DJ Godfather [Databass Records]

With techno originally hailed as The House Sound of Detroit - there’s no denying the motor city has its own definitive genre: Ghetto Tech. A true pioneer of the sound, DJ Godfather, like so many in Detroit was inspired by local radio - WJLB, The Electrifying Mojo and Jeff ‘The Wizard’ Mills - but for Brian Jeffries, aka DJ Godfather, it was scratch DJs, hip hop and DMC battles that kick-started his love for turntablism.

Playing house parties and teen clubs as a 15-year-old, DJ Godfather quickly learned how to keep a dancefloor hot - and having actually purchased The Wizards’ turntables from the man Jeff Mills himself, DJ Godfather honed his craft. At 17 he found himself playing downtown bars and gigs in the suburbs, before taking off to warehouse raves and illegal parties, like those at Detroit’s Packard Plant.

An intimidating force behind the decks, he’s known to drop 60-to-70 records in a one hour DJ set, with plenty of flair, beat juggling and Detroit hustle in between. With his first solo record coming through the Twilight ‘76 label he set up in 1994, DJ Godfather would go on to establish the Databass imprint - still going strong with 150-plus releases - along with a specialised set of sub-labels including Juke Trax and D.E.T. Only.

For more than 25 years now DJ Godfather has been an advocate for ghetto tech at large, consistently drawing the biggest daytime crowd year-for-year at Detroit’s Movement Festival - uniting juke and jit dancers alike - while also exploring a myriad of genres like Miami bass, footwork, electro and more. Hooking up with the likes of Keith Tucker, Andrea Parker and DJs Deeon, Detroit Grand Pubahs and Fat Boy Slim over the years, it was only in 2020 that he saw the release of his 44 track debut solo album, Electro Beats For Freaks.

Following that up in 2021 with a 46-track second LP titled This Thing Of Ours, and the 2022 D3T.3L3CTR0 album - DJ Godfather never loses faith in how his music can bring different people and genres together. “To me ghetto tech is a culture; mixing techno, house, electro, and booty records to create one vibe,” he says. “I do ghetto tech records because it’s me. My one music that I’m passionate about. Love.”