Sam Ronson is one of the most celebrated DJs in the world. She comes from music royalty. Her father, Laurence, was a record executive; her brother, Mark, is an acclaimed producer (Amy Winehouse, Rufus Wainwright) and musician; her step-father Mick Jones was Foreigner’s founder and lead guitarist. Tuesday night, Easy Reader’s Mark McDermott caught up with Ronson at Twelve + Highland in Manhattan Beach, where she is making a rare set of small club appearances continuing next Tuesday night to kick off festivities for the Six Man Volleyball tournament. Ronson, who does little press, started with one question and one stipulation. “Is that a breathalyzer as well?” she asked, pointing to the recorder. She then instructed, “Think of the most ludicrous questions.”
What is deejaying?
Disc jockeying.
What is disc jockeying?
It’s playing music without a horse….It’s just playing music in the hopes of entertaining the people who are listening.
What determines a set?
I generally try to do it on the fly. I like to just see the room, generally….I just catch a vibe off what is working and what is not.
So you don’t enter into it with a game plan?
I don’t play for me, I play for the room. My job is to entertain people. It’s not to entertain me – that is what the iPod in my car is for. I do Atlantic City once a month, and I know that it’s going to be hits – but at the same time I can kind of pick between genres and decades and whatnot. If people aren’t having a good time, it’s no fun for me. I am not trying to educate people. I am just trying to make people enjoy themselves and get drunk and have a good time.
What you are talking about is beginner’s mind – you want to go into every gig with beginner’s mind, right?
You want to go in clean. You don’t want to prejudge.
You are not afraid of what would be regarded as cheesy rock n’ roll, either.
People ask, “What is your guilty pleasure?” I am like, “I have no guilt about my favorite songs.” I am not guilty. I will listen to bad pop songs all day and not be embarrassed that it is number one on the charts. I like “Call Me Maybe.” I don’t care…Like “I Want You Back” by The Jackson Five – I know it’s idiot proof…I’d rather everyone had a good time then were just like, “Oh cool, I learned something tonight.” I am not a teacher.
When do you consider that it has worked?
Reaction. You can tell if something is working. There are people having a good time; you can tell by the smiles.
I’ve never known Twelve + Highland as a music place. But Joe Firstman came here last week, and he had some the guys from his Atlantic Records days, kind of jazzier guys, and they got into a groove. All of sudden there were people in thousand dollar dresses dancing like weirdos up front.
That’s when you know it’s working. It should be universal. If you can get those people and the people that know about music enjoying themselves at the same time – it’s that mix that is incredible. It’s tough to get the pop people in their $1,000 shoes and the “muso” folks. And sometimes you have to sacrifice the “muso” folks for the ones in the thousand dollar shoes because they are the ones paying your fee at the end of the night. But I try to keep a steady balance; I only play songs I like. I’ve put in 15 years of work, I think I’ve earned it.
Creating moments: that is what you are talking about ultimately, right?
When all the stars line up and you have an epic night that you never really thought would happen. I’ve had some epic nights when I was watching the room and was like, “This is going to be such a bummer.” And then within like half an hour, “This is awesome.” It’s whether or not you want to put the work in. It’s whether or not you want to try. And I’m a people pleaser, so I’ll inevitably sit there and be like, ‘That guy over there is not having a good time.’ There are nights when I am like, “The security guy is not smiling. What can I do to solve that and still keep the rest of the room having a good time?” It’s the middle child syndrome.
How many kids?
175. There is a bazillion of us. There are ten of us…You’ve got to fight to get heard.
You are not self-absorbed.
Furthest from it: I’m all about everybody else. Thank god.
You always know an only child when you meet them, right?
An only child or a lead singer.
Sam Ronson deejays Twelve + Highland next Tuesday at 10:30 p.m.
