We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Zachery Williams. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Zachery below.
Zachery , appreciate you joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
Well! Where to begin…
All throughout college I was under the impression that in order to make a living in life, I needed to choose a “recession proof” job. Your nurses, police officers, and teachers of the world… I never really felt like following a “dream” was truly an ideal move when it came to college degrees. I’m an only child so I had no older siblings to base other experiences off of. My mother never went to college and my father has a degree in pastoral ministries…soooo yea. Not a lot to go off of.
Long story short…I changed my major a half a dozen times to finally land with a degree in sociology and criminology. I did 150+ hours of police, sheriff and SWAT ride alongs and had every intention of becoming a police officer. Years passed, I attempted a number of interviews in various towns to become a police officer but nothing came to fruition. At the end of the day I guess I had an issue with the criminal justice system and the idea of being ordered around did not seem like my cup of tea. So I did what every kid does with their sociology degree…I got in to the service industry. SHOCKER. Throughout my 20’s I attempted multiple “pyramid schemes” and even attempted the conventional 9-5 lifestyle. Only to find myself right back to being a bartender 6 months later. During the times I had a 9-5, I would find myself staring out the window feeling completely trapped. “Surely this is not what the human spirit was meant to do”, I thought. Most of the time I found myself happy was by creating conversations and relationships with my bar regulars and adapting to a schedule that allowed me to do the things I wanted to do in my free time.
During this time, an old college friend gave me an old DJ controller to mix music with. I already had a love for music and the EDM scene and he felt I would really excel at learning how to DJ. For the first few years I was a “bedroom DJ”. Meaning, I pretty much played at home. Getting home late from the bars, firing up the computer and imagine myself playing in front of thousands of people. Years passed and my first time ever DJing in front of people was a friends going away party at a dive bar. I did it for free and I only wanted to help send my friend off in style. Later that night, the bar manager came up to me and offered to pay me to play every Friday night for $125 and a free bar tab. Let me tell you, I thought I was the coolest guy ever. To get paid to play music and drink for free?? Heck Ya. So 2017, began my DJ career.
Years passed, and I became a more sought after DJ and found myself having a number of residences in downtown Columbus. Then in 2019, I joined a prominent production company in Columbus called, Josh Staley Productions. Let me preface that I LOATHED the idea of DJing weddings. I had this stereotypical perception of what a wedding DJ was and I had no desire to be associated with it. However, this particular DJ company was all about creating elevated wedding experiences for wedding couples. Which meant I had the power to brand myself the way I wanted to. Fast forward to 2021, I had become one of the more requested DJs on the team and took the plunge to becoming a full-time DJ. I pulled myself out of the service industry, and liberated myself from the 9-5 by bringing out my passion to perform for others.
Everything was great but there was still a void deep down that I could not fill. That void was the desire to live in the Pacific Northwest…
My love life never took off the whole time I was in Ohio. Lots of failed relationships some of them being my fault and others having my heart broken. Coming from a christian household and my father being a pastor, I genuinely thought I would be married by 30 but life had a different purpose for me. So I figured moving to Oregon was a now or never kinda deal. Through the powers that be I was connected with Justin Babbitt, the owner of Paradox Productions in the beginning of 2022. He has been running a successful DJ company in Portland for over 15 years and saw my potential and we decided to go in to business together as the manager for his company.
At this point Justin is the only person I know in Oregon and I had no idea what to expect when it came to the Portland music scene and wedding market. The entire year of 2022 I began saving money and gearing up for the long move across the United States. After a successful year, on December 5th 2022, my cross country move began. I brought what possessions I had in a 5×8 trailer, my dog and off we went. I car camped along the southwest and took highway 1 all the way to Oregon for a span of 23 days. By January 1st 2023, I started my first day as a salaried DJ in the Pacific Northwest. I was a ball of emotions. I was excited, nervous, hopeful and determined. It honestly never really hit me at the time just how big of a move I accomplished. But I made it and I was ready….
17 days later all the progress and hopefulness I had came to a grinding halt. At some point, in the middle of the night at my new place, someone broke open my trailer and stole all my DJ gear. On top of that, the thieves also stole a backpack that contained an old key fab to my Jeep and came back the next night and stole my Grand Cherokee right out of my drive way. Within 48 hours I lost all my possessions. Close to $15,000 of gear and my car… I was devastated.
My only support system is in Ohio, I felt helpless and the only thing I could do was file police reports and try work out things with my insurance companies. Turns out that my DJ gear was considered a business related matter and because I did not have liability insurance, I only got back 1/3 of the total amount lost. My Jeep was later found totaled with fentanyl and other stolen goods in it. So the car was considered a complete loss as well.
All I wanted to do at this point was go back to Ohio and take the “L”. In fact most people suggested it. I walked away from so much to come to Oregon. I left a great paying full time DJing job, I left my friends and family and parted ways from a woman I was in love with. My future here was looking grim to say the least. The next few months here was honestly a blur, but I decided to stay and take the plunge anyway. From February to May, I invested close to $25,000 in new DJ gear, got a new vehicle to haul my gear with, got a part-time job and sold my trailer to help offset the losses and started meeting all the vendors and venues I could. I honestly felt like despite everything, there was no turning back now.
