Official website: www.djnutritious.com

Mikey Beatz/DJ Nutritious Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mikey-Beatz/35594933874?ref=ts

SpinSpinNYC: www.spinspinnyc.com

TC: What caused you to take interest in music?

DJN: First off, thank you Shakedown Blog… for many reasons, I think it was inevitable that we meet. I love the name.
So, my interest in music – also inevitable. I don’t think I ever had a choice. Ma Dukes (Mom) says when I was still young enough to be in a car-seat, I would start boppin my head to the rhythm of the radio, but only when Isaac Hayes came on. I think Shaft was the big hit back then – haha. Then, my older brother Willie, may he rest in peace and lord have mercy on his sweet soul, used to tell me stories about jamming with me before I could walk. Willie was about 12 years older than I was. He played a mean guitar – Santana, Hendrix, Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, influenced – you, know, that classic trippy sh*t but, on the heavier side. Apparently, when I was a toddler, he’d sit me down in front of a Fischer-Price drum and put his headphones on my head while he practiced his guitar. Supposedly, there were hallucinogens involved (for him, not me). He claimed I kept perfect rhythm. In any case, seems like some good times – wish I could remember them.

TC: When you were just beginning, who did you find to be your musical influence?

DJN: I truly got my legs once I had the dexterity to actually manipulate instruments. At about 11, I started on the trumpet, progressed to keys, then started strumming acoustic guitar but, quickly tossed them aside for a drum-set one of my brother’s friends left at the house. I’ll never forget my first time behind a real kit, jamming. I was awful but completely enthralled. Both of my older brothers were heavy into Rush so, Neil Peart was the demigod. I had to be like him – roto-toms, double bass drum – the drum kit just kept growing and growing in size. Getting into junior high and high-school years, I started playing with local musicians and we had constant jams at the house. Suddenly I was hooked on The Dead, then Phish. Then Fishman became my hero. That was the beginning of my love affair with jam and improv and subsequently, Jazz.

TC: When did you decide to make the move from live music to djing and producing?

DJN: I decided to try my hands at college at the University of Colorado at Boulder. It was mandatory that incoming Freshmen reside in the dorms but no matter how many times I petitioned, they wouldn’t let me keep a drumset there. I was there for a month or so and this hip-hop DJ from Long Island in the next dorm over showed me how to scratch records (coincidentally, while growing up in NY, I had busted everyone of our families consumer record player needles trying to scratch records). Anyway, homey showed me how to use the Tech-1200s properly, and immediately I was like, “Thank the lord…I’ve got beats again”. The next day I hitched a ride to Denver and scored two turntables and a mixer. I spent the next 5 years DJing everywhere I could and nothing ever compared to rocking a dancefloor and seeing people just flip-out dancing. Then I moved back to NYC, hooked up with some old band-mates and started producing hip-hop, jungle, and house music. (((which later lead to landing two film scores)))

TC: What do you find to be your highlight of your career so far?

DJN: Starting SpinSpinNYC with my love Zoe Wilder and eventually hooking up with Rob Paine and Willyum of Shakedown Events – Philadelphia to start The Sullivan Street Shakedown parties here in NYC. Rob and Will (and all of their amazing supporters) throw one of the most high-vibrational and joyful parties on Earth. They originated The Shakedown in Philly about 8 years ago and their monthly parties there are simply the best. I’m so incredibly blessed to be able to spread the Shakedown joy up here in NYC. It’s unity, one love.

TC: Who have you worked with in the jamband scene?

DJN: I had Zac Lasher, the wickedly talented keyboardist of U-Melt jam with me at my New Year’s 2010 show at Sullivan Hall. He’s a mad-man on the keys and U-Melt’s new album is one of the most brilliant musical works I’ve ever heard. Eric Pieztrak is another key player that deserves a lot of recognition. He used to rock in Cliffside Push – they had a quick run but it was incredibly great while it lasted. I used to drum in a jamband named UpDown back in ’05 and that’s where I met Will Swank – the boy plays the sax like the legends and gives me the chills with every note. We’ve done a few House tracks together and we do a lot of duo shows with me on the decks and him rockin the tenor. He’s so good, riffing jazz improv comes as easy as a casual conversation. I love musicians like that. Stephen Chopek, who used to drum with Charlie Hunter, is another musical alien – a conversationalist from another world. It’s been a minute since we collaborated but, check out his solo project SodaCan – it’s phenomenal. I’ve also hit some days with Joe, Steve, and Ed of Psylab – another brilliant group of crazy musicians. We’ll have a lot of them out at our May 8th Sullivan Street Shakedown in honor of event photographer Matthew Fitzgerald’s 40th, plus we’re introducing some newcomers – secret weapons – Zoe Wilder’s dropping hot vocals these days, and I’m hoping eBonhuer and Dave Blitzer (my partner in the Breakneck Squad) will show-up to help us bring down the house.

