FIRST OFF, WHAT DO YOU WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW ABOUT YOU?
I'm a DJ that is committed to Hip Hop first and foremost. Not only every night that I play but every day that I live I am dedicated to it. I owe all that I am to the culture of Hip Hop. In furthering that here in Honolulu I've co-founded a website at HNLHipHip. com that is dedicated to showcasing Hawaiian Hip Hop to the world and bringing the world of Hip Hop to the island. At the same time it also connects the island to itself so that everyone may know what's going on at different venues and realize how strong the culture is on the island.
TALK ABOUT SOME YOUR MEMORABLE ACCOMPLISHMENTS TO DATE?
I co-founded an extremely successful college radio show at the University of Tennessee for which I was the resident DJ for two and half years (that is still running), opened for acts such as People Under the Stairs and Supastition, played in venues all over the southeast, and have always held a commitment to the music and culture that is rarely equaled by my peers.
HOW DID YOU GET YOUR DJ NAME?
My name actually comes from the racist term "wigger". When I was in High School in Tennessee it was assumed that anyone that dressed like I did, spoke like I did, loved the music like I did, and was always reading The Source and XXL must have mistakenly thought they were black. Eventually the term "wigger" was shortened to Wigs and even my close friends began calling me that. When I began deejaying at age 16 the name was already so much a part of my identity that I held onto it and embraced it to show all of those around me that it was not a case of mistaken identity but rather a music and culture that lived inside me.
IS "DJ WIGS" THE SAME PERSON AWAY FROM THE TABLES OR IS YOUR SELF AND THE DJ WIGS PERSONA DIFFERENT? IF IT IS HOW SO?
Actually, Wigs is more me than my actual birth name of Jonathan. Jonathan is the face put on for the world in order to be accepted in business circles (kind of like Shawn Carter is to Jay-Z) and other places where Hip Hop culture is not understood or seen as legitimate. Honestly, at my core, Wigs is who I truly am and always will be.
PARTIES THAT PLAY EXCLUSIVE HIP HOP ARE HARD TO FIND AND DON'T DRAW THE HEADS LIKE IT ONCE USED TO, DOES THAT BOTHER YOU? WHY DO YOU THINK THAT'S SO?
Hip Hop is experiencing, for the first time in our history, a generational gap. This means that there is a great deal of difference in what the 25+ crowd likes as opposed to the 21 and below audience. Hip Hop is just coming to terms with the idea of the music and culture also being for grown folks as we are the first generation to grow up with it. I'm one of the youngest members of this first generation. As we accept this more and embrace it more there will be a plentiful amount of venues that cater to what our crowd wants. This period where it seems that "real" Hip Hop shows are declining is really just a growing pains period that will pass. I'm in an interesting position to understand both generations and appeal to both without losing credibility from either. I'm really blessed in that regard.
WHAT DO YOU THINK SEPARATES HAWAII'S SCENE FROM PLACES YOU'VE BEEN IN THE MAINLAND?
Because Hawai'i is so far from the epicenter of Hip Hop culture it has developed a really unique brand all it's own. It has a heavy concentration on initial appearance and is coming into it's own on understanding the history. This will come with time and there are a lot of great DJs and event promoters that I'm pleased to join that are doing a lot to further that here on the island and for that we should be very thankful. In contrast, the mainland has a regional understanding of Hip Hop in that New York is vastly different from the South which is vastly different from the West. Hawai'i has not been affected so much with that type of sectarianism and has been in the fortunate position to embrace it all (although there is clearly a West Coast bias here). That's also a testament to the multiculturalism of the island.
ARE YOU SPINNING REGULARLY AT THE MOMENT?
At the current moment I spin regularly at Indigos on Wednesday and Friday nights.
IS IT HARD BEING A DJ IN HAWAII SINCE THE TREND SEEMS TO BE, CLUBS AND PROMOTERS STICK WITH THEIR DJS?
It has been hard breaking into the scene here in Hawai'i. It's taken me about a year to really get going and it's clearly about who you know. Good music is good music though and when it's skillfully and tastefully presented it's only a matter of time before that allows you to meet the right people to put you on.
WHO HAS INSPIRED YOU? HOW DO YOU TRY TO INSPIRE?
My inspiration draws very heavily from Jazzy Jeff, Jam Master Jay, Mick Boogie, my mentor 45 Revolver, DJ Premier, Pete Rock, and the late great J Dilla. I've always strove to be as versatile as a DJ as I could. I'm not just a club, or radio, or scratch, or background DJ. I'm someone that you can call upon in almost any situation to DJ and will represent to the fullest on any occasion. So in that, I try to inspire others to do everything that they do in life to the fullest of their abilities and to never limit themselves to a particular category of what they think they are capable of doing. For every club goer that steps through the doors to a venue that I'm playing I want to inspire in them a deeper love for the music and the culture. If my sets make you go home, do your homework, and learn more about the artists and Hip Hop in general, then I have done my job.
