Interview: DJ Casper

Published: February 1, 2015

DJ Casper is one of the top DJs in Florida and one of the founders of one of the hottest weekly parties in Tampa, Ol’ Dirty Sundays. He has played alongside the likes of DJ Craze, Hedspin, Mos Def, Talib Kwali, and Z-Trip. Casper is an open-format DJ playing all genres and brings an incredibly unique style to his sets adding turntablism, a wealth of music knowledge, and originality to his sets.

On February 19, DJ Casper will be using his talents to compete against five other talented DJs (Obscene, Konflikt and Nikko Calor from Miami, DJ Nova from Orlando, and DJ IV from Atlanta) in the Red Bull Thre3style (The event is free with a ticket and you can register for your ticket here. More information on Red Bull Thre3style). 

Casper took a few minutes from his busy schedule to chat with us.

For those not familiar with you, can you tell us a little about yourself? 
I’m DJ Casper and I was born and raised in beautiful Tampa, Florida. I got started DJ’ing years and years ago around 1995 / 96 in my bedroom like most of us did back in the day. For some quiet some time prior I had been collecting rap tapes, cassingles as well as reading “The Source” and “Rap Pages” front to back, spending my allowance, lunch money and whatever else I could scrounge up during this time on new releases and back catalogs. Once I finally learned the ropes on turntables from my dads I.T. guy, DJ ANT (Anthony Lemus), I was hooked. The focus slowly turned to collecting vinyl but not as much as CD’s and cassettes until around 1999 when I got my own 1200’s and my vinyl collecting became an addiction, similar to the CD and cassettes but on a much larger scale. Not only was I buying new 12’s but I was also grabbing all the essential funk, soul, rock and dance/house records I could dig up which really helped to build my sound that you hear today. Eventually I started playing out of the bedroom and at house parties then moved to Orlando in 2007/08 and played out in small bars which helped to really get my feet wet. Eventually, I moved back to Tampa and started grabbing residencies here and there, slowly building my chops up and switching my career focus to become a full-time DJ.

How would you describe your style?
I like to call my style as “playing everything plus the kitchen sink.” I’m a big fan of all kinds and styles of music as long as it’s funky and I’m sure to always let that translate into my sets. Hard rock, hard hitting, hip-hop, hardcore.

You will be competing at the Red Bull Thre3style US South Regionals, what are you most looking forward to competing at the Red Bull Thre3style?
I’m looking forward to competing in the Thre3style for the simple fact that I’m beyond humbled to have been picked and also to rep Tampa and for the exposure it brings to the city. Also, maybe I’ll get some more out-of-town bookings now haha.

Without giving up to many secrets, how do you prepare for your set?
My preparation for sets is probably really lax compared to some other heads but that’s kinda the way i’ve always been. Give me 6 weeks for a project and you can bet that I’ll save the bulk of the work till the final week or so then let the stress and long nights begin. I’ll start with a massive crate of songs that I think will work along with some routines I’ve been trying live lately then I’ll narrow that down to a manageable 60-80 songs (which is still a shit load.) After the list gets smaller and smaller then I’ll get some sort of order of the tracks along with vocal snippets / skits and try to squeeze it all into a tight 15 minutes. That’s sorta where I am now.

The term DJ is loosely thrown-around. How do you define a DJ? What’s the difference between a true DJ and a wannabe?
The true essence of what a DJ is to me is 2 turntables, a mixer and a mic. Period. That’s the foundation and will also be my go to set up when I’m playing. It’s 2015 and there are all kinds of programs, hardware, controllers etc that are used for DJ’ing and I still consider that DJ’ing but the real art of it I feel is on the foundation. Regardless of that though I also feel that a true DJ should be able to rock any crowd on any gear and still have people moving. You should be comfortable on CDJ’s or 1200’s or Pioneer or Rane or rotary Allen & Heath mixers or Numark controller etc. Lots of producers now are pre-making there sets to “DJ” at festivals now a days which I think is complete horse shit. Never gonna be a fan of the button pushing DJ that is very prevalent on the scene today.

