It was a dreary Friday night. Relentless humidity and abysmal gray clouds hung over the city creating a picturesque environment for a DJ competition. All jokes aside, you would never have known the weather was poor based on the energy of both the performers and the crowd.
Jessie De La Pena emceed the event, keeping the audience engaged as each DJ boasted their impressive skills. His witty humor and happy-go-lucky attitude made it easy to loosen up a bit and get behind the performers. The mixes just got better throughout the night as well. Impressive transitions, creative uses of samples, and smart homages to the Chicago house music scene were on full display and it was hard not to just sit there in awe of how these DJs had truly mastered their craft.
Watching each set was an engrossing experience, but the competition aspect of it made it an even more fulfilling experience. Tensions were high as they announced the winner. Everybody put on an amazing show, but DJ Step finished as the winner of the competition. His innate ability to switch feels and timbres really separated him from the rest of the crowd. The runner-up, DJ Archi, also had people dancing with his propensity towards dance-floor soul music. Overall, it was a hard toss up between the two, but no wrong decision could be made.
On top of the various musical performances throughout the night, artwork, informational booths, and food were prominently displayed during Friday night’s Logan Square roundabout. There was plenty to enjoy all-around even if you somehow couldn’t get behind the grooves being displayed at the stage.
Griffin Boyle
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