DJ Cassanova
The father of Austin hip-hop, DJ Cassanova is an NYCer, and as a youngster he attended park jams thrown by Grandmaster Flash.“My cousins turned me on to DJing,” he recounts, “but they refused to teach me. So any chance I had, I’d sneak and use their equipment. By the time they caught me, I was as good as they were but much younger.
“My first gig was a DJ battle in our [high] school gym. Another DJ stepped to a friend of mine who was hosting the party. He was better than my friend and he knew it, so he tried to make my friend look bad with sharper cuts and scratches. No one knew me at the time because I was only a freshman who played low-key, but I went right ahead to commandeer the turntables and showed the challenger up.”
After college and a stint in the Air Force, Cassanova relocated to Austin in 1986.
“When I came to town, no one would let me get on, so I drove all the way back to New York, got my equipment, came back, threw a few free parties, and then it was on.”
In 1988, Cassanova and his partners in the Project Crew released a 12-inch of their own, which produced “Army Man,” Austin’s first local rap hit. In the 15 years since, Cass has spun it all, from concerts at Doris Miller Auditorium to being the house DJ at Catfish Station and figurehead of the KAZI production team. He’s recently expanded his résumé with regular weekend appearances on Hot 93.3.
Sure Shots
Ying Yang Twins, “Salt Shaker”R. Kelly, “Step in the Name of Love”
Twista, “Slow Jamz”
Personal Classics
Grandmaster Flash, “Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel”J.C. Lodge, “Telephone Love”
Eric B. & Rakim, “Eric B. Is President”
This article appears in February 6 • 2004.