The year is almost over! New Year’s Eve is a busy time of year for DJs. I’ve got two big shows coming
up this weekend. I’m grateful for every opportunity to do what I enjoy. Meanwhile, I want to look
back at some of my favorite shows of the year. Here they are in no particular order (maybe
chronological though).

1. Me with This is ART in Knoxville.
We did this show way back in January. It might be my favorite. It was the show that I unofficially
anointed myself as This is ART‘s understudy. This was the first of a bunch of shows we did
together this year. For this one, he gave me a great opportunity to go out there to Knoxville and
showcase my unique live PA set. They have a great music scene in Knoxville. We were part of
Midnight Voyage, which is a great weekly party based around their UTK radio show. Also with FTW (Meatball Madness & J-Mo).

2. Me with Spoken Nerd, Manchild, The Billy Goats, & Get Got
This was my Almost Too Good To Be True show at The 5 Spot. The 5 spot is one of my favorite places
to play in Nashville. Great vibes. It was also the show that I was kind of in charge of. Good
weekend for all of us. Great to do a show with friends. I got a lot of great video; including a
special moment with the MCs getting on stage with me and Jed Smith while freestyling.

3. Me with Evolution Control Committee, stAllio!, DJ Empirical and Pimpdaddysupreme at The End.
I felt like such a rock star that weekend. Great to mix it up with some pioneering electronic artists. I was inspired all weekend by watching ECC do their thing. Also the night before, I saw Hobbledeions. That was awesome.

4. me with Get Got, Sharone Digitale, & Orig the DJ
This was our I Love Trip-Hop show. It was a concept show from Orig (You know Orig the DJ). So we both like vibed out hip hop and trip hop. And he had a connection with Exit/In. This was a great show because it exposed a lot of people to Sharone Digitale. Also, this was a great show with Jed Smith. Jed has been drumming with me for a little while now. This was my favorite time to play with him. It sounded good and it felt good. I remember that most everyone was there to see Get Got and then a few people stuck around for Sharone Digitale. By the time I went on, there were just a couple of people left plus all the artists and bands. But that last group of people were going nuts for our set and dancing it up. It was one of the most fun shows I’ve done in a while. And my first time at Exit/In since Valentine’s Day in 2007 (my 2nd worst show ever). This was a great redemption show.

5. me with The Billy Goats, Smokee B, Bobby Exodus, Ugly Lovely, Darian D & Jermy J, Ol Man
Delusional & Blak Tha Map at The Coup
This was fun. We made it kind of a hip hop festival in Clarksville. Up to that point mostly
everyone had been doing only dubstep and bass shows. So it was very cool to get a group out to see
some good hip hop. We didn’t pack the place but we had a good sized crowd of people who were
really into each and every artist. I was glad to have put that show together. Also, it was good to
get some shows for guys like Darian D & Jermy J. I don’t book for other people really anymore. But
when I do, I’d rather it went down like this.

6. me with This is Art & Satoru at 12th and Porter
This was a Name Your Own Price show! I was scared of how that would go. We packed the place out. I had a good crowd for my set. I got to collab with Art on stage the way we did in Knoxville. I met Satoru. Met the sound people and light people at 12th. Also important, it was the first show I had done after releasing Q-Gaze. So it was the only time I had ever done the Q-Gaze mix live from start to finish. I got a great response. This was my favorite show I’ve done in Nashville.

7. Silent Disco with This is Art, Dope Dialect, & Beat Repeat.
This was very cool. Only because of the uniqueness of the Silent Disco. My set went surprisingly well. If you’ve never been to a Silent Disco; you have to try it. It’s very different. But I like it. I want to do more of these. The headphones made my computer voice trick more effective!

8. Sayonara at 12th and Porter.
My favorite show is always my next show. And this one is Tonight! It’s free. I’m opening. It’s Arkiteqt‘s debut performance I believe. Glad to be a part of that. Also with Ziggurat, Beat Repeat, Blaque Masque Bellydance and Umbra Fusion Bellydance in the main room. Squake, Saejma, Suga-Free, & Chris Rodriguez in the lounge room.

9. UNIFY on New Year’s Eve
This party is too massive to sum up in a small blurb. Yet I try. 3 rooms. 40+ DJs. Mostly dubstep with some drum and bass and house. Then there’s me. haha. Click the flyer!

Live Concert Pics by Raywen.org, Audible Imagery, & Ramiah Branch Photography

Orig The DJ

Ray Riddle is known in the Nashville music scene as Orig the DJ. Every time I talk to him, he’s always giving me advice or telling me stories. He is always trying to give encouragement or teach anyone who is willing to listen. I personally have benefited from numerous conversations. I thought it’d only be right to have an interview with him on this blog. However and thankfully, he gave me so much information in the interview that I’m going to have to split it up into 3 or 4 parts. Here’s the first section of the interview where he discussed his origins in the Nashville music scene and the origins of the MASHVILLE dance party.

