DJ Mars is one of the most respected deejays in the game. Hailing from Springfield, Massachusetts, Mars made a name for himself as a deejay when he moved to Atlanta to attend Clark Atlanta University. Born Marshall Thomas, Mars knows a thing or two about getting people moving. He’s been the go-to DJ for big R&B acts in Atlanta for nearly 30 years.
Mars was the DJ for the “Because We Met” event, and spoke with rolling out about the event and how HBCUs have impacted his career.
How did you get involved with the “Because We Met” event?
Munson [Steed] has been literally supporting me from day one. He’s a good brother. Whenever he needs me, he gives me a call and we make it happen. I’ve been interviewed about being a DJ and a dad at the same time, and anytime there’s a Father’s Day [event], he gives me a call, so it was natural for him to give me a shout-out for this, especially since it was related to Clark Atlanta and HBCUs. CAU is my alma mater, so it just made sense.
How have HBCUs impacted your career?
It was important for me to go to one because at the time I came to Clark Atlanta, Black nationalism was prevalent in music. You had Public Enemy, Spike Lee, and KRS-One, so to connect the dots education-wise and musically, that’s what we were born through. I feel like there needs to be a resurgence of that in today’s music. Culture, commerce, and education are all relative to each other, and some of those pieces are missing from what’s going on in today’s society at the moment.
How did you plan out your set for this event?
I don’t; I just read the room. What I do is in the beginning, I play an esoteric record, which is something that people don’t normally hear at an event, and I watch and I look for a fly girl and her crew to react. If I see them react, I know I can go that way later on down the line, so I look for those pockets of people and tap them with a song. Nintry-nine percent of what I do is focused on women. If I can get those groups of women, if I can talk to them musically, then I know I can go. I know how to play the general stuff.
How have DJs been influential in 50 years of hip-hop?
Hip-hop wouldn’t exist without the DJ. The so-called Godfather of hip-hop was a DJ, he wasn’t even a rapper, and it was DJ Kool [Herc] — because he threw a party at his community room in the Bronx. There wouldn’t be hip-hop, period, if it wasn’t for the DJ. We’re celebrating what a DJ did. He didn’t necessarily start hip-hop culture because it has several different elements. He was just the one that they gave the title to, but it was because of him, and he’s a DJ.
