Vicky on DJ Academy: “Everybody Seems To Be Absolutely in Love with it”

The DJ Academy is a part of Twisting Ducks Academies, which happens every Thursday morning. Vicky, a DJ Academy runner, is incredibly happy to help Twisting Ducks members to acquire valuable skills in DJ- ing that will took them forward in their life. Moreover, Vicky jointly with Jay, CEO of the Twisting Ducks Theatre Company, run the ‘Fresh’ Night Club which is the longest running club night in the area for adults with learning disabilities. The performance happens once a month on Tuesday at their Headquarters. The concept of the project was to create a place where people could come along and learn to DJ. Vicky, a professional DJ with an experience of more than 15 years, was earlier contacted by Jay and asked if she would be interested in running the sessions for Twisting Ducks. Amazed by the opportunity of helping people with learning disabilities and autism, Vicky undoubtedly accepted the offer. “We started with two or three members, and very quickly it has now grown. I think we have got about 7 or 8 regular people to attend now, so the idea behind it was that we would be able to teach people to DJ and they could go on and show their skills at ‘Fresh’ Night Club, which we have actually managed to achieve and everybody seems to be absolutely in love with it”, says Vicky. As during the very early steps of every organisation, there was a little difficulty in the DJ Academy in the beginning as well, namely, finding what equipment was going to work the best. They have tried bringing in sort of CDs, played with the idea of using vinyl decks, but the issue with vinyl decks is that they are, in fact, really heavy, so they have settled with a controller and a laptop, which, according to Vicky, makes it really accessible for people. “It is really mobile, so it means we can take the equipment to any sort of night club or any venue”, she says. Vicky enjoys teaching Twisting Ducks to DJ and conducts each and every session as a celebration. “I absolutely love what we do here and everybody seems to get a lot out of it”, she says. She is excited about diversity and a positive flow of immense energy in the group. “It is just the energy really, you know, everybody picks their own tracks they want to play, so that could be anything from 60s or 70s right through to hip hop or dance, or rap”, she says. “I think it is great to see everybody being able to express themselves and pick what they want to play, and actually, then, DJ for a LIVE audience”. Vicky, with her big enthusiasm and inspiring personality, gives advice to anyone who is interested in learning to DJ. “If you want to learn to DJ, stick at it, play what you love, and just do not give up because DJ-ing is great as it gives you a chance to express yourself and play the music that you love, and get everybody else dancing”, she says. “There is a feeling when you are up behind the decks and you have selected the set to play, and what you pick, everybody loves and gets up dancing. I think, it is a great feeling.”