Hey DJ: Red Alert
by Vonetta Booker-Brown

Whatever sticks in your dome when he’s mentioned, know that not only can he take you back, his career goes back like play cousins. To the days of DJ Kool Herc’s Saturday night parties during the mid-late ‘70s, where Red first studied how Herc blended the sounds of James Brown, the Isley Brothers, Baby Huey and Dennis Coffey. Red sharpened his own deejaying skills, getting down with Africa Bambaata and Zulu Nation, extracting sweat at legendary clubs such as the Roxy, Negril, and Danceteria. Not to mention the 11 years Red spent doing KISS FM’s Dance Mix Party. Being down with a crew called BDP, and lauching the careers of the Jungle Brothers, Black Sheep, A Tribe Called Quest, and Queen Latifah—do I need to go on?  

To sum it up, DJ Red Alert’s name is stamped all over the face of New York hip-hop; from the old days of rhyming in the parks for the sheer love of it, right up to the present, where Red is still going strong after over 16 years on the air. Scene caught up with him just as he was wrapping up one of his “5 O’Clock Free Ride” sets, and he had a lot to say about the ever-evolving face of hip-hop.  

What are some of the changes you’ve noticed in hip hop in the past 10, 15 years? 

Red Alert: To me, the changes have gone on according to the livelihood of the times—the environment was based on how we lived. If you look at the living conditions within anywhere you’re at, as now compared to 10, 15 years ago, the people are only going to recite and speak out according to what they have around them. We know that 10, 15 years ago, things were exposed, but not as much as they are now. Same thing I can say for when I was growing up as a child. A lot of things weren’t exposed to me as they’re exposed in front of a child today. It’s only going to show how a rapper or, as we would say, an MC, would recite in the music. They feel they become violent; they only recite what is based around them—there’s nothing but violence around them. Of course, where you have such songs as “The Message” where Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel was trying to recite what was going on in the inner city, but it’s like, ‘Okay, that’s a nice little message thing…” But as of today, it’s still the same way, it’s just in a different tone that instead of letting you learn what he’s saying, now they coming to you, telling you about what’s really going on. And it even went as far back as on the West coast, in the early 90s when you had NWA and various other people who were reciting on record about “gangsta rap”—well, you gotta understand: Them times over there, they was gang-banging. So they was only reciting how they lived. And that’s how it evolved, going all across the country. Let’s face it: Violence sells. It’s a sad thing, because that’s what goes on, but it’s been happening before our eyes was open. And it still continues, but in a more potent position than it was in the past 10 or 15 years ago.

When you’re deejaying, what are some of the feelings you like to set off in your music? 

Red Alert: I know there are some DJs who like to do “quick mixes,” there are some DJs who like somebody to warm up for them so they banging out—I’m a DJ who likes to set from the beginning to the end. I like to set the tone where…I learned that in order to generate a crowd, a feeling, a vibe, first and foremost—you got to satisfy the ladies. Of course, if you don’t satisfy the ladies, the ladies are going to get up and leave and you won’t have nothing but a bunch of fellas. So what I’m trying to do is to set the tone, let them come in, sit back, relax, have they little drink, listen to some nice soothing music. As it builds up, get the vibe going, get a little tempo going on…and then as time goes by, the early evening, maybe going into late, midnight, then I’ll start banging out, and that’s when I got people getting more and more involved, the party motion. And then later on, I may reminisce with some tunes, some classic moments. But then again, it gotta go according to what type of crowd I’m playing for, too. I can’t just keep it up for one certain crowd; I got to feel it out for all crowds. It could be the youth, adults—it could be a cocktail party, a wedding, or at a park. But I got to see, according to what’s happening, how I set my tone at that pace. And what time to do it.

What are some forms of music you like to listen to besides hip hop and R&B? 

