DJ Izm
Every Friday
East Lounge
DJ Izm spins hiphop every Friday at East Lounge, 322 NW Everett, 226-1569.
What’s the best time you’ve had DJing?
I really had a good time when I opened up for Grandmaster Flash at the Ohm. I’d never played in front of that many people before. But five minutes before I got there, [the club] handed me a four-page list of songs I wasn’t supposed to play. And I had some records that had samples of some of the songs that were in the list, and the emcee from Grandmaster Flash kept coming up to me saying, “You can’t play that, you can’t play that.” At the end of the show I talked to the emcee and said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean any disrespect.” And he said, “Don’t worry about it man. You gave him a run for his money. You gave us a challenge.” To hear that was a real ego booster. It made it worth it.
What are the top five tracks you’re spinning?
1. Aceyalone, “Love & Hate”
2. Nas, “Made you look”
3. Cat Stevens, “Trouble”
4. Murs, “I Work Hard”
5. Sean Paul “Infiltrate”
Who inspired you to start DJing?
My friend Bubbalou. He was really supportive and tried to get me into it. He was so much younger than me–I took my inspiration from some cat who was four years younger and way better than me. He could scratch so well. But the thing was, he was addicted to heroin. I tried to get him to stop, but he wound up dying in a bathroom from an overdose. That was my true inspiration and I want to continue his legacy. He was better than anyone in Portland now. He could have been up there with Mix Master Mike.
Any advice for the would-be DJs out there?
Buy lots of records, don’t limit yourself to one type of genre, be respectful of other DJs, and don’t get taken advantage of by club or bar owners–and practice a lot!