DJ Associates: Jayclue

Jason Brown aka DJ Jayclue is a well seasoned DJ/Producer with over 15 years experience behind the decks. Having played many different venues across the US, Western Canada, Australia and New Zealand over the years, Jayclue knows how to move a dance floor.

Always the DJ to avoid being pigeonholed to a particular genre of music, Jay is know to move seamlessly through Hip-Hop, Mid-tempo Funk and Soul, Breaks, Dancehall, Reggae, Disco, Latin, Swing, Balkan, House, DnB and everything between. As a producer, Jason is 1/3 of the quickly rising production team known as Qdup Foundation. Over the past several years Qdup have made a mark on the Funky Breaks and Nu Funk dance scene’s with top selling releases on Bombstrikes, Goodgroove, and their own Qdup Records imprint. Having remixed the likes of Fort Knox Five, Nappy Riddem, Basement Freaks, Danny Massure, Thunderball, Audit and Normski, DJ Love and Ursula1000 they have secured themselves a spot as one of the most in demand artists for remixing friends of the funk.

Read Jayclue’s blog posts



How often do you get on the mic?

Only as much is required to keep the flow of the event on course. First dance, Cake cutting and when appropriate per the Wedding needs.

How long have you been DJing?

Since 1996

How long have you been DJing weddings?

I started DJ’ing weddings for friends in 2007, which led to me working more and more of my friend’s weddings. In 2009 this led to word of mouth business taking off. Having relocated to DC now and working with DJ D-mac & Associates has enabled me to really branch out and bring my lounge / club dance floor sensibilities to metro area weddings.

What are some of your all time favorite wedding songs?

  1. Stevie Wonder “Signed Sealed Delivered”
  2. The Isley Brothers or Otis Day & The Knights version of “Shout”
  3. Gap Band “You Dropped the Bomb on Me”
  4. Prince “Kiss”
  5. The Temptations “My Girl”
  6. Louis Armstrong “What a Wonderful World”

What kind of music do you DJ when you’re not at a wedding?

It depends on the event and time slot I’m Djing for. I usually cater the vibe towards what I believe is going to work well for the room and set time and then react to the crowd after my initial direction. If I’m playing poolside or opening an event I’m going to be playing a bit more chill grooves and ramping things up rather than starting at 1AM in a club environment where I would bang things a bit harder from the get go. In general I play all over a huge range of tempos and styles from Funk, Breaks, House, Dance, Hip Hop, Swing, Reggae, Balkan, Samba, Cumbia, Bhangra & other world flavors, Downtempo etc… I don’t try to pigeonhole myself into one or two areas of music because my tastes are too wide.

What is your general philosophy on weddings?

I’m there to help the Bride, Groom and their loved ones have the party of their life. My selections should help to reflect the couple and their family & friends and make them all dance and have a great time.

What size wedding do you prefer to DJ?

Any size, but as the wedding gets over the 100 person count the dance floor grows in tandem, so that’s a plus.

What makes you different from your competition?

A real love for music and a true knowledge of how to read and propagate a dance floor into a frenzy.

What do you do to motivate the crowd if no one is dancing?

I try switching things up a bit and make sure I’m just not playing the right vibe for the room. If that doesn’t work or in tandem, I’ll try to get a few friends on the dance floor… Usually if the crowd is treating the dance floor like poison, it just takes a few outgoing people to make everyone else that is open to dancing follow. Usually this is not a problem, but being proactive to get a few people on the floor can make a real difference.

What training have you received?

I started DJing when I was 16 with friends that had years of experience who passed on a solid foundation of skills. I took this solid base and did what anyone passionate about DJing does and practiced. I picked it up quickly and by 18 was playing in clubs that sometimes I was not even old enough to be in. Along with this foundation I’ve had over 15 years of gigging along side some of the best DJ’s in the world. When you’re a DJ that might be opening or closing the night next to DMC champions and international DJ’s you have to know how to rock a party.

What problems have you encountered at a wedding and how have you solved them?

With weddings and any mobile sound set up, you’re at some time likely to run into the occasional technical difficulty such as a failing cable or dying battery in a wireless set up. I prepare and mitigate these risks by making sure to bring back up systems to assure everything runs smooth on the day of the event.

Who are your preferred DJ gear Manufacturers?

Technics, Rane, Serato, Shure, Vestax

What are your favorite record labels?

Fort Knox Recordings, Resense, Jalapeno, Freestyle, Motown

What are some of your preferred clothing labels?

Adidas, Mixwell, Levis, Kangol

Where are your favorite DC nightspots?

U-Street Music Hall, Eighteenth Street Lounge

What is the best DJ moment of your career (so far)?

Tough question… I would probably say back in the late 90’s playing at the Capital Ball Room for the first time. I got to open for DJ Craze who at the time was the DMC world champion. I’ve had larger gigs and international travel, which could top this in my memories, but it was such a milestone for me to play Capital Ball Room and opening for Craze was just awesome.

What is your favorite live show(s) (strictly as a member of the audience)?

Jackson Five Victory Tour (my very first concert, yes my parents were that cool to take me). That was just such a great show to see and as a first concert experience is forever engrained in my memory as the greatest show ever.

Favorite restaurants:

Morton’s or any good Steak House are always a winner for me. In LA, I loved Sakura House, which was a boutique kind of Japanese skewer menu. I love City Lights in DC as well – Really good Chinese Food.

“I can’t hear myself think in here!” Favorite spot for a quiet cocktail:

Rooftop at my place or a quiet back yard setting would be great.

What are your five desert island discs?

This is very hard to answer, so I’ll answer with the first 5 milestone albums that come to mind:

  1. The Chemical Brothers Exit Planet Dust
  2. Various Artists Still The Joint: Sugar Hill Remixed
  3. Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream
  4. Led Zeppelin Houses of the Holy
  5. Michael Jackson Off The Wall

What’s your dream DJ gig?

My perfect DJ gig would be a festival including some of my favorite bands and DJ’s on the same bill. There would be camps of a few hundred of my closest friends & family along with a few thousand other partygoers that would really be there for the music and experience. This way I get it all. I would get to DJ for my friends that would help pump the place up and I would get to experience the festival full of my peers and idols with great vibes on the same day.

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