“I know people in D.C. feel a certain way because we haven’t really blown up as of yet. So if this helps them then it’s a great thing…”–DJ Heat
DJ Heat is D.C. born and raised with roots in the nation’s capital that make her a DMV staple. This Morgan State grad chased a childhood dream all the ways to the doors of D.C.’s #1 Hip-Hop station, WPGC 95.5. Now sound in her position working with Big Tigger, this master of the mix sat down with HipHopWired to tell us how she almost missed out on her dream, more on DCMumboSauce.com and what exactly she means when she says, “I got that Kool-Aid.”
Origin: Washington, D.C.
Current Location: Washington, D.C.
Top Ten Playlist:
Rihanna-Rude Boy
Young Money ft Gucci Mane-We Steady Mobbin
D.C. Don Juan-Lookie Looky
DJ Khaled-All I Do Is Win
Usher-OMG
LMFAO ft Lil Jon-Shots
TCB-Bust It Open
Ray Rizzy ft Lil Jon, Juvenile-Ok Yea
On to the Next One- Jay-Z
All the Way Turnt Up-Roscoe Dash ft Soulja Boy
HipHopWired: Take me back a little bit and tell me how you got start.
DJ Heat: It’s crazy when I tell people the song that influenced me to DJ. It’s the Rump Shaker remix by Wreckx-N-Effects. At the end of the remix they had a lot of scratching and I used to mimic it all the time. I said this sounds fun, this sounds cool and I said, I wanna be a DJ. Also from watching Juice, that movie’s so exciting to see the DJ Battle Sound. When I was 13 I saved up every check from DC’s summer job program to buy my first DJ equipment set. That’s how I started as kid just DJing, learning here and there. Then after I was growing up I kind of strayed away for a second but picked it back up in college. It’s always been my love.
HipHopWired: You went to Morgan State, right?
DJ Heat: Yup Morgan State.
HipHopWired: So how did you go from being a Morgan State grad to your position today at WPGC?
DJ Heat: I was intern my junior year at Morgan and I got placed with Big Tigger, at the time he was doing evenings from 6-10. I got hired when BET was making the transition from D.C to New York and I was still helping out the person filling in for him, DJ Flexx. DJ Flexx was highly impressed with me as an intern and he would say, We gotta tell them they gotta hire you. But I always tell people I got fired a few months after my internship.
HipHopWired: You got fired?!
DJ Heat: I got fired! This is what happened…[Laughs] A lot of people say you don’t make it in radio unless you get fired. I got fired because it was my senior year and I’m focusing on graduating. So I missed a mandatory event that I didn’t know was mandatory and Reggie Rouse called me into his office. He said turn in your keys and I cried like a baby. I cried because it had always been my dream job to work at WPGC like ever since I was a kid. I didn’t let it set me back though. I did an internship with XM Rado, I graduated college and I said, you know what WPGC has always been my passion and my love, let me see if I can get back in there. So I sent Reggie Rouse an email and he said okay, yeah let’s meet up. So he hired me back off the strength that I’m good at what I do. That’s why I was able to come back in 2004.
HipHopWired: I also heard you do a little on-air work at WPGC too…
DJ Heat: Yeah I do part-time on-air work. The main thing I do here is I’m the board op/ assistant producer for Big Tigger’s morning show. Big Tigger just started doing mornings on March 22. I’m the first one here in the mornings and the last one to leave.
HipHopWired: As his producer, what exactly do you do?
DJ Heat: The main thing I do is gather information, show prep forms, I tell people I make it sound good on-air. I also help keep him in line (Laughs), people can hear us argue and think, “Oh my god they must hate each other” but naw we have a brother/sister type relationship. The morning show also consists of Donnell Rawlings who most people know as Ashy Larry and Danella from BET. We have a great morning show.
HipHopWired: I checked out your website and I saw this video for “I Got That Kool-Aid”…
DJ Heat: Aww man…[Laughs]
HipHopWired: [Laughs] How did you come up with this concept for this song?
DJ Heat: A friend of mine that’s an artist got frustrated and said, People can make a song about anything! So we were just joking around and we said, We can make a song about kool-aid and that joint would probably be hot! At the time, no disrespect, but you had Lil Mama “Lip Gloss” was popping and Chicken Noodle Soup and it almost seemed like you got an artist who’s putting all this passion in his work and you got song going platinum about chicken noodle soup with a soda on the side! The artist on there, LX, produces as well and he said, I’m gonna make the laziest, tiredest beat I’ve ever made. He hates that beat because all it takes is a beat, a catchy hook and a dance. So that’s what he did. We made a beat, a catchy and put a dance to it as well. Bingo! We got a hit. [Laughs]
HipHopWired: [Laughs] So it’s like a little parody…
DJ Heat: Yup, it’s a parody.
HipHopWired: Now I also heard you’re working with the Noize Mob DJs…
DJ Heat: Yup I’m part of three different DJ crews. I’m part of three different DJ crews; Team Official, Noize Mob and the Core DJs crew. Noize Mob was the first to reach out to me in 2002, they’re really heavy with mixtape DJs. We have huge mixtape names and he wanted more females. So Wiz, the guy who’s in charge of Noize Mob, reached out to me. I actually just became a Core DJ in November. I was so honored to be apart of the Core DJs and you have to be nominated to even be a part of it. I was embraced by other Core DJs immediately. Shout out to Tony Neal, it’s like instant family.
HipHopWired: So speaking of DJing and mixtapes, what’s the last mixtape you put out?
DJ Heat: I did three in one month. I did one with Drake and Gucci Mane called “Radio Killaz” because people always complain that all the radio plays is Gucci Mane and Drake. So I’m like, you know what you’re right. I’m gonna make a mixtape of all Gucci Mane and Drake. [Laughs] So that did very well online. I also started a new series called Nothing But Fire and the Nothing But Fire R&B edition. My biggest mixtape series is “This Is the Remix”, it’s a collection of the hottest remixes out.
HipHopWired: Now moving on, I see that you’re the creator of DCMumboSauce.com. For everyone who doesn’t know, tell them a little bit about that.
DJ Heat: DCMumboSauce is a website that’s dedicated to music in the DMV. The main thing I’m known for in this area is supporting local artists. I did a lot of networking online and looked at all the Hip-Hop blogs and I said, there’s no real site for DMV artists. So I created DCMumboSauce.com, it’s in its third year. I treat it like the rest of the Hip-Hop blogs. I post the music and I don’t put my opinion, I want the people to judge whether they like the song or not. I’m happy with the feedback it’s received, the Washington Post checks it out and has linked to the site several times when they showcase new music. My thing is always, I just wanna help the artists in the area get heard. I know people in D.C. feel a certain way because we haven’t really blown up as of yet so if this helps them then it’s a great thing.
HipHopWired: So let’s start to wind it down a little bit. Do you have any last words or shoutouts?
DJ Heat: Shoutout to 95.5., my brother Tigger—he’s been there for me for a lot of things, we’ve known each other for like ten years now. Some people say celebrities act a certain way but he’s the most down to earth, real, around the way people you can meet. Shoutout to Tony Neal, my Core DJ family. Shoutout to the artist I DJ for, he’s signed to Battery-Jive Records, D.C. Don Juan. His video actually just debuted on BET’s The Deal.
HipHopWired: If anyone was looking to contact you what would be the best way?
DJ Heat: Tweet me! I’m on Twitter right now. Contact me on Twitter @DJHeatDC, I respond to everybody.
