Coming fresh from the Department of I Know Them Feels is this video of Dub Architect, a DJ popular in the reggae world renowned for his dubwise reggae remixing techniques, having to deal with a couple of drunk punters asking him to play Silento’s ‘Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)’.
We’ve got a few members of the Tone Deaf crew who are experienced behind a pair of decks and they can tell you first-hand that this is a tragically common occurrence. Rest assured, if you know a DJ, they have more than one story of an annoying punter drunkenly requesting a song.
As Pile Rats write, Dub Architect, real name Justin Pietro, was recently performing at a club and was in the middle of his set when he had two young girls come up to him and request ‘Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)’, sweetening the deal with the promise that their whole family will “do it” (presumably the dance).
After requesting the song several times, insisting he has the song, offering it up on their phones when he claims he doesn’t, and even propositioning Pietro with a payment of $30, the two livid punters threaten to complain to the owner of the venue.
“From this weekend’s show on the Jersey Shore here’s just ONE of the clips I have of this group of girls screaming at and harassing me to play the ‘Whip & Nae Nae’ then threatening to ‘get the owner’ of the venue when I tried explaining… that hell would freeze over first,” Pietro writes on Facebook.
“Over the past few years touring and performing live I’ve gotten used to this happening every one in a while at venues that don’t traditionally host live music or where I know the crowd really doesn’t know what dub is.”
“People see a laptop and think… ‘Oh he’s a DJ’ which apparently equates to ‘I can just go scream requests at the top of my lungs and then act like a toddler when I don’t get my way.’ But just FYI (and I’m sure I’m preaching to the choir posting this to my fans)… acting this way is not ok.”
“Please don’t be a jerk and act like this at music events. You’re there to see people perform (aka put their entire energy and self into a performance… for your viewing and listening pleasure).”
“Just because you paid doesn’t mean you get to act like an entitled brat by screaming at the musicians how to do their job. I can’t believe I have to actually explain to people why acting like this is not ok. Facepalm.”
