I’ve been living in Brooklyn, NY for a little over three years now, and I’ve lived through about a million or so changes and creative impulses. I think that the thing that has excited me the most in my time is my work as a producer and host for a radio show called Snakin’ the Drain on a quaintly named station called Kpiss.fm.
Kpiss is the brainchild of Brooklyn-based DJ Sheri Barclay, a wild and forward thinking woman who isn’t afraid to do anything. She named it as such as a way to keep the more uptight of the Brooklyn creative scene out of her chill space, and also as something of an ode to the smell of the space the studio runs out of prior to renovation. Kpiss is situated in one of the coolest places I’ve had the privilege of hanging out in-- Brooklyn’s own Punk alley, a DIY flea market housing a punk paraphernalia store, a pottery studio, a bike shop, a bookstore, and a record store. Honestly, I think there are more gems hidden away, but everyone keeps such strange hours that I haven’t seen everything open.
The studio itself is inside of a 10 by 10-foot space, painted bright pink with a ratty couch on one side and a built-in wall station on the other, where the real magic of recording and spinning begins. Two turntables, a mixing board, a couple microphones, and the studio is real and live. A total of 55 individual shows are run out of this shipping container, touching on every topic, spinning every kind of jam you can imagine. The studio functions also as an introductory class to radio work, teaching anyone and everyone who gets into the club how to make a show happen. My show has been running for about two months, and I feel as though only recently we began to produce shows that I’m proud of and willing to show off to the people around me. The learning curve is real, and at times a little frustrating, but absolutely worth it.
Creating content and themes with my co-host, Elyssa, is also a wonderful creative challenge. We both have different ideas about what we want to eventually create, and are constantly striving together to make something interesting out of it. We have such wildly different tastes in music, but our companionship and genuine interest in doing our best makes it seem natural. Listening to our fellow hosts also is very inspiring, and helps me to gain inspiration for what to do to make it better each week.
Overall, DJing at Kpiss is one of my favorite things I’ve ever done. I don’t expect it to get me out there, or to be the next Terry Gross, but each Saturday, I get to kick back and make something with my best friend that I’m genuinely proud of. That’s a good enough reward in my book.
