Riff On This

Born in Brooklyn, New York, DJ Jay-R moved to Miami to attend Florida Atlantic University and study music. From there, another move was made.

The young music-lover was headed to Orlando. It’s here in Central Florida where he found his passion through deejaying.

“I tried it and I fell in love. And then I got inspired by a couple of bigger DJs like DJ Nasty and DJ Chino, and they took me under their wing and they showed me the ropes and it’s been history ever since,” Jay-R said.

Sure, anyone can play their favorite Pandora or Spotify playlist, but being a DJ requires more and it’s not as easy as it looks.

“So a lot of people think when they see a DJ, all they see is the headphones and this motion (mimics spinning a record), but there’s so much more to it,” Jay-R said.

There’s an art to being a good DJ. Spinning, mixing, and scratching aren’t skills someone picks up overnight.

“I spent hours just going back and forth on a record, just to like, see how I can make the sound sound different, how I can make people’s words match like people’s beats and whatnot,” Jay-R said.

After a lot of practice, studying his mentors, and playing at UCF events and plenty of frat parties, Jay-R has found himself DJing private celeb events like Tobias Harris’ wedding and even had the opportunity to spin inside the NBA bubble, a moment that is forever etched in his memory.

“I was equally as nervous because like, oh my goodness, I’m in the bubble,” Jay-R laughed.

His work has even taken him abroad touring with Fat Joe in Moscow, picking up some valuable performing knowledge from the hip-hop icon along the way.

“He’s like listen junior, he calls me junior,” said Jay-R, recalling the moment with Fat Joe. “He said once you play the record, you got to step back and see the crowd and enjoy yourself. And he was right. I took that with me that stood out with me from then until now. And I couldn’t be more thankful.”

Now a veteran DJ, Jay-R said when he first started out his biggest goal was to be on the radio. Over the summer that goal was met when he was added to the list of DJs playing for FLY 1031.

“I love it. That’s my dream,” Jay-R said.

The thing about radio, Jay-R tells me, is you never know who is listening.

“I’m thankful to have that opportunity to do that every day, for almost two hours, a lot of mixing, but I do it. I love to inspire people I love to share I love to, like you said play a record that maybe people haven’t heard in a while. Or it makes their kids dance in the backseat of their car,” the proud dad said.

“Or maybe it makes your grandma want to like get up and just do a little two-step that she used to do. That’s what really motivates me,” Jay-R said with a smile. “This is just the beginning.” You can hear DJ Jay-R play the 103 minute commercial free FLY Mix weeknights at 8 p.m. on Nights with Nailz.

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Orlando is known for some of the hottest boy bands such as Backstreet Boys, N’Sync, O-Town and more.

One of the newest boy bands to hit the sound waves is a group known as No Lonely Hearts. Members Brian, Dylan, Aidan, Alex, and Oliver are the heartbeat of this lively group.

Although this is an Orlando-based band, they came from all over the United States after a nationwide audition — working with the same team that worked with Backstreet Boys, N’Sync and Pink — in hopes of making it big in the music industry.

There are two guys from Florida. Oliver is from The City Beautiful and Brian is from Ft. Lauderdale. Dylan is from Texas, Alex came all the way from New Jersey and Aidan is from Pennsylvania. So what is it about these guys that make the group work?

“The genuine love they have for each other coming together as a boy band from an audition,” says Tony Wilkins Vice President of A&R/Management for KDS Platinum Records. “Being from different parts of the country, they have bonded well together. All they could do here in Orlando was practice.”

The group said living in the house together is actually a lot of fun, almost like living with brothers.

“We understand each other’s personal space on our days off, ”Dylan said. “We try to just chill, but then when it’s time to work, we get to work and you know, we’ve come to enjoy living with each other. Some of us cook some of us just have fun time, play music just always bond with each other”.

The group has released three singles this year while performing all over the United States at different venues. Their latest single “No Body (Else)” was just released on Halloween. The KDS Platinum Records band announced their release to their fans accompanied by the music video inspired by Michael Jackson’s 1983 hit Thriller video.

The group donned vampire attire while showcasing their choreography in a haunted castle. This single followed “Cruel Summer” and “A Little Bit Longer” released earlier this year.

The group said every day has been a new adventure for them. Touring and making memories along the way is just the beginning.

“I hope that every day is just something new, something I’ve never done before and just that we all come together and make great music,” Dylan said.

Hear more about each member and how they got into the world of music in the latest episode of Riff On This. Not only are their stories unique, but they have some wild fan encounters and they even sing a little something special for the host that you won’t want to miss!

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Vincente Belen is a saxophonist who took his love for playing and turned professional during the pandemic.

