Oh Pitbull, Didn't Your Mom Ever Tell You That Stealing is Bad?

Am I against sampling? NO, but what I am against is artists who have built their career off stealing other peoples music.  At least when De La Soul and The Beastie Boys used other records, they buried the sample.  Pitbull is blatantly capitalizing on the commercial success of these classic records.  It would be like me sampling Usher- Yeah, DJ Kool- Let Me Clear My Throat, or Jay-Z Empire State of Mind to make a new record.  Make something original and then maybe I'll take you seriously.  Let's take a look at Pitbull's 10 biggest records:

1.  Shake samples Din Daa Daa by George Krantz
2.  Fuego samples When I Hear Music by Debbie Deb
3.  Secret Admirer samples My Boo by Ghost Town DJs
4.  The Anthem samples Calabria 2007 by Enur feat. Natasja
5.  Move Shake Drop samples Satisfaction by Benny Benassi
6.  Hotel Room Service samples Push The Feeling on by Nightcrawlers
7.  I Know You Want Me samples 75, Brazil Street by Nicola Fasano and Pat Rich
8.  Pearly Gates samples Heaven by DJ Sammy and Yanou
9.  Give Me A Bottle samples Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes
10.  Bon Bon samples We No Speak Americano by Yolanda Be Cool and D-Cup

An even sadder commentary is that if I were to play the original of one of these samples, people nowadays would more than likely get mad that I didn't play the "Pitbull" version.

I don't care if you cleared and paid for the sample.  What that tells me is that you've got plenty of money,  but no creativity.  Congrats!

August 2010 Top 10

I went back through my history this month and compiled my top 10 most played records this month.

1. Taio Cruz- Dynamite (Stonebridge Remix)
2. Usher- DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love (DJ Kue Remix)
3. Kanye West- Power (Original and Remix)
4. Far East Movement feat. The Cataracs and Dev- Like A G6
5. Jump Smokers feat. R. Kelly and Pitbull- Superstar
6. Gucci Mane feat. Swizz Beats- Gucci Time
7. Cee-Lo- Fuck You
8. Usher feat. Jay-Z- Hot Toddy
9. Yolanda Be Cool and D-Cup- We No Speak Americano (Original, Chew Fu and MYD remixes)
10. DJ Khaled- All I Do Is Win (Original and Remix)

Can I make a request? Yes, but please think responsibly

Requesting songs from a DJ seems like a pretty simple concept.  When you go out you want to hear songs that you like.  Duh!  Here's the way we see if from the DJing perspective:

As a DJ we receive three types of requests,

The song we’re obviously going to play:  If you are in a predominately mainstream nightlife establishment and request a song that is on more than one of the current mainstream radio stations (iPower, Q94, Hot 100.9, or The Beat) it’s highly insulting to the DJ. Do you think that we aren’t in tune with what songs are current and popular? (Sadly enough, there are some working DJs who aren’t, but that is beside the point) On the flipside, if you’re at a party where the format is a little more underground, don’t ask for the current scenester anthem (*YBC & D-Cup: We No Speak Americano*). Trust the DJ and his ability to appease the crowd that’s in front of him/her.  If they haven’t played a record that you think is perfectly suited for this crowd, there’s probably a good reason for it like he’s building up to it. I don’t play records twice so when I play it, I need to make it count.

The song that we’re never going to play:  Please think responsibly when you request a song.  If you walk into a club, bar, wherever, try to gauge what kinds of music the DJ is playing.  The DJ is there because the owner is comfortable with his judgment in selecting songs. If the DJ is playing a eclectic mix of mainstream/familiar records, don’t go ask him to play the Dub Mix of Bonkers by AVH or that 14-minute-long live version of your favorite Disco Biscuits record. Adversely if you’re at a party like Brain Drain or RVAlution, don’t ask for Justin Bieber (Although asking for Justin Bieber anywhere is just WRONG). Also, if at an underground party the DJ plays a remix of a mainstream song, don’t a) get mad that he didn’t play the original b) think that it’s an open invitation to request more mainstream.  He probably played it to pacify the people like you who, for some reason, ended up at a party where they don’t really belong.

The song that peaks our interest: 1 time out of 1000 there will be someone who comes up and asks for a song that is perfect for the mix; a song that evokes good feelings for us as DJs; a song that is, as my friend Tony T would say, in the pocket. There is a lot of music out there for DJs to keep up with and sometimes tracks will just slip our minds.  Usually situations like this don’t’ happen while we DJ, they happen outside of work. Case and point, when I was talking to an employee at Baja after we closed one night, we got on the topic of music we grew up on and that formed the basis for our musical taste. Limp Bizkit’s ‘N 2 Gether Now’ came up and I had a “holy shit I loved that effing record” moment.

So to sum things up, the next time you walk into an establishment that has a DJ, take a good look around and listen to at least 5 songs. Then try to think about what song would fit perfectly and be generally accepted by everyone there.  Also try to do your research before you go out. Find the places and DJs who play music you like so you don’t have to worry about leaving the dance floor to request a song.

