DJ’s are meant to bring life to a party– but with new Williamsburg-based DJ collective and talent agency, STADJ–- the DJs are the life of the party. Begun last July by husband and wife team DJ EM, a 20-year veteran DJ from Israel who helped to establish two DJ schools, and his PR-powerhouse partner PC Miller, STADJ is the first all-female, pro-model DJ lineup of its kind. Not only does it mix music with fashion, but not unlike a DJ mash-up, the agency’s name similar fuses the terms “Star” and “DJ” to reflect their precise philosophy on their professionally-trained turntablists– putting only the most trained (with DJ EM’s tradmark “StaDj technique”) and drool-worthy females on deck.

Having already debuted to rowdy crowds for parties sponsored by the likes of Red Bull, STADJ will launch its official debut this fall at New York Fashion Week at NYC’s Mansion. psychoPEDIA joined the dynamic duo behind the new shejay phenomenon to find out more:

What are some of the special aspects of the "STADJ Technique"?
DJ EM: There is a language to DJing. Top 10 DJs in the world are people that are booked so people can see their vision or story. These DJs design a set and perform it just like a band. All the other DJs in the world have to adjust to the crowd, because their brand-power is not strong enough. My technique is designing sets with the talent that’s natural with her music vision, style, and look.

Why the need for an all-female DJ agency?
DJ EM: The biggest problem about the DJ industry in the US, not so much in Europe, is it’s about teaming up with a bunch of guys and throwing your own little parties. In Europe, DJ culture is much more advanced. It’s one of the major music outlets people want to learn— especially in Germany, Holland, and Britain. When I opened DJ schools in Isreal, the most astounding thing I discovered is how many women come to learn. I think the reason is that woman are much more organized and like to be structured.

What makes the ideal "shejay?”
DJ EM: Our perfect talent will have music intelligence and abilities to follow the technique. Then we move on to looks and personality. For a DJ performing live– if you are intending to create a visual spectacle, it’s important that you have a DJ who has an appeal to the crowd in her charisma and moves– able to be caught great on camera and video, to stand in front of the crowd and project an energy that’s the life of the party.
PC Miller: We’re the first agency in the country to do a pro-model shejay collective. If you imagine all the beautiful DJs in the world under one roof, that’s what we’re doing. We definitely embrace the term “shejay.”

What kind of background do the girls in your collective have?
PC Miller: Our girls come from professional entertainment fields. Most of them are amateur DJs to begin with. DJ Talula comes from professional dance—she’s done tours with A-list performers like the Black Eyed Peas, Carl Cox, and David Greco. DJ Ladyfingers holds three agency contracts for modeling. Teardrop is a universal music artist and producer from Germany who comes to the table with about 100 original tracks. She’s worked with Gipsy Kings to P Diddy. Sophie SoFresh is a New York personality. Tyra invited her to the show for a scene in NYC’s hottest single girls. But all of them are very ardent DJs and self-promoters.

Is there a different vibe created between parties DJed by women than by men?
DJ EM: A woman on deck is like a woman under the hood of a car. There’s a crazy appeal to a woman touching a machine. The more attractive she is, the more it catches the eye and the mind.

Have you gotten criticism that the agency is biased or sexist only to cast attractive females?
PC Miller: The response has been overwhelming– from nightclubs like Mansion, where we’ll be doing our premier launch party, “Hot Pink.” Our feeling is strong that what we offer is real empowerment to female DJs in the industry. There are a lot of beautiful girls that aren’t really organized. They find that on their own, they get a lot of backlash, so that’s why they come to us.

What kind of gigs do they play?
PC Miller: They do corporate events, some private events like a recent one for Red Bull for a celebrity blogger, and big festivals. In August, we’ll be doing a major block party in Williamsburg that is a call to action for women at risk in Brooklyn. We have a not-for-profit organization called WeJay that provides a new creative skill-set in the course of music therapy to women.

Do you ever turn down certain types of events, like bachelor parties?
PC Miller: We have to be mindful, because there’s a sex appeal element that’s very obvious. Because our number one aspect is female empowerment, we weigh each party individually to see how it presents each one of our talents.
DJ EM: One of the biggest things is that the girls feel comfortable on stage. My goal is to create confidence within my talent. It’s about having fun—otherwise, your personality will not come out. I view her as a singer like Christina Aguilera on stage, where I have to give her the conditions to have the best performance.

What's the worst thing that can ever happen to a DJ?
DJ EM: I’ve had people attacking me while I was DJing. There was a fire that broke out in one of the clubs where I was playing. But, the biggest nightmare is when the electricity is fucked and there’s no music.

If you could land any celebrity actress or model to become part of STADJ, who would you pick?
PC Miller: Our big wish name is Tyra Banks—she has music interests and is an incredibly intelligent and stunning woman. That’s the model for the pro-shejay that we’re going for.

Do you hope to ever expand the company to something larger than a DJ collective or outside Brooklyn?
PC Miller: There’s an element of what we’re doing where the girls come from different professional entertainment backgrounds—singing, production, dancing. We can see a production where the DJs are at the center and do an unexpected burlesque show, where there’s a combination of singing and DJing.
DJ EM: Our biggest goal is to get out of New York, because it’s very competitive. But in terms of cashing out on this idea, it’s outside the borders of New York, and our eyes are set on the rest of the world. And for the rest of the world, their eyes are set on New York– so it’s a great position to be in right now.

~Leann Peterson