I Don’t Role With Cliques

I don’t role with cliques or d*cks, my posse is full of chicks. Your results from the Hospital just came in. Tests show you need more Funk in your life. Meeting Andre Cymone and his wife Katherine face to face = priceless. I’ll be honest. I hate flooding Facebook with my event fliers and listings. I know it annoys some people. But if I don’t the venue will be empty and I won’t make any money, won’t get re-booked… or both. So please excuse my excessive postings, but this is my career and how I survive. Thank you and hope to see you at an event or anywhere else we may bump into each other. In the way that MJ fans bring it to a party (fashion and passion) in New York, Prince fans bring it in San Francisco. Last night, oh lawd, it was brought! Once all the photos and video footage leaks you’ll understand. It was a beautiful night. Thank you friends and fans. Midnight Star had some good songs, just saying. There was live semi nude body painting at the Bend event. One woman got painted as PRN and woman got painted as MJ. It really is true, you never know what’s gonna happen at a PR+MJ party. That Shout At The Devil album by Motley Crue still kicks *ss. If you been deejaying for a decade and you can’t beatmix… you need to go back to step #1. F*ck water resistant, I need a watch with a gawt damn light so I can see the time in da club. Companies making dj style watches, put a light in it! Brass In Pocket by the Pretenders is such a good song. Pinball Wizard by The Who, yeah… I used to freestyle skateboard to this song. Rappers betta buy some lasers, the game done changed. The best quote today from someone who was at the Seattle party and I didn’t even know they were there – “I slipped in by myself, did my thing, slipped out.” I’m glad I don’t watch Scandal cause everyone on FB be spoiling. Record release parties – lol, the 90s are over. The new single The Breakdown by Prince is available on iTunes.

Pharell Hat

You can watch people on Facebook and Twitter and after a while know a lot about their character. When fashion designers launch record labels I laugh. In fact anyone launching a company in this day and age and they call it a record label… they’re already 20 years behind. Billboard still puts Boxscore Concert Grosses at the back of the magazine. Kinda like Guitar Center still having deejay equipment in the back of their catalog. While in Costo I went to grab a case of the Mexican Coke but stopped myself. Gotta stay strong on this battle with soda. Listening to the whole Sheila E. album Icon. I didn’t know it was released in the UK in November. It sounds great. It’s not about how many albums you ship, it’s about how many units don’t get returned. That movie Paranormal Activity was made for $15,000 and grossed $193,000,000. Wow! Good lawd, LA came out in full force force… like Full Force get busy one time! Thank you all for the the support. Cheers to Robbie and Silent Frisco for having me. I will be back in LA on May 10th for an old fashion speakers in yo face Prince and MJ party at Good Hurt Nightclub featuring a live performance by Andre Cymone and his band. When bands have crappy t-shirts and the bootleggers have better designs… go back to the drawing board. I just ordered tickets to my DC and NYC events. Some might say I’m nuts but if I can’t support myself I can’t expect anyone else to either. everyone wants to be a concert promoter til they lose money. I feel really sorry for these people profiled American Greed that have been scammed. But good lawd, don’t give your entire live savings to anyone. Is a photo with more than one person in it actually a “selfie?” I’m getting confused. Bad photo is called an oopsie, someone needs to bust out an old Troop jacket for a troopsie. Folerio… that is all you need to know.

It’s Like That

If you don’t have photos on your FB page or we don’t have a few friends of substance in common… your friend request is getting ignored. I believe the first 12″ rap singles I owned were Reckless by Ice T and Electric Kingdom by Twilight 22, but when I traded some rock records with a kid for the first Run DMC abum, it changed my life. Thank you Run, DMC and Jam Master Jay (R.I.P.). Having dinner with Matt Fink was nice, seeing my old friend Sam Craig and talking biz was good, but scoring an original Debbie Gibson tour book – fantastic! Laine’s turntable dress that she wore in Chicago was the bomb. If you’re a creative person, artist or self employed make sure you’re doing what you truly love. Otherwise the grind will wear you down. I have to say the great thing about what I do is no matter how tired I get, I can wake up the next day and be back in love. Way back in the day you were just a dj but nowadays you have to be a dj and promoter. The good thing about being a promoter is I keep booking myself. Great to see Peanut Butter Wolf. The documentary is amazing (Our Vinyl Weighs A Ton). Sheila E. has a new song out, Mona Lisa (feat. Lucia Parker & Gisa Vatcky). Both Andre Cymone and Neneh Cherry have new albums out. Note to party goers: when the venue closes at 1:45am, 1:40am is not the time to make a song request. While everyone is watching the Oscars, I’m listening to Breakers Revenge. “When someone gives you gentle feedback, it’s because they want to connect, not because they want to help you finish burning down the bridge you ignited in the first place. They don’t want an excuse, a clever comeback or a recitation that you’re just doing your job.” – Seth Godin. Rappers and DJs need to stop with that “played alongside” and “shared the stage with” in their bios. Unless you were actually on stage at the same time performing a song together. Plays, listens, views, likes etc., those numbers are all smoke & mirrors. The only two numbers that count are: 1 – not how many units you shipped but how many units you get paid on. 2 – how many people buy tickets to your show. For our Prince and Michael Experience on May 10th at Good Hurt Nightclub Andre Cymone and his band will perform music from his new album The Stone. I’ve been really into Talking Heads lately. Gonna have to get a lot more music from them for my collection. It’s kinda funny. I always thought of hip-hop as my roots in the music biz. But a year or two ago I was speaking with Dan the Automator and he asked what I’d been up to and I told him about my Prince and MJ parties. He said “I see you went back to your roots.” It took me a minute to get it but I realized he remembered my room from back in the day where I had Prince records and posters all over the walls. It was meant to be. New office chair… my *ss feels like it’s sitting on a million bucks now. Party update for friends and fans is WASHINGTON DC : Due to circumstances beyond my control the venue has moved the event from the 28th to Thursday, March 27th. If Facebook and Amazon joined forces it would be crazy. Anything that your friends post about that you like you just click to add it to your cart. Three things that impressed me this last month: Uber car service, Hollywood Reporter magazine, UDG Creator dj stand.

