The halfway mark for this season of SMIRNOFF’s MASTER OF THE MIX has officially arrived and out of 19 DJ’s from across the country who started the competition, only 9 “fighters” remain.
This week’s Miami-centric episode featured Mr. 2 Rings himself, DJ Irie of the Miami Heat, who helped guide the nine remaining DJ’s through the challenge of creating an “Ode to Miami.”
The challenge this week specifically asked the competitors to blend together all the local flavors of the South Florida city using genres like Miami Bass, Hip-Hop, and the many forms of both Club and Latin music.
Following an inspired group trip to some of the city’s local musical landmarks the competitors hit the practice room to craft their sets for the night’s competition. First to hit the stage was radio personality and host of SMIRNOFF’s MOTM, Amanda Seales, who was joined by judges DJ Mia Moretti, Grammy Award-winning producer and DJ Kid Capri, and “triple threat” Ben Maddahi.
DJ Dynamix, who kicked things off with an impressive set blending tracks like “Tootsie Roll” by the 69 Boyz, Pitbull’s “Culo,” Nicki Minaj’s “Pound the Alarm,” and “Miami” by LMFAO, was applauded by DJ Irie for crafting “a superior Miami set.”
He was followed by DJ Loczi, whose goal was to pay homage to the EDM (Electronic Dance Music) scene in Miami. His up-tempo set featured Flo Rida, Pitbull, Daft Punk and Technotronic among others.
DJ Tina T was next and was heavily criticized for her transitions, or lack thereof, by Ben Maddahi who said, “Appearance wise, you killed it but with the transitions, you failed.” Even Kid Capri scolded Tina T: “You could have done that set in Vegas.”
Chris Karns on the other hand blazed through tracks from Pitbull, Enrique Iglesias and The 69 Boyz before he was joined on stage briefly by Luther Campbell Jr., son of the legendary 2 Live Crew member Luther Campbell. He received a well-deserved standing ovation from the judges who praised Karns’ skills. “Now that’s how you DJ,” exclaimed Kid Capri. “You played a perfect set. You did your thing tonight.”
Following Karns was Los Angeles native DJ Jayceeoh who said early on in the episode that he was going to take some risks with his set and see how it went from there.
Although he blended and cut together a good number of tracks from the likes of J.T. Money, Drake, Lil Jon and Trick Daddy, the judges didn’t seem overly thrilled with what they had heard. “That was a little underwhelming,” said Ben Maddahi.
Even Irie had a few words for Jayceeoh; “I know your talented and technically sound but I cannot say that you captured Miami.” DJ Mia Moretti on the other hand said she loved it and she knows the crowd loved it too so there was definitely a difference of opinion between the three judges.
The episode began to wind down as the shows two Miami natives, DJ Brian Dawes and DJ Fly Guy, respectively hit the stage. While Dawes impressed the judges, Fly Guy fell short. “I feel like you let your city down tonight,” said judge Ben. “Nothing was on point, no one should have represented this city better than you,” professed Capri.
Incrediboi was next at bat and started right off with the latin tracks, one of which he broke down on an MPC machine, and then moved into tracks by Trick Daddy and Iconz. Guest judge DJ Irie applauded Incrediboi’s skills and ability to incorporate the genre of Bachata from the Dominican Republic into his frantic (in a good way) set. “Today you made me wish I was Spanish. That’s a game changer,” said Kid Capri.
“The Mixing Vixen” DJ Dimepiece closed out the episode with her set which featured LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem,” Luther Campbell’s “I Wanna Rock,” and “Shut Up” by Trick Daddy. Unfortunately for Dimepiece, who was almost eliminated in two previous episodes, the DJ’s still weren’t feeling her. “It wasn’t Miami,” said Kid Capri. Dimepiece, who consistently let the judges down this season eventually had her “record scratched” at the end of the episode and was sent home.
DJ Chris Karn won the episodes “Ode to Miami” challenge that saw the likes of DJ Loczi, DJ Flyguy and DJ Tina T all in the bottom yet ultimately safe this week and eager to step their game up for next weeks challenge which will find the remaining 8 DJ’s pairing up for what is being dubbed “the season’s biggest challenge.”
Check out our interview with DJ Jayceeoh below:
How does it feel to see yourself on TV competing for notoriety among things? Is it still surreal for you?
DJ Jayceeoh: It’s pretty crazy especially after going through the process of filming the show and knowing how things play out and seeing how things are edited and the packages they put together for TV. It is crazy to see myself on TV in this light and know that people all across the country are watching it play out.
What’s the relationship like between you and the other competitors? Is it straight competition or was there more of a more supportive vibe throughout the end of the season?
DJ Jayceeoh: It’s actually pretty supportive, surprisingly. Everyone is really cool with each other and there’s no real beef that goes on. There’s of course a couple little things between people but in general it’s a very good spirited and competitive vibe. Of course everyone is trying to support one another and me, I mean at the end of the day, I’m just trying to win. We’re all cool and everything but when it comes down to it, I’m trying to crush everyone.
Who do you think is the toughest judge or harshest critic on the show?
DJ Jayceeoh: It varies. Honestly it’s either Kid Capri or Ben Maddahi, but I’d probably say Ben is the harshest critic because he’s coming form more of an executive standpoint so I feel his whole mindset coming into it is a little different. I feel like my style just appeals to Kid Capri. From the jump I got on his good side early and just built on that throughout the season. At the same time, because I did so well on the first couple of episodes, I’m held to that higher level of performance and delivery so I have to be the best dude out every time I step up to play or else I’m not doing my job.
Aside from yourself, who has the most potential to be crowned “Master of the Mix” in your opinion?
DJ Jayceeoh: Chris Karnes is probably my biggest competition as far as technical abilities. I mean him and Incrediboi are both really dope but so far this season I’d say no ones real talents have been exposed ’cause we’ve only done a few challenges and as the series plays out those different aspects of peoples styles will be front and center.
What do you think about your set on the most recent episode about Miami?
DJ Jayceeoh: I definitely didn’t touch on the Latin aspect as much and I focused more on the Miami Bass and House aspects so I got criticized a little bit for that. I did a blend at the end of my set where I took Trick Daddy’s “Nann” joint and did a live blend of it over an instrumental I thought was dope but the judges didn’t feel the same way. Overall though I think the performance was good but it is what it is.
Check back next week for an episode recap and more with DJ Jayceeoh.
SMIRNOFF’s MASTER OF THE MIX Airs Tuesday’s at 12am on VH1.