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What do a scratch academy DJ and church pastor have in common? More than you’d think, according to DJ Hapa and Kimberly Williams. Hapa is director of the internationally acclaimed Scratch Academy and Kimberly Williams is a student at Fuller Theological Seminary, whose paths crossed when Kimberly began exploring the metaphor of “pastor as DJ.” Hapa describes a DJ’s unique form of musician-ship as one of de-composition and re-composition. The DJ can’t just passively listen to music and say, “I like this or that,” but instead has to figure out what’s going on underneath the surface sound. When you listen to the words, the sounds, and the beats, you can find connections in songs that you never thought had any synergy.
You can get into a rut even as a DJ, says Hapa — playing the same club, the same music tracks Friday night after Friday night. This may be what the listener wants to hear-or think they want to hear. But when Hapa began to dig into the music, taking apart and putting back together the pieces in different ways, he rediscovered music and himself. He thinks the DJ’s role is then to take the re-composed music to people and expose them to something new (as opposed to a disc jockey that plays a 3 or 4 minute song without interruption and simply fills a role of announcer).
Kimberly thinks sitting at the feet of a DJ can help her become a better pastor. Instead of ‘playing” the same themes over and over-perhaps even the popular topics that people want to hear-pastor’s need to dig into scripture, rediscover it, and re-compose it in a way that makes it new and alive for the listeners. This can help both pastor and listeners alike from getting stuck in a rut, from doing the same old thing week after week, and better connect people to each other, and to the Word.
Personal Reflections:
- Do you find yourself stuck in a rut? How can you be true to yourself and your calling? Share your view of the world to help listeners from just going through the motions.
- Do you feel you’re a disc jockey (announcer spinning the top 40 list) or a DJ (looking to interpret, educate, develop, engage, listen)?
Small Group or Staff Questions:
- Are there ways you can re-compose old and new themes and ideas to better connect with your listeners? What things seem to be so different, but if you dig deeper have synergy?
- How can we introduce our community to new “music” (new expressions of faith, theology and ways of doing/being church) and contextualize and bring alive old “music” (tradition, liturgy).
Extras
- CLICK HERE TO WATCH DJ Hapa’s LIVE Mix
- CLICK HERE TO WATCH DJ Hapa at the Scratch Academy
- DJ Whitepaper by Kimberly Williams - (237)
- Educational Remix by Kimberly Williams - (221)
- Hip Hop Research Review by Kimberly Williams - (256)
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June 4th, 2009 at 9:18 am
Brilliant!!!
June 5th, 2009 at 6:30 am
[...] at the feet of a DJ master and his students. Recently she was interviewed by Spencer Burke at THEOOZE.TV, along with DJ Hapa from the Scratch Academy, about the intertwining tasks of the pastor and DJ. [...]
September 6th, 2009 at 6:29 pm
[...] Get the HD quality video & show notes here. [...]