A. Stormy is so much more than a name. I evacuated in Atlanta during Hurricane Katrina. What I thought was going to be a two-day mini vacation turned into months of uncertainty. We were identified as evacuees from the storm. Months turned into years from this life-changing disaster. Hurricane Katrina became a part of me, so I became a Storm(y)! The perfect storm to be exact! My social media is Stormy Atl, because New Orleans raised me, and Atlanta birthed the entertainer you see today.
Q. What made you want to be a DJ?
A. I was on the business side of the music industry for years, but I always had this ear and love for music. I released an EDM/Hip-Hop EP in 2016 titled “Venom Kisses”! In the EDM genre most artists are DJ’s, so it was a natural progression for me to evolve into a DJ. Unfortunately, it was also one of the hardest tasks set in front of me…being a woman and a woman of color in a male dominated industry.
Q. What differentiate you from the rest of the DJs?
A. I believe what differentiates me from the other DJs is the work I put in building my brand and respect in this industry. Nothing comes easy or overnight to anyone. My energy, style, and ability to entertain is very unique.
Q. Who or what influenced you to be a DJ?
A. My mother was a Soca singer in the Caribbean and father an avid lover of all music genres. I am originally from Trinidad and Tobago but grew up in New Orleans in what I feel is one of the most influential music cities in America. Spinderella, Jazzy Jeff, Mannie Fresh and so many others inspire me daily as a DJ.
Q. Can you give any advice to upcoming DJs?
A. The biggest piece of advice I can give any new DJ is to be YOU. There is no need for two Stormy’s in the market. Be original at everything you do. Always seek a mentor and spend time learning the craft. Educate yourself on the history and evolution of being a DJ. If it comes easy, it’s probably because you’re not setting yourself apart. Take the time to build relationships. Take the time to invest in yourself. My motto is to always go against the grain and be bold in everything that you do.
A. Bo comes from lil football. I was 34 like BO Jackson, played RB like BO & last name is BO so the coach started calling me BO Weezy comes from always being the youngest of the crew! My college roommate combined the 2 & called me Bo Weezy and it’s stuck with me ever since.
Q. What made you want to be a DJ?
A. I’ve always been around it; my dad & uncles were DJ’s.
Q. What is one of your best experiences working as a DJ?
A. The feeling of someone asking for your business card is a feeling like no other. Mission accomplished.
Q. What differentiates you from the rest of the DJ?
A. I’m not there to DJ for a long time, just a good time!
Q. Who would you consider to be a DJ Legend?
A. Kid Capri. His music selection & vibes while Djing are unmatched. Decades later, he’s still doing his thang!
Q. Can you give any advice to upcoming DJs?
A. Be consistent, it will take you a long way! “STAY AWAY FROM THE SYNC” Work on blending the records if you can’t scratch. You’ll sound like hot lettuce, trying to force something you can’t do.
A. I’ve had that name since I was a kid playing basketball.
Q. What made you want to become a DJ?
A. I’ve always loved music and looked up to a DJ by the name of Todd Terry. I saw the success he had so it made me realize that I can make a living doing it.
Q. What are one of your best experiences working at Hot 107.9 as a DJ?
A. Having a set on a birthday bash, that was amazing because I never got a chance to go to a birthday bash because I was working for the rival station and my first time at a birthday bash, I was djing.
Q. What differentiate you from other DJ’s?
A. My versatility, I can be djing a trap spot then the next day do an upscale event then the next day DJ a reggae/dancehall party.
Q. Can you give advice to upcoming DJs?
A. Work relentlessly and don’t give up, no gig is too small or too big.
A. Well I was engaged to a deejay. One day his manager came up to me asking if I wanted to learn deejaying since we had all the equipment at home and there was a huge shortage in female deejays at the time. So that’s how it started. However, it really made me want to be a deejay was the fact that deejaying enabled me to share acrobats on a bigger platform. I had always loved my roots and deejaying finally gave me a platform to display this.
Q. What differentiates you from the rest of the DJ’s?
A. I mainly play Afrobeats. That’s what I am good at. It’s what I’m proud of. I can go to a Hip-Hop party and still play 60% Afrobeat and people will dance. I can make my audience LOVE afrobeats (at least for a night). So that along with good mixing skills really set me apart.
Q. How would you define your “style” or approach to providing DJ Entertainment?
A. I try to stick to my Afrobeats based sets, but I add a little of the local sound to whatever country I got. This makes the audience feel like you also appreciate their local sound and most of the time this has a positive effect on the crowd. I also try to socialize with the audience wherever I go, so I come in a little early and stay a little after I have played.
Q. What made you go into predominantly Afro beats?
A. I’m mixed Ghanaian and Belgian, growing up in Belgium I faced a lot of racism, so I always felt more comfortable with my African side. So Afrobeats became a way for me to feel more African in a non-African environment. It was hard at first because no one really cared about Afrobeats a few years ago. But I decided that it was Afrobeats I wanted to represent and I’m glad I did.
Q. Can you give any advice to upcoming DJs?
A. Push through. Play the music you love even if it’s not a mainstream music genre. If you can become a master in your niche, you can still become a star in your own little market.
A. I really got my start in college. I was the co-host to a radio mixer and personality named Y. Dot. He had a drive time show on our college station, WANM 90.5 on Wednesday and Friday afternoons. I would just watch him mix on a software program called Virtual DJ. I would sit in the studio and think to myself “I can do that”! So, one day I downloaded the program, asked him for some music and I began practicing.
