND HUMBLE. THERE ARE HOWEVER A LOT OF SIDES TO DJ MACK; HE USED TO BE A DANCER FOR A GROUP CALLED 4 HORSEMEN AND EVEN CHOREOGRAPHED FOR EVE, MUSIQ SOULCHILD, AS WELL AS ''AND 1'' BASKETBALL. HE STATES "I STOPPED BECAUSE I FELL IN LOVE WITH MUSIC". DJ MACK ALSO KNOWN AS MACKIE HAS HAD A LOT OF SUCCESS IN HIS CAREER AS A DJ, HE WON AN AWARD FOR BEING THE MOST VERSATILE DJ IN 2007 BY SONY MUSIC GROUP, AS WELL AS 9 TROPHIES FOR DJ BATTLES, SPINOFFS, TROPHIES FROM PEPSI AS WELL AS TROPHIES FOR DJING IN PHILADELPHIA PA, WILDWOOD NJ,AND ATLANTIC CITY.
WITH SO MANY PROJECTS ON A DAILY BASIS ONE MAY WONDER HOW DOES DJ MACK FIT EVERYTHING IN; WELL LET ME JUST SAY THAT I HAVE SEEN ONE OF HIS DAILY SCHEDULES AND LETS JUST SAY IT STARTS AROUND 7 IN THE MORNING AND IT MAY NOT STOP UNTIL THE FOLLOWING MORNING. HE HAS A MIX-TAPE / DVD COMING OUT IN SEPTEMBER/2012 CALLED "I SPEAK WITH MY HANDS" IN ADDITION TO HIS HECTIC SCHEDULE FOR BEING THE DJ TO 10TH LETTER ENTERTAINMENT, DJ FOR BATCAVE RADIO AND BATCAVE STUDIO, HEADSHOTS RECORDS, THE DJ, PRODUCER AND FINANCIAL BACK UP FOR GRIND TIME TEAM. HE HAS DONE A LOT OF WORK WITH BOTH SIGNED AND UNSIGNED ARTISTS ALIKE. HE HAS WORKED WITH UNSIGNED ARTISTS SUCH AS CHINK-O THE GREAT BABY DOLL, JOEY JIHAD, AND YAZZ THE GREATEST TO NAME A FEW. HE HAS WORKED WITH AND/OR TOURED WITH SIGNED ARTISTS SUCH AS TREY SONGS,DMX,REED DOLLAZ, PEEDI CRAKK, E-NESS, GILLIE DA KID, MIKE JONES,50 CENTS,PAUL WALL, AND FREEWAY TO NAME A FEW ON THAT SIDE OF THE SPECTRUM.
DJ MACK ALSO HAS ANOTHER GROUP CALLED THE SKRATCH ADDICTZ DJ'S AND DOES WORK WITH THEM AS WELL. HE HAS THE STOP THE VIOLENCE DAY WHICH HE DOES AT DIFFERENT PARKS AND SCHOOLS, EVERY WEEK, EVERY SPRING AND SUMMER, JOINED WITH MEN UNITED, MOTHERS IN CHARGE, PUT THE GUNS DOWN WHICH HE DOES WITH POWER 99FM.
WHEN I ASKED DJ MACK WHAT HE SEES HIMSELF DOING IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS HE SIMPLY STATED THAT "HE SEES HIMSELF AS PRODUCER OF THE YEAR". HE HAS PLANS TO OPEN SCHOOLS FOR BECOMING A DJ AND WILL START ENROLLMENT AS EARLY AS AGE SIX, AND HE PLANS TO HAVE THESE SCHOOLS IN AREAS SUCH AS PHILADELPHIA, NEW JERSEY, DELAWARE, ETC... WHO ELSE BETTER TO DO SUCH A PROJECT OTHER THAN DJ MACK WHO HAS BEEN A DJ AT EVERY CLUB IN THE CITY, AS WELL AS OBVIOUSLY BEING TITLED THE TRI-STATES NUMBER ONE DJ? NO ONE…
IT MAY SEEM LIKE DJ MACK HAS HAD A PRETTY EASY ROAD SINCE HE BECAME A DJ AT THE YOUTHFUL AGE OF JUST THIRTEEN, BUT HE HAS HAD HIS SHARE OF TRIALS AS WELL. MACK HAS BOOKED PARTIES IN THE PAST FOR A MERE PRICE OF $800.00 AND HAD PEOPLE GO BEHIND HIS BACK AND UNDER BOOK THEM FOR $150, AS WELL AS JUST YOUR REGULAR EVERYDAY DEALINGS WITH HATERS AND PEOPLE WHO JUST DIDN'T WANT TO SEE HIM DO GOOD. NEEDLESS TO SAY THAT HE TRIUMPHED OVER ALL THAT AND HAS GAINED MAJOR PULL AT JUST ABOUT ANY RADIO STATION HE CHOOSES TO STEP FOOT INTO. MACK IS ALSO IN THE WORKS FOR BEING SPONSORED BY GUCCI AND ARMANI EXCHANGE, AS WELL AS PURCHASING A CLUB.
IT IS VERY EVIDENT WHY DJ MACK AKA THE TRI-STATES NUMBER ONE DJ HAS BEEN TITLED THE MAN OF THE YEAR. DJ MACK WANTED TO ALSO GIVE SOME VERY SPECIAL SHOT OUTS AND SHOW SOME LOVE FOR THE PEOPLE IN HIS LIFE: MOTHER(CLAUDIA), GRANDMOTHER (LINDA), HIS CHILDREN JAHKARE AND CASHMERE,NIEEM AND A NEW BORN PRINCE- JEH`KHI, MY COUSIN RICH AND FAMILY, DJ STORM, DJ CASHMONEY,THE WHOLE SHOWTIME AND GRIND TIME TEAM FAMILY, BABYDOLL & VEGAS, PEEDI CRAKK, DOEBOY, BATCAVE RADIO AND BATCAVE STUDIO, LARRY LARR, HEADSHOT RECORDS, YOUNG BOB, B.A.M(say no more), DJ AMIR, DJ DAMAGE,DJ RL, DJ CASPER, DJ WAX-SPINNER, DJ LARRY LEGEND, DJ BONES…THE HEAT HOLDERS RECORD POOL(Brock), MEGA FORCE PRODUCTIONS…. AND SPECIAL THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO'S HELPED, AND SUPPORTED DJ MACK......
LOOK FOR MORE FROM DJ MACK IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE AND IF YOU WANT TO GET IN CONTACT WITH DJ MACK FOR PARTIES, ETC, JUST GO TO HIS FACEBOOK PAGE WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/DEE JAY MACK…FOLLOW HIM ON TWITTER AND INSTAGRAM @djmacky215