DJ Profiler: ICON
AArising.com

October 2004
by Nelson Wong

DJ. Disc Jockey. A person whose sole job is to get people dancing. One time in history the DJ life was highly male dominated. An occasional female would break into the scene and catch some attention for being "different" but thankfully times have changed. These days a female DJ is much more common and female DJs are drawing a lot of local and national attention.

DJ ICON, aka Connie Wong, originally born in Kowloon, Hong Kong and now a San Francisco Bay Area resident, has grabbed nationwide attention by being the DJ of MTV's "The Wade Robson Project," a dance competition showcase. She appeared on all 26 episodes of the show including 6 of the live shows during the finals. ICON also has her own music production company, Mach 5.

How did you first become a DJ? What inspired you to pursue DJing?
ICON: There is a sequence of events to how I became a DJ. I started going out to punk shows in San Francisco when I was 14, then went to my first rave after a punk show and immediately fell in love with electronic music. I immersed myself in the Trance scene when it was first being introduced to San Francisco, attended all the parties, and became close friends with influential Trance DJs Mystrë and Mars from Frequency-8. I was inspired to express myself through the music that I loved, acquired my own turntables and started my record collection. DJing was largely self-taught and is the only passion that I stuck with throughout my life (I was a violinist during grade school and a contortionist during high school). I was known as a Trance DJ for 5 years and made my natural progression to Breakbeats in 2001, I am currently mostly playing Nu-Skool, Funky, and Trancy Breaks.

Did you find it difficult to break in or be accepted into the scene?
ICON: There are always challenges for any DJ to break into the industry since there is so much competition. I worked hard to get my demos out to promoters and had some good connections to get started. The rest took time, patience and dedication.

How did your learn your mixing skills?
ICON: DJing was largely self-taught. Mystrë and Mars showed me the basics and the technical aspects such as how to cue up the record or how to work the pitch aDJust. Since I used to play the violin, counting music came naturally to me. Learning to beat match and finding my own style of mixing was eventually acheived with loads of practice.

Who were/are some of your DJ role models?
ICON: My favorite DJ of all time is Richie Hawtin, a.k.a. Plastikman, he is like a surgeon on the decks, so precise and technical. Richie is pure genius. Also, when I started DJing in 1996, there were very few professional female DJs in San Francisco. DJ DRC was a huge inspiration to me as a female DJ with a lot of recognition and success. To me she is somewhat of a pioneer, she and I are good friends to this day.

What are your favorite songs to get the the crowds dancing?
ICON: A magician never reveals her secrets!

What's the strangest or most embarassing thing to ever happen while you were DJing?
ICON: I was DJing in Vancouver, BC in Spring of 2000. I completely forgot that I had locked my record box and left the key with my friend who was cat-sitting for me in San Francisco. 5 minutes before my set, I realized that my record box was still locked! I was running around in panic-mode looking for a toolbox, finally the sound technician saved the day and pried my box open just in time for my set. Although the lock is busted, I'm still using the record box!

Where do you see the future of the DJ scene going?
ICON: Most successful DJs eventually move into the realm of producing. The top 20 DJs in the world are all producers, I think more and more DJs will make this progression. Instead of always playing other artists' music, it feels so much better to play something you've created yourself.

What advice do you have for others who want to become a DJ?
ICON: Practice makes perfect, don't be shy to give out your mixes, and most importantly, find a good booking agent.