I’m hanging out in the Rock 104.5 studio today till 3pm. Chill day!
I Am Layla James:
Digital Media Consultant | Radio DJ | Human
Category Archives: TV/Radio
Article: Why are there no female DJs on DJ Mag’s top 100 list?
As a female DJ I’ve had guys telling me how to use the decks and even changing the speed of my records for me – so perhaps it’s no surprise we’ve been left out of a list of the best DJs …
Hanna Hanra · 28/10/2011 · guardian.co.uk
Head-in-hands moment … not even BBC Radio 1′s Annie Mac made DJ Mag’s top 100 list. Photograph: BBC
Clicking through DJ Mag’s newly published list of top 100 DJs, it’s easy to spot the one thing missing: women. Revered in the clubbing industry as the “black book” for DJs, producers and promoters, the list is voted for by the public every year. Between 2007 and 2011 just one girl, Claudia Cazacu, scraped on to the list, charting at number 93 in 2010. Not even Annie Mac – who hosts three shows on Radio 1, DJs regularly at Fabric and whose Annie Mac Presents mixtape is No 1 in the electronic charts – gets a look in. It’s clearly a bone of contention with some women in the business – Peaches, the Berlin DJ/producer posted “DJ MAG! Your Top 100 DJ boy club list can eat a dick! Where the ladies at???” on her Facebook page in a fit of frustration after the list was published.
For the last 10 years, my main source of income has been from DJing. It’s taken me around the world, from dive bars in Krakow where the kids went wild when I played Nirvana to glitzy fashion parties in New York where Grace Jones serenaded me with Pull Up to the Bumper wearing only a headdress as I stood in the DJ booth (which was, incidentally, disguised as a tiki hut). I thought, based on my experiences so far, that it could be an exciting career. I’ve DJ’d in the coolest clubs and the shittest pubs, I’ve played at a record-breaking 13 parties during a four-day period one London fashion week and I’ve been flown across the world to play 10 songs at a party. I lost count of the number of mornings I’ve spent trying to get tequila off my CDs. But just at the point where my parents finally began to understand exactly what it was I did for a living, it became harder to break through into top-billing territory. I hit the glass ceiling. I always thought that term applied to women in skirt suits in big, windowed office blocks – not those whose working day starts at 11pm and involves sticky floors and a disco ball.
I realised that it didn’t matter how many times a week I DJ’d or how much I charged or how much people loved what I played, I was losing the impetus to fight my way through the boys’ club and try and make it to the top. And if I got there, would the fight to stay there be worth it? Annie Mac, who is one of the handful of really successful female DJs, admits that she might not have made it without her radio show. “I had a profile through that and got gigs through that,” she said in a recent interview.
Boys aren’t better at DJing than girls. We don’t DJ with our vaginas. But the fact is, in my experience, they clearly think they are and do make it more difficult for us. I’ve had male DJs reach over as I mixed two tracks and start twiddling with the knobs. Or come and stand behind me and instruct me on what to do. My personal favourite was when, at a regular Sunday nightclub, the male DJ who played after me reached over the sound desk and start to change the speed of a track for me. Did he think I had sped the track up slightly on accident? Another brilliantly sexist moment was when a DJ span round and said to me bluntly, “Well, boys just know more about music, don’t they.” And it’s not just the other DJs – there are the soundmen too, who persistently ask me if I know what I’m doing. You know, after 10 years, I’m still not sure.
I guess maybe the whole unbalance is something to do with the fact that it’s only in the past 5 years that most venues have acquired CD decks, so you no longer have to play from vinyl, which is heavy to carry. Maybe that’s why there are so many more men at the top. They’re better at carrying heavy things.
Official photo from ‘Home Improvement’ cast reunion — EXCLUSIVE:
http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/09/08/home-improvement-cast-reunion-official-photo/
by Lynette Rice
Look who showed up for the mother of all family reunions!
We were hoping to save our exclusive photo shoot of the Home Improvement cast for our Reunions Issue on newsstands Oct. 7, but somebody let the cat out of the bag via Twitter (we’re lookin’ at you, Patricia Richardson!), so we decided to give fans a sneak peek of the reunion held last month in Pacific Palisades, Calif.
