We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dj Bigg Rich a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
DJ, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.
It was basically alot of trial and error, just trying things and seeing what certain things do consistently, practice makes perfect is a cliche phrase but it’s real, i just had to mess around with djing and make it comfortable enough for me, i wasnt around other djs coming up when i first started, i never went to clubs, bars events etc where i could see another DJ spinning, im a nerd so i really just stayed home my first few years of tryna be a DJ messing around with dj programs and doing mixtapes trying to learn how to chop & screw songs because the Houston music culture is what i was heavily into at the time, DJ Screw was my influence so i was trying to be like him in my own way, so having that influence drove me to learn, i coulda sped up the process of becoming a elite DJ early by going out to clubs and studying other DJs and etc but i love my path and i wouldn’t trade it because im not the traditional DJ and thats how i got my identity and it feels good, the biggest skill i gained from it is “originality” which alot of DJs lack, some DJs have no influence they watch youtube, tiktok, and other videos for there reasons to wanna do this, they want the clout, girls and money thats why they dont last long, u gotta love the music, the art, the pioneers before you! DJ Screw inspired me, Kid N Play inspired me, The movie “Juice” inspired me, watching a real DJ on “fresh prince of bel air” seeing DJ Jazzy Jeff on tv acting showed me that the craft can take you places, that inspired me! No obstacles every stand in my way of learning more when it comes to this because i dont let obstacles stand in my way i figure it out! Thats why im constantly working as a top DJ to this day and i legit love music! When you love it you dont have obstacles because at the end of the day if DJ career ended and i never got booked again im ok with that because i still have music and the music lives forever.
DJ, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
If i had to describe myself id say im a entertainer, more than a DJ i entertain, i got into this industry from loving music i was the kid at school carrying a huge case of cds around full of music, i kept some kinda walkman, cd player and headphones on me at all times, i just loved the music that much, its been in me as a kid so naturally as i got older through high school i started to really notice that i loved putting people on a new music wave or journey, new sounds, new artists, i was so deep into the culture that i noticed i was way more advanced with music knowledge than everyone around me and thats because it never stopped, soon as i would get home id be watching rap city, MTV, music videos, organizing cds or doing something musically, playing video games while blasting new music i just got, it never stopped, and people would come to me at school for info on this artist or that artist or a certain song they heard but cant think of the name or what cd is that certain song on and i had the answer every time, i loved that feeling, it made me wanna be the music person everyone came to for anything involving hip hop, rap knowledge and at that point i think that was my introduction into trying to become something bigger with music in the future if i didn’t make it playing basketball, i never wanted to be a rapper tho i was way too shy but i knew i was gonna do something with music so once i got a glimpse of DJ Screw and the mixtape scene years later and how much people gravitated towards it i fell right into the culture because it took me back to high school memories when i was the cd music guy so thats how i ended up in this industry it was meant to be. Now the business and discipline side of it all just comes from wanting to constantly elevate and become bigger and make this a living because i legit love it so its definitely difficult but if you really want it you gotta buckle down and make it a business, once i got deep into the craft i seen its more than being a DJ if you wanna do this as your dream job, you gotta create and brand so thats when DJ Bigg Rich the brand was born! Til this day i offer shirts, hoodies, hats, stickers, cups, decals, towels, scarfs, as well as DJ services so its a business now and theres so much more im probably forgetting about at the moment because i do so much, i also offer graphics and video editing, i took on so many things to make sure my brand is a business and it all boils down to me loving the craft and thats what sets me apart from other DJs, im a walking brand its became more than just spinning music its a empire now, i can leave something behind for my kids to profit from, thats what im the most proud of.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
The social media thing was hard work, its more easier now since all u gotta do now is post a funny, crazy, or silly video and you can go viral and have millions of fans, my journey has been nothing but hard work since myspace days, its always been staying consistent and always having content wether its music, videos etc, you just gotta keep peoples attention, coming up i used to post a clip of me anytime i performed as a DJ, and reason being was i had the mentality that you never know who’s watching and my goal was always to DJ in other states because i never wanted to be labeled as local, I’m from Tulsa, Oklahoma far away from any industry attention, no huge promoters are looking for a DJ in Oklahoma, most of them think its nothing but horses and hay fields out here, they would never know theres a huge music scene with amazing Djs like myself unless they come experience Oklahoma and see for themselves, so my mission with social media was always to catch that eyes from the outside in bigger states and countries and showcase that there are dope DJs here in this small country state doing the same thing any elite DJ is doing in hopes of getting booked in a bigger state and from me constantly posting my events, posting my mixtapes, mixes, merchandise etc my audience grew and once my audience grew word of mouth kinda took over and i got big name promoters and big name artists attention which led to me playing alot of huge concerts, clubs, and events state to state and that drove me to constantly promote my social media anywhere i went because like i said Oklahoma is overlooked so if i wanted to keep getting booked away from home i had to consistently keep my social media with content and my content was simply me doing what i do best, entertaining! No gimmicks just raw footage every time and still to this day i post my events and everything i do and it inspires, so thats why my numbers reflect, u dont have to buy followers and do all the crazy stuff to gain a following, just stay consistent and promote yourself, if your consistent people while constantly support you because consistency is the hardest part of this industry so when people see how how much work you put in and how your consistent with your work they will legit follow you for inspiration and always support.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
Ive done so much in my career that im at the point now where the most important thing for me at this point is my happiness and mental health, it might sound cliche or funny but im serious, i just wanna be happy and excited again with every move i make, ive been through so much in this industry to the point where i wanted to quit and not be a dj anymore, the politics, the drama, the jealousy, the business, its all a big reoccurring circle at this point in the hip hop scene, so lately ive been more on the production side creatively and more on the multi-genre music scene now as a DJ which has opened up a whole new world for me creatively and its now driving me to be more successful in this lane than i was in just the hip hop lane and most importantly the excitement is back, i feel better, its all just a new breath of fresh energy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.djbiggrich.com
- Instagram: Djbiggrich
- Facebook: DJ Bigg Rich
- Linkedin: Djbiggrich
- Twitter: Dj_biggrich
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@djbiggrich1?si=Q6J4ccJ77_h6Gm4w
- Soundcloud: https://on.soundcloud.com/tZV3eeSUV7wJ8YS18
Image Credits
Alyssa Elyse
Khalea Giles
Finally Focus Photography