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Welcome to the first edition of our very first regular column here at CreamTeam! Chicago is a city that’s doing it up proper. From our history as pioneers of house music, to our notability in the hip-hop scene with big names Kanye West and Lupe Fiasco and up-and-comers Mic Terror and The Cool Kids, to our tight-knit community of DJs running every night of the week like it’s New Year’s Eve. Each month we will hand-select a Chicago talent whom we feel expresses the passion, fire and attitude of this city and sit down for a Q&A session. Hopefully we will introduce you to some new music, MADE IN CHICAGO.

We kick off our first edition with one of my favorite DJs about town, Willy Joy.

CT: So, right off the bat I must start with the question inquiring minds want to know. Is your real name Willy Joy?

WJ: It is, and has always been Willy Joy. Back in the day when I just started out DJing I tried some other names, but I just got bored with them and nothing ever really stuck. Using my real name seemed simpler anyway, I’m easily confused.

CT: I feel like you have a sound that is very “you”. I can be out at a club, far from the booth and know right when your set has started. Describe your sound and musical influences for us a bit.

WJ: Thanks! That’s a great compliment. I went through some distinct musical phases growing up. In elementary school I was listening to top 40 radio like everyone else. In middle school I was a huge metalhead. That continued into high school until I started going to raves, then it was mostly dance music and some hip-hop. College was when I started getting more seriously into rap. These days when I’m at home, I’m listening to anything under the sun. My “sound”, such as it is, probably doesn’t have much to do with subtlety – from metal to hardcore rave stuff to M.O.P. I’ve always been a little more into something just banging my face off rather than making me think too hard. Which isn’t a dig at more cerebral music, I just never end up playing a lot of it in my sets. If someone comes to see me live I basically either want to get them laid, or for them to have so much fun that they don’t mind that they didn’t get laid. Jams, bangers, new stuff mixed at high speeds… the hope is that it’s like the best house party you’ve ever been to.

CT: I always find some of the dirtier shit you play hilarious. No offense, you just look so clean-cut, polite and professional. I love that sneakiness, it’s part of the Willy Joy appeal!

WJ: Hah! You’re not the first person to say that. I end up being a stereotype in that way—in real life I’m a pretty quiet, overly nice guy, but then when I hit the decks it’s a lot of swearing and improbable sexual propositions. It’s not an act though, to me it’s just another side of my personality. Hopefully the surprise of it helps make the show a little more fun.

CT: Tell us a little bit about your background as a DJ—how Willy Joy came to be.

WJ: I’ve been DJing for about 10 years—I started back in high school when a friend of mine bought some turntables. I was over at his house every day after school messing around with them. Eventually I was using them way more than he was, so I ended up buying them off him and I went from there. I started off DJing at raves in the Twin Cities in Minnesota (where I grew up). When I got to college was when I became a “professional”, a.k.a. that’s when I started DJing to pay my bills. I was mostly playing rap & top 40 clubs at that time which taught me a lot about being a good DJ. The crowd always has to come first. When I left college I went into hibernation for a year or two until I moved to Chicago. I tried to hit the ground running here and it’s really been the last 3 years or so that I’ve been going a lot harder and really trying to step my game up as far as a hyrbrid sound that tries to please everyone and leave a unique impression.

CT: I first discovered you last year via my friend, who lives in DC, sending me a link to the mix you did for Discobelle, which is ironic as we both live in Chicago. What would you say has been the biggest thing for you in terms of getting your name out to the masses?

WJ: It’s hard to name any one thing. The Discobelle mix was a great boost at the time, and there were some other mixes I did for other blogs that helped as well. The internet in general is obviously the most powerful tool a DJ has as far as publicity goes. Locally, just playing tons of shows, networking and supporting other people’s events and ideas is really important. Fly By Night has been really important. It’s also important to perform at your best every time—you never know who will be there.

CT: Tell us a little about your role in the Chicago music scene.

WJ: I’m mostly just lucky to be living here right now. The Chicago music scene is EXPLODING. There is so much amazing music being made here on all levels of the game. I wouldn’t know how to define my “role” really, I’m just trying to make good music, work with amazing people and throw a fun party once a month or so. It’s always the best when your friends are also the artists you really admire—ideally I’m supporting them as much as they support me—which is a lot.

CT: How different do you find your role in the Chicago scene from back home in Minneapolis and the other places you’ve called home?

WJ: Well, I was an excited kid when I lived in Minneapolis. Tons of energy, no focus. I played a bunch of shows, but I wasn’t making my own music at the time and it was more about fun than it was about art or a career. When I lived in Providence, RI, was when I actually started to make a little name for myself and figure out the real ‘art’ of DJing and music-making. Boston was kind of a non-event—when I lived there I just wasn’t really DJing or producing much (although I did get to experience the amazing genesis of Certified Bananas who threw some of my favorite parties I’ve ever been to while I was living there!) Chicago is my home in a way that those other cities never were, and I’m much more personally invested not only in my own music but in the Chicago music scene in general than anywhere I’ve lived before. I’m happier and more successful here and it’s in part to me getting better and working harder, but also in part to the amazing music culture in Chicago right now.

