October 23. 2024
Telling Tomrrow's Tales Today
Becoming a Dj is about Going on the Adventure

» by Danni Miller
Some nights, as the sun disappears below the horizon, I find myself behind decks, an adventurer as if maps are spread out on the turntables, inventing stories, beat by beat. Becoming a DJ happened by accident, but it has always been connected with storytelling for me – an art of improvisation in which I guide the audience through ups and downs, through epochs and dimensions of sound.
I remember that time you stumbled across an old box of dusty records in the attic? My little guilty adventures back then, are my same ones today. Each one told a story I had never heard before, from the echoes of Sam Cooke that soothed the heart in a time of turmoil, to the synthetic landscapes of Kraftwerk that sang of a future unexplored and unknown.
Music has this kind of narrative magic, isn't it funny? The way a symphony with a single note can last for decades, a great beat can span continents, or a verse can bridge entire cultural gaps.
One chilly evening back in college, a friend handed me headphones that were playing an eclectic mix: a Cuban piano that classically ties into jazz standards and unfolds stories of passion that has danced across eons. Do you know these pieces that transport you to a smoky lounge in Havana, sometime in the past? It's like Miles Davis is sitting down next to you. The fusion of these notes told me of rebellion, longing and love – a love reserved for rainy days on the radio and late-night record spins.
Want to hear something crazy? A song can rewrite gender dynamics when voices take turns – a duet echoes a dialogue from a thousand romcoms. And I wonder every time who is behind all those sparkling keys drumming their way through stories that defy definition?
Music devours time – but it is not inert; it springs, it leaps and turns hungry somersaults into the past and the future. Do you ever imagine these futuristic sounds guiding space settlers in moon dances, while David Bowie's ghost shines heavenly through skillful radio talks? His dream, interwoven with their new world. Space Oddity, indeed.
Sometimes you enter an obscure little record store, maybe in Rome, where the birds are chirping and the espresso is humming. Not surprisingly, I find a special record there – untouched, preserved. My precious discoveries from these excursions changed the cultural landscapes with the fall of a needle, recreating Parisian afternoons or Tokyo nights. Layers revealing stories of entire cultures, borrowed for a temporary stay in the worlds within the worlds.
Sounds tell countless stories, really. This breathing organism connects eras long past with those that exist only in the imagination, crossing temporal, cultural and even gender boundaries. Through DJing, I've learned that creating an “adventure” through music is like painting landscapes for others – a beautiful art. Resistente moments not only caress the ear, they invite the heart to leapfrog the stream of time into stories only it can whisper.
And in all of this, with every track, every syncopated heartbeat laid on top of grooves – and seamless narratives emerging, shared across dance floors or living room carpets – we can actually consider scratching vinyl and digital landscapes as journeys, traversing universes papered with notes.
Each time, it is our decision – actually our passionate privilege – how we shape the narrative.
So, what musical story will your journey tell today?