afrodjiak

Before women in hip-hop was big business there was J. Josey El, known throughout the hip-hop community as “afroDJiak”. AfroDJiak is a prolific deejay, whose performances bridge the gap between hip-hop elitists and soul aficionados.

Born in Richmond, and raised in the DC metropolitan, she finds inspiration in musicianship from Outkast and Chuck Brown to MC Lyte and De La Sol (and so much in between). Circa 2003, afroDJiak, who prefers to abandon the “DJ” prefix, relocated to Philadelphia after realizing her ongoing affection for music wasn't merely a hobby. She began deejaying soon after, convincing peers there was no such thing as a male or female “career”.

AfroDJiak’s conspicuous mixes, combined with her innate charisma allow her to command a spellbinding presence over a dance floor ultimately assisting her in becoming one of Philadelphia’s most sought after female deejays and simultaneously creating a career as a dynamic performer whose talents proliferate various media entities.

However, grateful for such opportunities, the works that more closely define afroDJiak’s personal vision are those where she uses her craft to uplift the masses. Because of her intense love for youth, she began two programs for youth apprenticeship – Young People in Turntablism (YPIT) and Empowered Through Sound (ETS). Both program are designed to provide an alternative means of outlet and expression for young people through the introduction of the deejay and the history of hip-hop. The second program, ETS, promotes skills for healthy self-esteem and provides audio skill training to young women with interest in the music field.

When AfroDJiak is not engaged with her community, you can find her spinning somewhere in the Philadelphia area or surrounding cities. She regularly lends her sound to Savanah’s, a Philadelphia Soul Food establishment, every Friday night. She also founded a monthly event Philadelphia, Paper Thin. A night dedicated to women in hip hop where furthers her mission of empowering women by spinning music from local and national female artists, features female performers and exhibits artwork by female artists. AfroDJiak resides in Philadelphia where she runs the aforementioned community-based projects, a production company, The Sunshyne Group, and works to open a recording studio run by and for women in urban music.