Today we’d like to introduce you to DJ Iesha Irene.
DJ Iesha, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’ve always been in and surrounded by music–my father is a DJ and it’s been his passion my entire life. I would always help him sort his music and load crates of vinyl albums into his car. Myself along with all of my siblings have helped him DJ family parties over the years, so I was also subconsciously DJing but it wasn’t until 2017 that I realized that I could make a career out of it.
My career has been mostly in corporate entertainment. I worked for REVOLT TV, Sony Pictures Television, Rolling Out Magazine and as a personal assistant for Rapper/Actor/Activist, Common. When I parted ways from Sony, I had a bit of downtime to figure out what was next. I was online applying for jobs one night and noticed the Google search engine was two turntables — turns out it was the anniversary of Hip-Hop. So I clicked on it and played with the virtual turntables for hours and that’s when it hit me that it was something I wanted to do and I just stopped applying to jobs after that.
Because of that, I suddenly had this big burst of energy and now I’m trying to figure how to go from Z to A. I called all of my DJ friends to see if they would give me lessons, most of them were really booked so they didn’t have the time to do it. I respected that. I knew that I needed money to purchase all of the equipment and that would require me to downsize and invest in myself. I decided to move out of my apartment and everyone thought I was crazy. But I was so sure that it was the right thing I needed to do at the time.
I moved in with my parents and I took a course at Scratch Academy, organized my music library on my computer and began practicing as much as possible until I felt comfortable to let my network know that I was embarking on a DJ career. Once that happened, my network started booking and referring me and it was uphill from there.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It’s been a smooth ride for the most part but there’s definitely some sacrifices that I had to make. My road would not be smooth if I didn’t have a supportive family and friends. They might believe in me more than I believe in myself sometimes lol –it’s truly a blessing. So many opportunities have come from them in various forms, from referring me to randomly giving a few bucks to go towards equipment. The biggest sacrifice was letting my apartment go, but thankfully for my parents and my older sister, I’ve been living in between the two households. I’m deeply grateful for them.
After my first full year of DJing, I learned that DJs typically have a dry spell between January–April, so I eventually picked up a full-time job to support myself in between gigs. During that time, I was extremely exhausted because I worked 6-7 days a week, almost every week. I had to sacrifice my time with friends and family because I needed rest. It was hard to explain and it made me feel like I was a careless person to the people I loved but looking back, I did what I had to do.
I’ve been DJing officially for two years and it’s been a pretty nice ride so far.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m an open-format DJ. I play anything from Hip-Hop, Pop, R&B, Reggae, House and anything in between. My focus is on corporate/private events. Past clients include: T-Mobile, REVOLT TV, Mattel, Morehouse College, Howard University, AT&T, various nightclubs across Los Angeles and a one-month residency inside the LAX Airport Tom Bradley Terminal.
What I’m most proud of is the will and determination I had to start from scratch. I’ve never felt so sure about anything and DJing has been it. I didn’t let fear stop me.
I think what sets me apart from others is my musical taste and the willingness to evolve and perfect my craft. Most people that have booked me tell me that they genuinely like me as a person and that makes them want to support even more.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I’m currently taking more DJ lessons with Common’s DJ, DJ Dummy, he’s offering DJ courses to beginners and experienced DJs. I’ve always been a person that seeks information, I’ve never really stopped being a student. And DJing evolves very quickly with the changes of the entertainment industry and technology.
I also recently dropped an R&B mix called Electric Vibration with DJ Trauma (Dave Chappelle/Tiffany Haddish’s DJ)–it’s a unique blend of some new R&B records that we think are hot and wanted to showcase that in a creative way.
I would love to go on tour or have experience on the radio as a DJ. I think that would be really cool. I would also love to do A&R work for a record label or become a music supervisor for television shows.
Contact Info:
- Website: ieshairene.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @iesha_irene
- Twitter: @iesha_irene
- Other: https://www.mixcloud.com/IeshaIrene/electric-vibration/
Image Credit:
Jennifer Johnson, Anne Marie Clark, Jelani Lockert
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