Bearfaced BIO & PLAYLISTS

Listen to my show every

Wednesday 8pm - 10pm Bi Weekly

What Do You Play?

House, Techno, Mashups, Remixes, Exclusives

What's your musical origin story?

"I have always had a passion for dance music and a love for what DJs do, but didn’t have an opportunity to learn how to DJ until 2019. I started online, with one of the online DJ schools and a basic controller and then realised that I wanted to really learn everything about Doing from the bottom up. I invested in a 4 channel controller, enrolled in a DJ school, and took each of their in person courses. With Covid hitting in 2020, my learning and development returned online, and I continued to undertake online courses, not just about mixing but about remixing, sampling, and producing - all of which I had decided were important elements to understand for the type of sets I knew I wanted to create.

I play out wherever and whenever possible, but with a young family I focus on my radio sets for the station, and am looking to build these out from the main Bear Essentials show, which showcases new music and no track is played more than once making it a constantly evolving show and learning curve for me, to other sets made for clubs, festivals, chilling with friends or anything else that pops into my head!"

What's your favorite thing about being a DJ?

"The feeling when you find two (or more!) tracks that work beautifully together and combine them in a set is incredible. It sends shivers down your spine when you find it, and is thrilling to watch peoples reactions when you play it and you see them hear it for the first time too. That, and of course massive build ups and huge drops…you gotta love them!"

What's your go-to track to get the party started?

"A great piece of advice I received from a very experienced DJ was always start your set with a great or memorable track. That doesn’t mean a massive track, but one that will engage the audience and get them interested. The great thing about Bear Essentials is that my go-to-track is constantly evolving, but Faceless Man by ACAY will get any room ready to go!"

Share a memorable DJing moment or gig experience.

"As a relatively new DJ, it has to be my first gig - a bar set on a Saturday night playing on a line up with a fellow DJ friend (you take the opportunities when they come - they always lead to more!). The night started quietly but then got really busy and everyone was loving the music and when I played a group of tracks and transitions I’d been working on the place went crazy - it was an incredible buzz and I knew I was totally hooked!!!!"

What's your favorite genre to spin, and why?

"I play a mixture of house genres and techno genres, and build my sets with venues and audiences in mind. I will use more vocal tracks for a bar, outdoor club or day festival vibe, and focus on melodies and base lines for club sets. I always like to drop something unexpected into my mixes, whether an acapella, sample, or brief shift of genre."

If you could collaborate with any artist (living or dead), who would it be?

"I take inspiration from so many artists, both present and past and look to weave in melodies and samples from all over the place in my sets and re-edits/remixes. But as a DJ, my heroes are Solomun, Sasha, and John Digweed. To work with them on a mix, or play on the same line up with them would be incredible."

What's your secret weapon track that always gets a great response?

"Me Roar - Format:B Remix by Super Flu, Monkey Safari, and Format B. If you haven’t heard it, play it all the way through. Immediately. Enough said."

What's one piece of advice you'd give to aspiring DJs?

"DJing is both an art and a skill. You have to be passionate about music and want what you do to be heard by an audience, but you also have to be prepared to take the time to learn the myriad of skills that are required to DJ well, and then you have to be prepared to accept that you are always learning and evolving as a DJ. Once you embrace that, you’ll fly. "