Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrew Owsley.
Hi andrew, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I bought my first turntables at age 21, I was more interested in learning to scratch than actually being a DJ. I eventually began doing DJ battles, and then finally got into being a DJ. And also got into making beats and production. In 2011 I released a mashup album called The Brothers of Chico Dusty, which was The Black Keys mashed up with Big Boi from Outkast. The album was supported by both Outkast, The Black Keys, and landed an article in Spin magazine. This began the process of me getting a booking agent and starting to tour and begin my professional career. I toured steadily for the next ten years or so. In 2023, I began a weekend residency in downtown Nashville. It gave me a much needed break from always being on the road, although I still do travel and play some out of town shows, its just that now I don’t have to completely rely on them for survival. If I feel like traveling I will, and if I don’t I’ll just go play my residency.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
For me, I didn’t really get a foot in the door until I was 31 years old. So for me one of the hardest things was just not giving before that. When I turned 30 I started to feel like “that guy” that just wouldn’t let it go. Once I was touring regularly, things were fairly smooth. There were you common pitfalls like partying too much, not taking care of yourself, always being out of town, etc… But even with all of that I think I did a pretty good job of keeping myself under control.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My stage name is Wick-it the Instigator.
I’m a Hip Hop/Electronic DJ and producer. One thing I specialize in is mashups and remixes, which are probably what most people know of my work. I’m very proud of the fact I was able to quit my day job at age 31, and now at age 46 I’m still fully supporting myself via my music career. I think what sets me apart from others is I combine a lot of different musical aspects together, and I think I strike a good balance between old school and new school. I started off spinning strictly vinyl, I know how to scratch/juggle and do the turntablist thing. I grew up listening to lots of classic rock and hip hop, which gave me a lot of inspiration for mashups and remixes. Sometimes I’ll pull an electric guitar out in the middle of a set and rock a solo. Over the years I’ve also made some more EDM style bass heavy productions, and I also have a beat tape series called Wick-itstrumentals that is more of sample based, traditional hip hop feel.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
As a matter of fact, Terminal West was my favorite venue for many years. I sold the venue out several times, and it was the magical place where I always sold substantially more tickets than I did anywhere else. And I think a big part of that was just how awesome that venue is, and how awesome Atlanta is.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/djwickit
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/djwickit
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/djwickit
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/wick-it
- Other: https://wickit.bandcamp.com