Though most of the stars had already seen each other two years ago at the TV Land Awards, the shoot was still a big thrill for cast members like Tim Allen (Tim Taylor) and Patricia Richardson (Jill Taylor) because it involved seeing Jonathan Taylor Thomas — a.k.a. Randy Taylor — for the first time since 1998. You read that right: No one had seen hide nor hair of the cherub-faced actor, who turned 30 today, since he left the show. “It was awesome,” said Richardson, who invited her on-screen sons Taylor, Taran Noah Smith, and Zachery Ty Bryan back to her house after the shoot. “You know where you can pick up and it feels like no time has passed at all? And at the same time you look at them and say, ‘How can you possibly be that age because that makes me way old!’”
Check out a preview of our Home Improvement reunion photo shoot below:
Image Credit: CHRIS MCPHERSON FOR EW
September RTT Article:
Fresh off the presses, my article about the infamous Chris Payne!
Click HERE to find out more!
More About Reno Tahoe Tonight Magazine:
Reno Tahoe Tonight is the independent alternative. We are bold, uncensored and free. With 96 pages of local color and coverage, no other publication keeps readers in better touch with their peers, their interests and their lifestyles.
People are responding strongly to Reno Tahoe Tonight because it has moxie, is physically gorgeous to look at and celebrates the people, places, hidden treasures and small businesses that make this region one of the most beautiful and creative places in the country. Our features and photo journals, shot by award-winning photographers and industry veteran Jamie Kingham (British Vogue, Marie Claire), reflect the essence of the creative resurgence happening in the Truckee Meadows.
Worst Little Podcast
Yesterday I got to co-host Worst Little Podcast with good ole Rev. Rory. What a great show, make sure to download it on Wednesday!
Weekend Recap:
It’s time for a nostaligic look back on my weekend… now if I could only remember what I did… oh yeah:
FRIDAY: Amazing
I had 4 events I said I would go to…. but I didn’t have that much time. So I had to make choices.
- Corey’s 30th B-Day at Famous Dave’s
- Pick up my custom art from Aric Shapiro at The Salvagery Artist Collective
- Hangout with my boss and friends for drinks at the Stonehouse
- Go to AWOLnation and hangout with radio friends
So priorities…. MUSIC and ART….check. I cancelled on Corey to go hangout with my boss. Then my boss cancelled, so 2 out of 4 events down the hole.
So I went to go visit Aric at the Salvagery to pick up my art. He was leaving the next day for the Playa to build The Temple for Burning Man. It’s amazing to me that people would donate a month of their time to build The Temple, just to watch it blow up. Just amazing.
I met a whole gaggle of crazy New Zealanders… shouting and drinking PBR…(I think its the official drink of Reno). Overall it was a great time.
Flashforward to home, getting ready, shower and a shave (Hey I keep it classy)
Then off to go see AWOLnation. I love living downtown because there is always something unexpected going on. I went outside and there was fireworks shooting off the Silver Legacy. I’m assuming for Hot August Nights… it was a good start to the night.
I met up with new friends at KRZQ as well as members of KDOT. In Reno radio you can’t really afford to make enemies. We are all in this crazy little city trying to survive in the broadcasting industry.
AWOLnation was good, but all their songs relatively sound the same. The thing I love the most is I am finally feeling like I’m well rooted in Reno as well as radio.
I can BS with the big boys about music, industry news, and just plain tell dirty jokes. I love it. It’s been a 5 years in Reno, but I feel like I’m really making it my home.
After the concert the afterparty was at Tonic. I watched Chris Payne spin the night away as well as some cool guy who looked and danced like Andre 3000.
(Always a highlight)
The night was filled with normal drinking/dancing debachuery.
Twas Fun.
Saturday: Awkward
I woke up in a rush to get to the station. I looked like a hot mess, I didn’t wash off the makeup from the last night, my hair was crusted in hairspray…. it was ugly.
But regardless I had a good airshift from 10am-3pm. Nothing caught on fire… so I was happy.
(Yes, that is my low standard of success)
Afterwards I was inspired to go to Tahoe. One of those random adventures…. apparently I couldn’t inspire anyone else to go with me.I really didn’t want to go to a beautiful lake and sit there by myself. (This has been a theme for me, learning how to be alone… its not working)
So I went to the pool and that was just not as satisfying. 
I met up with one of my neighbors, I thought he was going to bring all his friends, but it just ended up being me and him… which was fine… just different than I imagined.I like groups, gaggles of people, bringing people together, bbq’s and such.
So one on one is hard for me.
