Interview - Quenanee Lavine

Where are you from?

I am from Kokomo, Indiana.

When did you get involved with music?

I got involved with music, probably, at the age of five.

Oh, wow, that’s so young, how did you get started?

Well I come from a musically inclined family, so I was pretty much exposed to music growing up as a kid.

What did your family do in music?

A lot of women in my family, they sung in choirs and stuff.  A lot of the males played in bands, and different things, so with me being exposed to that, I just…it was just a natural talent that I picked up on.

Who are your musical influences?

Well, my musical influence is, well, let’s see, I like Phil Collins, Prince, I listened to a lot of his music growing up, um… Let’s see, I listen to a lot of Rick James.  And musical influences, as far as the music that I produce, I listen to you know, big name producers that you hear now today.

Tell me a little bit about your music.

 I specialize in a category of instrumental music that I produce for different types of material.  Pretty much, my style is more geared towards a jazz, abstract, hip-hop element. I kind of dig deep into an alternative sound.  I’ve played for some alternative local groups before, like, I’m a drummer too, so…most of my style is jazz, abstract, and hip-hop.

Where did you get the name DJ Laqs?

DJ Laqs, well, the name pretty much speaks for itself.  I took all the initials out of my name, and just reversed them backwards, and I came up with Laqs (LoL).  Now, the DJ part…I started DJing at the age of fifteen.  Being musically inclined, picking up DJing is something that I was really interested in, I studied and watched growing up, so I just took that, and used it as another art form to mix with my music.

What does it take to be a DJ?

I think it begins with personal creativity. You know, having a good feel of the music that’s out there, being able to take your skills to a higher level, the sky’s the limit. Being a good DJ, you have to know, you have to learn all of the art forms of DJ ing if that’s what you’re into, but being considered a good DJ, I took time to practice every day, I studied each element that is required to be a good DJ, I know my music, and I know what it takes to make the crowd happy.

What are some of the elements of DJ ing?

Some of the elements of DJ ing is, first of all, is knowing your equipment, you’ve gotta know what you’re working with. But other than that, being able to mix.  Mix what makes you feel good, being able to grab a hold of the music that makes you feel good, and puts you in the mode of mixing, scratching, doing tricks, I mean, there’s more to it than just putting the record on the turn table and just playing a song.  I feel like as a DJ, you can take that song, and you can pretty much make it ten times better than what it is by being able to add your own personal creativity.

What do you want to contribute with your music?

I want to contribute and reach out to everyone, as far as the music industry is concerned.  I just want to spread my skill and my talent, I just feel like today, the music industry has kind of steered away from that.  I feel like it’s geared towards more material things now, instead of focusing on the true love of creating music, I mean music makes me happy; it’s like a breath of fresh air. I just want to be able to, not saying that I can change the music industry, but just let people know that this is what I’m trying to spread and put back into it, and just reach everybody in as many ways as I can as far as through my music, lyrically, through DJ ing, and also to be a motivation to other people that are possibly on the same path, you know, of when to pursue their music career.

Is there anything you’d like to say to people who are trying to break into the industry with their own art, their own music?

Oh yeah, sure, I honestly believe that, if this is what you wanna do, as far as pursuing your goals in the music industry, stay motivated. Keep at it. You can do it.  I mean, wake up every day feeling you can do something a whole lot better than what you’ve done yesterday.  I just feel like, um, the only person that can stop you from reaching your goals is you, yourself. I feel like, people who start know, you should know that in your heart, you know, you can do this. That there’s no obstacles as far as feeling like you cant reach your goals, and that’s just anything that they wanna pursue.  And that’s what I’ve done personally.  Ever since I was real little, growing up, I grew up with the determination of my music, building my career, my success, it’s what I wanna do, and that’s the motivation and the drive that I kept. It’s all about drive.