DJ Chachi

DJ Chachi New York-based DJ Chachi recently sent out a message on Facebook offering fans a free gift bag with CDs, t-shirts and assorted other merchandise. He prepared 12 bags; a few extra than he thought he needed just to be on the safe side. Within 24 hours, over 300 people from across the country flooded his inbox with requests. “Years ago, I didn’t realize this deejaying thing had legs and I had no idea how far the rabbit hole would go,” says the 26-year-old deejay. “Back then, success was just trying not to get screwed out of money. Now that things are going well, I don’t take it for granted. I don’t expect people to know who I am.” Too late. What started over a decade ago at small private parties in Long Island is now a full-time job, as Chachi continues to establish himself as one of the country’s most formidable deejays. Utilizing a diverse, open-format approach to music, Chachi now holds court at some of the country’s most popular clubs, as well as providing the aural memories to countless celebrities’ birthdays (that was Chachi you heard if you were fortunate enough to get into Britney Spears’ bash at Tenjune). In a short period of time, DJ Chachi has become as famous as the celebrities that rock out to him. When he was 13, a young DJ Chachi would accompany his older cousin, a deejay himself, to various parties and watch in awe and amazement as primitive equipment gave rise to joyful exuberance. “I used to carry my cousin’s records for him to the gigs,” recalls the 26-year-old. “The setup was as bootleg as you could get. There was no fancy lighting or equipment, but it was raw. It was just people having fun and dancing to music they love.”