As summer crossfades into fall, we wanted take a moment to think about the history of this site and the very early stories that got it all started. Take a moment to step into the ten-years-ago wayback machine and celebrate a decade of DJ Techtools!
Ean’s Column in Remix Magazine
Before DJ Techtools got its start, it had a genesis in print publication. In 2006, Ean wrote a monthly column for the then-popular publication, Remix magazine – “a monthly magazine for DJs, audio engineers, record producers, and performers of electronic and hip-hop music.” (Wikipedia) Ean had been performing with digital gear since 2002 and Remix gave him a platform to begin sharing that knowledge with the world.
In 2006, Ean wanted to reach more people with the knowledge he shared. As he tells it, he somewhat famously went to the magazine’s editors at that time, telling them: “We should start a blog!” The corporate response was, “the attorneys are worried about comments, and the web people don’t know how to integrate it into our site. You should make one on your own.” So he did exactly that, cross-publishing drafts of some of his columns in Remix through a brand new WordPress blog. The site didn’t gain much traction until Ean started publishing a unique style of content including DIY, controllers, and performances that caught on like wildfire. Within just 3 years DJ Techtools was reaching hundreds of thousands of people, and Remix magazine was out of business due to a declining publishing industry.
A Very Basic Blog
In 2007 DJ Techtools first started to take on shape as its own site with a unique voice and focus. The first original articles were largely about Ean’s VCI-100 arcade edition modification that captured the imagination of gamers and DJs alike. Check out the simple blogroll style design in December of that year (you can check out the full thing on the Wayback Machine if you prefer):
When Is DJTT’s Real Birthday?
Ean shared the story of the first real piece that kickstarted DJ Techtools in 2007 with me this morning:
“The blog was not getting a ton of traction until I posted this video on the site of me playing a controllerism-style routine on my modified VCI-100 arcade. It was shared by Engadget and Gizmodo, and gamers started to see how DJing could be like gaming. That was when the blog really started to gain traction. We gained an early following of smart, DIY-minded folks who saw that DJ gear could be fun, accessible, and unique. That philosophy has stayed true through today!” – Ean Golden
The video that Ean’s referring to was published on September 24th, 2007 – so as of last week, we’re officially ten years old. Check out the original video – complete with peak throwback Ean Golden hair – below:
Read the original article here.
We’ve been publishing multiple articles on DJTT every single week since that first article – and at nearly 2,500 posts, it feels great to have done so much in ten years. Looking forward to sharing many more with you all in the future. To learn more about how we got our start, watch this mini-doc we did a few years back on the history of DJ Techtools:
