Mixed Emotions by Brian Norwood
DJ Brian Norwood was born during the first seedlings of dance music as we know it today were sprouting. In the 1970s, the Tea Dance at Fire Island's Blue Whale was settling in as ritual and David Mancuso's infamous "The Loft" parties in NYC were just getting started. Being born in the music-rich environment of Nashville would be a harbinger of things to come. And being born in that era would greatly impact his career.
In the 90's, Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, would open its arms to Brian. This move to a more urban environment and being within the twinkle of NYC skyscrapers, is an important transition not only in geography, but of musical awakening. After attending a seminal Saint-At-Large Party with all its intendant revelry, he felt an overwhelming drive to cultivate music and learn to mix. Vinyl was still the preferred medium for DJ's, which gives Brian the unique perspective of being among the younger DJ's still spinning today who teethed on vinyl.
In the 90s Brian began to play live shows. His ability to feel the energy of a room and to zero in on what crowds want to hear quickly gained him major name recognition that spread from Philadelphia to the entire nation. Over the last 25 years the notable gigs he has played are too many to count, but include events in every major American city and as far away as Maui, Hawaii and Amsterdam, Netherlands.
In 2011 he began podcasting for the ability to reach even more listeners. His Mixed Emotions by Brian Norwood podcasts have been streamed hundreds of thousands of times and continue to be a major asset to his musical career. The sets that have been the most recognized of his work are Sophisticated Morning, Sophisticated Deep, and Sophisticated Chill. These sets are just as their name implies: percolating, hazy, gently rising to an alert state. However, to those unfamiliar with his breadth of music, it would be unfair to characterize him as a “chill” only DJ. It is unlikely that you would have heard music and music mixed like this anywhere else. Brian has a style of playing unique, obscure and ethereal songs that is unmistakably his. This is a true artist that isn't stuck in a genre, who can play for long sets and play to the most demanding crowds.
It’s difficult to express with words something as nuanced as music by a sublime DJ. But to paraphrase an old saying, you know it when you hear it. He knows how important a crowd is to a DJ and how important a DJ is to a crowd and he chooses cautiously and carefully the live gigs that he plays. His podcasts can be found on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, PodOmatic and HearThis. Whether you hear him at a live performance or on his podcast you’re in for a rare and unique musical trip.
