Today we’d like to introduce you to Jonathan (JackJack) Roy.
Hi Jonathan (JackJack), thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’ve been surrounded by music all my life. My mom, dad, and lolo (grandpa) constantly had records playing in the living room: from Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, and Motown classics all the way to Madonna and Cathy Dennis. My two older sisters at the time would jam out in their room with CDs filled with the newest 90’s and 00’s R&B and hip-hop hits. In combination with my fascination of rock, alternative and rock-adjacent music in my middle school years (emo phase), this inevitably laid the groundwork for accumulating what I consider a very diverse collection of music and music knowledge, all packed inside of my 8 GB iPod Touch. It was no surprise that my friends would beg me to plug my iPod into the AUX at parties. Thus, self-dubbing myself as the “AUX cord guy.”
I had no formal DJ experience, however. I always dreamed of the idea but never had enough money to invest into equipment to get started. Come December of 2013, a close family friend was gifted my first official DJ controller, the Denon MC-3000. It was an older model, a very clunky and heavy DJ controller, but it worked. I plugged it straight into my laptop, organized my music library, and immediately started practicing the craft. I became known as what many would call a “bedroom DJ” during my college years. It was not until 2019 when I landed my first public DJ gig at The Slip Bar in Redondo Beach. Being behind the decks mixing music in front of a live audience was a feeling like no other and I wanted to keep chasing that feeling again and again.
I was getting booked to DJ through a close friend of mine who organized small parties in LA, and after just a few months, my talents were recognized by a close friend of his, a local DJ pioneer and icon SOSUPERSAM. SOSUPERSAM along with PARTYTIME organize a very influential R&B party in LA called 143, a party I frequented often and even worked the merch booth for. I DREAMED of performing at this party one day and I finally received that chance for the 143 NYE party. Nervous, shaky, and even suffering from food poisoning that night, it’s safe to say I totally rocked my set (and didn’t **** the bed.) I received a text from SOSUPERSAM a few days later to talk about the night and was offered to become a permanent part of their outstanding lineup of DJs. I nearly fell out of my seat.
Fast forward to today, I’ve experienced so much in my few years as a DJ, from my residency at 143, music festivals, high-profile private events, and even the “Twitch lockdown era.” I continue to grow, sharpen my skills, and create my own identity and DJ career. The amount of support and love I receive from people is so surreal. There’s so much work to be done and I’m only just getting started.
Big shout out especially to my number one fans: my mom and my two sisters. Mom, you worked extremely hard for all of us, and you are the reason why I have the means and drive to chase my DJ dreams.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. Trying to balance my work life with my passion for DJing was tough. Often, I’d come home late around 2:00 AM to 3:00 AM from a DJ gig and wake up at 5:30 AM for work the same morning. Also, having to turn down gigs or miss out on other DJ-related experiences because of work was painful, but I needed to be able to provide for myself. Working through these problems taught me a lot about sacrifice, time management, and self-worth. I currently pursue DJing full-time and take what I’ve learned from that experience with me.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
The idea of a DJ seems simple: you mix and play music. The craft, however, is not. As a DJ, you must be able to evaluate the crowd or environment and be able to adjust your song selection throughout your set. You have the power to bring the energy up in a room and bring it down, if necessary. Not only that but you are also given a platform to be able to showcase songs that other people might not have heard of or discovered yet. When a DJ sticks to a setlist of songs because that’s what “everyone plays,” I feel that a lot of personality is lost in the set. For that reason alone, I personally don’t like to play it safe all the time. I like to experiment and push boundaries with new sounds.
My DJ sets are mostly open format (multi-genre), influenced by R&B and hip-hop sounds. Not only do I work to play what the crowd wants to hear, but I also blend in tracks that are part of my personal listening taste in a way that doesn’t distract from the ongoing “vibe.” It may be a little selfish, but during a set I often think, “Okay, this is what I feel like playing right now, so I’m taking you on a ride with me.” Because I have this freedom to do so, I typically always freestyle my live sets. My confidence in song choice continues to build, and I am not afraid when songs fail to resonate with a crowd. Everyone has their own music taste and that’s totally okay! If my set allowed you to discover at least one song, then I’m satisfied.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
The biggest thing I’ve learned during the COVID-19 Crisis was that there is an enormous, supportive DJ community on Twitch. When the lockdown started, everyone was pretty much out of work. Bars and clubs were empty, there were no weddings, there were absolutely no public events at all. Where did we all end up? Twitch.
Streaming DJ sets on Twitch allowed me to further practice my craft, build my own community, and meet DJs from all over the world that I probably would have never met if the lockdown never happened. It was a tough time for everyone, but the users on Twitch were there to make the best out of that situation. We partied, we celebrated music, we played video games, and we partook in this worldwide virtual community all from the comfort of our own bedrooms. Users would flood in to watch multiple DJ sets throughout the day. Once a set was over, there is a “raid” feature which would take all the streamer’s viewers to support another DJ’s channel and watch their live set. No matter where you were in the world, no matter what time zone you lived in, there was love and support to be shared through and through.
The number of connections that we’ve made from that time have continued forward to present day and it’s been such a pleasure to finally meet everyone that I’ve connected with in person. Some come to the local events here in LA, and others I’ve gotten the opportunity to DJ or work with! I would not have had it any other way, and Twitch continues to hold a special place in my heart.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: instagram.com/essjackjack
- Twitter: twitter.com/essjackjack
- SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/essjackjack
Image Credits
Sean Santos Bianca Cunamay Andrew Donovan Valdivia