Orig The DJ

QE: What were you saying before about DJing versus having a day job?

Orig: Several years ago, I did that. I quit my job. I had went to SAE; graduated in 2006 and also going to work. That was interfering with my grades. So I quit my job to focus on school. Once I got out of school, I decided that instead of going and getting a day job; I pursued the music industry because I just got out of school for it. So I just did interviews with a lot of studios in the music row area; I just put out an email to all the studios and I got a reply back from four. They brought me in, and pretty much every single manager that I interviewed with told me “Look we can’t hire anybody; we can’t even have interns right now” Around that time big studios started falling and it came down to 4 major studios in the industry. Now it’s all private studios and personal home studios. Everyone’s able to do that now. I had bad timing with that.

Orig the DJ

Orig: So anyway, It was tough. I pursued music and it was tough. I wasn’t getting the gigs I was getting when I had a day job. I was saying yes to certain gigs that I’d rather not do but it’s money. I learned after about 5 months of doing that, that I had to get a job. I wasn’t making any money and I was making poor decisions because I wasn’t educated enough. Even though I just got out of school, I wasn’t educated in life. I ended up getting two jobs and kind of pushed all the music to the side. I would wake up at 7 in the morning and I wouldn’t get to bed until midnight and I’d be at work the whole time. Monday through Friday. Things started picking back up. Since I had the weekends, MASHVILLE started happening in 07. Prior to MASHVILLE starting, I was DJ-in at a bar, doing karaoke DJing, play list DJing. I wasn’t brining my turntables, I was just more of a personality and playing whatever music the bar had. But it was a little bit of money. I was able to quit my second job and just continue doing that. So when that stopped, I was just working my day job. I had a few other projects with other DJs like MASHVILLE…

MASHVILLE's first flyer

QE: Can you tell me how MASHVILLE got started?

Orig: Shortly prior to MASHVILLE, I was doing Double D Tuesdays with Rob Hinnenthal (DJ Hashbrown) in Murfreesboro. At the same time, Brad Knight (DJ Local Motion) and I were talking; and we were griping about we’re not getting the kinds of gigs that we see these other DJs are getting. So why don’t we start our own night. SO we were tossing ideas back and forth on the phone. And then our friend Daniel (Dirty D) he decided to jump in on it. So the 3 of us collaborated on ideas. He helped us get it going. Daniel got us The End. He rented the End. I saved up some money for a photographer because I figured we needed to get this documented and try to bring to the table some of the ideas that Brad’s being seeing in Atlanta with his friend Caleb. They were doing Sloppy Seconds in Atlanta; and it was a night where DJs were the showcase and it was dancing and good times plus a photographer. I had known Wick-it and Kidsmeal already; so we invited them to jump on board as DJs. At that very same time, Wick-it was working on mixtape called Music City Mashville. Parallel to that, Brad and I were trying to come up with a name for the night; and Brad came up with the name “MASHVILLE” because we were wanting to do mashups. But then, he found that Wick-it had already came up with the mixtape Music City Mashville. So at the very same time, without us knowing that we were coming up with the same name; that’s how it came up with the idea of MASHVILLE and we would just have Wick-it as a headliner since he had a mixtape. So, it just made sense. So we gave it a shot. We had the first one; it went really well. Did you go out to that?

From L to R: Kidsmeal, Wick-it, Dirty D, Orig, Local Motion, Jeffro Bodeen

QE: Yeah I was there. I actually went every month for the first year straight.

Orig: Yeah, The first one was awesome. The second one wasn’t all that great. The third one… Well, it was costing us money. Eventually Daniel didn’t want to spend that much money. He threw the towel in and said, “I don’t know what y’all want to do but I don’t want to waste that much money on it.” So Brad and I just kept it going. I put up a sum of money on it. We would just take a portion of the money we made. We didn’t make much from the door. We’d keep a little bit but we’d pay the DJs and then we’d pay ourselves. But we’d still have to come out of pocket. I had the idea of letting the other DJs know that we need to build this, if you could just help volunteer your time and talent. we can take the money that we make and put it back in to it. That way we wouldn’t have to come out of pocket. Because, yeah you’re getting paid but I’m coming out of pocket and then I’d be the next Daniel in line. And it would stop working. So that’s how it started. we kept funding it out of our own budget. Eventually, it kept going and picking up. We started averaging a hundred people. the next year, Brad was leading it at that time, and I was helping him. Just making sure that everything was running smoothly, contacting everybody and making sure everybody was on for the night. Keeping up with lineups and everything. Brad eventually had to focus on his own carpet cleaning business so he couldn’t focus on Mashville. So it was Brad, Me, Wick-It and Kidsmeal. Whenever Brad decided to not lead it, I picked up the baton and started leading it. Wick-it had invited Mike Vulcan to DJ. And he did such a great set…

