Jihad Muhammad
In the last five years, this reigning "prince" of the underground dance music scene, DJ JIHAD MUHAMMAD has captured the souls of the populace. He has secured a loyal following of energetic house music heads and soulful "garage" purists who march to the beat of his drum. A Newark, NJ native, his "ear" for music developed listening to the latest hits his family members would bring home. "They used to play all the new cuts that were out at the time…Then , they showed me how to dance to them”. Everything from Gladys Knight, Minnie Ripperton, Brick, Jean Carn, Patti Labelle and The Jackson Five shared equal billing in Jihad’s household. Also, artists like Elton John, Crosby, Stills and Nash and the Police taught him that "good music is good music" irrespective of the racial makeup of the artist.
As a youth, Jihad would try to mimic the 98.7 KISS FM Mastermix edits made famous by then DJ Shep Pettibone. Starting with one turntable and a tape deck, he came up with his "own" special edits. "I had some of the same records, so I used to bite his mix to see if I could do". I did the same thing with Tony Humphries….that’s how I learned to mix records". Shep Pettibone & Tony Humphries had a huge impact on Jihad’s early turntable dexterity. Like all precocious club heads, he frequented the hottest underground clubs in NY & NJ, gaining a reputation as a dancer. This "rep" would later resurface musically as he, with minimal effort, and loads of creativity, maneuvered his programming to "move his audience… "Being a dancer I know what records had that dance floor energy". Taking what he learned from A list DJ’s such as Shep, Tony, Timmy Regisford , Merlin Bobb, Larry Levan and Tee Scott, Jihad landed his first professional gig at Club Mirage in Newark, NJ. Gaining popularity as a masterful DJ, Jihad was "in demand” and held down residencies at some of NJ’s popular venues: Club America (Newark, NJ), Peppermint Lounge (East Orange, NJ), Bogies (East Orange, NJ), Underground Dreams (Newark, NJ), The Spot (Newark, NJ), and a host of others.
News of this "turntable wizard" fell on the ears of a few NYC underground dance party promoters. Soon Jihad found himself guest spotting at The Sound Factory Bar (Manhattan), Club NV (Manhattan), Club Shelter (Manhattan), 667 (Brooklyn), Franks Lounge (Brooklyn) and the Tea Party (Brooklyn). He has also performed in Europe, spinning at Club Eastside in Avelino, Italy. By the late 1990’s, Jihad found a home at Irvington, NJ’s Club Eclipse. Injecting his brand of sleek underground jams and memorable classics on a novice crowd, he converted many R&B/Hip Hop heads to soulful dance music. From there, he established ClubMovement , a weekly soulful underground dance party at Metro Galaxy located on the edge of downtown Newark, NJ. "Our purpose is to revive the Jersey dance scene and keep the tradition of underground dance music alive".
Jihad made his way to NY radio via his relationship with Club Shelter, holding down two guest spots on 98.7 Kiss FM midnight mastermix shows. He also played on DJ Disciple’s radio show and New York University’s popular 89.5 FM Candy Store Show and Jeannie Hopper’s Liquid Sound Lounge 99.5 FM. Slowly making the transition from DJ to DJ/remixer, Jihad worked alongside Kevin Hedge of Blaze on the Black Masses "My Heavenly Stars" on Easy Street Records that featured his dub mix. He also did a dub mix on "Breaking Down" by The Ananda Project on King Street Records.
Currently Jihad has a record out called "Movement Blues" and he is expecting another release titled "Loungin" on Westend Records. He also has "NJ Groove" and "Oasis" on Iwanai Records out of Toronto, Canada. For the past 3 years, Jihad has toured Japan playing venues in Hiroshima, Fukuoka and Tokyo. Jihad is now one of the resident DJ's at 43rd St. Cafe located in Irvington, New Jersey. Through hard work, determination, faith and perseverance Jihad has earned a special place in the hearts of his peers and loyal fans. He has the technical prowess, programming, sense of timing and adaptability to move any audience. With the musical milestones, Jihad has achieved thus far, they are just the beginning of what is yet to come.
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