Red Alert: I’m very wide-open—I like to listen to a lot of jazz, a lot of contemporary, a lot of soft rock. It’s funny that you mentioned it; earlier this morning, before I left to go to work, my wife and I was listening to some Tracy Chapman. But I’m very wide open. One thing I can say to a person about a person like Bambataa: He made me learn to open my mind to music, in general. Because you never know what you’re going to come across or be able to program and play. And, I guess according to my past growing up, I’ve never tried to separate music in different formats. When you had a record like “Chameleon” by Herbie Hancock and the Headhunters, that was a big dance record, even though they would consider that in a “jazz” category. You had a record like “Philadelphia” by B.B. King that was a good dance record, but that was a different category. So to me, it doesn’t matter what format the music is in, it’s how you package it one to another, so it can flow all together.

You were one of the DJs who first broke out dancehall music. Back in the day, many African-Americans used to front on reggae and dancehall. What are your observations on the time between then and when dancehall blew up? 

Red Alert: Before the title “dancehall” officially came in, when it was known as reggae, when you had Bob Marley, Third World, it’s sad to say, but their audience was mostly Caucasian. And in that significant time period, the same blacks that probably had some Caribbean background, from the Islands, never acknowledged their roots. Years later, the younger generation took more of the feeling of when dancehall came in, and they embraced it. Especially in NYC, in various parts of Brooklyn, the Bronx that have a heavy Caribbean audience. And I know for myself, growing up under my grandparents that come from Antigua, that I grew up listening to soca, reggae and calypso—before I even knew about other genres of music. So, there’s a revival in terms—when I started deejaying, I saw that the dancehall thing was starting to come to a rise, I took it as my responsibility to capture it and present it.

What songs have you broken where nobody was feeling it at first, and then they suddenly blew up? 

Red Alert: Hmmm…(pauses)..ooh, there’s quite a few, I’m trying to remember some (laughs)! Well, I remember when I first started bringing in dancehall, since we’re on that subject, I had some people saying, “Aw, you’re playing that reggae nonsense!” But little by little, their heads started turning around, and the funny thing about it today is that if I’m playing it in the club, I have an audience that’ll say, “You got some reggae?” So, you could say there was a “force field,” but as things turned, there was a teaching in the spinning, you know? You educate them as time goes by. I could say that the genre of that music itself, I helped break in. The masses of people were turning away from it [at first] because it was never presented in the forefront in the beginning, as opposed to the underground crowd that appreciated it. So, I helped turn it around to make the masses start enjoying it. 

Now, what particular song stands out in your mind that blew up?  

Red Alert: I’ll put it this way—I remember when I first started playing “Rappin’ Duke.” And when I first started playing “Rappin’ Duke,” I had a couple of people say, “Man, what’s that corny mess?” And I said, “Yo, it’s ‘Rappin’ Duke.’” And as time went by, it was more and more popular, and they started learning to accept it. Same thing for “West Coast” music. I never was the type of person to tell you right up front where [the song] was from. Because people have a little programming in their minds where you’ll tell them, “I got this new record from such-and-such,” and they’ll be like, “Oh—I don’t like it!” How you gonna say you don’t like it if you’ve never heard it? Because they close-minded, and they’ve turned it off because it came from somewhere else. So, I don’t tell where it’s from. And once it’s settled into your system and you find out where it’s at—it’s already in your system. I used to play some records in my mix show, when I was at KISS, I used to play a song by Junior Reed, who used to be in that black rock band. I used to introduce a lot of Prince records, it was various things. There was a record by Schooly D called “PSK—What Does it Mean?” and I used to play it. They was into the sound and the track so much, but they never knew where he came from. By the time they found out he was from Philly, they were like, “Oh, word?” If I would have told you ahead of time I had this new record from Philly, they probably would have been like, “Oh, I don’t like it.” I’ve always learned to do it in a subliminal way.

Where did you get the name Red Alert? 

Red Alert: Red Alert…I got the name because I was know for having this big ol’ red Afro, skinny as hell, playing basketball. I was known for playing ball, being fast and flashy. So, they thought of the signal, and it just attached. So when I got into deejaying, they just put the “DJ” in front of that.