QE: Yeah I remember a lot of us saw him at a July 4th party and he ended up playing the very next MASHVILLE…

Mike Vulcan

Orig: Right, Wick-It saw that and was really impressed. He invited him to come on board just as a guest. And then after his set, Wick-It had suggested why don’t we throw him on as a resident DJ because he’s brining something different that’s going to help balance us. And he was a perfect fit. Bateman came along shortly after that as a graphic designer. (QE note: Read my interview with Bateman!) We were designing our own flyers; we were hiring other designers. Bateman offered his talent and services just to be a part of the crew. Eventually, he took the bull by the horns. He started managing it. It kind of shifted. He had a lot to offer. a lot of enthusiasm; a lot more resources. He wanted to do it, and we let him do it. He eventually started DJing. He was opening. He wasn’t quite a DJ, he was an MC. He’s a very talented fellow. He shortly became a resident DJ. What else? I know in 09, Christ Mironescu of Everything’s Nice sat down with us at a meeting and offered to help us out. He helped us get the Limelight for the first quarter of the year. It was fun and different but it didn’t quite work out; it was just too big for our scene.

QE: I played the last one y’all did there.

Quiet Entertainer DJ set at Mashville!

Orig: Oh yeah, that’s right! So you know eventually we went back to The End. In 09 was when, we started testing other venues. We did Limelight and we did Mercy Lounge. Mercy Lounge was awesome. We were blessed with the opportunity to do it there. We thought we did really well but as a local act we didn’t do well enough to get a monthly lockdown. Because they have to reserve themselves for something big just in case something big comes their way. It was really fortunate for us; I appreciate Drew from Mercy Lounge for being real with us on that because if we had gotten a monthly there, we probably would have gotten rescheduled on a date because some big name could have come in or something like that. We decided to go back to The End. Bruce at the End really believed in us. There were nights when after a year or two of doing it there that we didn’t have a great night and we’d have to come out of pocket. But he’d say “Hey don’t worry about. I know next month is going to be better. I think this weekend there was something going on across the street or something.” He’s been like an uncle to us. He’s helped us out; I really appreciate him for that. So we went back there and we had our anniversary shows at Mercy Lounge. Then we started testing other performances, we got you in. At the time, you weren’t a DJ really, you were doing your performance. (QE note: read the difference between live PA sets and DJ sets) So we had that, we had some MCs. Things were going pretty well with that. The Billy Goats did their CD release. Sam and Tre did their CD release there.

QE: I know you had the Hood Internet.

Orig: Yeah! We brought in The Hood Internet. And that was probably the first actual headliner that we’d brought in from out of town. They’re from Chicago.

QE: What would you say your role in MASHVILLE is now?

Orig: Now, I’m the leader of the pack again. The beginning of this year, I started doing other projects with Big Smo; he’s a rapper in the country hick-hop scene. He’s really leading it. I was really blessed to go on gigs out of town but that left me out of the picture with MASHVILLE. And I wasn’t really around MASHVILLE. I felt kind of bad, I thought I was fading away from it. So, I was just budgeting my time and make it happen to where I get back involved with MASHVILLE. It shifted with everybody. Wick-it started getting really busy doing gigs. He’s got a booking agency and a management company. Doing really well. So I was able to come back and just make it happen for myself schedule wise where I could fit in. Bateman moved to Atlanta recently. So it just shifted just right for me to jump back in and carry it on. So for the past couple of MASHVILLE’s. Maybe for about 3 months. I’ve been kind of leading. I’ve been getting emails and Facebook messages from other fellow DJs. saying stuff like “Hey, I hollered at Wick-It and he told me to holler at you because he said you’re the one that’s in charge of producing the night and the lineup” and even though Bateman is Atlanta, he’s still doing the best he can. But he’s got a lot going on for himself as well. So, it was appropriate for me to come back at the time that I came back. So I’m back leading it. I felt really good about it. I talked to Bateman; I asked him what can I do to help and he told me it was booking. Calling DJs, booking, getting fresh acts, fresh faces. Even though I don’t have a list of DJs, I’m going to make one. I think it’s good to have one fresh face a month. There are only so many spots to fill. I don’t want ten DJs to play in a night. It’s too confusing for the sound guy, just for everyone. I think MASHVILLE has survived because of it’s relaxed production. There’s always been one guy that’s kind of leading it but everybody helps. Wick-it’s not just a DJ there. He’s the reason we got the Mercy Lounge. Kidsmeal’s brought along a lot of people. DJ Dirk who opened the past Mashville. That was probably one of the best opening nights ever. We actually had been trying to get him on MASHVILLE for 3 years.

