The clubs are closed, but New York's DJ’s are still spinning tunes to keep the dancing going during the pandemic. From her apartment in Bedford Stuvesant, DJ Natasha Diggs has moved her popular weekly dance party Soul in the Horn online. In clubs, her audience usually was in the hundreds. Now, there are times when tens of thousands are following along online.
"People all over the world and we're going to be switching the times to different time zones," she told NY1.
DJ Rekha Malhotra, known for her Bahngra and Bollywood sets, spins from her apartment in Jackson Heights, Queens, every Sunday.
"My style is I feed off the energy. But people are writing in instantly as you're DJing so you're interacting in a more intense way and that really feeds me despite the distance people are still engaged,' she said.
Most DJ’s set up virtual tip jars, but it’s not enough to pay the bills. Operator EMZ, known for his vinyl collection and big outdoors dance parties is still recouping money he spent on equipment allowing him to stream music. He says many DJ’s do not want to charge admission, creating an opening for corporate sponsors to step in.
Mickela Mallozzi, who produces and hosts a PBS show about the global dance scene, has been joining in.
"People feel drawn to these events because they replicate that idea that I'm not alone I'm celebrating this music with other people that feel the same as me and that's what a dance scene is," says Mallozzi.
Kyle Zerna, a timpanist for the NY Philharmonic, hits the turntables as DJ DR SWEERS, and says this is a good alternative since we can't do in person dance parties. An alternative giving music fans an opportunity to come together, move to the beat, and shatter the monotony of social distancing, without ever having to leave home.