By spring I met a few different wedding vendors and out of being in the right place at the right time. I became a founder and committee member of PDX.perts (formally known as Wedding Pros). It is an organization that gets wedding vendors and venues together the first Thursday of every month where we can kick back, relax, network and grow within our community. By the end of 2023, I feel like I made a pretty big splash in the wedding community. My style of DJing, and the mid-west “get shit done” attitude really reverberated within the Portland area.
The year 2024 was WILD and I performed a record 67 events for myself including 5 triple header wedding weekends. I felt like I was back on top. My debts are close to being paid off. The 2025 season is looking bright and I just received word that Paradox Productions are among the finalists in being the, “Best of Wedding DJ’s” by Oregon Wedding Magazine. I also took the risk of going up in price so that I can enhance the wedding experience even more this year. So it seems just when I get settled, I am off taking more chances in advancing my career.
I feel like the last 13 years of my life has been all about taking a chance. A risk to achieve life in a way that most others could not. Being a career DJ has its downfalls for sure. Making friends and finding a love life has not been easy. It’s hard enough to make new friends in your 30’s and my schedule is often very different than most people. But I have made a commitment this year to seek out healthier relationships and I truly believe this will be a year of excelling in to new areas of growth.
So yea, thats my story. I took the risk and in the words of Elton John, “I’m still standing”.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
A lot of what I previously mentioned would fit in to this category.
A couple of specifics and mentions:
– The person who gave me my first DJ controller was Sterling Harpst (College friend and roommate)
– Along the way I had a number of DJ mentors that helped me mix and MC. I would not be where I am without these people. (Sterling Harpst, Ryan Romito, Adnane Rhazzal, Mike Sloan, Josh Staley, Vince Kendjorsky, Justin Babbitt, and John Waldron)
– The program I use is Serato in order to mix my music and I find a lot of edits/remixes in DJ stream pools online (BPM Supreme, Direct Music Services, and Club Killers).
My “Why”.
Obviously there are a TON of wedding DJs out there. They all vary from exceptional, good, bad, and the ugly.
The part about the corporate and wedding scene that got me really excited is my ability to connect with my clients and couples prior to the event. I am not your typical, “fill out this questionnaire” and see you on your event kinda DJ. I want to genuinely invest time with those who are paying me so that I better understand their needs, wants and desires. Whether it is over zoom or meeting out for a beer, I want to invest my time with you.
Aside from the one on one planning meetings, I think another thing that sets me apart is my willingness to bring the clients vision to life without sacrificing my identity as a DJ. I will always try to exemplify my own personal branding and unique MC/mixing styles to every event. Some events I have more liberty to do that more than others. But regardless, I will always hold my identity true as a DJ at every event.
I think one of the coolest things to have ever happened to me in my career was my last wedding in Columbus before moving. I had 5 prior wedding couples of mine that were either attending the wedding or were apart of the wedding party. I became so infused in to some of these couples lives throughout my career that I became a repeat DJ for many of them. So on that last wedding, I would dare say half of the audience already knew me and I never heard such an applause and level of excitement before. I felt like a celebrity DJ and it was all because of the relationships I created throughout the years.
I am also proud to be a founder and committee member of one of the fastest growing wedding networks in Portland right now. Check out PDX.perts on instagram if you are in the wedding industry! Big things are happening in the wedding community.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
At this point in my career, my main drive for success is the relationship building process with my clients and couples.
Yes there will always be ways and times to be a better DJ and mix music. But much like my father who is a pastor, him and I share the same love of connecting with others and being someone you can trust.
Part of the reason I went up in price is because I only have so much bandwidth to sustain those relationships. So I think the better relationship building I provide, the more successful the event will be.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I can’t say that I have a MASSIVE following. But what followers I do have engaged with me often. Social Media building starts with the simple ask, “Hey follow me, I’d love to follow you back”
I constantly have new vendors, clients and couples to connect with. So I always have opportunities to watch stories, engage with polls, send messages and post recaps of events.
When you post content, make sure you tag everyone that was involved. You can even ask some of those individuals to be collaborators so your post gets more exposure. You never know who is watching or may find you. Every post or level of engagement on social media could mean a new line of business.
If you are just starting out and you say, “but I have no content to work with”
Well, I am sure you have a functional camera on your phone and a friend who will be willing to take pictures of you and/or product in exchange for free lunch.
If you think you don’t have time..there are many social media planners out there that you can schedule posts with.
It’s 2025…not many areas for excuses to grow your social media. But even I get lazy with it so it’s normal for it to feel daunting.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://djpdx.com/
- Instagram: DJ Z2C
- Facebook: Zachery A Williams
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zacheryawilliams/
- Soundcloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/DJZ2C/
- Other: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/9j4om6dktjyupxq1wmyx7/ADbkmF-lGctdrnDdQBcJgL4?rlkey=rcscr4hj1v4pjm965ozqmm430&st=yoc2x38z&dl=0
Headshots above
Image Credits
– Brittany Sharday
– Chad Diblasio
– Maykell Araica
– Amanda Aceves
– Hannah Brooke
– Clay Justice