DJ Jayceeoh Archives

DJ JayCeeOh Crowned SMIRNOFF’s MASTER OF THE MIX; Speaks On Show Secrets, Success And What’s Next For A Champ

By: JP DelaCuesta (@JPdelacuesta)Category: LifestyleJune 7, 2013

It’s official ladies and gentlemen, DJ JayCeeOh is SMIRNOFF’s MASTER OF THE MIX! The champ battled his way past 18 other DJ’s over the course of 10 challenges this season and outlasted, outworked and out-DJed the competition as he fought for the grand prize of $250,000, becoming an official Smirnoff DJ and being crowned the Master of the Mix. After a finale that saw JayCeeOh go up against his close friends and the show’s finalists, Incrediboi and DJ Chris Karns, the opportunities for the future have opened up. JayCeeOh’s work schedule is quite crazy as the Pittsburgh native finishes up work on the next installment of his “Super 7” series, prepares to release a mixtape, and continues crafting original production for the masses. Check out our exclusive interview with the Master of the Mix himself, DJ JayCeeOh, where he speaks on keeping the win a secret, the show’s hardest challenge, putting Wiz Khalifa on his first mixtape and much more below: The man of the hour! Congratulations on the win, how does it feel? DJ JayCeeOh: F*cking amazing! As someone who has been tracking your progress throughout the season I have to ask how long ago the show actually wrapped and how you kept such a big secret to yourself the whole time? DJ JayCeeOh: It was pretty much impossible. I knew by the end of January, like January 25th is when I found out. Even though you were touring, was it difficult to be more lowkey and out of the scene while you waited for the season to play out? DJ JayCeeOh: Yeah I would definitely try and be systematic about where I was and making sure I wasn’t every at once. When people would ask me questions about the show and other contestants would comment on certain things, I wanted to stay out of the conversation cause I didn’t want to say something that would allude to my win. I was trying to just be careful. Would you say that the final challenge was the toughest for you? DJ JayCeeOh: The finale was the best one for me cause I got to do everything that I wanted to do. The “Bend the Ten” challenge was probably the hardest cause we had to do the ten songs from ten genres at ten different BPMs in four minutes and we only had a couple of hours to work on it. I love challenges like that but having to do that in such a short period of time was really tough. I know from watching that Incrediboi, [DJ Chris Karns] and yourself were really supportive of each other during the show. How have those relationships grown since you guys wrapped? DJ JayCeeOh: It’s gotten even better man. We’ve all kept in touch and I actually threw a finale party in L.A. and they both stayed at my house. I feel like we’re a family now. That whole experience was just so crazy to go through together and we all have a lot of love for each other. The two of them can still hold their heads high. It’s not an injustice where they got jerked and were beat by some bum. They both respect me a lot and I feel like I deserved to win. [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3K0vo5LkPg0&w=560&h=315] I saw on your Twitter that you were doing an interview at Power 105.1 with Kid Capri yesterday. How is it having him as more of a mentor and companion now than a judge? DJ JayCeeOh: It’s great man. When I started DJing I was watching him on Def Comedy Jam in awe of what he did so he’s been an icon and an idol that I looked up to my whole career as a DJ. Just having him walk around and vouch for me, that means a lot. Let me backtrack real quick. When we spoke last month you were touring with rapper Sam Adams. How did the rest of the tour go for you? DJ JayCeeOh: That tour was amazing man. We had a blast and I got to do like 15-20 minute sets before he came out in every city so I got to really show his fan base, which isn’t really like mine from the jump, what a real DJ does. A lot of these kids, especially his fans, have grown up in an age where they think Deadmau5 is a great DJ when they’re really just producers playing music. So when I play that kind of set or that kind of music the way I play it, they’re blown away and a lot of those kids after seeing me live say that JayCeeOh is there favorite DJ. It was really beneficial and just a great tour to be on. In addition to doing more remixes like the one you dropped last week for French Montana’s “What Happens Tonight” what are your plans as far as producing original stuff? Is that more of a focus for you now? DJ JayCeeOh: Yeah, honestly that’s my number one focus right now. Like every second that I’m not on tour, I’m working on production and that’s because I just proved to the world that I’m one of the best DJs around but I can’t stop there. The guys making the most money are the producing DJs so since I’ve gotten back from filming, all I’ve done is produce. I have a ton of records ready to come out, I’ve just been waiting for this win to happen and with all eyes on me now when I release something people are actually going to pay attention to it. I plan on releasing a lot of my own stuff, a lot of […]