How have you seen the DJ scene change since you first started?
The scene has changed a ton since I first started collecting and really paying attention. For one, everyone was on vinyl and if you where a hip-hop DJ then that meant you had to have 2 copies of every record. You couldn’t just download them online for free or Google Mediashare search them for a link to download. You’d have to take the time and money and go to the record shop and grab what you needed, weather it was for your weekend gig or a mixtape you where making or just because you had to have it. Nowadays, everything is free or really cheap and everything is easily traded whereas back in the day you needed to have he actual record to play it, not an mp3 rip. And no one was making pre-recorded sets and waiving there hands in the air acting like twisting one nob is gonna fool us true heads watching. Also, I felt like there wasn’t so much of the 2 dudes DJ’ing on one set up like there is today. So one guy twists a knob while the other guy fist pumps and makes hand hearts? Hmmm.

You’ve played alongside some great DJs/artists including Craze, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, and Z-Trip in your career, what has been your most memorable night as a DJ?
My most memorable night as a DJ was probably at Ol’ Dirty Sundays when Talib Kweli came to DJ and Mos Def slid in as a surprise and hung the entire night. Too see that much energy, love and talent in one place was truly amazing. Tons and tons of memorable nights, especially at ODS but that one always sticks out on the top of the list.

You are one of the founders of ODS (Ol’ Dirty Sundays), one of the best weekly events in Tampa the past few years, can you tell us a little more about it?
Ol’ Dirty Sundays aka ODS was a party I envisioned around 4 years that was sort of an old school NYC park jam vibe like how they did in the 80’s. I wanted the freedom to be able to rock classic hiphop, funk, soul, disco, reggae, r&b, classics, dub, Miami bass, electro etc on a weekly basis and have the party really emphasize the DJ and the crowd. With the help of the homeys DJ’s LeSage, Blenda and Mega we started the party on Sundays for free and haven’t looked back since. We’ve been really blessed to have such amazing talent come thru every Sunday night and also for such an amazing crowd and scene for supporting us year after year, week after week. Like we say every week “Sundays will never be the same.”

What are your Top 3 favorite albums?
1. The Notorious B.I.G. – “Ready To Die” – From beginning to end this album tells a tale of life to death, birth to grave. Amazing from track to track, but even more amazing when you here the album from top to bottom cause the concept and how the album’s story is told couldn’t be more vivid. Amazing, amazing, amazing record.

2. Beastie Boys – “Paul’s Boutique” – This could be a close tie for first with B.I.G. Such a dope album from top to bottom. This was the main album that really opened my mind to samples and how hip-hop wasn’t just built on one genre but all genres of music. The Dust Brothers style of production on this was so dope with all the layers and sounds on top of each other. Then add the Beastie vocals and pop culture one liners in too the mix. Classic record.

3. Redman – “Muddy Waters” – I was a fan of Redman since “Time 4 Sum Aksion” but this album was so damn good. Red’s lyrics where a perfect match to Erick Sermons beats. Plus it has “It’s Like That” feat. K-Solo on here which is one my all time fav Red tracks. This album is a definite must have.

What is your “don’t leave home without it” track?
My don’t leave home without it track would have to be “I Want You Back” by The Jackson 5. Drop in front of any crowd and you’re sure to get a reaction. Sure shot.

What is in your DJ bag?
In my DJ bag are Sony MDR-7506 headphones, Shure M44-7 Needles, Ortofon Q-Bert Needles (backup), Mac charger, iPhone charger, 2 USB’s, 2 pair slipmats, Dicers, 4 pairs serato records, HOLLERTRONIX #4 vinyl (for transfer), laptop stand, earbuds, business cards, permanent marker, and stickers.

What do you like to do for fun?
For fun I like to kick in the door of restaurants and order most of the menu in one sitting. I love food, good food, and trying new food. I’m also a big fan of the beach so anything with the beach and sun I’m into. Or a day in bed with the dogs and Netflix is a win for me as well.

What can we expect next from DJ Casper?
Next for me is hopefully more dates out of town for myself and also trying to get Ol’ Dirty Sundays out in some other markets. This years is looking up and I’m facing it with open arms.

Do you have anything else to say to your fans?
Thanks for all the love and continued support. Without all of my family, friends and supporters I probably would’ve stopped DJ’ing a long time ago and I definitely would have never entered the Thre3style. Hope to see everyone in the crowd on February 19th. Salute.

On February 19, DJ Casper will be competing against Obscene, Konflikt and Nikko Calor from Miami, DJ Nova from Orlando, and DJ IV from Atlanta in the Red Bull Thre3style, the event is free with a ticket and you can register for your ticket here. More information on Red Bull Thre3style.

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Follow DJ Casper (Tampa)
Twitter: @tharealDJCasper
SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/casperthedj