INTERVIEW: ClIFTON JAMES WEAVER III - DJ WITH THE 'SOFT TOUCH'

Clifton James Weaver III, Also known as DJ Soft Touch, is not only one of the sharpest dressed men in L.A., he’s also been an integral part of its music community for the past decade. Between deejaying at hotspots, making music in bands and writing for select blogs, this man is more than a triple threat he's, he's a staple in the heart of Los Angles.

Musical background? I've been known for a few things. I started out as a musician. I've played bass in The Mojo Filters, The Belle Isle (w/ members of BJM, The Quarter After, The Shore & DJ Lovefingers) & Love Grenades. Now, I'm known for deejaying. I have residencies at The Beauty Bar in Hollywood (SMASH HITS w/ DJ Dia of Cafe Bleu, Bang! and the Short Stop Sundays), The Grand Star in Chinatown (former of home Transistor and now home to Club Underground) and The Echo in Echo Park (every Saturday for Funky Sole)

How did your deejay career begin? I started DJ'ing when I was in The Mojo Filters. We had a residency at a club in Long Beach and I asked if it was ok for me to open the night. I started bringing records to spin before the band played and it took off from there.

  

Current projects? As well as maintaining my residencies, I've begun contributing to the Aquarium Drunkard blog. I have a bi-weekly feature called Clifton's Corner in which I focus on soul, funk, psych and other assorted styles that I'm into at the moment. As well as writing and DJ'ing, I've also started a new band. At present, we're called Stereo Action Unlimited. We just played our first show and Silver Lake Lounge and will be playing out again soon.

Music recommendations?  At the moment, I'm into Toro y Moi, Dam Funk, Little Dragon, Love Grenades, Papillon, The Black Keys, I've recently really gotten into Broadcast and Stereolab as well. I'm not sure how I overlooked them in the past. That's just a small selection. There is a lot of music out there and a lot of new favorites to discover.

Best of LA? There's a lot I love about LA. There's a diverse and healthy music scene here and it seems like now more than ever people are open minded and broad in their tastes.

Worst of LA? There's not one thing that I hate that is specific to LA (maybe all of the driving that's necessary). Any city will have its residents that are just following trends and have no real care for the musical culture, which is what I hate most of all.

For bookings please go to:

www.facebook.com/clifton.weaver or cjweaver2002@yahoo.com