CT: Your feature in Urb Magazine alongside Flosstradamus, Kid Sister, Cool Kids, Shala, Major Taylor, Hollywood Holt, Million $ Mano, Capcom and Mic Terror this past November (to me) culminated the buildup of the Chicago hype machine. It really solidified Chicago’s role as a city of tastemakers and talent. We went from having a crazy monthly party or two in 2006 (mostly thanks to Flosstradamus) to having 3 parties to choose from any day of the week. Monday is the new Friday and Thursday is the new Saturday. Where do you see this city heading in the remainder of 2008 and beyond?

WJ: Onwards and upwards! Between the artists that were featured in that article, there is a huge variety of styles and sounds, and there are new people making themselves heard every day. Obviously the “hipster” scene won’t last forever, but I think there are enough incredibly talented musicians here who transcend that definition that you’ll be seeing all those names for a long time to come. The line between underground and mainstream is quickly disappearing, thank god, and Chicago, despite what many will tell you, is a crazy supportive place to be. The people who are making it big are making sure to look back and help others up, and it’s building an understanding that we look out for our own. I purposefully play tons of music made in Chicago in my sets, not only because my friends made it but because I think it’s some of the best shit out right now. We’re all happy when someone sees success and we’re all helping each other out in one way or another.

CT: A part of me honestly worries we might implode. Do you think there is only room for so much “nightlife” in one city?

WJ: I think there’s room for anyone who’s talented, hard-working and supportive. In any scene that gets popular there will instantly be tons of imitators and hangers-on, but they’ll go away when the next trend comes along. It’s all about being adaptable. A lot of the DJs and musicians who are successful now in this scene were already popular in a different scene before this. A ton of the current popular electro producers used to be big in the drum ‘n bass scene, for example. I think any good DJ should be able to transcend the current hot sound in one way or another (while still paying attention to what that hot sound is!) And any good musician should be able to make music that stands on its own when removed from any trendy context. I think Chicago has that in spades right now. I should also point out that I’m no authority in any way—I just have a ton of confidence in the people I know and respect making music right now.

CT: I love that video you recently did for Vimby at the Fly By Night 1-year Anniversary party. I especially loved that you mentioned the humble beginnings of Fly By Night at that shitty basement venue near Wrigley Field. My favorite Fly By Night moment was Dude ‘N Nem tearing the roof off that place in bedazzled velour sweatsuits while the bartender shouts, “I’M SORRY WE ARE ALL OUT OF HENNESSEY”. To be honest, it’s probably one of my hands-down favorite nightlife moments I’ve experienced in this city. What have been your personal highs and lows along the way in Chicago?

WJ: That Vimby video turned out great considering I was half-dying from some unknown sickness that day. That early night at Underground Lounge with Dude ‘n Nem (and Dave Nada!) is one of my favorite memories—the energy that night from the performers and the crowd was so genuine and insane. It’s the kind of thing you can only get when you’re just starting out, and there’s a small group of people who all have this sort of unspoken agreement that what they’re seeing and doing is so exciting and so next-level that just being there is grounds enough to go totally crazy. It’s only possible at a time before everything gets categorized, while so much is still unfamiliar. That excitement with creating or being involved with something new is addictive and is definitely one of the things, as a DJ, that I live for. Other highs were probably when we brought out the band Miss Fairchild for Fly By Night—they completely murdered it and it was a really unique and exciting night. The first time I saw Mic Terror perform was also mind-blowing for me. The lows mostly involve driving 5 hours to play shows for 10 people and not getting paid—typical stories of grinding—I’m not mad at that kind of thing though, it’s all part of paying dues and you learn from it in the end.

CT: This has been a great year for you. What can we expect next from Willy Joy?

WJ: I’ve got a lot of projects coming up. I’m working on tracks with Dude ‘n Nem, and hopefully Mic Terror if I get off my ass in the near future and make something good for him. I’ll be putting out a new record with original material in the Fall, as well as another volume to my FLYBYNIGHT mix cd series. Bird Peterson and I have a project in the works, and I’m submitting a track to Zebo’s SES Records as well for an upcoming release. There are lots of other remixes and mixes for blogs that will trickle out too. Lots of shows! In all honesty my live show is the strongest thing I’ve got going for me right now and I’m looking forward to taking that even further.

CT: Is there anything else you’d like to add before we sign off?

WJ: It’s all about Chicago!

You can check out Willy Joy’s music and learn more about him on his myspace page.

If you happen to live in Chicago, join CreamTeam TONIGHT as party it up with Willy Joy at his monthly party, Fly By Night. Willy Joy will DJ along with DJ Huggs (Montreal), VIPJ (The Cool Kids), Flufftronix (Bloomington, IN) and Capcom (Fly By Night). Mic Terror will perform LIVE!

:: Doors 9pm, 18+ :: Debonair Social Club, 1575 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago ::

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