Oh, boy, it’s DJ George!

Amid the torrid heat of summer last week were the hottest parties ever mounted in Metro Manila. CircuitAsia organized the first world-class circuit party in Manila which, although touted as gay, was well-attended by Philippine and international party animals of all sexual persuasions. The series of sizzling dance parties were presided over by two of the most in-demand DJs from the US — DJ Kimberly Spalding and DJ Brett Henrichsen

Amiable and blonde Kimberly is known as the diva of dance music and enjoys an incredible following in the clubbing circuits of America. Her kick-ass spinning and beautiful hair garnered her the enviable role as the celebrity spokesmodel of the world-renowned Paul Mitchell Systems hair-care line. A genuine love of music led her to deejaying, and now she spends her time flying around the world from party to party making people dance ecstatically with her gift of music

Buff and good-looking, DJ Brett Henrichsen used to be an IBM marketing specialist. His intense love of dance music prompted him to leave the corporate jungle to start his own recording label, Trax Recording. His Masterbeat series became party anthems, and his high-energy and progressive mixes catapulted him to the summit of DJ fame. His sexy presence has since electrified Ibiza, the dance capital of the world, and other top dance playgrounds in Europe and America

The New Superstars

In a world that is constantly looking for new superstars and idols, the hottest to arrive on the scene are the DJs. First there were the film stars, then the recording stars, then the TV stars, then the sports stars, then the supermodels, the boy bands, and then the VJs or videojocks. Today, enter the DJs. The "in"-est thing nowadays is to be a DJ (in fact, to many young people, the letters "DJ" before a name are almost as potent as "Dr." before a doctor’s!) and all of a sudden, there are many, many DJs

I didn’t understand this whole phenomenon, and being a musician, I wanted to know the rationale behind it. When the disco (yes, the Gloria Gaynor-Bee Gees disco that we knew) died a natural death, the social landscape was taken over by the café scene. Discos closed and cafés sprouted on every other block. But the need to express oneself through music and dance could not be curtailed and a new movement was born.

Although similar in many ways to the disco but with higher-tech lights, lasers, fog machines, multi-media projections, and production numbers, today’s dance events feature new music that was born out of "interactive" technology borrowed from computers. DJs can now eliminate music from vocals, lay them over new rhythm tracks, build in new chord progressions, mix rhythms, and add sound effects and other enhancements. New music terms and categories have sprung – world music (ethnic/tribal), house, trance, chill out, etc.

Today, the DJ is the god of the dance arena and he gets as much idolatry and reverence. He programs the selections, mixes, edits and enhances them, and takes people on a dance journey for hours (sometimes, long marathons). The pace, buildup, slowdown, heat up again, and the instantaneous response from the crowd determine the popularity of the DJ. If you don’t understand anything thus far, just think of it all as a thriving, new youth culture

Chanson Chameleon

Topping the list of international DJs to spin their music sorcery in Manila last weekend was DJ Boy George. Tito Manapat’s DJ Awards and UK promoter Koolwaters brought in the gender-bending lead singer of the popular ‘80s British group, Culture Club. Yes, the very same Boy George whose androgynous persona (heavy makeup and colorful, outrageous costumes) turned him into an icon of face-painting years before sports superstars David Beckham and Dennis Rodman even bought their first eyebrow pencils!

A few pounds heavier but still with the same mesmerizing blue eyes (cornered with long eye-shadow under a dramatically drawn eyebrow arch) and red, porcelain doll-like lips, DJ Boy George (or George O’Dowd, as he prefers to be known) had his Manila audience like marionettes tied to his fingers the moment he stepped onstage. He spun powerful and hypnotic rhythms from three o’clock in the morning till early dawn to an enthusiastic crowd at the pulsating NBC Tent

Obviously, Boy George was also bitten by the DJ bug. Like a chameleon, he morphed from a lead singer into a DJ. For him, singing and deejaying are similar – they are both a performance aimed at making people have a good time

When I asked him about the transition, he answered in his cool, inimitable voice, "I enjoy it and I’m good at it!" As I found out later, "good at it" was an understatement

What’s Up, George?

Contrary to what most people think, Boy George didn’t step out of the limelight after Culture Club disbanded. He released several albums in the US and some exclusively in Europe. He wrote Taboo, the musical which was a West End hit but unfortunately closed after a month on Broadway. His image was used by Eurostar France on campaign posters around Paris, TV ads, and leaflets

Last year, he launched his own clothing line called "B-Rude" in New York where he now resides. He describes it as "confrontational, unapologetic, punk, and sexy." This year, he released an autobiographical book entitled Straight (with an accompanying CD), and is now into professional photography, taking shots of his clothing line and of other singers and celebrities

His fan club, BoyFansCanHelp, auctioned off his memorabilia on E-bay, the proceeds of which went to tsunami victims in Southeast Asia. If you think deejaying is not serious work, just check out DJ Boy George’s schedule after Manila. Traveling with his agent Andria Law of Red Parrot Agency in London, he’ll be deejaying in Singapore, Seoul, Taipei, Jakarta, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, and Tokyo, staying one or two days at most in each place

Artistry And Charisma

There’s something truly magical about DJ Boy George’s spinning. He has a style that sets him apart and his artistry shines through – you can feel the raw power of his music driving your heels to move, urging your body to dance. To top it all, there is something seductive about that tall hat, the makeup, the persona, the charisma

Philippine disco icon Louie Ysmael couldn’t help but sway to the pulsating rhythm. Brothers Atom and Danby Henares with their dates danced like teenagers. Cosmopolitan Philippines’ Myrza Sison complained, "What? Boy George right here, and no ‘War is stupid’?"

We indeed hope someone will bring back Boy George to Manila to sing Culture Club’s golden hits like Karma Chameleon, Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?, It’s a Miracle, Miss Me Blind, The War Song, and Mistake No.3. Now, won’t that be a blast?

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Thanks to Juliet Tan, Rita Sanson, and Mimi Tan for arranging our one-on-one meeting with Boy George. Also to Magic 89.9, Amiel Cabanlig, and Mojo Jojo for the circuit pass, and to Jeff of Project Publicity NY and Shenka Mangahas of CircuitAsia, for introducing us to DJ Brett Henrichsen.