Estelle Gets Remix Treatment On Penultimate Episode Of SMIRNOFF's MASTER OF THE MIX

By: JP DelaCuesta (@JPdelacuesta)Category: LifestyleMay 28, 2013

And then there were three! The third season of SMIRNOFF’s MASTER OF THE MIX DJ competition aired its penultimate episode last night as the remaining DJs battle for a grand prize of $250,000. On this weeks episode, the remaining DJs which include JayCeeOh, Incrediboi, DJ Chris Karns and Loczi, were tasked with creating an original remix to Grammy Award-winning singer Estelle’s new single, “Do My Thing” featuring Janelle Monae. Not only was Estelle’s track the key ingredient in this weeks challenge, the beauty from Britain was a guest judge on the panel as well. The episode began with the DJs arriving at a Miami mansion that was later revealed to be the famous Circle House Studios. SMIRNOFF’s MOTM host Amanda Seales greeted the DJs and filled them in on their task for the episode. “Today you are all producers,” she said following the instructions for the challenge. Each DJ was given three hours to work with an engineer and create an original, creative and Estelle-centric remix to the singers’ new song. Loczi began crafting a more dubstep-centered remix, while Incrediboi was leaning heavily on the influences of trap music. Chris Karns on the other hand went straight for the soul as he used a classic Marvin Gaye instrumental as the backdrop for his remix while JayCeeOh built his remix from scratch. Estelle then stopped by the studio as the guys were working to check out what they had accomplished so far. With the second-to-last challenge ready to being, JayCeeOh took the stage first to premiere his remix to Estelle’s “Do My Thing.” JayCeeOh immediately worked on pumping up the crowd and proclaimed, “I’m about to show you how a real DJ flips a remix!” Amidst the pounding drums and bass drops, JayCeeOh went to work scratching live in areas that he had let blank so that he could showcase his DJ’ing skills in addition to what he was capable of as a producer. With all three judges on their feet following the song, Kid Capri spoke first. “I didn’t want it to stop,” he said. “You set the bar very very high.” [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qNVxGr9t8w&w=560&h=315] DJ Loczi was up next. “This record goes out to everyone who isn’t afraid to be themselves,” he said. His dubstep-laced remix roared through the speakers. Despite Loczi’s lack of actual DJing during his set, he made one heck of an impression on the judges. “That was like a tsunami!” Capri shouted. “I wish I would have seen some more turn-tabling but that beat was absolutely crazy.” Even Estelle came out and said that while it wasn’t exactly her cup of tea, she absolutely loved what Loczi had done with the song however his lack of actually touching the turntables would not be forgotten. Incrediboi followed with a more soulful and bouncy remix that allowed him to showcase the strength of such technical skills as scratching and live mixing. His blend of reggae, doo-wop and trap helped create a truly unique sound that was adored by all the judges.”You’re an incredible DJ and your scratching is amazing,” judge Ben Maddahi said following the set. “Your production ability is a lot better than I thought it would be.” Last up was Chris Karns who won Estelle’s heart the second he dropped the instrumental for Marvin Gaye’s “Ain’t That Peculiar” behind her vocals. Throughout his set, Karns showcased his scratching skills over a double-timed beat and undoubtedly had more DJ skills on display during this challenge than any of the other DJs. “It was super creative and flawless,” said Ben. Judge Mia Moretti also had some kind words for Karns when she said, “that was the perfect marriage of turntablism and production!” Following the four sets showcasing each DJs remix to “Do My Thing,” the judges gathered to deliberate and decide who was the challenge’s winner and who would ultimately be getting their “record scratched” this week. The unanimous champion of the challenge was revealed to be JayCeeOh while DJ Loczi was sent home for not actually using any live DJ skills during his set. Next weeks season finale will find the final three DJs battling it out for a grand prize of $250,000 and the official title of SMIRNOFF’s MASTER OF THE MIX! Check back next week for another episode recap!

SMIRNOFF’s MASTER OF THE MIX Hits Halfway Mark; DJ Jayceeoh Opens Up About Competition

By: JP DelaCuesta (@JPdelacuesta)Category: FeaturesMay 1, 2013

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 […]