Gotta Play To Win

I will never get duped like Deadmau5, song request offer for $200k to play Living On A Prayer and the dude didn’t pay. Money first, cash only. Plus, did he really think someone was actually gonna pay him 200,000 dollars to play a Bon Jovi song – lol. Even rich people aren’t that crazy. The Prince and Michael Experience – Nov 2nd in San Francisco at Madrone Art Bar. It’s like Mardi Gras, Halloween, NYE and Las Vegas all rolled into one. The annoying thing about Le Petit Dave Paul is he only talks using lyrics from Prince and Michael Jackson songs, and he can’t be re-programmed. After I grabbed my mail yesterday he said – “Is the mailman jerking u round? Did he put your million dollar check, In someone elses box?” Listening to the new Gary Numan album, so far much better than the new Depeche Mode album. After this the new Pet Shop Boys album. “If I have a cupcake and I give it to you, I don’t have a cupcake any more. But if someone who is angry gives you their anger, now you both might have it.” – Seth Godin. I just renamed my Wifi network “FBI Van” – lol. My neighbors are gonna trip out. Whenever I hear Tenderness by General Public I think, that could have been a David Bowie song. The cool thing about being able to test a remix in da club is you can make adjustments to it later to improve it for the next party. Since the Chicago party I’ve made some adjustments to my NOW (Gold Edit) and will test it again on Nov 2nd at Madrone. Haters are the same people that are waiters… keep waiting.

This and That

To the woman that called me “close minded” because I wouldn’t “play some other kind of music…” if you walk into a Prince and Michael Jackson party – that’s what you’re gonna hear. Maybe you should be aware of what you’re walking into. Whenever Prince plays I Would Die 4 U in concert as soon as the music drops you best believe you’re gonna hear dudes screaming like women. Some djs, they like to drop the bass. When I dj, panties drop. First major record labels try to kill vinyl with CD’s so they can resell all the same albums and now they can’t stop talking about vinyl’s comeback. LOL… get with the times, youtube and soundcloud fools. Adapt or die. I’m sorry, but it’s weird to see/hear the Jackson’s performing Michael’s solo material. Unless it’s pressed on vinyl it’s not a Record Release Party, it’s an Album Release Party. Thank you. You may now go back to buying drinks for your friends. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with this, this is just my personal preference. But I will never put my name on my laptop and I will never post a photo of my Serato screen showing what song I’m playing. The album Tetra by C2C, best album of the year hands down. On Dec 31st you will agree with me. Nothing will be better than this. The KFC Yum! Center… really? Some of this venue naming is just stupid. I love meeting new people and talking with old friends at my gigs but we have to split our conversions into 2 minute sections. My sets aren’t pre planned so once a song is about 2 minutes in I have to start searching for the next song to beat mix in on the break or to mix in if the song playing is a short song. But if I’m playing the 21 minute version of America by Prince, we can get into a deep convo for sure. Billy Jam always told me when you have lemons, you make lemonade. But some of y’all are putting in too much sugar. When you stretch the truth too far, we can all see how fake it is.

