Some might say that local DJ Donnie Lowe is new to the music game but in a short amount of time his notoriety has grown and he is playing some of the biggest clubs in the Miami and Ft. Lauderdale area. Lowe can be found at the Clevelander on Friday, March 28 during WMC for the Xima Records Showcase. He will be back at the Clevelander on Saturday, March 29th for the Saeed Younan & Friends party as well. Also, his current project called Lost Pieces, a partnership with Michael Gin, has been the talk of the local music scene…
Q) First off, I’d like to congratulate you on your success…You’ve only been DJing for 5 years and you’re already a resident at several popular night clubs. What is your recipe for success? What motivates you?
A) Thanks homie. Yep, only in it for 5 years, I believe Labor Day this year makes it six. (laughs). I only hold a residency at Gryphon Nightclub. Lately, I’ve been getting hit with the Space Resident tag but I’m not a resident DJ there. Honestly, I’m not really sure what my recipe is. I was always very straight forward with the people I work with and luckily they trusted me enough to give me the opportunity which opened up the residency door for me. I just try to go out every night and play good music and move crowds. I may get in trouble with my day job for my lack of motivation there but I’m not stressing it! I’m not one that likes to be stuck in an office behind a desk, I’ve never been built that way. Not a lot of people know but before I moved back to Florida in 2008 I was playing professional golf. So my biggest motivation with DJing is not only that I love music but I see it as a way to get me out from behind this desk and back into something where my heart truly lays and that all leads back to music!
Q) That’s definitely a motivating factor! Describe your sound for readers that haven’t heard of you?
A) (hmmm) This is a tough one. I don’t really know how to describe my sound at the moment. It really depends where I’m playing. Lately, it definitely has been leaning more towards the darker techno side of things but full of groove and vocals. I love vocals. My friends call me a vocal maniac because if it doesn’t have vocals I will definitely throw vocals on there. For the most part my sets consist of a bit of house, deep house and techno, and you can definitely hear my hip hop influence in every set I play.
Q) With so many DJs in Miami, how do you make yourself stand out?
A) I always try and push the limits in my sets and take a ton of risks. It’s starting to feel like everyone is hopping on to trends and playing the same sound everywhere. So, I try to play stuff that not everyone is playing. Hell as of late, I’ve been throwing in the original Blaze My Beat and Debbie Deb When I Hear Music. I really just try and see how far I can push the boundaries in a set and hopefully the crowds will be up for it. Also, I really enjoy kicking it on the dance floor, in the thick of things (laughs).
Q) I’ve heard! Recently, I read that you don’t consider “the stuff on the radio” dance music, can you explain?
A) I knew this was going to come back and haunt me. I really don’t. The stuff that’s on the radio is pop fluff, like this new trendy record Selfie. You know I may shoot myself in the foot here but I feel like a lot of these guys making this stuff just popped up recently and are hopping on the money train but it’s really the same cookie cutter formula for all the radio fluff. Big heavy synth line with a massive break down into some electro static noise. At the end of the day though they are making big bucks and sure they don’t care what anyone says, especially some local guy like myself. Artistically, I just couldn’t make it. It all sounds like pop music to me.
Q) Who are your influences?
A) I would definitely have to say Luciano, is my biggest influence in dance music. Oscar G is another one for me, I could watch him DJ for days. Danny Daze would be another because I love the risks that dude takes in his sets. Finally, one more Miami homie, Jesse Perez. I can’t get enough of that old Miami bass sound with the hip hop tinge in it.
Q) We are excited to catch you at The Clevelander, who are you excited to play with there?
A) I’m actually playing back to back gigs there on the 28th and 29th. I’m really looking forward to both parties but the Friday party is what I’m most excited for, which is the Xima Records party. Xima is like a family of artists for us and German Garcia and Patrick M do a great job of making everyone feel welcomed. So it’s really rare that we all get together for a day and jam, since we all have pretty hectic schedules. It’s also good because a good chunk of the people on the label don’t live in Miami so it will be a great chance to meet everyone face to face. Most of us talk on Facebook or Skype pretty regularly so we have relationships already but there’s nothing like hanging out face to face. Saturday will be great also for Saeed Younan and Friends, I’m just happy to be apart of that party for the 2nd year in a row. It’s always fun kicking it with Saeed!
Q) Now for a fun question… If you were deserted on an Island and could only play one record what would that be?
A) Man, this is a difficult question and I’m going with Tupac – I Ain’t Mad At Cha. I’m a hip hop kid at heart.
Q) Where can readers listen to you?
A) You can pretty much catch me out playing every weekend in Miami. These days I’m mostly at Space and monthly at Gryphon. As for other outlets you can find my productions on Soundcloud (at donnielowe) and mixes on mixcloud (at donnieloweofc).
