The R&B Tour has been lit, and you can thank the DJs for that.
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We all know the DJ at the function can either make or break the vibes. They have to bring the right energy, know what the crowd wants, and above all know what to play and when to play it. That is no problem for one self-proclaimed “Most Requested Tour DJ.” Tandy, famously known as DJ Fresh, has been behind the turntables at The Boy Is Mine Tour, the Breezy Bowl Tour, and now as Chris Brown’s DJ on The R&B Tour. Fresh has become known as the DJ who puts on the show before the show, using his personality to work the crowd, hyping people up and playing off the artist’s energy. If you have ever seen clips of concertgoers chanting “get it Breezy,” that started with him. “That was me,” Fresh said. “I started that on the Breezy Bowl Tour.”
In an exclusive interview with Baller Alert, the Midwest DJ shared how he got his first break working with prominent artists. It was early 2014, during the “Lifestyle” era, right after Rich Homie Quan’s career exploded. Fresh and Quan met in Atlanta, where the rapper asked him, “Are you still trying to get out of Cincinnati?” That night, Fresh became Rich Homie Quan’s official DJ. Over the years, their relationship became what Fresh describes as a brotherhood. “I remember just the days living with him and doing shows from Thursday to Sunday,” he said. “Rocking out and just building a rapport to the point where people were like, we have to get that Quan and Fresh chemistry.”
More than 12 years later, DJ Fresh is bringing that same energy on stage with Chris Brown. Brown and Usher are co-headlining a historic country-wide tour that runs until December, and Fresh told Baller Alert it has been nothing short of amazing so far. Exciting as it is, the job is a big one. Fresh said the key to succeeding on tour is knowing what each city wants to hear. “When we are out west, most of his more up-tempo records and West Coast features are what they love,” he said. The East Coast, according to Fresh, gravitates toward the slower ballads like “Take You Down” and “Say Goodbye.” Asked which cities have been the best to perform in, his top three were St. Louis, Birmingham and Detroit.
Building an authentic rapport with the artist matters just as much, and Fresh said that came easily with Chris Brown. “What is going to shock people is that in the four going on five years I have worked for Chris, I have never rehearsed with him,” he said. “Everything we have done together has been all organic.” The two simply mesh. Fresh also credits Brown’s work ethic for making the show what it is. Brown and his camp rehearse three months in advance, and even while perfecting timing and stage space he is working on other things. “He is still shooting videos, doing endorsement projects,” Fresh explained, “but he is such a great artist, he can pick up steps fast. He is not missing a beat.”
The R&B Tour took social media by storm with viral videos of concertgoers being serenaded on stage by Usher or Chris Brown, so Baller Alert asked DJ Fresh the number one question. What does it take to be the chosen one? Unfortunately, there was no definitive answer to help the ladies out. Fresh said he knows the answers to plenty of questions about the tour, but that one stumps him too, because he is usually in the middle of finishing out his set. His best advice was to be at the front and hope you get picked.
Whether you missed The R&B Tour near you or you want more of it, there is a way to get it beyond your social media feed. Fresh is breaking new ground in how DJs stream, giving fans behind-the-scenes access to the tour in real time. There have been plenty of celebrity cameos along the way. Big Meech greeted him one night, and on another show Fresh ran into Mario on his way to the stage. Beyond the guest appearances, he shows how he prepares for showtime, including his song selection and how he builds the set list. “People want to enjoy history,” he explained. “I am giving them a chance to be close, be in my section, come party with me and come enjoy the show. Chris comes by here. You get to watch it.”
As the tour enters its final stretch, DJ Fresh says more projects and more shows are on the way. Reflecting on the journey of sharing rooms with some of hip hop’s biggest icons, he said being a peer to the legends he grew up listening to is a dream come true. “It is a great feeling to have been coming up doing talent shows, or being a guy at the parties dancing to these songs, to now watch the artist perform and be a part of the show,” he said. “They are not worried about me gaining fans. They want me to be bigger.”
