Today we’d like to introduce you to James Joulies.
Hi James, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My father (RIP) was a DJ back in the day. He would have stacks of records around his setup which was 2 turntables and an old guitar amplifier encased in a homemade box & sometimes when he didn’t have gigs to do on weekends, he would just play music in the house. I watched the joy he had when he did his thing & how music made him feel, like he found his passion…….and he gave that gift to me. That’s something that I’ll always hold near and dear to me.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
My biggest struggle was getting back in it after not being in it for a while. I got married then divorced but that “itch” never left. I went from all vinyl to coming back in the age of Serato. I saw Trackstarr The DJ at The Pageant with the SLII & was wondering how he was able to digitally do what he was doing. From then on, I got back in and haven’t looked back since.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Professionally, I’m a Sr. Formulations Technician at Thermo Fisher Scientific. I’ve been in the manufacturing/pharmaceutical industry for 27 years now.
As a DJ, I’m based in hip-hop but use other ingredients/genres of music. I’m known for mixing, scratching and blending with precision which is how I learned. Guys like Charlie Chan, Gee Wiz, DJ Kut, Nino, Cool Odie were my sensei. I watched & listened to them A LOT back then, taking notes as to what they did, how they did it and how can I incorporate that into what I do.
What sets me apart from others is that I’m the known unknown that’s true to the culture of hip-hop and DJ’ing & I really love what I do. Just my way to show those people that I spoke of I was paying attention.
Honestly, I’m just proud to be in the DJ fraternity whereas the guys that I look up to call me by my DJ name and give me props & praises and want to work with me. Can’t beat that with a bat!
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Some of us are “seasoned” DJ’s that’s willing to help anybody that asks. I put myself out there to be an open book, to answer any questions and to pass the learnings that I have to someone else whether it be someone in the same generation or the next gen. That’s what worked for me so I’m putting it back into the atmosphere. We’re not going to do this forever, but what we do while we’re here makes a world of difference not only to us but to the next generation of DJ’s.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: soopaman23_
- Facebook: Speed DaSoopaman
- LinkedIn: James Joulies
- Other: TikTok; soopaspeedthadj