Orig: Anyway, Brad had a lot of awesome ideas. Like I was saying; from the Sloppy Seconds nights in Atlanta. This guy Caleb. Caleb was managing DJ Klever at the time. So DJ Klever and a lot of other local DJs in Atlanta. I never went to it so I don’t really know. But from what I knew, that was a night that we were looking up to and that we were basing our Mashville idea off of. So a cool thing, Just how life happens. I mentioned Bateman moving to Atlanta. I spoke to Bateman after a month of him living in Atlanta. We had a chat and he was telling me there’s this club and he got in good with the manager. He said that there’s a possibility maybe in the future that we could get a MASHVILLE down there. Just so happens that it’s the same spot that Sloppy Seconds was doing their thing. So it’s almost coming full circle. It’s really cool!

QE: Yeah man!

Connect with Orig the DJ on Facebook.

This is only the Part 1 of the 3 part interview series with Orig the DJ. Be sure to sign up to receive blog updates in your email so that you don’t miss the rest of the interview!

Here’s the video for “Just Another Werewolf In The Night” by Spoken Nerd featuring Manchild & Gary Hundley

And here’s the video for “My Magic Goody” by Bobby Exodus

These are great! Both were done by 247 who is one-third of The Billy Goats and also has great solo music as well!

247 is a good friend of mine here in town, but more importantly he’s the hidden force behind a lot of great things happening in Nashville! 247 has done a lot of production for other artists around town, including my friend Spoken Nerd. I’ve told you about him before because he’s one-third of The Billy Goats. Also, he appeared on the Machismo EP.

One of my favorite things he’s done was his project with BlackatSylvesta & Ugly Lovely called Out of Place. 247 is the main lyricist in the project. You can get their entire Genetic Defects album for free by going to the Out Of Place Bandcamp page. Or just play it here.

He’s been doing a lot of video production as well. Recently, he began an online interview series highlighting some of his favorite artists around Nashville. You can catch interviews he’s done with James Fate, Bobby Exodus & Spoken Nerd on his youtube channel. Finally, I was able to “take my talents” to 247′s place and shoot an interview video plus a live performance featuring Jed Smith on drums. Take a look!

Machismo EP

I’m really excited and please about the Machismo EP. It’s a collection of some tracks I’ve done with some of my friends & favorite emcees. Let me tell you a bit about it, track by track:

I definitely want you to have this music. Now that you know all about it, please go ahead and check it out here!,/a>

Click here to download the “Machismo EP”

]]> http://www.quietentertainer.com/about-the-machismo-ep/feed/ 4 http://www.quietentertainer.com/previously-at-mercy-lounge/ http://www.quietentertainer.com/previously-at-mercy-lounge/#comments Mon, 18 Jan 2010 09:59:51 +0000 Quiet Entertainer http://www.quietentertainer.com/?p=64 [ More ]]]>

I had a pretty good show last week at the Mercy Lounge. It was the first show I’d done in a while in Nashville where I had also booked the other acts. Thanks to Billy Gemmill of Naked Without Us for giving me that opportunity; and thanks to Mercy Lounge for having us.

The pic you see at the top is from raywen.org, run by Ray & Wendy. I mention them here because they have been faithfully coming to QE shows for over a year. Furthermore, they’ve been taking pics for several bands and have done a lot to enhance and document the music scene, especially the hip-hop scene and the goth scene. I have a LOT of pics from shows thanks to them. Of course, they have a plethora of pics from that night.

This night was Get Got’s last show for a while until they get their album done. Right now all they have out is their demo. If you haven’t gotten to hear it, Check it out: Get Got Demo by origthedj

Also, were the Billy Goats, I’ve mentioned them here before. I perhaps will mention them again. I might get to do a remix of theirs. If I do; it probably will be to this song:

The big deal of the night was Spice J; I had never seen him DJ before. I mainly booked him because he’s a friendly guy and I’m a friendly guy. but it was my favorite part of the night. He did kind of a dubstep set. If you don’t know about Dubstep, click. But anyway, I was highly impressed. He says he’ll have a mixtape coming soon. He does play in another band, the Protomen. Probably the best live show in Nashville. My opinion.

