3. Exclusive Interview with V.j Oz

I recently had the pleasure of sitting V.j Oz down for an interview. Walking into Blue Moon studios I was very impressed. It is decorated lushly with black leather furniture, plush carpets, and mood lighting along the walls. I was even more impressed with his equipment ;) Seriously, he has a sound board longer than I am tall with more knobs and buttons than he has hairs in his Mohawk!

Oz started his career doing singer-songwriter and hip hop “stuff”.  But at the age of 22 he went to his first rave, “It blew my mind. Everything I hated about hip-hop this made up for. The music was progressive and new and exciting. It had this youthful energy to it; it didn’t have nonsense negativity, materialism, hoes, or crime nonsense.”  On October 30^th of last year Oz played his first rave, and after that it just spread. When I asked him about his competition his answer was a simple but passionate, “Honestly, I have gotten just about every gig in town I wanted.”   

As we talked, one recurring topic I noticed was old Hollywood glamour; Oz brought it up over and over again. When we watched one of his favorite videos; a long legged girl just lounging in a chair, he told me “That’s what I want to film day in and day out.”  By the time I discovered that he listens to an Isaac Hayes song called “A Brand New Me” over and over again, I knew he was a romantic. But unlike most romantics Oz knows how to get work done.

What Inspires You?

What inspires me is… a photogenic, attractive female. A girl can have so many looks, like 30 different works of art; maybe the way she turns and looks, something her eyes do. That’s what inspires me, that’s the easiest video to edit. I’m going through the footage and its like “wow that’s a moment right there” so I make a loop out of it.

What exactly is a Vj?

A video jockey or visual jockey is… I don’t know. I consider myself different from everybody else. I don’t have any [Vj] heroes, I have rock star heroes, director/actor heroes, music producer heroes, I don’t have a Vj hero. That’s why I love it so much, I’m defining my own path.”

Okay, what do you do when you Vj?

I like shocking people, I watch faces all the time, I know if someone is watching. I’ll wait until the next DJ drop and I’ll throw something heavy on.  I basically make the party interesting: tightly sinking visuals to the music: textures: flashes: offensive videos- stuff that gets you emotionally attached or at least sticks in your mind.

What do the other Vj’s do?

Most other VJs show random pixels and stuff on the screen. Computer generated graphics. People who are stuck in the 90s do tunnels. Or random footage that makes no sense. They’ll go to a subway and film a subway going by. It doesn’t resonate with you. It doesn’t matter if it looks cool, nobody remembers your name. Roevy does some interesting stuff…...I love the look of the clips and how the words and messages stick in your head.

What are you up to now?

Right now I am concentrating on a demo reel and some high quality VJ mixes. I am about to get the gear to capture HD video in real time so I can edit or compose a piece of music to around 60 seconds and just VJ over and over it until it’s a perfect take.

Where do you think the EDM scene is right now?

I love it because it’s evolving, and there are so many different things to do on any given night. Somebody just showing up and dancing can add something to the scene. People just smiling and womping out can add something to the scene. People need to show some effort, show some positivity and things will get even more interesting. 

How are you helping build the scene? What are your plans?

Dec 10^th is going to mark the time where I actually follow my own lead, because I’m doing audio and visuals instead of following along with a DJ. Eventually when I have the budget… I’m building lights into the rig and other elements. It’s going to be pretty crazy and intense, and I don’t want anyone else involved, this is just a one-man show. The fourth element that I’m going to add is a live camera set up.  Ah, there are so many things I want to tell you but I’m just going to have to reveal them Dec 10^th. 

For an EDM show, I really don’t want to walk into a bar or venue, I want to walk into a different world. That’s what I want it to create. I want it to be like the Emerald City. That’s where I got the Oz name from. It’s somebody who makes himself look larger than life.

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Talking to Oz made me realize just how passionate he is about the scene. I never knew before just how big his plans were, but it isn’t all about his career… Oz is a gentleman, a man with morals. Anybody who has a soul as gentle as his cannot help to be. We discussed his recent residency at Fluer, an upscale club in the city (from August to October 1^st). He was making steady money under contract, but refused to renew his contract after they would not hire body guards, even though the girls were getting harassed. “I told them I’m never coming back. Womp.” Which of course led me to ask him what the hell is Womp? ( A question anybody who spends 5 minutes talking to him begins to wonder about), “Its like the F word only not vulgar, Its like maybe my version of “Amen”. Its like a closing thought.”