What is the hardest aspect of deejaying? What’s the hardest skill to master? 

Red Alert: The hardest aspect of deejaying, whether it’s for listening pleasure or dancing pleasure, is learning to segue way  and program the right music one behind another. Just keep the pattern going, so people can enjoy listening or enjoy dancing. Because if you turn off the pattern…like, I may have you up and going, but I may bring something in that may turn off the person from listening or dancing.

It might mess up the flow... 

Red Alert: It might mess up the flow, and they’re not into it, and then you have to work even harder to see if you can get them back. A couple of times in my past, I admit that that’s happened—which was a learning experience for me to be a better person at it. But that’s what I think is the hardest part. And, learn to be very wise and selective in knowing what music you’re programming and playing. Timing is very important.

Do you find that a lot of people underestimate deejaying, thinking, “Yo, I’ll just get on the turntables,” thinking it’s just flipping on a couple of records? 

Red Alert: Yes, they really take it for granted thinking that it’s just like that. It could be a set of the ten hit records, that me and five others may have. But don’t think because they’re all hit records that you can make them all work. Once again, it’s how you program them. You may have 10 records, but then again, one comes behind another and you might throw them off again. It’s how you program them one after another.

Many people say that deejaying is becoming an increasingly lost art. I was wondering if you agree with that? Also, where do you see deejaying going in the future? 

Red Alert: Deejaying is becoming a lost art in certain ways. As far as working as a radio or mix DJ in the clubs, I see that a lot of DJs today aren’t into mixing or blending. A lot of them are into slapping on a record, one after another. I can understand with associating with the hip hop culture, that a lot of them do lots of cutting and scratching. I know I come from that, but you have to do it according to the pleasure of the audience liking it, instead of you getting so much into it yourself. As far as within the hip hop culture and turntablists-- the DJs that do the tricks—that artform still remains, and I’m glad that it’s still there. It has it’s own category. I know when they look at me, as for hip hop, they think I do the same thing like somebody that do the tricks. We’re all not the same way. I may come from the hip hop, but my point is, does it make you party, or does it make you listen? As for a person that’s into the skills, tricks and competitions, that’s his category. But that’s where I see where the loss is—with people learning how to blend and mix.

Which artists are you feeling right now? 

Red Alert: That’s one thing that I never got too heavy into, the artists. Mainly because so much comes at me that I don’t emphasize upon individuals. I like a lot of them, but I don’t point out who’s my favorite.

So, who are some of the ones you like? 

Red Alert: Montell (Jordan), I’m with Montell, that’s my man. I can’t say I’m with Donnell (Jones), because I’ve gotta hear more than just one hit record. Montell, he has a package that I can get into. In hip hop, of course, Jay-Z—he made a good standpoint for himself. As far as Puffy is concerned, truthfully…I honestly like a lot of Puffy’s work.

Hey, that’s okay…(laughing) 

Red Alert: I try to let people understand that once again, I come from the hip hop genre, and I know there’s different sets of hip hop. I come from the point that I can respect and relate to what Puffy was doing, making people enjoy and dance. I like a lot of his production. If I want to go raw or hardcore, I can listen to maybe some Ja-Rule, where he get deep down and gritty. So, there’s all variations I like. 

As far as Puffy, yours is an interesting standpoint, since it’s so popular to hate Puffy right now. 

Red Alert: I remember something my man Chuck D said a long time ago. He said that once certain levels you go through as an artist, group or even a successful person, that when you become popular, you go “pop.” When you go pop, the first thing coming out of people’s mouths is, “You’re a sellout.” But what Chuck D said is very clear: He said that if you go ahead and put your product on that rack, do you expect for that product to be staying there forever? Or do you want that sucker to come off that rack? You want it to sell out, right? So, understand what the word “sellout” is saying. Might as well sell it all out. 

What advice would you offer up-and-coming DJs out there?