Then we agreed to get a bunch of people to show up together… I knew about 15 people that were going to be out and about downtown. I cancelled on another friend for a house party because I believed in a this new plan… downtown drinking and such. Sorry Drew 
So we agreed to meet at 9pm…. so at 10:30 we finally got together. I met up with my 2 friends at Imperial Bar. (It was 95 degrees in there, I was sweaty and gross) But I ran into 2 old friends back from my ballroom dancing days…. yeah!
After $2 Kamikaze shots at Imperial we decided to get some fresh airand head down to the Waterfall.
We enjoyed had some hookah, more drinks and ran into a couple of awkward situations.
For instance it was Reno High’s 10 year reunion so everyone had name tags on and we didn’t know anyone there!
We enjoyed some more hookah and this amazing drink called a Juicy! Ask West or Brandon (the bartenders) about it next time you are there.
We got tired of being in room full of people that we didn’t know, yet they all knew each other and decided to meander to Brew Bros.
That place is very hit or miss, its either the best night or your life or completely irritating.
(Turned out to be the second one).
I was surrounded by people having sex on the dancefloor… ok well just about having sex… but its always awkward being surrounded by people getting it on…
I was also hot and sticky and irritated. The band wasn’t that good and I got tired of being pushed around by the tongue jockeys. So we left and ate some food at Cafe Sedona.
{Isn’t the whole point of Reno is to be able to order chinese food at 2am?}
Apparently they only had breakfast food and I WAS PISSED. This night sucked. Good thing I was in good company with friends Corey, Shannon and David.
So I made it home…. grumpy, but grateful for good friends.
SUNDAY: Lazy
It was so nice sleeping in. Sunday is the only day that I get to sleep for ungodly amounts of time.
So after a 10 hour nap I woke up and ate some leftover chicken soup. It is my Sunday tradition to stay in bed and watch bad TV.
So I watched ‘Switched at Birth‘ on HULU. Wow that stuff is addictive… its got drama, love, a real american family… its an absolute trainwreck. LOVE IT!
I’m currently hanging out till 7pm, playing whatever the hell I feel like on Rock 104.5 .
After this… not sure.
I’ll probably go to my BFF’s house and see how that baby is a growing.
(She’s pregnant)
Maybe she’ll feed me…..
Pregnant ladies always have extra food laying around the house.
Over all the weekend was full of ups and downs, good friends, awkward situations and bad tv.
Thanks for reading 
~Layla
Cool Reno Sites:
At some point you look at Reno with all its dirty baggage and think ‘I can work with this.’ You fall in love with the nitty gritty and learn to accept it’s flaws.
Since starting this process I have found a LOT of people are actually pretty passionate about Reno and the Downtown scene. I thought I’d take a moment and spread the word:
Worst Little Podcast:
“The Worst Little Podcast in the World is exactly that. It’s horrible – a bunch of guys bullshitting about their lives. Original concept, I know. But WLP isn’t just for self indulgence, no! It is a chance for us to highlight the Greater Reno Area and everything that makes this town rock.
-Everyone involved in the show is a lifer in Reno and pretty deeply involved with the local scenes. In any one of our stellarly mediocre episodes you can hear Rory, Nick, Josh and Rick talk about what they are up to, interviews with local personalities, live musical performances and maybe, just maybe, something that will make you laugh.”
Burncards:
“Burncards is your source for daily news, opinion, technology, literature, politics, art, music and food.
Our goal is to share with the world thoughtful and interesting content that just happens to come out of Reno, Nevada. Local people working together on a local blog!
Whimsical and thought-provoking, focused yet unlimited, our goal is to not bore you to tears with the same stuff you see and read everywhere, while not cornering you into strange, Internet obscurity. We’re here to share with you an entertaining set of writers, an interesting Reno, and an interesting world beyond. We want you to keep coming back, so if you have any suggestions, or even want to contribute yourself, we’re listening!”
Reno Datebook:
Reno Datebook’s goal is to be the definitive calendar of all events in the Reno area including Art, Entertainment, Government, Health and Wellness, Family Events, Events for Seniors, etc.
Reno Datebook is produced by husband-wife team Catherine Young-Peretz and Phil Peretz of Media Media Inc., in Reno Nevada
Twitter:
In Case You Didn’t Know:
You Can Tweet Me While I Dance!
Interview with Kate Raudenbush:
Check out my interview with Burner Artist- Kate Raudenbush!
