DEMF and all things related

For starters, my voice is gone. Completely 100% gone. Those who have called my house since Saturday night @ DEMF have cracked up laughing.. Yes, a butha's voice is GOOOOONE. So exactly how was this festival?

Since Wallshaker had a booth (with Cratesavers, DTM and Electronic Music Tour), I got the chance to sit and chat with everyone who passed by. It was funny -- some recognized us, while some had no idea until they saw our pictures on the CDs. DJ Surgeon was definitely in the limelight, and you could tell he loved every moment. I'm proud of him, because I know how frustrated he gets with the music industry -- he NEEDED those 3 days of fans, supporters, etc. And his new CD sold like hotcakes!

You'd think that because I'm a Leo, I'd automatically want the spotlight. Not this time. Sure I signed some autographs and took some photos, etc. But this weekend wasn't about ME. It was about DETROIT - US! It's so much fun being a part of a TEAM now -- I feel like if one of us wins, we ALL win. That's the feeling I tried to have with Submerge -- whose booth was directly next to ours...

I've gotta give props to Keith Tucker (AUX88) for keeping the conversation REAL. He reminds me of the uncle you DON'T want to get drunk, because when he does, he will tell you ALL about YOURSELF... no holds barred. Work it Keith. hahahaha!!! That's all I have to say about that! LOL!!!

I got a chance to catch a few performances while I was there. SCAN-7 did their thing... Surgeon did HIS thing... AUX88 did their thing... I got a chance to hear Kerri Chandler, and OMG.. He completely RIPPED it!

My main focus, however, were on the afterparties. As you know, I played quite a few of them. Friday night, I played TWO parties. The first was at McCarthy's Pub on Fort Street. While the crowd was sparse, the vibe was intense. DJ Seoul was there... Jeff Comer was there... Some other guy who kept trying to sing me a song (to see if I had it?) -- which by the way, you should NEVER EVER do to a DJ... I played my set, and was out of there... On my way to The Works. Mind you, I've NEVER been to the works, but this was the show to beat. Mike Clark (who finally spoke to me after all these years of passing each other by) did his thing... A Guy Called Gerald was there -- although I didn't get to meet him. K-Alexi was in the crowd. He noticed me, I noticed HIM, but after a very short conversation, I found myself too nervous to ask him to take a picture with me. Me: "you have NO idea who I am, do you?" Him: "Yes I do... You're Aaron-Carl!" I can't remember what I said after that, but I'm sure it was something completely groupie-like. Thank God I was with a group of people, otherwise, I would've fainted. LOL.
Brian Gilespie did his thing as well -- such a handsome man. Why aren't I seeing more of him out there? My set started right after Brian's. Let me tell you something.. I LOVE to DJ. And I loved it even more that people were waiting to hear ME spin... Though my set didn't START until 4 a.m., those who stuck it out had a great time. I remember everyone leaving the bar because it was so late/early... Except a handful of dancing queens whom I wish I could HIRE to dance with me on tour. Baby, they vogued and pranced and kicked... It reminded me of ME 10 years ago. (Don't just stand there, let's get 2 it..)

Now mind you, I'm over 30. I didn't realize that there are certain things I just cannot DO like I used to -- like stay up for days @ a time... Baby, I was a walking/driving zombie! That next day, I sat up in the booth for as long as I could... Then I had to LEAVE. I tried to go home and get some much needed sleep, since I was playing @ the Fi Nite at 4 a.m... Man, I went home. I laid down to sleep and my damn phone rings! It's DJ Erelevent... He's in town and wants to hang out. Now, I'd never pass up an opportunity to hang out with a sexy white man -- it's ON! So I invite him -- and his "bitch" -- down to my house. Since I'm known for catering to my guests, I bought them their drinks of choice, and had it chilling in the fridge before they even knocked on my door.. Although they didn't immediately come over... I was waiting and waiting, and before I knew it, it was 2:30 a.m.! I'm like, fuck it. I'm going to sleep. As soon as I closed my eyes good... BAM. There they are, knocking on my door. So now we only have less then an hour to drink and party, because I have a gig, remember... Turns out they've already gone to the Fi Nite, and one of them got kicked out -- for acting crazy and licking the damn "cages." Now it was up to ME to let them back in. "Oh YOU can do it.. You're Aaron-Carl!"
Well, needless to say, I got them back into the club.. I did my set. The fucking set was awesome... I played CDs instead of vinyl or Serato this time... Not that it mattered, because I still worked the shit out of every record I had. And yes, I had the crowd howling and sceaming when I dropped the infamous "peanut butter jelly time" acapella. This guy approaced me shortly afterwards and said, wow... "I can't believe you got away with that!" Well, I did. And it was good.

