Dinner with DJ’s: Chiddy
I knew very little about Chiddy before inviting him to dinner the night of Feb 7th, but that’s kind of the point of what I’d like to call Dinner with DJs. A chance to connect with artists through music and food to tell their story set to their sound. But what would I say about this artist? What would I say about this night? Here’s how it went.
Chiddy, to start, is already respected for his incredible talent as a photographer, and yet I didn’t want him to think that was why I was interested in having him over. I understand as much as anybody the need for any artist to constantly evolve and try different formats, never completely knowing which one suits us best.
That may be the secret of life as an artist. Keep creating in as many ways as possible as often as possible, and the rest will find its way.
He arrived just after 5 pm as I was testing out the setup I had made in my living room just for the night. I decided to use my kitchen table to hold the weight of my XDJ, and a Yamaha speaker was set up on each side to enforce that extra bounce necessary when inviting a DJ over to play for you.
What I liked so much was that he did not hesitate to take control of the music as he began the night with an impromptu combination of breaks, various acapella’s, some jazzy house, and a glimpse into the eclectic mind I invited to be our first guest.
Right off the bat, his sound reminded me so much of a CD series I knew when I was younger called the San Francisco sessions, which were usually but not always compiled by Chicago’s own Mark Farina.
The San Francisco sound, also created by the Hardkiss Brothers and is now best represented by the Martin Brothers, to me, represents a steady balance of jazzy breaks and deep house mixed with soul wrapped all into a groovy flow coming out of the speakers. That’s what Chiddy played with his first set. Mellow, experimental, soulful, and even organic.
After about an hour, we decided to start eating the meal of the night, tacos, where we could discuss more how his journey brought him to us and our dinner table, which was a folding table this time since, as I said, our kitchen table was in the living room for the night.
He started his story by telling me about getting into electronic music back home in Las Vegas, where he attended the first EDC held there in 2011. He also went the next year, which was the year high winds shut the festival down, and many wondered if it would ever be the epic experience it was back in LA.
For Chiddy, it was enough to keep him coming back, stringing shows and experiences together until the fall of 2016 when he attended his first Dirtybird campout.
At this moment, things began to click, as they often do in this life and this culture. We keep searching and searching and then boom, there we are. Surrounded by people, happy, in love with the music, dancing without care. Not everybody can live this life, but the ones who do understand know that it doesn’t come to find you. You have to go and get it.
From Dirtybird in the fall, he immediately went straight into the Desert Hearts festival in March of 2017, and the combination of the two created a story that I feel is still going now. One that brought him here to New Mexico, a place where Dirtybird and Desert Hearts are both cherished immensely.
Most of us discovered his talents as a photographer, and it wasn’t until the quarantine that he started committing to being a DJ, getting his start doing various live streams for multiple groups in the 505.
After that, Chiddy’s connection to this city grew, and now you can find him contributing and supporting at every step. He is a part of this city now, and I feel we should be happy he is here.
Shortly after we finished our tacos, he returned to the decks for the second part of his mix, and this time felt more like a more driving mix of house and techno, but still keeping the rhythm funky and smooth. Right now, the big sound in techno is hard techno, but I will still always favor the funky side of it, and it felt good hearing a DJ keep that alive here in the 505.
Perhaps my favorite part of the whole night was hearing him play an acapella of Vincent Price’s vocals from the Micheal Jackson track ‘Thriller’ over a bouncing techno beat, which was a moment I could not help but enjoy as I sat there in my living room listening with intent to every sound.
It was a reminder of the idea that even house music was house music before it was house music if that makes any sense to those of you reading these words now.
What made this night so wonderful, though, is that as he continued to play, it was as if I could hear his story in his sound, and every track seemed to represent a different experience in his life that led him to that moment.
It is a balance of house and techno, like the balance between Dirtybird and Desert Hearts, like the balance between Nevada and New Mexico, but also a great sign of where the 505 is going with the future.
Before we knew it, the mix was over, and our DJ for the night was exhausted and ready to head home. He took his time out of a busy day to not just share his story and his music but also his passion as well. We forget that we all belong to this world by pure will and commitment, and in this DJ, I can see a commitment and connection that will only help the 505 grow and become something better than we were before.
We are forever moving forward while still remembering to look back. I’m grateful to this DJ for this night and for agreeing to share a meal with me in my home. Thank you to Chiddy, and I hope this proves as a message to all the DJs out there in the 505 that if you’re willing to take that chance to tell your story and share your sound, there’s someone here ready to listen.
See you on the dancefloor, dear friends, and if you’re willing, at the dinner table.
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