DJ DOUBLE S: THE AGE OF REASON

AL 42 December 1999 / January 2000

Vigor's

The DJ I'm about to meet needs no special introduction, despite his young age (21) he has already been known in the scene for a long time, remember last year's AL Awards winner?

When we are about to leave, he himself asks me not to start with the usual question, “How did you start?” and blah blah... So my first question is:

What is your relationship with music?

“I think a priori it gives me emotions. Without music the world would definitely be a sadder place, I consider it a bit the soundtrack of life in general, I tie all the particular moments of my life to it. In any case, I have always listened to music since childhood and of any genre, I think any genre of music is beautiful. Lately I've stopped precluding myself from listening to genres other than rap, in fact before Hip Hop I used to listen to anything else, mostly what the radio played, then around ’90 I started listening, again from the radio, to people like Mc Hammer, Vanilla Ice, Run DMC and Public Enemy. And that's all I started listening to from there.‘

How come only that?

“I can't explain it exactly, partly because I understood practically nothing about the message and content. All I know is that I used to get good listening to it. Now I don't have blinders on anymore and even though I look solely for Hip Hop and the originals, I still listen to everything that comes to me without any bias, there are even some things I like like like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eurythmics and Queen because they still manage to give me emotions like sometimes even rap can't.”

How did the transition from mere listener to insider come about?

“When I realized that I liked rap, I started to buy records, I saw the movies like “Beat Street” but I was not thinking of DJing but of breakin’ dancing. I wasn't getting great results, but at that time in Turin, my city, there were quite a few situations where I could dance and play rap, I didn't go to them because of my young age,... but from hearsay I was infatuated with it. Then I met Enzo, a friend from my neighborhood, who was a DJ and was also pretty good, he invited me to his house and showed me the cymbals... it was a thunderbolt. Basically as a breaker, I didn't really put much effort into it.”

After the electrocution?

“I was still going to school, I didn't have great financial possibilities and saving as much as possible I bought records, my parents meanwhile had given me cymbals and I reciprocated their trust and expense by engaging in study and still practicing with turntables.”

What did you train in at first?

“First mixing, however, I was not very good at it and so I started scratching. It was always Enzo, who was pretty well known in Turin at that time, who showed me how to scratch. Now with him we have remained very close friends, he is not a b-boy but I know that when I need he is there: he is one of my best friends. With time then I also refined my taste for musical research, thanks also to a program on Radio Black Out in Turin, in fact I would record myself the episodes and then go and look for the powerful pieces, maybe without knowing the titles...I'm talking about people like Ghetto Boys, Masta Ace and Pharcyde.”

When did you then come into contact with others who were already doing?

“I knew some writers like KNZ and one of them invited me to the Regio, which as everyone knows in Turin has always been a very important meeting place, there I met the current Lyricalz then looking for a DJ. The thing immediately intrigued me. At that time already some people were talking about me especially because of my young age, I was aware of my abilities while knowing that I still had a long way to go. Anyway, that's how it all started, my first group was the Lyrical Gang. I, however, kept hanging out with other people of the period as well, the various jams in Milan and Bologna, the first challenges, etc., etc.”

When you realized you would only be a DJ, how come you chose to specialize in ‘evolutions’?

“I actually tried to become a good all-around DJ. If you're looking for someone who can put records on for a live concert, I'm capable, if you're looking for someone to make people dance on a night, I'm capable, and if you're looking for someone who makes good mixtapes, I can do that. So I never just dwelt on the evolution of techniques. For example with time and banging I learned to work improvising, whereas in the beginning I tried to be as precise as possible even preparing a set list for my nights. Once I gained the necessary experience and technique I abandoned this path and was able to play whatever I like and people like depending on the feeling that is created.”

Instead with the cassette tape?

“At first I only made them for my friends, partly because I didn't think I could become a character through being a tapemaster, but as I refined my technique in making tapes it became more and more interesting, so they could no longer be tapes just for friends. I always put a lot of effort into packaging my products to their full potential, sometimes even putting in too much time. I consider mixtapes to be a work of art where you, the DJ, by showing what you can do technically and interpreting other people's tracks in your own way, are even able to change people's moods. It's like collecting different situations, atmospheres and moments that sum up a period in one product. I am still very attached to my past works because they were often made with limited means (I used to pull my own c**k), but they reached high technical and emotional levels.’

When did others notice all your flapping?

“Next One was the first one who saw us play, I mean the Lyrical Gang, in ‘95 and so got us involved in his projects. My real stepping stone was Hip Hop Village in ‘95 in Turin. I was wild there, I just wanted to scratch, in fact I was always busting your balls to be able to put the records on,... I met practically everyone there: Sottotono, Otierre, Neffa, Gruff etc. etc. I had an unbelievable fuck at that time, I still wish I was like that.”

Because how are you now?

“I'm different, a little bit of my fist has been lost. I think the past years and life experiences have matured and calmed me down a bit. I no longer throw myself over two plates as soon as I see them. Now I think I'm at another level, without being immodest, I think it's a higher kind. I have achieved artistic maturity, but more importantly I am more mature as a person. This thing I consider more important, in my opinion you can be good at anything, but if you can't behave with others then it's not good. In Italy there are many such characters, I, on the other hand, have always strived to be a humble person; without having to calculate it came to me quite naturally.’

In this sense, how do your personal experiences lead you to consider the situation of the so-called scene?

