Some men dream of women. Some dream of fame. While some dream of sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll, indulging nocturnal visions of the never-ending party, there are those who slumber over the hope for love, family, and a house with a view.
DJ Dik stared into the ocean while dreaming of all those things wrapped up together, into one house, where he is purveyor of the party, master of music and mirth, painter of visions come true. Enter the DJ – spinning records like a Bruce Lee roundhouse kick exploding fantastic colors across your face, breathing atmosphere into his house of music. Enter SOL Sundays at Ocean Bar in Hermosa Beach, the most recent stop on DJ Dik’s midnight express through dreamland.
In The Beginning
Richard Podgurski, aka DJ Dik, truly has followed his dreams. The 2002 Redondo Union High School graduate discovered turntables and DJ-ing during his junior year, which would later lead him to drop out of his studies in sociology at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
“I left the island to finish school and pursue my DJ goals…I wanted to be fully committed,” says Dik. “I’ve always wanted to run my own business, since I was an 8-year-old kid washing my neighbors’ cars to buy turtles for my backyard. So college wasn’t really my thing.”
Of course, not all careers are found in a text book. A job is a job, a career is a life. Hopefully a job doesn’t become a life, and the choicest careers are based in passion. Dik began to realize that.
“My very, very, very first ‘gig’ was at a friend’s birthday party, junior year of high school. His dad tipped us both 50 bucks and I quickly realized I could get paid devoting my life to making people dance and smile!”
“My first paid club gig was at Sangria in Hermosa Beach when I was 17 and was snuck through the back door to open for my mentor [Jason Pursley]. Some older friends and neighbors happened to catch my set and told me I had huge potential and should stick with it. On my walk home from the beach the next day I walked into Dano’s, which is The Shore now, and convinced the GM to pay me to play the next month’s Saturdays, only based on the fact that I had experience playing at Sangria. The next four Saturdays while I DJ’d, my parents came out to support me like it was one of my high school volleyball games… From there on out I’ve been hustling for gigs and never looked back.”
Dik’s yearning to get a room bumping and spinning followed him to the island.
“I had my turntables shipped out there so I could make some scratch on the side,” he recalled. “I scored a residency at a bar-club in downtown Waikiki, and gained popularity playing some of the biggest parties the campus housing could handle… It later led to a dorm/housing trespass ban, where I couldn’t even step foot on housing grounds or I could get arrested. I saved the legal documentation as a sentimental trophy of excellence. I lived on the island for another year, and it constantly felt like I had no future working so hard on a pebble in the middle of the ocean.”
From a Flower to a Garden to an Ocean Bar
Dik felt perfectly confident returning to the mainland, even if the decision to leave school seemed to stray from the precedent of his successful parents and a studious older sister well on her way through USC law school. He applied hard work and a hungry energy to the task and began to see the doors of his dream theatre creak open.
“My first big time legitimate show, where I was featured as the headliner DJ, was Halloween 2006 with Tomorrows Bad Seeds, produced by Jani Lange of A.M.I. Productions,” he said. It put me on the map in the South Bay as an established DJ. If it wasn’t for Jani believing in me, I don’t think I would be where I’m at today. Now, ‘Ghouls Night Out’ is the longest-running and most established Halloween tradition for South Bay locals.”
“DJ-ing went from being a side-gig and dream to a full blown professional career during the summer of 2007. At one point I had gigs every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night while I was also working 8 hour shifts every Saturday and Sunday day – running the floor and managing bottle service tables at Dragon on the Hermosa Pier. I was the resident DJ at Dragon, as well.”
“During my 2 year stint at Dragon, they were throwing huge day parties with nationally recognized headliner DJ’s. Without even realizing it, I was being heavily influenced by these amazing veteran DJ’s. I took advantage of being surrounded by all these club industry insiders and began networking and learning about the DJ world and how the business is ran from all angles.
“In June of 2007, I quit my very lucrative and fun job at Dragon and decided not to return to school in the fall… From that point forward I was 100 percent focused on reaching the top of the DJ food chain and began booking as many gigs as people were willing to pay me to do. My career has been expanding faster and faster ever since.”
DJ Dik has since established himself nationally as an in-demand, successful DJ. He has played events in San Diego, San Francisco, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Portland, Honolulu, and throughout LA, Hollywood, and Orange County. He’s done a gig at Johnny Knoxville’s house in the Hollywood Hills, a Jimmy Choo pre-Oscar event, a top-rated club in Denver called Beta that was once named the number one dance club in the U.S., various fashion shows, and numerous destination weddings in places like Hawaii. He’s also secured corporate clients such as Herbalife, Red Bull, and Gensler.
