We sit down and chop it up with DC DJ Geena Marie to discuss her time as a DJ student at the WBL Academy and how it helped to morph her into the DJ she is today.

Article & Interview by Alexandra Mitchell

Since I’ve known Geena she has been tearing the city up. One, sometimes two parties in a night. We met (no surprise here) at a dancy-dancy, drinky-drink venue where I used to tend bar (the good ole days). 

Always humble and a tad quiet, but always scintillating and emanating confidence, Geena standing at a whopping 5’2 would step up to the turntables and get the slumpest, drunkest happy hour patron up out of their sad seat and on to the dance floor. 

Her career began in 2014 after connecting with DJ Nativesun on a short film project. After working a few events with him, she started booking gigs herself and her career took off. Geena was featured on mad fliers, if it was a poppin' party, 9 times out of 10, she was spinning. One of my greatest social highlights is when my partner and I were able to book her for our Sunday dance party we used to throw pre pandy. 

Geena is a powerhouse, great personality, terrific ear, hip hop enthusiast, dope kick connoisseur and just straight up nice! So it was no surprise when I found out she was connected with WBL.

“This sound is dope, other people need to hear this, and I was like, let's go!”

Alex: So, is it safe to assume you’re a DMV native? You would think I'd know that information…hehehe. Did you attend any other music programs growing up? 

Geena: I was born and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland. In elementary school, I took band. After that, I didn’t take any other music classes or programs but, music continued to interest me. 

Alex: That's cool, so who was your DJ instructor at WBL? Did you feel like you were getting quality 1-on-1 time? 

Geena: I was instructed by RBI while taking classes with WBL. The 1 on 1 time and small class sizes were so beneficial to my DJ education. There was never more than 2 or 3 other people in the class with me. 

Alex: And did you make any life long friends there or…? What were some of the most valuable lessons you learned during your time as an academy student? 

Geena: Yah, definitely, I still got some WBL homies. I would say the most valuable thing I picked up was learning vinyl. Being able to understand how to DJ with vinyl made DJing on other equipment easier. 

Alex: Would you ever consider coming back to teach today's youth your passion for DJing? 

Geena: Yep, I actually did teach some classes with WBL a few years ago. Most recently I taught some youth and did a few classes for the “Scratch Sip and Paint” events. 

Alex: I know you as a DJ who performs live, and you effing kill it always, does that come with the event host giving you a direction or is it just your innate ability to read the crowd? 

Geena: It depends on the gig. When I’m at bars and clubs, it’s about reading the crowd. When doing events, I do take direction from who is throwing the event or party. As a DJ, it’s important to recognize people are there to enjoy themselves. Hearing music that fits their taste will make the experience 

Alex: So like, do you have a secret trick on how to read a crowd or ‘the vibe? Or do you just stick with what you vibe with most? 

Geena: Ha! eh, I don’t know if it’s a secret trick, but I think understanding that I’m there to perform and not impose my personal taste is important. There are instances where I can play songs that people don’t know, but I have to find a balance or recognize that this party or event doesn’t call for that and let people enjoy popular songs. I really don’t take gigs where I’m put in a position to play music I don’t connect with, so that helps too. 

Alex: Is there any genre of music that scares you? Like anything you absolutely refuse to mix? Or are you like HECK it, CHALLENGE!

Geena: Nah, I wouldn’t refuse to mix anything, but there are crowds that I just know I’m not going to understand. By that I mean knowing what songs are popular, which ones are big hits, what to play at peak times, etc. I think I feel the most out of the loop with crowds that are heavy into reggae and trap music. I could definitely go and enjoy myself, but DJing those crowds would probably be difficult for me. 

Alex: What technique do you use to engage listeners? Was it something you learned at WBL or did you morph into your own style? Elaborate please. 

Geena: I think being myself and taking time to play music I love is what has drawn people to me. I like a lot of music and listen to a lot, so my interest span from radio hits to indie music. The main thing I learned from WBL is technique and understanding the equipment. I also got taught a lot about hip-hop and DJ culture. It plays a role. 

Alex: Who are your idols? Who’s sound did you first emulate or who made it clear for you that this is what you want to do? 

Geena: J.Rocc was the first DJ that I really looked up to. I also was [and still am] a big fan of Jahsonic. I used to cop his “Taster’s Choice” CDs and listen to all his mixes. He has a lot of music knowledge and can play almost any genre and it reminded me of my music taste. When I came back home [from LA] and started hitting up Monday’s at Marvin, Jah was doing a lot of what I liked with J.Rocc but I actually got to experience it live. I mean, Jah’s party at Marvin ended up introducing me to a venue and people that I became close to. 

Geena: Words Beats and Life is a great program and important to our city. There aren't very many organizations who provide such quality classes for the little guys FOR FREE! 

“Build community. Being a solo DJ can get you places, but it’s good to find someone or a group of people you connect with musically to make sh*t shake.”