deejay pickel

If you've been to the Midwest, you've seen him rock the spot. He blends with the best, and his sets get sweaty. Known for flirting with feel-good genres, Pickel spins everything from Prince and The Cure to the Beastie Boys and Steely Dan. And he always makes time to get a little goofy: "I listen to monster ballads once a day."Deejay Pickel has shared the stage with numerous hip-hop icons, including RUN DMC, Pete Rock, Tone Loc and Brand Nubian. He's worked alongside the industry's newest talents, including everyone from emcees Murs and Lyrics Born to turntablists Z-Trip and Cut Chemist. Whether backing musicians or being the life of the party himself, he's comfortable in all settings, from art galleries to local watering holes.In the city famous for creating house music, DJs Fast Eddie and Julian "Jumpin" Perez influenced the Chicago native. Deejay Pickel got his first set of turntables at age 12, and promptly began recording mixes: "Hip-House is what I thought rap was." He learned to DJ from a family friend, and practiced on his own by watching Kid Capri on Def Comedy Jam. He wanted to learn how to scratch after watching EPMD's video for "Rampage," and his techniques expanded again.Heavily influenced by Public Enemy, the mixtapes he made in high school blended the best of raw rap with its introspective hip-hop counterpart. This bridged a gap between cliques of friends and would become known as his trademark style. He later enrolled at Southern Illinois University, the infamous party school. There he would meet several like-minded musicians, and with them, he formed the Analog Addicts and the later the Come Ups crews.Deejay Pickel has spun at a number of Midwest institutions, including Metro, Danny's, The Blue Note, Abbey Pub, Black Beetle, TreVia, Rodan, Lava and Joe's. Featured in the Chicago Sun-Times, he has gained the respect of both the media and other DJs for his unconventional record selections. His Lisa Loeb/Pharcyde mash-up from the Analog Idiot mixtape solidified him as a presence behind the decks. "People go nuts to that one." But it's his crowd he caters to most, and as an old-school DJ, he's perfected the art of making dance floors bounce. So grab a Pabst, and push the peace.