This and That

The one phrase you’ll never hear spoken at a Prince and MJ party, “the freaks ain’t freakin’.” Remember Klipsh LaScalla speakers? Old school mobile dj’s know what I’m talking about. You know how they have that store Forever 21. They should make one for women fifty and older called Finally 21. Unlock a phone, you go to jail. Like, you wouldn’t steal music or download movies would you? “Marketing is the art of seeing (and then creating) what might be interesting to more than our friends. There’s a circle of friends in our lives that care a lot about what we care about. The rest of the world? They mostly don’t.” – Seth Godin. Am I the only one that caught the mistake/typo in the Billboard article on Prince? They wrote Andy Allo joined the NPG band in 2001. I think they meant to write 2011. I was just listening to a rap album that was so bad I had to put on some Britney Spears to wash my ears out. WTF?! Yes, it was THAT bad – lol. This is why Prince doesn’t talk to old folks. Fools at Midem think the music business can become a 100 billion dollar business by 2020. In 1999 it was at $36.7 billion and dropped to $23.3 billion by 2011. I guess you can say anything you want at a conference. Note to self when on the road. As soon as I walk into a nightclub I’m going to remember to locate all the exits and test them to make sure they aren’t locked. I’m not trying to get caught in a burning club. “Ain’t nobody gawt time fer dat!” I think of really cool ideas when I’m either in the shower, or drinking beer. I’m not in the shower. Pink’s Try and John Waite’s Missing You would prob makes for a good mashup. “Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe said the USPS is currently losing $25 million per day” Sheeeet. Fire some of those slow ass tellers and sh!t will get on track. “Get the money/don’t leave anything behind/Just some pieces of your heart/and fragments of your mind.”- Jon Langford. Prince came raw. Releasing a song called “Breakfast Can Wait” on National Pancake Day. Dave’s DJ tip of the week: As soon as you start your night, 9pm or whenever that might be, you don’t have to blast the music at full volume. People want to get a drink, mingle and talk when they first come into a venue. Especially when it’s early in the evening. Raise the volume levels slowly as the space starts to fill up and people start dancing. If you don’t have money put in sweat equity. If you can’t do that, you’re better off with a 9 to 5. I hate when you fall asleep with the tv on and then in the middle of the night that damn “HELP, I’ve fallen” lady is screaming and it wakes you up thinking someone is calling for help. dear Bands, DJ’s, Producers and Rappers – sure it helps to have a good stage show but the bottom line is how many people come through the door. Please do your part to market & promote the event you’re playing at. Do not leave it all to the promoter/venue. Things really do go full circle. I finally listened to some trap music. We were doing that sh!t in the 80s. Best get ready for the next comeback – new jack swing – lol.

This and That

Here’s a joke for you. David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen walk into a bar together… wait. Just realized the soundtrack to Batman Forever was pretty dope. My favorite magazines back in the day were The Source and Rolling Stone, now it’s Billboard and Pollstar. TV commercials trying to sell you something based on fear is f’ed up. I guess weak minded individuals fall for it. To the girl at RED last week. When you see a dj spinning records and they have a laptop, they are usually using Serato or Traktor to control their mp3s like records. They can not go online and play a song from Youtube. It doesn’t work that way. Facility Charge $2.50 + Convenience Charge $5.85 + Order Processing Fee $3.25 = i hate ticket fees. So Irving Azoff resigned as chairman of Live Nation and part of the reason is to avoid paying the higher tax rate on the money in 2013. No comment. Am I the only one that thinks George Michael could pull off the vocals perfectly for a cover of By My Side by INXS? According to articles when I deejay I should be dancing, making hearts with my hands, fist pumping, hand clapping and other antics to “connect with the crowd.” WTF are you even watching me for? YOU should be busy dancing. The music connects us all.

This and That

Got my Sheila E. dvd in the mail. Oh yes! “There are no rules. Do it your way. Stumble upon new ideas, forge new pathways, there’s no right way, only your way.” – Bob Lefsetz. Dear Amazon, you need to work on your recommends. Showing me the items I already bought… pretty sure I’m not gonna buy them all again. After Kanye onder how many up and coming rappers are going out and buying dresses. When I deejay just call me Captain Marvel, cause so many people be Shazam’ing. Comic book nerds will get it. Thieves, liars and lazy people. In that order. Don’t care for any of them at all. Make that change. Rappers are safe for now, cause Comedians are in danger. “Beggars can’t be choosers. If you’d rather be a chooser, enter a market or a transaction where you have something to trade, something of value, something to offer that’s difficult to get everywhere else. If all you have is the desire to get picked, that’s not sufficient.” – Seth Godin. I’m so good at hating… I can hate on myself, and believe it! Yesterday someone asked me to name my favorite 3 Prince songs. I told them that would be impossible. Too many songs and my favorites are always rotating and changing along with my life. Then they asked me what my favorite 3 Michael Jackson songs were. My answer was the same. Listening to some remixes. Just cause you can doesn’t mean you should and if you do maybe it’s not for the public. Quality control please. If someones Facebook account has photos of everything but them… be careful. Don’t get Catfished. Do not talk to the dj when you see them using the crossfader. They are busy mixing two songs together. Thank you. Ever notice when you go to the doctor they either ask if you do or tell you to stop “smoking” and stop drinking “coffee.” $7 for a cup of coffee, damn the coffee industry got over on society for real. The Rolling Stones don’t mess around. ” Family or not, there aren’t any comp tickets on a Stones tour. Be it promoter, label, band member or sponsor, someone’s paying for every ticket in the manifest” – Billboard Mag. Nov 17th issue

