The saying “Nice guys finish last” has been disproved so many times that it seems like piling on poor Leo Durocher’s grave every time it’s brought up. Still, the events in Atlantic City this August at The International DJ Expo and specifically the DJ of the Year Competition, brought that statement to mind once again, followed of course by a Jakob Dylan lyric: “Look how wrong you can be.”
The DJ of the Year of the competition, held on Wednesday night, August 12th in the Club Casbah was, as always, the culmination of months and months of searching and whittling down worthy candidates for a “one-performance only” type of competition. Every MC is given ten minutes to do whatever they want. Teach a dance or lead a game. And they are judged by a panel of industry veterans.
Since our returning champion couldn’t even make the trip (alas Jazmine is carrying her first child and decided Atlantic City with no dancing, late nights or alcohol just didn’t sound enticing) the field was wide open. Chicago, ever a hotbed of talent, was sending three performers to the stage. Hoping to cash in on a “homefield advantage” four performers from The Garden State had made the cut. And the rest of the field was made up of an assortment of talent from other areas both wide and far.
So as the lights fell and the finalists were introduced, there was no clear-cut favorite. Mario Panacucci kicked things off by leading a classic disco dance to a Bee Gees favorite and just like that, the competition was underway. There were ten dances entered and just two games. Dances have traditionally been the better sell with the judges; indeed all but one of the past seven winners had performed a dance rather than a game. Still, both games went over well, the first by veteran MC (and 2003 DJ of the Year) KC Kokoruz and the second by “new kid on the block” Steve Moody. Darryl “Jake” Jacobsen led a high-energy dance and sing-along routine that stood out as did Shani Barnett’s interactive dance set to a classic Michael Jackson track. The competition ended with another up and comer, Jersey’s own Vincent Anthony from Hurricane Productions. The crowd in the Casbah gave a huge ovation for everyone and then it was time to count the votes.
As has become tradition, Boston’s Johnny K took the “filler” role. He and last year’s runner up Scott Corchin led the DJs in the Casbah in a dance and sing along routine that raised the energy to one more impossible level. And then it was time to announce the winners.
Steve Moody took the first award of the night for “Best Game.” Shani and her dancers won for “Best Use of Choreography.” Then Darryl “Jake” Jacobsen was given “Best Dance” and Runner Up to the DJ of the Year. Jake had scored just ten points less than the winner, out of a possible 600 points . . . talk about close!
Then it was time to announce the DJ of the Year. Everyone in the Casbah leaned forward in anticipation. And the winner is: Steve Moody.
The Casbah erupted. A guy who, just two years ago, had made his first appearance at a DJ Expo was now the DJ of the Year. And what a culmination to a great week. Steve had delivered an informative and well-presented seminar earlier in the week. Plus he had led a line dance at Monday’s Mobile Party. Now here he was, receiving the highest honor DJ Times can bestow on a Mobile DJ: DJ of the Year.
Afterwards, we sat down with Steve for a little one-on-one:
DJ Times: You competed in 2008 and weren't thrilled with the outcome. What did you learn from that experience that helped you do so well just one year later?
Steve: I learned a ton from my performance in 2008. Honestly, I felt that it was not up to par with my regular performances. It was truly a difficult decision for me to get back on the horse and try again this year.
DJ Times: Tell us about the routine you did at the DJ of the Year Competition. What's it called, how'd you come up with it and why did you decide to use that one to compete with?
Steve: I tried something different this time around and presented a game. It's funny how long it has been on my mind. Driving home from last year's DJ Expo I was thinking about a musical chairs game that I saw at the Games Seminar... and came up with the idea for "Jukebox Eliminator."
I thought that using the different colored hula hoops along with songs that had colors in their title would be something a bit unique...you know, songs like "Yellow Submarine" from the Beatles, and "Red Red Wine" from UB40. It all came together after I decided to use one on going medley...and make it sound as if the Jukebox was actually accidentally skipping to a new song throughout the game.
DJ Times: What did you think when your name was announced as DJ of the Year?
Steve: One word: "SHOCK"! Though I was in the show...I really had no idea that presenting a game would even put me in the running for DJ of the Year because games so rarely win. At most, I hoped for "Game of the Year." In my mind...presenting the game was more about sharing something new with the industry.
