After graduating from Morehouse College with a degree in business administration, the economic downturn ultimately caused J1 to re-evaluate his career path, but he insists that it is his “strong spiritual relationship with God” that he owes his success to. –christian johnson
When did you decide that you wanted to be a DJ?
Music has always been my passion; I grew up in Harlem so I was around people like DJ Clue and a lot of the other New York DJs. I grew up listening to Hot 97. I couldn’t rap but a lot of my friends could, so I figured they would need a DJ.
What was the first major celebrity party that you worked?
It was in 2006, when T.I was doing a party at Fox Sports Grill. That was the week he dropped his album and his movie [ATL] was coming out.
How did you break into the radio industry?
Rashan Ali heard me spin, then she told Emperor Searcy about me. He gave me my first shot on radio, doing the mix show during Mega Mix weekend. I did good on that, then I hooked up with the assistant program director, Bill Black. He put me on at the beginning of 2008 and I’ve been doing radio ever since.
How do you plan to capitalize on your opportunities in 2010?
I want to help keep Atlanta hot; I just became mix show coordinator at Hot 107.9 and that was a blessing. I just want to build and maintain relationships with the local labels and artist. I work with developing independent artists and I’m looking for that next wave or generation of hot Atlanta artists.