If you can request a song that blows my mind, shots are on me! I'm at Baja on Wednesdays and Big Daddy's on Saturday. Also you can catch me at New York Deli on Sept. 3rd, The Grand Opening of Fishbowl Sept. 10, and on the Big Green Bus for  The RVA Bar Crawl Sept 11th from 1-4.

So apparently...

We No Speak Americano samples an anti American Song. Here is the English Translation:


You're acting all american,
american, american,
but you're born in Italy, listen here:
there's nothing you can do,
ok napoletano?!
You're acting all american,
american, american,

How can your loved one understand
if you're speaking half american?
When you're out loving uder the moon,
where do you get a phrase like "I love you"?

You're acting all american,
american, american,
but you're born in Italy, listen here:
there's nothing you can do,
ok napoletano?!
You're acting all american,
american, american,
...whisky soda e rock and roll






I still don't care. The song is dope!!!

A Midsummer's Daydream

This is probably one of my favorite mixes that I've done in a while. It spans the current hits with a sprinkling of my favorite summer classics Download and enjoy.


A Midsummer's Daydream by DJ Ghozt


1. Oasis- Wonderwall (A cappella)
2. Travy McCoy ft. Bruno Mars- Billionare
3. Eminem ft. Rihanna- Love The Way You Lie
4. Arrested Development- Everyday People
5. Fresh Prince & Jazzy Jeff- Summertime
6. Sublime- What I Got
7. Train- Hey Soul Sister
8. Drake- Find Your Love
9. Len- Steal My Sunshine
10. Bobby Brackins ft. Ray-J- 143
11. Jay-Z ft. Pharrell- I Just Wanna Love You (Give it to Me)
12. Flo-Rida ft. Ke$ha- Right Round
13. Usher ft. Pitbull- DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love (DJ Kue Remix)
14. Lil' Jon ft. 3OH!3- Hey
15. Ne-yo- Beautiful Monster
16. Yolanda Be Cool & D-Cup- We No Speak Americano (Original Mix)
17. David Guetta ft. Chris Willis, Fergie & LMFAO- Gettin' Over You (Original Mix)
18. A-Trak ft. Lil' Wayne & Gucci Mane- We Don't Want No Goblins
19. MGMT- Kids
20. Chiddy Bang- Opposite of Adults

Honey, I Shrunk the Nightclub

Nightlife in this town isn’t dying, it’s downsizing.  It’s a phenomenon that is happening all across the country. I’ve played both big and small venues and both have their pros and cons.

With a big crowd it’s almost impossible to play a record that bombs.  This is due to a few factors, the most important of these being that people in a large group are as equally stimulated by the situation as they are the music.  Simply put, being in a large crowd of people that are all ready to get down, is an intense experience by itself.  A lot of people in Virginia have no idea what it feels like to be in a room full of 500+ people and the song breaks down to almost silence and everyone around you is screaming in anticipation of the beat dropping back in.  Go to RVAlution at Hat Factory on a Tuesday if you want to get a glimpse of what it’s like. Also with a crowd that large, once it gets rolling, it’s momentum will carry it through to where you could drop something completely random like polka and they probably wouldn’t care.

The downside to a big crowd is that you lose the intimacy of programming for the individual.  Whenever I DJ for a big room, I look out and find one or two people that seem to be an accurate representation of the whole and program based off their reactions.  Another thing that I dislike about big crowds is what it turns DJs into.  I absolutely hate DJs that pre-plan sets knowing that the crowd is so big that no one will care.  I’m a huge advocate for spontaneity while DJing. I played a party with Steve Aoki in Chicago on July 18^th and I walked in having no idea of what I was going to play.  I went with the flow and played to the people and they enjoyed it.

Small crowds are a lot harder to play for simply because the mindset of a smaller group tends to be more judgmental.  If you’ve got a room full of 100 and half the people aren’t feeling it, that 50 person negativity is going to spread a lot quicker than half of 1500 at a large party. You can lose a dance floor at a small club a lot easier than you can lose a one at a big club. My first experience with DJing to a smaller crowd was 3 years ago at Lucky Buddha.  It taught me that I could be more selective with my music, but that I had to gain the trust of the crowd first because if 5 people left the dance floor the rest would follow suit quickly.

The upside to the smaller crowd for me is the challenge of trying to keep as many people happy as possible. Sometimes a smaller crowd has a much more refined taste and are looking for a little bit more than your typical programming.  When I DJ for smaller crowds, I tend to look more at the individuals than I do at the whole group. It also allows me to interact more personably with the crowd.  Usually the DJ booth is more accessible in smaller venues.  This allows me to take requests easier and talk to people who want to talk to me if I so choose.

In Virginia, the trend is moving towards smaller venues and parties, but it’s not a bad thing.  Having a lot of smaller parties to choose from ensures that you will eventually find one that’s right for you as opposed to having to settle for going to that one big club where the music is okay and the people are tolerable.

My Set From V-Live in Chicago

@ V-Live in Chicago by DJ Ghozt


Hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed playing it. This was totally improved. Nothing about it was planned out in advance. I played to the crowd. That's what real DJs do.