Cleveland native Christopher “DJ Cle-OH” Johnson is a third generation DJ who came to Ohio University largely because of the DJ scene in Athens.
Christopher “DJ Cle-OH” Johnson is the third generation of DJs in his family.
Johnson transferred to Ohio University at the start of the 2014-15 academic year from Baldwin Wallace University, and one of the huge reasons for doing so, he said, was the gigs for DJs in Athens, such as the Delta Zeta Bid Day in 2010 and 2012.
“I was like, ‘I don’t get treated like this back home. They look at me here like I’m an artist. I get a different feeling when I am down here,’” he said.
Johnson, a senior studying international business, said he began following his father’s gigs around the age of 10 and officially started to DJ at 19 years old.
Although he did not learn any techniques from this father, Johnson said going to his father’s gigs showed him the business side of DJing and how to “use your smoke and mirrors to be a professional performer if something were to go wrong.”
Mixing and scratching, Johnson, who is from Cleveland, said, was something he learned through watching YouTube videos and practicing in his bedroom. He said going to clubs and listening to other DJs helped him learn new techniques, too.
“After that, I took what they were doing and formed it into my own style,” he said. “I put my own spin on it.”
For a house party or club, Johnson said he tends to use his turntables and mixer, but for a more formal event, such as a wedding, he uses CDJs, or turntables for CDs. He added that the CDJs make it easier to focus on the crowd because he doesn’t have to focus on a computer screen.
Johnson is now coming up on his seventh year of DJing, and he said his style has changed a lot since the beginning. He said his style now is about being a “crowd-pleaser.”
At his first gig, he started playing “gangster rap” music he likes to listen to on his iPod, but he said everyone was looking at him with confusion.
“I was in the hot seat for a little bit, but that’s when I realized if I want to be a successful DJ, I’m going to have to learn to cater to the fans,” he said.
After being a part Singing Men of Ohio last year, Johnson said he has a stronger grasp on his vocals and pitches, which makes a difference when he pauses the music to address the crowd.
Johnson said he’ll say random things, such as “make sure you tip the bartender” or “be safe driving home,” and shout out to some people in the crowd to make people feel a part of the show.
House parties and clubs have some formalities about playing dance music, but Johnson said when DJing a club, a club owner usually tries to dictate what is played. At a house party, Johnson said he likes having creative control over what is played.
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Erica Pfeiffer, a senior studying psychology and communication sciences and disorders, said she has seen Johnson perform at Casa Nueva and different parties.
“I really enjoyed it. Whenever I was at a party last year, the floor almost fell in because so many people were up and dancing,” she said. “It got a little hectic at one point.”
Pfeiffer said Johnson has a different take on DJing and really tries to reach out to the crowd.
“A lot of people think being a DJ is just standing up there and switching the song. He thinks of it as an art,” she said. “He’s really passionate about it.”
Johnson said he’s willing to work diligently, fail repeatedly and try out new sounds and techniques, and he also wants to be seen as approachable.
“I feel like I am just a normal blue-collared dude with a bunch of college debt and I’m the same as everybody else, but I just like to DJ,” he said.
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