Six DJs Who Got Kicked Off The Decks

February 7, 2013 - 5:30 pm by Jorge Hernandez

A recent viral video of deep house don Kerri Chandler preaching throughout his set about not playing"commercial shit" at Rex Club Paris last Sunday got us thinking again about the whole "keeping it real" kerfuffle and how much electronic dance music has evolved from its grungy warehouse days to its present Grammy friendly state. Part of any subculture blowing up is the inevitable crossover from underground to mainstream. Considering how many parties jump off around the world every night, there should be a time and a place for everyone under EDM's burgeoning umbrella. In the spirit of the old 'peace love unity respect' rave mantra, we take a quick look back at some recent booking mishaps in hopes of educating promoters and new fans, and keeping the EDM vibe on a positive tip as it continues its conquest of pop music. -->

Kerri Chandler Preaching and dropping the F-bomb at Rex Club Paris last Sunday. While he wasn't kicked off, he raised the issue again. [videoembed size="full_width" alignment="center"][/videoembed]

Tommie Sunshine Tommie Sunshine is a de facto ambassador for DJ culture, with props from both the serious house heads and the emerging EDM scene. Despite all his cred, and playing "Swedish House Mafia, a Ke$ha remix, the Pitbull track in the new Bud Light commercial, Avicii, some fun bootlegs…" he was still relieved of his mixmaster duties because the clientele at New York's W.i.P wanted more "commercial" music. See his side of the story on VIBE.

Mark Farina Aside from being one of the most popular platter masters to emerge from Chicago's second wave of house legends, Farina is also one of the chillest dudes to command the decks. This didn't prevent him from getting shuffled off the wheels of steel --- "apparently too much house for this Vegas crowd,” he tweeted. While his jazzy style of deep house may not scream "EDM" he knows how to move a crowd, even those at places like Las Vegas's Marquee if only they opened their ears as wide as their wallets. Twit Pic

DJ Shadow When life gives you lemons, drop a mixtape. Instead of just complaining about getting a boot to the decks at Mansion in Miami in December last year, DJ Shadow turned the aborted set into a downloadable mix and earned an apology from the club in the process. Again, the fault seems to lie with the person who booked some one as "future" as Shadow for a prime time disco slot on a Friday night.

Dennis Ferrer This was one of the first incidents in recent memory of a House legend getting dissed. Ferrer has been a major player popular with both the underground set and a perennial fixture on the Winter Music Conference scene. His diss, also at Mansion in Miami, was quickly served up as a harbinger of EDM's great divide. Facebook

Calvin Harris This one was even more of a head-scratcher than the Dennis Ferrer incident. Calvin Harris has been a big part of the "EDM" breakthrough, creating club-flavored hits for superstars like Rihanna while still dropping solid DJ sets at festivals around the world. His big sin at Las Vegas's Tryst last year? "Not playing Carly Jean Epsen + hip hop."

In This Story:

View the next gallery

Top Stories

News

New Video Surfaces Of R. Kelly Allegedly Engaging In Sex With Underaged Girl

Music News

T.I. Blasts Floyd Mayweather For Gucci Support On "Fk N*a": Listen

Entertainment

Floyd Mayweather Calls Out Artists Boycotting Gucci "Hypocrisy," 50 Cent Responds