AFTER the gig, it took me "forever" to get paid. All I remember is us waiting until well after the sun came up. I got paid and decided to take Erelevent (Scott) and Adam (his "bitch") to Denny's. I remember us talking about Scott's upcoming "initiation" into the Wallshaker camp. It was quite interesting to hear Scott continuously put his foot into his mouth. Homophobes come in all shapes and sizes! At first he kept saying comments like "I'm not GAY but..."
Which brings me to a question... or a comment, rather... If a "straight" man gets a blowjob from another guy, it does NOT make him GAY." Don't ask me how THIS conversation got started, but it did. I've had this same conversation plenty of times with plenty of folks -- and it's surprising to me how much I've had to ARGUE my stance on the subject!!! Let's flip the script, shall we? I've eaten "the cookoo's nest" a few times throughout my life... Does that make me a hetero? Because I like to watch the Detroit Pistons games, am I automatically straight? Stupid question, I know. But I swear, I deal with stupid people on a daily basis. I'll say it like this: Since you're so certain about YOUR sexuality, then go out and experience sex with someone of the same gender... Enjoy it. See how it feels... Then ask yourself the next day, if you've been converted. ...I HIGHLY DOUBT IT!!! I have never, nor have I ever tried to convert someone from straight to gay. Or vice versa... Personally, I don't give a fuck either way. Straight, gay, bi... If you're handsome, willing and able, that's all I care about. Go back home and be straight. I'll go back home and be gay. And the world will continue to spin...

Moving on, Sunday morning I really felt the crunch. Scott and Adam left my house, and I was all pumped up for the next day @ the festival. Tamika, Surgeon, Keith, and a few others were there, holding down the fort. Again, I'd left for home to sleep before the gig. Sunday's gig was hilarious..

I had to play at McNarny's Pub -- which is literally around the corner from Hart Plaza. This time, I was set to tag with DJ Genesis (Submerge). Mind you, I like Genesis, but we'd NEVER played together. I was truly nervous -- but not in a bad way. It just reminded me that I had to bring my "A-game" because you never know who was was in the crowd watching...

Like most other gigs, I had no idea what time I was set to play.. I arrived @ McCarny's at around 11pm. Shawn Rudiman and Dan Lucas had played already, and for some reason, left their record bags up there. When I walked up to the DJ booth, I noticed that there were NO CD decks -- strictly vinyl. Shit... And I only had CDs. WTF? I started calling folks, to see if they could let me borrow their CDJs at the last minute. Of course, no one could be reached. And I didn't even drive today, otherwise I would've just gone home! Finally I reach MEL (Winmill), who managed to drive all the way home and go through ALL of my records while I was on the phone with him -- picking and choosing which ones to play. Thank God for Winmill. We may not have much of a bedroom life, but the Lord knew what I needed when I said "I need a good man!"

As soon as I got of the phone with Mel, I walked back into the club to hear "WHERE'S AARON-CARL?!" So I run upstairs and announce myself, only to face the following crisis: Genesis was late... Shawn was finished... And they needed someone to play immediately. Of course I didn't have MY records, so they instructed me to just grab someone's bag and start playing. Talk about a fucking PINCH!!! So, uh.. OKAY. I grabbed the first record back I came to -- I had NO IDEA what I was going to play, but I grabbed two records and worked the shit outta them. Surprisingly, they sounded GOOD! After about 4 records, I realized that I wasn't nervous at all. A good thing, because the cameras were recording my set. So there I am, playing... Noticing that Dan Lucas was in the crowd, cheering and smiling. I asked him, "are these YOUR records?" He nodded. That's when the diva came out.. "Boy, get your ass up here!" LOL!!! Genesis came shortly after that, and I knew that we weren't tagging -- now I have to play AFTER her... I didn't feel bad because Mel did go home and get my records, so I could play what I wanted to.. BUT DAMN. Now I have to play TWO sets? And of course, the FIRST one (the unfamiliar one) is the one that's been recorded? Wow... Talk about a slap in the face!
Monday was the worst day for me... My body couldn't take being up any longer... It was hard to walk, and all I wanted to do was sleep. So I left the festival and went home -- where I slept ALL DAY. Thank God I didn't have a show to do Monday night -- otherwise I would've been a crabby bitch.

Love on u... AC