Jame$ Dean spins Volume #10 of The 312, 5 Magazine’s Chicago House Music mix and interview series with the people in your neighborhood – the DJs that keep the Chicago House scene on top.
For those who are screaming for young blood in the House scene but still have that authentic Chicago flavor, look no further. Jame$ Dean has been making waves for the last couple of years. And with a strong background rooted in HipHop as well, he shows himself to be a diverse emerging artist.
The interview picks up below the mix:
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What part of Chicago are you from and where do you derive your musical influences from?
I was born and raised on the southside of Chicago right down the street from Marquette park. Growing up in an urban area definitely opened my ears to a lot of HipHop, rap and of course House music. Most particularly ghetto House. I remember in grammar school all the fun house parties I would go to. So even at an early age I was well aware of the amazing dance music culture we have here.
Most people probably don’t know that you’re from the southside. There’s often many assumptions made about what it means to come from the north and the southside of Chicago. What’s your take on that?
I personally hate how the scene seems to be segregated based on what side of town you are from. Folks think depending on if you’re the north or south that your sound will have some sort of signature to it but I have to disagree. I also I can’t help but notice the lack of unity between both sides and that’s something that this city really needs to work on more. I hear all sorts of crazy stories about DJs not getting booked based on where they’re from. I work with people all over town and never pay any attention to that.
Where do you like to find your music usually?
I find most of my music from new artists that I discover from Soundcloud, Mixcloud and other music medias. I also get a quite a few tracks off of Traxsource and Beatport. Some people think that everything on Beatport is mainstream or not real music but that’s not the truth. Yes if you only search the top 100 stuff you’re only gonna find mainstream dance music but I love to dig deep and find new artists and music on there. I spend hours searching for new songs, its takes a lot of patience. I also have quite a few old and up and coming producers who toss me tracks all the time.
What do you have coming up for the future, where can people see you play?
It’s been a very busy and successful year for me and I don’t have too many more shows booked towards the end of the year yet but I will most likely take any good offerings I may get. I actually will be playing October 10th at Primary with DJ Rap and Amy DB, followed by my residency I have with the Fantastic Four at 1912 Lounge, (whose members consist of Paul Johnson, Mega Mathis, Czoogie and I.) To stay up to date with my shows, mixes and track releases you can simply add me on Facebook at James Farmer. You can also sign up for my mailing list at jamesdeanfarmer@gmail.com.
What was the last set you heard that really inspired you?
Every time I go out I find inspirations from peoples sets. I’m lucky to live in such a great city that is oozing with talent. The last set that REALLY inspired me was towards the beginning of the year when I saw one of my favorite DJs Roger Sanchez play at SpyBar. I was blown away from start to finish & I could not keep up with what he was doing behind the decks. He was blending 3 records pretty much the whole night flawlessly and created a vibe and unique sound that I have never heard before. The place was jumping from the moment he got on until the lights came on. I was drenched in sweat and was beyond inspired but what I had just witness. His skills I believe are on an whole another level of creativity, between blending multiple tracks at once and mixing amazing edits of his own.