This and That

Jerome Benton called me the other day to say hi 🙂 I have a new friend. When you’re stuck on a plane you have nothing else to do but think of silly stuff. Wish I had Photoshop loaded on this laptop. I would change the “like” button on facebook to “lick” and then write Deez Nuts before it – lol. Best request from Silent Disco last week. “Play something fast.” I was already at 132 bpm so I hit ’em with Maniac (as in Flashdance) and Devo’s Whip It. 158 bpm, hope that was fast enough. San Francisco, you’re in for a holiday treat. You get two editions of The Prince and Michael Experience in December. 12/1 at Madrone Art Bar and 12/7 at Red Devil Lounge. What better way to get ready for the holidays than seeing old friends, making new ones, and enjoying the music of Prince and Michael Jackson. First The Beatles, now Kid Rock and AC/DC. Come on Def Leppard, stop holding out on iTunes. Dear friends. If you do not have an emergency/survival kit you should make one or update the one you have. 3 days, ha! After New Orleans and New York y’all better make it so you and your family can last a week. Mother earth don’t play and you can’t count on the government or anyone else to be fast or efficent. Dear Walmart. It’s not the one day but the whole month that you have to worry about. If this was a race you would be the hare, not the turtle. Once everyone saw the mayhem people all said the same thing to me the last two days “We went to, or are going to Target.”

THIS N THAT

To all the “new” DJ’s out there. If it was just about playing music it would be so easy. The trick is you have to also be a booking agent, travel agent, marketing wiz, promoter, and host. You’ll see. I grew up on rock, new wave, soul, freestyle, dance and rap music. Thank gawd I grew up when I did. There are some shady @ss mutha f**kas featured on American Greed. “Gawt damn they ruthless.” How come the police never slam them down on the concrete and put a foot on their neck. I can’t believe it, the trailer for Taken 2 actually makes it look good. Hmmm. Stop the presses, someone is in line to take over Elektra? I didn’t even know that label was still around. Majors lost years ago, they just don’t know it yet. Why do singers that can sing use autotune? Please stop. Don’t be lazy in the studio. Do fifty takes if you have to. I’ve learned a lot over 28 years of dj’ing. I’m still learning. The great thing about music, is there is so much good music in the world to experience, you can’t hear it all in a lifetime. Facebook, Twitter, WordPress, Tumblr, Pinterest, Instagram… gawd, how many places ya gotta promote an event? The answer – everywhere and anywhere! Any rapper that has a “S” in their name and they write it out with a “$” y’all betta be making cash. I’m a VIP, Very Into Prince. That breathing on Kraftwerk’s Tour de France still creeps me out to this day. This has nothing to do with anything in my life right now. It’s just something I have noticed on social media lately (Facebook and Twitter). Some people write rude stuff about other people, I guess thinking they won’t find out or think they can get away with stuff online. This isn’t like the old message boards & forums where no one knew who you were because you hid behind a fake name. So keep in mind, some people don’t forget and some people get even – sometimes without you even knowing it. When I was a child I cracked a tooth eating a potato chip. True story. The school thought I had been in a fight and didn’t believe me. To top it off the dentist pulled only half the tooth and I had to go back the next day cause the dork missed the other half. Just like you gotta let a ho be a ho, you gotta let a hater hate. It’s just who they are. Dear Apple, if you made your own printers again that easily connected/talked with your Macs, iPads and iPhones you would sell tons. Okay, I’m not gonna diss other artists, but this new ZZ Top album just f*cked all of you artists with LP’s up with the first 3 songs. Y’all all betta call Rick Rubin. There is no party without party people. Some dj’s need to check their ego’s. Maybe some people are there to see you but people go out to drink, dance, meet members of the opposite sex (or whoever they’re into), forget their troubles and have fun. To anyone and everyone that has attended one of our events, thank you. Without you, there is no us. I just learned something. If someone has 5 out of 5 stars on Yelp. Don’t trust it. You can’t be that good and not have at least one hater. Reading Pollstar is eye opening. Artists who you think are doing well on the road are only filling venues 50% and bands I’ve never heard of are selling out shows. If record sales are dead and touring is the way to go, then Pollstar is the new Billboard. Thanx Forbes for the free issue of Forbes Life. It’s kinda like they’re teasing you though – here’s all the sh*t you can’t afford. I actually watched a little bit of The Voice the other night. I get it. They’re not selling you on music or the competition… they’re selling dreams and selling you the hope of dreams. Now I understand why people get hooked on the show.