Americans of Filipino heritage have long been a powerful cultural force in hip hop.This is especially true in the world of turntablism—that is the art of using two or more turntables and a crossfader to manipulate sound and create new music.
Respect of course to hip hop forefathers DJ Kool Herc, Afrikaa Bambaata, and Grandmaster Flash who first recognized the turntable as a musical instrument, but what they started in the Bronx eventually reached a group of Filipino American teenagers in San Francisco who turned it into an artform.
Invsibibl Skratch Piklz may not be a household name everywhere, but if you’re not familiar they’re like the 1995 Chicago Bulls of the DJ world. They were so good that they were asked to stop competing in the DMC World DJ Championships and the techniques they pioneered in the 90s still define turntablism.
In the late 90s Piklz member DJ Shortkut did a demo in San Antonio and someone named Michael Pendon was in the crowd. He says that Shortkut demo changed his life, because all he wanted to do after that was DJ…You may know Pendon now as DJ Jester the Filipino Fist.
DJ Jester’s parents were among the first 100 Filipino immigrants to land in Houston, TX and he recalls that his family were the only asians in the small town outside of Houston he grew up in. But his three older siblings were always into music, and through that love he eventually found a community in DJing and turntablism. Since then he’s toured with acts like MGMT and Kid Koala, nominated for Best DJ in the Austin Chronicle’s Austin Music Awards and a whole lot more, but instead of keeping you here all day listing off his many accomplishments, I recommend just witnessing his skills in person. . .and there’s a good oppurtunity to do it this Friday, May 17th at Rock the Park!
