DJ handle: DJ84
Why I chose it: I am a self-taught DJ and there weren’t any other DJs that I learned from at the time, so I named myself. I knew I wanted to name myself something meaningful and not thrown together. The name hit me while I was at an RJD2 show. I liked the simplicity of using four letters and so I came up with DJ84. I am originally from a town outside of Pittsburgh called Eighty-Four so DJ84 was what I went with!
Real name: Lee Budkey
What I play: I’m an open-format DJ but I mainly play: hip hop, R&B, funk, house, electro, reggae, dubstep, Top 40, rock, Italian disco, etc.
Catch me at: The Greyhound Lounge in Thomasville on Friday nights and the “In The Beat Of The Night” radio show on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on WUAG 103.1 FM.
Upcoming shows: The Biggie Birthday & Dance Party at Studio B in Greensboro on March 16.
Got in the game: 2004
Why I do it: If it makes any sense, I feel that DJing found me. In the beginning, it started off as a hobby. The first set of turntables I had were Pioneer component turntables and they didn’t even have pitch control. The same day I got them I bought about 20 records and started experimenting and practicing. It went from practicing in my basement, to getting my first set of 1200s, to playing my first house party and then landing pro gigs. I enjoy the music and the creativity of mixing records and the feeling you get from playing for a big crowd that is having just as much fun as I am.
Influences: Z-Trip and DJP are my biggest influences. After hearing Uneasy Listening Vol. 1, I went out and bought turntables, a mixer and records. The blends they pulled off were amazing. They didn’t stick to one genre and they did it all using wax. DJ Shadow, ?uestlove, Kid Koala, the Beat Junkies, Mike Relm, Cut Chemist, Nu-Mark, Mix Master Mike, DJ Krush, Jam Master Jay, A-Trak and DJ Jazzy Jeff. Last, but not least, Mike Patton. Not a DJ but a musical and creative influence.
First pro gig: I played a 50 th birthday party for a friend’s mother-in-law. There were around 200 people there and it was in a ballroom of a hotel in downtown High Point. I mainly played disco, funk and R&B.
Favorite technique: I like to drop a cover song or well-known song performed in a different language during my set. Take the Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back.” The intro to that song can’t be mistaken, but in the version I sometimes drop, the lyrics are performed in Japanese. Or Snoop’s “Gin And Juice,” I sometimes drop a reggae cover version of it.
Signature mix: I would have to say the one I’m working on now. I don’t want to divulge too much now, but it’s a themed mix that I have been wanting to do for some time. Personal playlist: I enjoy listening to DJ mixes, We-Funk on iTunes, Backspin on Sirius/XM and all types of vinyl. I feel that listening to and digging for records is important.
Favorite albums: DJ Z-Trip and DJP — Uneasy Listening Vol. 1, Lovage — Music to Make Love To Your Old Lady By, DJ Shadow — Entroducing, The Roots — Do You Want More?!!!??!, Portishead — Dummy
My gear: Technics Turntables, Rane TTM56 Mixer, MacBook, Serato, Shure M44-7 Cartridges and records.
Website: twitter.com/_DJ84, reverbnation.com/dj84pa, myspace.com/dj84pa and Facebook
Why I chose it: I am a self-taught DJ and there weren’t any other DJs that I learned from at the time, so I named myself. I knew I wanted to name myself something meaningful and not thrown together. The name hit me while I was at an RJD2 show. I liked the simplicity of using four letters and so I came up with DJ84. I am originally from a town outside of Pittsburgh called Eighty-Four so DJ84 was what I went with!
Real name: Lee Budkey
What I play: I’m an open-format DJ but I mainly play: hip hop, R&B, funk, house, electro, reggae, dubstep, Top 40, rock, Italian disco, etc.
Catch me at: The Greyhound Lounge in Thomasville on Friday nights and the “In The Beat Of The Night” radio show on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on WUAG 103.1 FM.
Upcoming shows: The Biggie Birthday & Dance Party at Studio B in Greensboro on March 16.
Got in the game: 2004
Why I do it: If it makes any sense, I feel that DJing found me. In the beginning, it started off as a hobby. The first set of turntables I had were Pioneer component turntables and they didn’t even have pitch control. The same day I got them I bought about 20 records and started experimenting and practicing. It went from practicing in my basement, to getting my first set of 1200s, to playing my first house party and then landing pro gigs. I enjoy the music and the creativity of mixing records and the feeling you get from playing for a big crowd that is having just as much fun as I am.
Influences: Z-Trip and DJP are my biggest influences. After hearing Uneasy Listening Vol. 1, I went out and bought turntables, a mixer and records. The blends they pulled off were amazing. They didn’t stick to one genre and they did it all using wax. DJ Shadow, ?uestlove, Kid Koala, the Beat Junkies, Mike Relm, Cut Chemist, Nu-Mark, Mix Master Mike, DJ Krush, Jam Master Jay, A-Trak and DJ Jazzy Jeff. Last, but not least, Mike Patton. Not a DJ but a musical and creative influence.
First pro gig: I played a 50 th birthday party for a friend’s mother-in-law. There were around 200 people there and it was in a ballroom of a hotel in downtown High Point. I mainly played disco, funk and R&B.
Favorite technique: I like to drop a cover song or well-known song performed in a different language during my set. Take the Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back.” The intro to that song can’t be mistaken, but in the version I sometimes drop, the lyrics are performed in Japanese. Or Snoop’s “Gin And Juice,” I sometimes drop a reggae cover version of it.
Signature mix: I would have to say the one I’m working on now. I don’t want to divulge too much now, but it’s a themed mix that I have been wanting to do for some time. Personal playlist: I enjoy listening to DJ mixes, We-Funk on iTunes, Backspin on Sirius/XM and all types of vinyl. I feel that listening to and digging for records is important.
Favorite albums: DJ Z-Trip and DJP — Uneasy Listening Vol. 1, Lovage — Music to Make Love To Your Old Lady By, DJ Shadow — Entroducing, The Roots — Do You Want More?!!!??!, Portishead — Dummy
My gear: Technics Turntables, Rane TTM56 Mixer, MacBook, Serato, Shure M44-7 Cartridges and records.
Website: twitter.com/_DJ84, reverbnation.com/dj84pa, myspace.com/dj84pa and Facebook
