Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeremy Guevara.
Jeremy, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I taught myself how to DJ in high school after getting introduced to festivals like Ultra and EDC. I thought it was so cool – the energy, the lights, the music. Without knowing other DJs, I would stay up all night teaching myself and practicing. I played in front of people for the first time when I enrolled into College of the Holy Cross. I was DJing school sanctioned parties and house parties; playing a lot of dancehalls, reggaeton, mixtape hip-hop. I left Holy Cross and went to New York during my sophomore year. There, I auditioned for a local radio station and earned a weekly slot. This was also my first time using CDJs. I was basically learning how to use them as I played on air for hundreds of people. I played at some small venues in New York but finally came back to Boston to finish school at Suffolk University. This part was really hard because I had to start over, again. My fan bases were in Worcester and New York, I didn’t know any other DJs or promoters, I had no connections. I became desperate. I would message and DM venue owners and managers, with no replies, obviously. But luckily, a promoter took a chance on me almost two years ago and I never looked back.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No way. As I mentioned, I had to basically start over twice. It felt like it was impossible to really get put on anywhere without having a DJ recommend you or being cool with a promoter. I literally had nothing. But persistence is key. And being a DJ, or a photographer, or a rapper, anything like that can be very frustrating. I found my peers would tease me or think the whole thing was a joke until I really “made it.” Like you really don’t see who is there to support you until you look up at an empty crowd and see that the five people who did show up are your people just trying to support you. And that literally means the world. It’s difficult for people to see your vision until it happens. Finding a good support system can go a very long way. But they won’t ultimately believe in you until you believe in yourself.
And then when you do break into the scene, there’s a lot of hate and competition. Other DJs will talk down to you or about you. It’s a lot of egos. After some time I realized it’s because they’re afraid. It used to bother me a lot, I think I’m a nice guy! But now I just try to stay away from stuff like that. I just watch.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
It’s crazy to think of “SNAX” as a business. But it is what it is. I DJ public and private events all over the city. I have a strong personality which allows me to comfortably MC. I’m a big fan of music. Though I’m often categorized as a “hip hop” DJ, my DJing roots came from the EDM world, my family is Latin American, and at most of my first gigs I only played Caribbean music. I try to maintain a really diverse library in order to cater to as many crowds as possible, and that has translated in my young career already.
But I think marketability is extremely important. Beyond that, social media can get you a long way. I’ve had to develop and transition my social media accounts to “business only” accounts. On these channels, I rarely post anything personal. I’ve tried to brand “SNAX” as much as possible. I’ve developed a persona, brand recognition, slogans/phrases, etc. You just have to. I think a lot of DJs are getting lost in the mix because they are one dimensional. They just… play music. I think the general public’s attention span is growing shorter and shorter and DJs need to grab on to it. I just started a Youtube channel. I vlog my DJ life just to show people the perspective of the DJ, which I don’t think people really understand. I don’t know, no one else in Boston is doing it. It’s a different kind of content. I don’t get a lot of views or anything but the people who do watch it think it’s interesting. I’m having fun now. But I want to start playing in other states soon.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
Persistence. There are so many “DJs” that come out of nowhere. Then they never really get the ball rolling and kind of fizzle out. Many people give up once they really find out how much money, time, and effort goes into being a DJ. I technically started DJing four years ago and have been “doing well” for about two years. So, for two years, I was grinding it out, trying to make things work, and got a million “no”s. Being able to be persistent and believe in yourself is the key. DJing in city nightlife is actually really stressful. People only see the fun but don’t realize the stress behind the scenes. Not everyone can handle it.
Contact Info:
- Website: Coming Soon!
- Email: gimmesnaxdj@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/gimmesnax
- Facebook: facebook.com/snaxdj
- Twitter: twitter.com/gimmesnax
Image Credit:
@Noloetc (Noel Reed), @finkshotit (Erik Lorch)
Getting in touch: BostonVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