Q. What differentiate you from the rest of the DJ’s?
A. I PRACTICE. Even after I mastered the skill. I still practice and take the time to sharpen my skills. I’m also HUGE on my blends and transitions. For a long time, that’s all I worked on creating different ways to transition from song to song so that it never sounds like a train wreck. Of course, I’m human! Sometimes I do mess up (lol) or can just be moving too fast, but I genuinely love my craft and I think it shows. You can really tell who’s having fun and who’s just there to be there.
Q. How would you define your “Style” or approach to providing DJ Entertainment?
A. I study the crowd, I am always thinking about how I want to set the vibe and what’s going to be my first song. I’m also from Florida… I talk on the microphone! Also, one thing I’ve learned from being in ATL is that they don’t give the DJ a chance to rock the mic. They hire a host and a DJ and then they want us to work together when really, I’m my own show.
Q. Who or what Influenced you to be a DJ?
A. Radio…. Being just a personality is actually very boring.
Q. What are your goals in the next 5 years?
A. Syndicated radio or just radio full-time, more traveling—I really want my craft to allow me to see the world while doing what I love. I want to learn more of the business side as well. I’ll also possibly produce a record and learn how to make beats.
A. I got the name She She while I was interning at the time. The promotion director at the time couldn’t remember my real name so she called She She. It was a name that stuck with me throughout my professional career. So, when I decided to DJ, I just used the name.
Q. What made you want to be a DJ?
A. I always wanted to be a DJ. I grew up watching Spinderella, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Kid Capri, DJ Premier etc. and said I want to do that.
Q. What differentiate you from the rest of the DJ’s?
A. I hate to be cliché’ but the music I play. I have such an eclectic sound that I play everything from EDM, house, hip-hop, soul, funk, pop, top 40, R&B, inspirational…If you name it I can play it and have no problem with blending all genres.
Q. Who or what influenced you to be a DJ?
A. The different genre of music is what influenced me, but Spinderella inspired me to become a DJ.
Q. Can you give any advice to upcoming DJ’s?
A. Learn the business side of the industry and practice your butt off. Any DJ will tell you that practice is the key when it comes to rocking a party.
A. That feeling of being in control of the party crowd. It’s a great free feeling. I live for the party.
Q. What is one of your special moments you had being a DJ?
A. Winning my 1st DJ battle. The person I was against was much more experienced. We were neck and neck the whole night. At the end of the night, they announced me the winner. Awesome feeling.
Q. What differentiate you from the rest of the DJ’s?
A. The customer service I provided to the people.
Q. Who would you consider to be a DJ Legend?
A. DJ Jazzy Jeff. Pretty sure many will say this. But just watching him coming up and the talent he has, it’s motivating.
Q. Can you give any advice to upcoming DJ’s?
A. Practice Practice Practice and stick to your price!!
A. Actually, I was 15 years old and was a member of my uncle’s promotional street team/setup crew. The DJ that was booked for the party was “Running Late”. At first, we thought he was just on some “Wanting the party to be crowded when he arrived” type of ego trip. Little did he know that we always had a line of people waiting to get in before the doors opened. So, my uncle gave me records to play as “Door Opening Music”. The DJ never showed up, so I was the DJ for the whole night. Evidently, I did pretty good because I was the DJ from that point on. So honestly to answer your question. I was forced to DJ to save the family’s business is how I like to put it.
Q. What are some of the challenges you have being a DJ?
A. I’m at a place in my life where being a DJ is not challenging to me. It’s actually more fun now than in my past. It was strictly business to make extra money, but now it’s more of a fun-loving hobby than I get paid to do.
Q. Can you give any advice to an upcoming DJ?
A. Remain humble and always remember, there will be someone coming after you so please pass the knowledge.
Q. Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?
A. In the next 5 years, I see myself behind the scenes involved in T.V. shows, and movies.
A. Working, Grinding, working on real housewives of Atlanta.
Q. You styled Anita Baker for the B.E.T. Awards: how was it working with her?
A. It was amazing they found me on Instagram, and they wanted me to design a custom look for her.
Q. What made you get into fashion?
A. It’s always been in me. I have been doing fashion since 4th grade. I came to Atlanta after high school and went to AIU to get my B.A. in marketing. I own Kontrol Magazine, and it’s a national fashion beauty lifestyle publication based out of Atlanta and sold nationally through Barnes and Nobles. I am also creating a show called blended love which basically talks about different people that come to love; rather they black or white showing the different love couples. It showcases love in a different light; it shows love in a different matter.
Q. Who was your biggest influence far as designing fashion. The person that made you say I want to do this.
A. The people that inspired me would be Kimora Simmons and Tyra Banks. Kimora has always been fabulous and fashionable. That really sparked home with me what she gave wasn’t a typical fashion she gave me everything I wanted and to see in fashion.
Q. What made you launch Kontrol Magazine?
A. I wanted to showcase my work as a Designer and showcase my friends’ work who have a hard time getting put on. I decided to create the magazine as a platform for us.
Q. Who was your biggest influence far as designing fashion design? The person that made you say I want to do this.
A. The people that inspired me would be Kimora Simmons and Tyra Banks. Kimora has always been fabulous and fashionable. That really sparked home with me what she gave wasn’t typical fashion she gave me everything I wanted and to see in fashion.
Q. Do you think fashion in New York is more advanced than here in the south?
A. Yes, fashion everywhere is more advanced than here. We don’t have fashion here in Atlanta. Fashion here is like a clone everyone wants to do the same thing everyone wants to look alike. No one wants to be different.
Where It Begins 