TC: I understand you performed in Nicaragua? How was that?

DJN: Two words, Spin Pro. This crew is turning Nicaragua on its head. This is a country that’s just now starting to hear real underground electronic dance music and it’s all because of these guys. They’ve got a lot of class and a true passion for the music. I had no idea what to expect, our escort dropped us at our hotel in Managua and one of the dude’s from Spin Pro starts explaining that my performance will be the first time house/techno is hitting the streets of Nicaragua. I actually got real nervous, I had no idea that’s what we were getting in to. I brought a lot of harder style house and tech-house music with me – not exactly what you’d play for an uninitiated audience. I hit the stage at about 1:30am and half the crowd just freaked while the other half looked at us like we were aliens. But in the end, it all worked out. I worked in some memorable American top-40s and light latin jazz over the tech and suddenly everyone was ragin. The Gypsy Kings had played Managua they day before so, I ended my set with a GKs remix and the crowd just went bonkers. I love Nicaragua – 2nd poorest country in the Americas (2nd to Haiti) yet, it’s one of the most colorful, wonderful, joyful places I’ve been. That’s Inca, Maya, Aztec, territory – there’s some true consciousness there and you can feel it enter your soul with every breath – or maybe it’s the burning sugar cane fumes. Ha, who knows? Spend a day strolling round lake Nicaragua (19th largest in the world) and witness its smoldering volcanoes… it’s breathtaking. The lake is supposedly very polluted though and like most water sources and lots of the Earth in general, needs some help. We’re helping to rehabilitate it (and many other) ecosystems as we gain momentum. It’s only right to offset our footprint and help clean up the universe.

DJN: It’s a blessing to have a home here in NYC. That’s the beauty of a residency but, our monthly Sullivan Street Shakedown parties are more than that – there’s a family growing here – beautiful heads that come out for the common cause of leaving all the BS of work, crime, deceit, and stress behind to come shake it all out under the lights, unified by the power of true underground house music. It’s healing, it’s soulful – and the grumbling bouncy bass shakes your body loose! We love our party and openly welcome newcomers. As a DJ, the peak is seeing people enjoy themselves and getting lost in the dance – a dude was dancing on his hands last month. I think that says it all.

TC: Where did the name Nutritious come from?

DJN: I have an encyclopedic knowledge of using food as medicine. Things like Macrobiotics, Ayurveda, raw-foodism, herbalism, right down to literally hand structuring drinking water to make it more hydrating. The name of the game is Naturalism – bringing things back to Earth and relating all things to nature. We tend to get distracted by synthesis, thinking that it’s somehow a departure from reality but, that’s simply not true. Everything is natural, and once you understand that, you can interact with nature, or live, in way that’s healing, not debilitating. I’ve been paid huge sums of money to help celebrities detoxify and heal, I’ve volunteered to help the poor and homeless in creating healthier diets and more economical eating patterns. I’ve been interviewed on radio and tv for it and have recipes published in various forms of media including a New York Times bestselling diet and lifestyle book. I wholeheartedly believe you are what you “feed” yourself, and that includes not only food but, music, friends, sights, sounds, smells, etc… it’s all energy. All things are full of energy and energy is constantly being transferred among all things… I tend to look at all energy as nutrition, if it’s nutritious, it’s good for you.

TC: What was your first concert you attended?

DJN: On my own fruition? Lollapallooza on Randall’s Island in 94. Against my will, Meatloaf, while my mom was 5 months pregnant with me.

TC: Do you have a favorite jamband/electronic group?

DJN: This is where the DJ in me takes over. It’s our job as DJs to introduce people to new music so you might hear a few names you’ve never heard before.
One, Milo Z. Two, Ari Hoenig. And three, let’s not forget the visual artists rockin the scene these days… Keep an eye on VJ Mamiko Kushida (she’s our resident Sullivan Street Shakedown VJ). She handcrafts all of her graphics. She’s completely Avant-garde, paving new paths and pushing boundaries like nobody I’ve ever seen before…always fresh. She used to rock some of the biggest parties in Japan and now with just 2 years in NYC under her belt, she’s steady blowing people’s minds.

DJN: It’s all been so much fun it’s hard to pick a favorite… yeah, it’s all just amazing fun.

TC: What can we expect from Nutritious in the coming future?

DJN: I want to be humble here but that would be stupid. You have no idea – all this and I haven’t ‘officially’ released a single in 2 years! I’m about to drop it on ya. Also, be on the lookout for a Drum & Bass mix I’ve done with the infamous beatbox MC ElaNEF, he brought me on to this project with his so-called “A-Team” – a bunch of wicked producers and damaging MCs. We should be wrapping up in the studio around mid-April so, hang-tight.