Which leads me to the end of this interview, womp.

Check out V.j Oz’s  most recent video!

And take a second to answer the poll question on the right hand side of the screen! Next weeks post premiers Monday at 10 AM sharp!

2. Bro-Squad

Although it would have been very convenient to go to Day Glow (the huge paint party last Friday) and then blog about how much I hate all the bro’s the place was filled with, I couldn’t bring myself to actually submerge myself in all the filth. 

Happily; I can write about the scum-butts anyway. If you are wondering what a “bro” is, I assure you that you know what I am talking about. A guy’s definition of what a bro is and my definition are a little bit different, but both are accurate. A guy’s definition is further split into two types: the attached, and the unattached. 

An attached man would describe a bro as a confrontational douchbag that hits on his girlfriend non-stop that he really wants to fight. 

An unattached man see's a bro as a completely sloshed and belligerent jack-off that is aggressive and obnoxious enough that he really wants to fight him. 

Rather than violence, my definition is based more solely on self-preservation. As a female I am required to look suspiciously upon all drunken horny men. Bro’s being inherently drunk, horny and cocky certainly qualify for my radar. I wouldn’t say that most of them are usually dangerous, but a combination of drunk and persistent certainly equals some unpleasant situations.  I once had one that playfully reached out for my hand, then forcefully pulled me close and refused to release me. I ended up having to push him away so hard I fell onto the ground. I think I might have BRO-ken a nail that night. 

On a related note: Bro's are usually preppy white-boys. Just an observation.

To further illustrate what a bro is I took the liberty of making a chart that describes his physiology.

Fortunately, a large portion of the rave scene in Columbus has very few of these “bros”. Venues like Circus are filled with people of a higher caliber. Branch out into Long Street District or The Social Room and it’s a different story. Sometimes the DJ’s are excellent, and it could easily be worth going to. But I’d rather dance to sub-par music in a safe environment any day.  

People of the EDM scene really are quality people. The men are respectful and faithful. And EVERYBODY, male and female, no-matter what they have indulged in, remain in-control and relaxed. 

And that is the key to a good club environment: high energy and low stress.  

Keep your eyes open: Next weeks post will feature and exclusive interview with V.J Oz

How would you describe a bro? Was I accurate? Comment and subscribe!  

Special thanks to Mark Cooper and Jonathan Smith for contributing to this post! 

1. A Music Revolution

 Welcome Ravers, Dj’s, Vj’s, Promoters, Spinners, Glow Babies, Artists, Dancers and Ragers!
 This blog is to bring us all together as a community, both online and off.  What do we all have in common? The biggest thing I can think of is that we are all part of a music revolution!

What does this revolution look like? It looks like us. What do we look like? As a whole, the music beats inside us. We bleed drum n' bass, EDM is dirty, it grinds on our bodies; the sound vibrates over our warm skin; lights play keep away over our arms and legs, our vibrant sweat cools out bodies leaving our cheeks and breasts glowing with the delight of life. We are more than ourselves, we relax the boundaries of flesh and bone and mortality, and host a brothel of delights within us. 

Who wouldn’t want that? Young people today are attracted to the strength and individualism of the rave scene. Lots of the people who rage with us today come from diverse social backgrounds. Somehow we are drawing connections between Punks and Preps. If I were to point fingers I would say that dubstep is the particular genre that is making the scene explode and leak into the others. Listen to Skrillex and Korn’s song “Get up” if you don’t believe me. And I’m sure you’ve heard that top 40’s song “Every day I’m shuffling”. (No links to that one :p) 

I know that a lot of the ravers are not thrilled with dubstep, but we should be! It is bringing the raver culture to the forefront of society making it cheaper and easier for us to throw parties and support ourselves doing what we love. Do we have to deal with some of the aggravating people it flushes into our clubs? Yes, we do. But within that same group of drunk bitches and bros there is easily one or two that have been feeling left out in their clique and will be saved by what we have already found in our community: Individual Freedom.