Dik’s parents gradually began to understand how a DJ career could be just as lucrative as other jobs, once they noticed his trips to the airport almost every week.
Dik has also been busy in the South Bay. He recently had the honor of playing the grand opening of the new Sharkeez location in Manhattan Beach, and his primary local residence is at Ocean Bar in Hermosa Beach.
“Aside from playing almost 200 gigs a year myself, I’ve decided to take on the role as Ocean Bar’s entertainment director,” Dik said. “I’m booking and managing all the DJ’s and acoustic talent that perform Thursday through Sunday.”
After a year at the helm, Dik estimates the club has increased its numbers by 100 percent.
“Given my club experience and local knowledge, I was consulted heavily to transform Ocean Bar into the monster it is today… new lights, new speakers, new DJ booths, new talent, new decor, new marketing campaigns and execution… basically overhauled their existing format into my vision of the perfect Hermosa establishment – from a born and raised local’s perspective.”
Contributing considerably to the success of Ocean Bar’s rooftop venue has been Dik’s knowledge of the industry and foresight to book the best DJ’s Southern California has to offer, as well as some nationally recognized acts. He has booked such notables as the EC Twins, Scooter and Lavelle, Charles Feelgood, Scotty Boy, and local contemporary DJ Quasar (Maurice Smith).
“I also love being able to give back and help out local talent and DJs I grew up with,” he said. “I know the feeling of scoring a super fun, well-paying gig like Ocean Bar, but now I know the feeling of what it’s like to help fellow DJs further their own careers and pursue their own dreams by booking them at our venue.”
Dik employs 8 to 11 DJs per weekend, and like all good captains, coaches, or directors, gets his hands dirty and DJ’s there himself every other Friday.
“Ever since I upgraded Ocean Bar with an 8000 watt QSC sound system, all new lighting, and a new DJ booth, it’s my new favorite place to play in the South Bay. It’s also my favorite place to stage dive! Even my mom crowd surfed one night, and I have the grainy video to prove it. She supports my very unusual job 100 percent, and I love her for that.”
A new summer staple has also blossomed from Dik’s direction. With the creation of SOL Sundays, he helped create yet another sub-environment to the already successful club atmosphere billowing from the sun-drenched walls of Ocean Bar.
“Sunday days have always been a very popular time to go out and have a good time in Hermosa’s downtown area, but there was no specific event for daytime party-goers,” Dik said. “Also, no other bar has amazing ocean views and a considerable amount of square footage of outside seating…The DJ booth is moved out to the patio so people can rage in the sun with that sweet ocean view. I love staring at the ocean, I love being in the sun, and I love great music; so I figured let’s combine all three and hire some of the best house DJs in the country to do just that.”
Dik’s vision of SOL Sundays has become a summer smash hit, with tables sold out almost every week and long lines to get in. He credits club owner Jed Sanford and the whole management team and staff for taking the leap – Dik is famous for his stage dives – and helping transform his dream into reality.
“I couldn’t be any more thankful for the position I’m in at the moment, but it took ten years and a lot of hard work, so it’s something I always knew would happen if I just stuck with it and stayed focused.”
The DJ’s role
The DJ is a magician. A mentor, a guru, a guide. An illuminator. Conduit to universal language. He or she is a procurer of sound and feeling, experience and memory. A musical archaeologist. An electronic jester in the court of universal angels. The DJ understands.
DJ Dik lays it out for the live performance DJ.
“The music I listen to and enjoy on my free time is about as far away from a club banger or pop song as you can get,” he said. “I’ve never been to a rave. I don’t trip out on pills. I’d rather sit on the beach than go to Vegas for a few nights. The club life is just not what I grew up loving. I grew up loving the idea of entertaining an entire room of people with the type of music that’s just right for the moment.”
“One of the hardest gigs of my entire life was to DJ an after funeral life celebration party alongside Tomorrow’s Bad Seeds, to honor a local woman’s death. I had no clue what type of music 250 of her closest friends and family enjoyed, but everybody had a great time and when the lights came on there were people hugging and crying all over the dance floor. Makes me a firm believer there is a song for every moment.”
No moment is the same, no two sets are the same.
DJ Dik oversees weekend entertainment at the Ocean Bar in Hermosa Beach Thurs-Sun, while typically DJ-ing every other Friday night. He’ll be playing the D-Man Festival at Redondo’s Seaside Lagoon this Saturday and will also be personally DJ-ing SOL Sundays on Sept 11. For info or booking, contact DIK@DJDIK.com.