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Brad Yates was 8 years old when he was gifted a piano that began his love for music, and he was a teen when the Beatles took the music world by storm.

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Hairstylist, barber, bartender, former Orange County Sheriff’s Office employee, mom, you name it; female rap artist Lady J has done a lot in her life, but now her focus is on her music.

Originally starting in the ‘90s, the aspiring artist got to piggyback off the legendary Jam Pony Express, based out of Ft. Lauderdale. Performing at block parties called Mic Check, Lady J got to experience what the music industry was like first-hand. Artists MC Star & Disco AKA The City Boys took her under their wing to show her the ropes, but Lady J’s musical aspirations had to take a time out.

Lady J was a single mother of two. It wasn’t easy being the sole provider for her two children, so another career came calling.

The young mother took an administrative job with the Orange County Clerk of Court. It was stable, had government benefits, and she stayed there for six years. The career path with the county didn’t stop. Lady J was hired in 2000 by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and was there doing administrative work for 10 years.

Lady J’s ambition and creativity came in handy during those years. To make her children even more comfortable, she took on yet another job.

“I was a kitchen beautician,” said Lady J, giggling. “I would leave my nine-to-five and tend to my kids, then at night I had clients that would come to the house to get their hair done.” The determined mother was now bringing in two incomes, alone.

After 16 years with Orange County, suddenly Lady J found life taking her in a different direction. Her father had fallen ill, so she resigned. Her children were old enough to take care of themselves and she was stable enough to leave her job to care for her family that needed her.

“People can judge you know, what you went through in your life, so I decided to turn those experiences into something greater than just gossip,” Lady J said.

Years later and now a grandmother of six, the fierce multi-talented woman uses her life experiences to make the lyrics of her songs relatable. “I won’t write about things I haven’t experienced, so what you get is all me,” Lady J said. It was these experiences that helped create her first song, “Misunderstood,” that she recorded many years after her first experiences with Jam Pony Express.

Earlier this year, the female rapper got to open for rapper JT Money — known for his hit “Who Dat,” released in 1999 and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 — at a private birthday celebration for his close friend.

In August, Lady J found herself on stage yet again, this time performing with Miami bass and hip hop duo 69 Boyz. Her most recent performance was Labor Day weekend at the Lake Eola amphitheater for the Ouff Live Music Showcase, which was part of the Orlando Urban Film Festival.

Lady J said she’s often asked why she waited so late in life to get back into music. Her reply is simple.

“It’s my time, that’s all I can say is my time. Back then I probably wasn’t mature enough, like, but now I’m mature and that’s a blessing. I’m able to be obedient and what I’m called to do, right, back then I probably would have not been as focused, but now I am more stable in life,” Lady J said.

Of course, Lady J still loves being a hairstylist and barber. She still has her cosmetology license and a lengthy clientele list. When she’s not cutting hair or in the studio recording new tracks, the talented Glam-ma is behind the bar having a few laughs while tending with patrons of Red 13 cigar bar, adding even more life experiences to possibly inspire her next song.

When asked what words of advice or wisdom she would give to people who still dream of being a music artist, Lady J said being committed is a major step in the right direction.

“It’s going to be hard and there will be some bumpy roads along the way... Yes, it’s gonna hurt, but wipe the tears away. You got to find strength in it to keep moving,” said Lady J, encouragingly. “That’s what I do every day.”

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Growing up in New Jersey, Greg Cardino started playing in bands at a young age, but it was an invitation from another bandmate to come to Daytona Beach where this story begins.

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Growing up along West Africa's Ivory Coast, Joel De Souza was rooted in music at a young age.

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Samara sits down with her former college professor and "rock demi-god" Dr. Lou McNally to learn more about his many years in music and radio.

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What started as a hobby of listening to and mixing music in his apartment became more than just a career for Florida native Danny Garcia.

In 2009, at the age of 19, Garcia and his friends were throwing big house parties on Orlando’s east side by the University of Central Florida.

“A bartender had come to one of our parties, and he was like, ‘Man, you have a lot of people here. If you bring all these people from this house party to a club, you have the opportunity to make a lot of money,’” Garcia said.

The young deejay listened to his friend and got a gig in downtown Orlando. Garcia said he really started taking deejaying seriously when he got a job at the Dragon Room.

“A lot of the veteran DJs, they kind of taught me the ways and taught me how to really mix and perfect my craft,” Garcia said.

A few years later DJ Danny Garcia was working four to six nights a week in Orlando’s nightclub scene. It wasn’t a full-time job, so to make ends meet Garcia took a part-time job at a liquor store.

“I knew if I wanted to do a full-time gig, I would have to get into the private event world or wedding world,” Garcia said.

In 2016 he started to deejay weddings. It was a big change from the club scene, but Garcia loved it.

