Can I get an encore?

Emerging from the turntablism and DJ battle scene as part of pioneering DJ crew 5^th Platoon with members Roli, Daddy Dog, D Kuttin Kandi and Vinroc, Asian-American DJ Neil Armstrong worked his way into showbiz by becoming Jay-Z’s DJ of choice for his international tours and concert after-parties. An unlikely graduate in Chemical Engineering, he’s produced some amazing mixtapes and was named as Rolling Stone’s Top 10 Mixtape DJs of 2005. JUNK digs into the life and mind of this talented deck master.

How did you get yourself involved in turntablism and hip hop?

I don’t know how it is in Malaysia but back home in high school, whatever music you listen to you end up following. So when I was in high school, hip hop was in what many people would call the Golden Era, when acts like A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Public Enemy and Slick Rick came out and I was really into it. I loved it so much I wanted to get involved and I gravitated towards DJing.

What’s fresh with 5th Platoon; any new projects coming up?

We’ve been around for 12 years now so as you can imagine, we’re all pretty old. Obviously people’s view of me is entirely different now from my 5th Platoon days. I get to do a lot of higher profile stuff–I was already partnering up with the NBA and Adidas just released the 5th Platoon sneakers in March. As far as the crew goes, the name will always be there, but for now we’re all working on separate projects as opposed to what we used to do–turntablism . That scene is dying so we had to switch our product to making mixtapes, spinning at parties and different stuff like that.

Being an esteemed DJ, what is your view on hip hop today and where do you see it going?

Hip hop is essentially pop music now. The same people that are listening to Britney Spears and Ashley Simpson are also listening to 50 Cent and Jay-Z. Culturally, it wasn’t always like this but I’d say in the last five years it’s changed to what it’s become. The majority of people today perceive hip hop as what you see on MTV. But I feel hip hop is starting to get a little broader. Groups like Chromeo are fusing hip hop elements into their music, enriching genres’ like electro. Even I am historically and primarily a hip hop DJ but if you come hear me spin, depending on the crowd, you’ll hear some house, rock, Motown and even some Northern Soul. I guess it depends on perspective, whether hip hop is losing it or getting better.

What’s your take on Asian presence in the hip hop scene? Cats like Jin Tha MC, Chad Hugo from NERD, and so many dope Asian DJs are coming up and making their presence felt.

Asian hip hop in America is quite universal. Chad Hugo from the Neptunes is a great example. Everyone knows who Pharrell is but Chad has a following too. He crossed over really properly and in order to do that, you can't focus on being Asian. Just present your talent and if you happen to be Asian, then it's cool. There are certain people who tend to present themselves as Asian MCs or Asian whatever and so, they'll only subsist in the Asian community. When you do that, you're obviously limiting yourself. I've never presented myself as an Asian DJ. At a certain point, colour lines shouldn’t matter. I mean, is it possible for an Asian to become a hip hop star? Similarly, can a black guy end up as a Cantopop star? It’s a thought.

You toured with Jay-Z this year, both on the Heart Of The City Tour and World Tour. How was that like?

For the last six months, every night I was waking up at a new place. I went from having a semi-normal life to being around certain types of people I wouldn’t think of. I’ve come a long way from hanging with my friends in a bar back home to meeting Jay and being in a dance circle with Beyonce in a club. We even shared the stage with Slayer, Neil Young and Coldplay, and there was Glastonbury with over 100,000 people. Overall it’s really dope and I’m really grateful. As a DJ it’s something I would never ever dream of. Now I’m just figuring out how to make what I’ve already built keep on going. I’m definitely happy where I am, but there’s a lot more I’m suppose to do before I’m done.

You mentioned in your blog that performing at Madison Square Garden has been one of your most unforgettable experiences. Was what it like to grow up in New York and then reaching a point where thousands of New Yorkers are bumping to your music?

Every time I passed by Madison Square Garden I’d be like, “Man, it’d be pretty crazy if I could be a part of something and rock a crowd in Madison Square Garden.” But I always thought it’d never happen. And then I did the thing with Jay-Z! It wasn’t emotional like I was crying or anything but being out there, you get to look out and you think, “This is it.” But then Glastonbury happened and it’s literally a sea of people that just keeps going. And the whole stuff with Noel Gallagher and Jay really elevated the energy really high. When I look back on my career, that’ll definitely be a highlight.

You named your turntables Bumshequa and Sharlene. What’s the story behind that?

My friend DJ Shortcut from the Invisible Scratch Pickles got interviewed once and he said something like “Turntables are better than a girlfriend, a girlfriend can stress you out but turntables are always there”. And I was a quirky kid, so I named my turntables. Sharlene was the name Homer forced Bart Simpson to name his golf club [in The Simpsons cartoon]. Bumshequa … well, I got that wrong–it was supposed to be Bumquesha. There was a Mark Lawrence TV show with a character called Bumquesha, but I think I f*cked it up and named it Bumshequa. But I don’t even use those turntables anymore; that was a long time ago!

So what’s next for DJ Neil Armstrong?

Well I’m not sure; none of this was ever planned. I definitely want to keep doing stuff that maintains a certain level of integrity. I am known as Jay-Z's tour DJ so it'd be smart for me to do stuff with Jay or do projects that surround Jay's music. Like, Jay is working on a new album now so I'd love to do stuff with him and continue to tour with him. I’m still going to do mixtapes, and I’m going to continue working with NBA and Adidas. Everything is ramping up to a higher level, who knows what's next?

Words Trix  Photo Zouk KL
www.myspace.com/5thplatoonturntablistcrew

 
*Taken from JUNK's January 2009 issue