Will “DJ Thrill” Russell is a current sophomore here at Saint Joseph’s University from Toms River, NJ. Russell is a DJ for many campus events and is hoping to be a music producer in the future. Some of you may already know him because of his outgoing personality, but here is a closer look into his life here at SJU!
Photo by Shannon Pepe
Q: HOW DID YOU GET INTO DJ-ING?
A: “I was always the one in the middle of the dance circle. My sophomore year of high school after our homecoming dance, I asked my friend who was the DJ of the dance a few questions all about it. After that I did some research and that opened up my eyes to EDM. As my junior and senior years passed I worked on my skills.”
Q: WHO ARE YOUR BIGGEST MUSIC INFLUENCES?
A: “When I was a sophomore in highschool I was big into pop dance tracks. So Taio Cruz, David Guetta, Calvin Harris, those kind of guys. Once I discovered the EDM genre then came the big time producers. My number one is Hardwell, he’s a Dutch DJ. My number two is Martin Garrix and number three has to be Tiesto. There are so many more, too many to name.”
Q: CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE KIND OF MUSIC YOU CREATE?
A: “Well, I haven’t gotten to producing just yet, that’s a goal of mine. As for the music I DJ with, it depends what kind of gig I have. I try to play a mix, mostly the hop hits. In a public domain it the tracks have to be clean. For a college party I start off pop and then kick in progressive EDM house, things that get the people going.”
Photo by Shannon Pepe
Q: WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE PART ABOUT BEING A DJ?
A: My favorite thing has got to be just playing the music, hearing the crowd, and feeling the vibe. I try to play off the crowd. If the crowd is feeling it you’ll see me having a good time. I feed off the crowd’s vibe.”
Q: WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE GIG THAT YOU’VE HAD SO FAR?
A: “That’s a tough one. Its gotta be this year when I DJed the career development center carnival.”
Q: HOW HAS SAINT JOE’S HELPED YOU FURTHER YOUR PASSION OF MUSIC?
A: “St Joe’s has helped me be a better DJ marketing wise because I was given my own radio show here called ‘Coming To You Live’.”
Q: CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THE RADIO STATION AND YOUR SHOW?
A: “It’s a student-run radio station called ‘Radio 1851.’ Sadly, it’s not one that can be accessed on the radio, you have to go online or download the app to listen. I have my own show called ‘Coming to You Live.’ I choose about 16-17 tracks that I enjoyed listening to that week and I put them together into a little mix and try to get the weekend energy going.”
Photo by Shannon Pepe
“Call DJ Will if you want your next event to be a THRILL!” Here’s where you can find him: Website, Facebook, Mixcloud, Twitter