“My personal experiences have sometimes led me to deal with people with whom later due to various incompatibilities misunderstandings if not outright scuffles arose; however, I do not deny anything I have done, on the contrary, I believe that everything serves, even negative experiences, because from everything you can draw the energy to go further. As the years go by, many things are reevaluated and old grudges disappear. In this sense, what often happens between b-boys does not take into account the human respect that there should be between people. Some people want to impose their own rules of behavior on others. This to me is unacceptable. We need to be more diplomatic, although this way of being has brought me a lot of criticism. I think it is a pity that many good projects go up in smoke because of these attitudes. You don't need to screw around to prove someone else's shoddiness, if one is, shoddy I mean, sooner or later people will notice...and that's not the most important point anyway,...it's important for everyone to do their own thing right. It certainly doesn't benefit the outside world to see all this defeatism.”

How is Hip Hop doing?

“It's always a matter of ups and downs, sometimes there are those who make a splash and sometimes nothing happens for a while. However, I would distinguish the underground market from the more commercial market; I think in the underground people are producing well and are also getting good results. It all has to be fueled by the support of the b-boys. I often see people looking for their favorite record in the store and they don't find it, but then they don't go and buy it at the jams, this thing has to be nurtured first from the inside and then from the outside; I understand that not everyone has the money and they duplicate then stuff however you have to realize that behind these products there is a lot of slamming as well as the luck of making a good trade. More original products should be bought so everything can work properly.’

What are you doing now?

“Now in addition to DJing, I also work in a clothing and record store, working on rap, R&B, break and beat and battle break. This way I can hear all the record releases and listen to Hip Hop music all day long even though this commitment takes away from my time to be able to train as a DJ. I always try to keep busy, having decided that I want to make a living at this business, DJing, I have to get busy. I also do gigs when it happens at different clubs.”

What kinds of venues are they?

“I've happened to play clubs where there are no b-boys, but I definitely prefer to do it where there are people listening to Hip Hop. I like to see the audience get infused with the tunes I put on, and because I prefer to play more researched stuff, it's a little harder for me to get people who don't know about it to dance. The ones I prefer are the pieces from ’94/‘95 because they sound better and more powerful to me than the current stuff that I think is more sludgy instead.’

Are you playing with someone live?

“Not being part of any specific group anymore, I currently play and have played with: Neffa, The Family,... Otierre, Chief, Sab Sista, Left Side, Shit And Slime, Gate Keepaz let's just say I've worked with pretty much everyone. It gives me a lot of satisfaction to play live, I believe a lot in building a live show and I usually insert myself into other people's show by putting myself at the disposal of the mc's earning their trust generally without overdoing it, but making my presence felt in a balanced way. For example I do some cuttin’, scratching in the choruses, etc.”

Tell me about the battles you participated in.

“My experiences have been very few, however they have given me a lot of satisfaction: two high-level competitions I did twice I came second. On both occasions I deserved the victory but in the first case, in Brussels, I was playing away from home and I clashed with Grassopher who is Belgian, the second time, at the I.T.F. show case in Bologna, in the final I was more complete than Tayone even though he was scratching better than me, however I made a mistake in my final routine and it cost me the victory.”

What do you think of the characters who later came out of the various battles?

“The level has risen so much and all the techniques that have been introduced have exhilarated me a lot to the point that I've been trying to learn as much as I can (crab, flare), however, I think it's important to know even the basics and not just the new evolutions. There are a lot of kids who scratch hard but don't know the tracks and can't put two records in time. The DJ is not the one who just scratches. The DJ is more than that. He is the one who entertains people with records. Music culture is also very important, I myself am trying to learn as much as I can by listening to soul and funk music as well.’

What do you like in scratching?

“Mainly the musical part, for example there are some very simple scratches that sound bad though. Technically there's stuff from Dj Babu and Dj Revolution that rocks. My favorites at the time were Dj Scratch and Premier for style but also Pete Rock.... Of the latter, besides the two above, there are Q-Bert, who is a ‘wizard’ for techniques, Mista Sinista and all the X Men. For completeness as a tapemaster I like Tony Touch, still Premier and Babu.”

About the DJ crews?

“I think they are cool in general, in Italy we need more of them, although lately DJing is highly regarded and this is important both for DJs and for Hip Hop in general: there is not only rap but also other things. I prefer to be alone now, nobody tells me what to do. I do what satisfies me the most in relation to my business, I cultivate my passion 24 hours a day.”

What records have you been listening to lately?

“I'm listening to underground stuff like: Defari, Dilated People etc. etc. From the west coast I liked the Dr Dre stuff, which I still listen to from time to time, then I listen to Rawkus stuff, while of Italian I think there is powerful stuff and among my favorites are Neffa, Merda E Melma, Gate Keepaz who are also friends, Mahory B and Left Side. In fact I include them in my setlists, although sometimes it's tiring since not all the material comes out on vinyl, however that little bit is okay to push. When I prepare mixtapes to tell the truth you can hear the difference between Italian and American pieces, so I like to make tapes entirely of Italian products. I must add that the tapes I make lately lose some of the charm of ’clandestine‘ since I prefer to regularize them with the SIAE stamp mainly because it is Italian material and to get it to everyone it must be able to be sold in stores.’

But how many copies do you sell of your mixtapes?

“With “Lo Capisci L'Italiano 1” I reached 1,000 copies, which is a lot, to the point of being compared to official products even reaching the sales charts. It still puzzled me.”

Speaking of rankings, winning the AL Awards...

“First and foremost I wanted to thank everyone who voted for me..... However, I think I got that result by virtue of the fact that at that time I was present in many successful Italian products, it was a recognition of my perseverance. While I am aware of my abilities I personally do not consider myself the best Italian DJ. I am nevertheless happy about it.”

Future plans?

“Lo Capisci L'Italiano 2“ is out and in the future ”Lo Capisci L'Italiano 3,“ I will still do live gigs both with bands and in clubs. Lately I've been scratching tracks on Kaos” new album and many others that have just been released. I am happy that various artists call me to include my scratches on their records and I hope they continue to do so.”

FOLLOW DJ DOUBLE S ON INSTAGRAM →