Interview: Poppa Jax

Music has clearly always been in your life. How did it all begin?
‍Music has always been around, growing up with house parties, being a little kid with my aunties and uncles having a good old time in the garage. Because I'm Maori and my mum is Irish, I grew up with a lot of different ranges of music, which translates into my DJing and being open format. Even when I was younger I'd go to a lot of raves in Christchurch, Winter Solstice, very trancy, liquid drum and bass vibes, which I love. I'm just super open to hearing all these different types of genres, and I think that upbringing has followed me into the career I'm in now.

Were there any particular artists who shaped your taste?
‍Growing up on the internet, Limewire days, downloading music, you really had to go out and discover it yourself. Music videos, C4, all that stuff. When I was really young I wanted to be a Spice Girl. Sugababes, all the girl groups. Then in my teenage years I was a bit more rebellious, so I got really into Odd Future, Tyler the Creator, Frank Ocean, that whole collective. I'm a big nerd for Tyler's taste. Whatever music he likes, I'd go and listen to the same stuff too.

So how did you go from wanting to be a Spice Girl to becoming a DJ?
‍When I first started DJing it was just lockdown boredom, wanting something to do. In my party years, all my friends were DJs, and I just wanted to know how to press play, basically. So in lockdown I had no other choice but to pick up hobbies. Once I came out of it, my friend China had a Twitch stream channel, so we'd DJ on there. People would see us, ask me to play their party, I'd play that party, someone else would see me, and it just snowballed. Every gig exposed me to more promoters and radio stations. I never thought I wanted to become the DJ. It was just passing time, mixing music together, and then it became a passion.

What was the turning point that made you go all-in?
‍My side hustle was taking up more and more of my time and I couldn't focus on my main job. I was turning 30, so I thought, let me see how far I can get with this little DJ thing. I ended up leaving my job and had no other choice but to make it work. Once I left, I really locked in. Every spare second I had, I was either practising, creating content, or building connections. I'm really lucky I have a great circle of people in the industry who've given me advice and lessons. But yeah, my motivation was basically: I need to survive.

Social media clearly plays a big role for you. How do you think about it?
‍There are so many DJs out there putting out content all the time, but for me it's not too hard. I'll play a gig, put a camera there, record the audio, and my content is there: a YouTube mix, a SoundCloud mix, clips for TikTok. It's kind of necessary, especially if I'm trying to get booked overseas. People want to see how I am with a crowd, what music I play, what my energy is like. Instagram is pretty much my CV. I love sharing moments and showcasing all the different genres I play, just so people get to know me, essentially.

How do you read a crowd in the moment?
‍It comes from years of experience. When I first started I didn't care what the gig asked me to play. I just played what I wanted. Looking back, I used to clear so many dance floors. I get it now. It is a balance: playing for the crowd, but there is an art to introducing newer sounds. I will have a short playlist of music I have just downloaded, stuff I really want to play, and then a separate playlist of previous gigs I think would suit that crowd, my safe zone. Once you have them, that is when you can start sneaking in things they might not be familiar with, because you feel like: you need to hear this.

You have been playing overseas. How do those crowds compare?
‍My favourite place to play is Amsterdam and Rotterdam. They have a very big bubbling culture over there, that is where it originated. All that fast tempo music is just my favourite ever. Last year I went overseas for about a month and a half, France and London, and when I came back my first festival in New Zealand was AfroSoul. The week before I had literally just come from Nottingham Carnival, where dancehall culture is insane. So I had this whole new bag of dancehall, amapiano, French rap, and I put it all into that one set. It felt like maybe this is the whole point of it all. Go out, discover music, come back and bring it home.

What is coming up for you?
‍I have an event called Poppers coming up at the end of the month. We do it every month but we have not had one in about three months now, so the city is dying for it. We are doing it at a different venue and I really just want it to be high quality, a great experience. Level it up a bit. The whole thing started from my 30th birthday. I threw a free party, put all my friends on the lineup, and the response was incredible. People were saying they had never felt that happy. So I thought, what is stopping us from doing it again? It is a way of exposing our community to DJs from overseas, while also highlighting great DJs in our own backyard.
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Sound Check, Vibe Check
1. What is your go-to song to jam out to in the car? Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough, MJ
2. Who is your favourite artist at the moment? Michael Jackson
3. One thing you can’t perform without? Water (or a drink)
4. One artist or band you would love to co-lab with? Tyler, the Creator
5. Go to BurgerFuel order? C n Cheese with Kumara Fries and Aioli

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Fire or Backfire?
‍1. Pickles in burgers – Fire

2. Crocs – Fire

3. Karaoke – Fire

4. BurgerFuel Aioli – Fire

5. Acoustic performances - Fire

6. NZ Music Month – Fire

7. Festivals – Fire

8. Singing in the shower – Fire

9. Supermarket in bare feet – Backfire

10. Pineapple on pizza - Fire

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