Anyway, this past show was one of my favorite shows; mainly because I got a chance to talk to a lot of new people and just had fun overall. I have another Nashville show coming up soon (January 26 @ The Rutledge) so I hope it’s just as much fun.

Keep in touch.

-QE

I decided to make a list of my Top 6 favorite bands I’ve booked for BlogWorthy shows. This is pretty much a subjective list based on my own personal taste of the music and of the particular performance at the BW show. A lot of bands are being overlooked. That’s unfortunate. Most everyone I booked was actually BlogWorthy. Again, lots of great memories and highlights.

6. James Fate – He played at the first Blogworthy show; He played at the last one. He played at some in between too. He’s been kind of my go-to guy for shows. He’s just really good. He has great written material; but also, he can freestyle rap. He’s a hybrid pop-singer/hip-hop artist. His dominant strength is with the hip-hop. He’s obviously spent a lot of time learning how to interact with the crowd AND stay on point with the emcee flow. You almost have to see it to believe it. Check him out on myspace or youtube.
http://www.myspace.com/jamesfate

5. Molly Jewell – I have a girlfriend who is not Molly. And I love my girlfriend. So I mean no disrespect. but Molly is “da bomb.’ She’s like…two bombs. I first saw her perform at Starbucks. She was incredible. Whether she is just by herself or if she has a full band, she can really connect with the crowd. I think that is the key. I really don’t know if she is really that shy and awkward for real, but the way she plays it is very endearing. And so, when this girl gets up there and then decides to be amazing; you don’t know how to take it. She has a really funny song about being felt up by a doctor? Ok. Well, check her stuff out.
http://www.myspace.com/mollyjewell

4. The Billy Goats – 247, Iller, & DJ Eticut have been talked about and blogged about a lot around town. It was a no-brainer to bring them onto a BW show. The show they played for me was not well attended. I blame myself. Two months prior, we played a show together in the same venue and had 120 people there. Maybe it was too soon? Anyway, they are really good. Sadly, I didn’t get all 3 of them at my show. Wick-It the Instigator was their DJ instead of DJ Eticut. They just released their debut record. Check them out.
http://www.myspace.com/ilovethebillygoats

3. Get Got – Ray, Gary, & Skyler are three of the nicest guys you’ll meet. They performed at the last BW show ever held at Cafe Coco. They are a blend of funk, hip-hop, & electronica; the kind of genre (con)fusion that I always hope to bring to any Nashville show. They brought a lot of people to the show and those people were dancing! In Nashville, that’s a big deal for an indie show. This is kind of how it was anytime I saw them play. So I loved to book them. Check out their online demo; and go see them perform live!
http://soundcloud.com/origthedj/sets/get-got-demo

2. Derrek Phillips’ Manufactory – This has got to be the most skilled band I’ve ever booked. I couldn’t believe that they agreed to do the show! I was so excited. This was another genre fusion band: rock, hip-hop, jazz, electronica, r&b, all that. It wouldn’t be uncommon for Derrek, Paul, & Adam to write a new song as they were performing live. But it never sounded like they were writing. Up until they played the BW show, I felt like I knew this really great secret. Even though Paul wasn’t able to make the BW show, they are the band that I personally have received the most feedback about afterward. I would rank them #1 if not for the next band’s story. But Manufactory is wonderful and you should absolutely listen to them immediately and DEFINITELY see them live!
http://www.reverbnation.com/dpmanufactory

1. Tallest Trees – I just love this band. It’s strange because I think a lot of their influences are bands that I don’t listen to. However when you see them live, you immediately can deduce that this is an ambitious musical effort. I had seen them play a lot before, but by the time they played the BW show (the last one I’ve been able to do at Mercy Lounge); they were a two piece band officially (Thomas & Dabney), plus their drummer (Art). The reasons I put them at number one: They’re probably my favorite local band (note: I don’t consider Paper Route local anymore because they live on the road and haven’t played here in forever). Their BW performance specifically was absolutely brilliant. And what happened after they played was exactly what I had hoped would happen. I started seeing a lot of blogs and tweets pop up about them and the show. That’s really what I’ve hoped for each time I booked one of these shows! Check out Tallest Trees:
http://www.humantrees.com/tallesttrees/

So much great talent in Nashville performs to empty rooms or to indifferent crowds. These Blogworthy shows have just been a way for me to give another platform to a lot of great music that I see live. Plus it always ensured that I’d get to see some of these great bands! BlogWorthy is not dead; I don’t think. I haven’t gotten to do one in a while though. Keep your eyes open for more Blogworthy shows and for more Blogworthy artists and bands!