Dj Gogo
Schools
- University High School, Los Angeles
- University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) BA Sociology
Residency
- Moms Bar, West Los Angeles, CA. 2011
- Wet Bar, Downey, CA. 2013-2014
Dj Gogo started djing in 1996. He was inspired by the house music and hip-hop scene in the 90s. Listening to djs such as Richard Humpty Vission, Bad Boy Bill, and Dj LaRok, Qbert, Dj Revolution, and Dj Melo-D, they continue to inspire him to learn new things to improve his skills. The big production at EDM concerts, inspire Dj Gogo to place importance on lighting and sound.
Dj Gogo comes from humble beginning. It was his older brother, Dj Excite and brother from another mother, Dj Lalo who are credited for having the idea of starting a dj company. They continue today as, Rukus Entertainment, a separate company then Dj Gogo Entertainment.
It has never been easy to obtain the equipment necessary to become a dj. Dj Gogo comes from a family of 6 (mother, father, 2 sisters, and 1 brother), and money was always tight. Yet, he comes from a family that knows the importance of working hard and putting 110% to ever job opportunity. So, he had to work with what he had available to begin his dj career.
In the beginning stages, Dj Gogo’s father had an old record player that had no pitch control and the platter was especially sensitive to touch. His father also owned a cassette player in his entertainment center. These 2 pieces of equipment laid the foundation to learn how to blend 2 songs together. The cassette player was used by Dj Gogo to stay up till 2am and record his favorite radio show Power Tools, which is one of the oldest EMD shows in Los Angeles, on Power 106fm radio. These 2 pieces of equipment, his father’s record player and the cassette deck, laid the foundation to begin to mix/blend 2 songs together.
It is Dj Gogo’s theory that, when you grow up with so little, you are forced to rely on your imagination, creativity, intuitiveness to fulfill your dreams. Dj Gogo and his brother learned; if you hold the pause button, on his father’s cassette player long enough, you can manipulate the speed of the song being played. Both Dj Excite, Dj Lalo, and Dj Gogo were naturals in blending 2 songs together but still needed to pay their dues to attain the equipment needed to rock parties.
No body really realizes the cost that Djs must endure. In the beginning stages of his dj career, Dj Gogo helped his brother Dj Excite and Dj Lalo at family events/parties for some cash to earn enough to buy equipment. They started Djing parties with a belt drive turntable with a pitch, a cd player, monster size mixer, a very heavy amplifier, and 2 -15 inch speakers. During the 90s, music downloading was not available. Djs spent a lot of money buying music on records/vinyl. It is this idea of crate digging where djs spend countless hours and travel distances to get that one record to add to our playlist. This is why most djs are reluctant to give up their music, because it takes time to find good music. Djs now a days should appreciate the availability of music, yet are too lazy to find it themselves. For many, it is easier to say, hey let me connect my hard drive to steal your music. JUST AS AN FYI, NEVER, EVER, EVER, ASK FOR DJ GOGO’S MUSIC!!
Dj Gogo attended University High School in West Los Angeles, CA. and he was grateful because during those years, we had very good and supportive staff that allowed use to put on lunch dances and other events. There was also a very strong culture of breakers, poppers, and party crews at the high school that also added to the party scene. Dj Gogo also would go to flyer parties and clubs to get his name out there. It was in the late 90s, where Dj Gogo was able to dj at his first big club event at Club Fun House and Carnival. He was also able to win some battles and/or be a runner up at others.