“I was able to blend the mixing I did in the club, but with the professionalism a wedding deejay had,” Garcia said.

After working several weddings Garica was finally able to become a full-time deejay.

Now, Garcia averages two to three weddings a week. He said during November’s wedding season, he can do as many as four to five weddings a week. Garcia didn’t stop the club scene completely. He still does a few nights to keep up to date with music.

Garcia also worked part-time at that liquor store for ten years and really had a passion for it. That experience ultimately opened up yet another door of opportunity.

“So about six years ago we started the project,” said Garica holding a bottle of vodka proudly. “Mitch Patel is the founder of P1 Vodka, the P comes from his last name and the number one comes from his Indian culture. See, when you give somebody something of monetary value they give $21, $51, $101, that extra one is to wish a prosperous future.”

Patel led the P1 team consisting of Garcia, Luis Medina, Chris Rodriguez, and Eric Medina. The non-GMO organic corn-based vodka is not only gluten-free but is made with water brought in from the Appalachian Mountains. You can read more about the ingredients and process in Patel’s interview with News 6 by clicking here.

“Our bottle is even black and gold because most of us went to UCF. I didn’t. But the rest of the guys did and they wanted to pay homage to the university,” Garcia said.

When asked what advice he would give anyone wanting to start their own business, Garcia said following your passion is the way to go.

“Being able to take both of my passions and bring it kind of together, it’s been a blessing. I’m grateful every day”.

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Back on Dec. 26, 1963, the Beatles had their first U.S. release of “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” and it skyrocketed to No. 1 on U.S. charts just 5 weeks later.

“I like, so many people, were inspired by the Beatles” said Jim Ownby who at the time was a teen with a passion for music. “I heard that song and started growing my hair.”

It even got him into a little trouble.

“My physical education coach made me wear a ponytail in the front of my head because my hair was too long”, Ownby said. “It didn’t bother me. In fact, I think it bothered him more than it bothered me.”

Ownby started his first band at 14 years old with some friends in Ft. Pierce with Ownby playing bass and singing. The band eventually got their first gig at a teen night at a club. It was their first time performing on a stage in front of an audience.

At the age of 15, the band found themselves on the road headed to Coconut Grove for an even bigger opportunity. The Hunn’s were going to open for John Sebastian’s band, before he founded Lovin’ Spoonful, in front of 2,000 people.

“I got a dose of the ‘real scared.’ You think it’s nothing until you go all out there and see all those people,” Ownby said.

It wasn’t performing with his band that made him nervous, though.

“My knees were wobbly and I thought I was going to fall introducing John Sebastian’s band to the crowd,” Ownby said with a chuckle.

From there Ownby went on to play in a few road bands — moving around from Daytona Beach to Orlando, playing Rock and Roll and Blues hits. It was then he found a new calling.

“My goal was to be a rock star, but that didn’t pan out”, Ownby said. “The reason I considered opening a music store was because I knew so many musicians in the local area that had to go to Orlando to buy anything at all almost, there were just no music stores locally.”

In 1974, Ownby opened Coastal Discount Music Store on the south end of Beach Street in Daytona Beach. He and his wife at the time ran the store during the day and Ownby would still play in bands at night. The store was the spot to go to for some guitar work and equipment rentals.

Spring Break was a big time in Daytona Beach in the 70s and early 80s. Every bar on Main Street had live bands performing and if they needed something Coastal Discount Music was there to provide it.

“Daytona Beach was a nucleus for music in the 70s and bands from all over the country would come to perform and would often come through the store since it was one of the only ones in the area,” Ownby said.

Meeting groups like Lynard Skynard, Molly Hatchet and the Allman Brothers when they would come in for little stuff here and there. Ownby even became friends with Neil Giraldo, an amazing guitarist who later married Pat Benatar.

One of Ownby’s fondest memories of playing music was the night Niel Geraldo and drummer Jeff Servera took him to go play bass in a jam session.

“We played for 45 minutes and Neil blew them away,” Ownby said. “Talk about feeding off the audience. People heard him from the beach and came off the beach to hear him play and he just took the house down. It was truly the highlight of my musical career.”

Coastal Discount Music moved to the west end of Main Street in Daytona Beach and thrived until 1981 when the disco era took a lot of live music out of clubs and bars and replaced it with vinyl.

Deejay groups were being booked more than bands and that’s when the necessity of Ownby’s music store became less relevant.

“I was really sad to see that change happen. Not just for my business, but the feeling you had walking down Main Street Daytona Beach just changed,” Ownby said. “The way someone feels when they hear live music and the interaction you get from the band and audience isn’t something you get as much when listening to recorded music. It’s good, but there’s nothing like the feeling live music gives you.”

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