RS: For the Fever parties, you brought in a lot of big names in addition to the local talent. How did you balance the whole education/entertaining role as a promoter and a DJ?
Feelgood: To be honest, back then it was easier than it is now because people weren't so jaded and people didn't really know what they like. Now people like drum and bass or house and its even broken down into subgenres of the genres. We have the people who like certain types of drum and bass, certain types of house, and certain types of trance. Back then it was actually easier because a lot of times people didn't know what they were coming to see, it was more of a curiosity and they knew it was dance orientated. They wanted to hear it or be the first to hear Carl Cox or Paul Van Dyk.
RS: In addition to Fever you were also making a reputation for yourself around the country and word spread through mix tapes, is that an accurate representation?
Feelgood: I think it was actually spread through more through Fever. We were getting people coming to Fever from a tri-state area and beyond. We were on the East coast in Baltimore, yet every other Thursday for eight years or so there were kids coming from Florida, Kentucky, New York, and Massachusetts. People were coming from all over and the word spread like that. Then with the advent of the Internet, a lot of those kids that were coming were a lot of the first people on the Internet, so then it was easier to tell kids in other places what was going on. It also had a lot to do with being in the right place at the right time because right when they started flying DJs around everywhere, I was one of those people.
RS: Let's talk about playing around the country. How did you get yourself booked everywhere?
Feelgood: I didn't do anything, people started calling and asking. I started going wherever someone would call and ask me to go. Get the plane tickets and send them over, and that's how it went. It's funny because people ask how do you get booked around all over the country, what do you do? I don't know what you do, it's not like it used to be back then. There isn't a magic formula where you send out a press kit or send out CDs to all the promoters and then they start booking you. We were right there at the beginning and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. There wasn't any magical formula that I came up with to get booked everywhere. It's a lot of luck and I don't want to get a lot of credit for it.
RS: When was the first time you played outside the US, what was that like?
Feelgood: I think the first time I played outside the US, besides Canada, was probably France and I'll never forget it. The first time I played out of the US was in France. I was already going to be in France and the kid who booked me knew I was going to be there and booked me at his club. I had started putting out records back in '94 and so he had bought a couple of records and knew who I was. But the club he was playing at was very commercial and trance. I remember the first track I put on was underground house and they were listening to Depeche Mode or something like that. Every single person on the dance floor walked off.
RS: Ooh. Were you able to win them back?
Feelgood: The manager came over screaming in French like three records later and made the other guy come back on.
RS: Well things have obviously picked up since then and all DJs have stories like that.
Feelgood: That is true.
RS: You spin both clubs and "rave parties". What in your mind do you see as the difference between the two?
Feelgood: Well, just the obvious things. The clubs are more structured, cleaner and in some instances they're safer. But sometimes the energy isn't as good at the clubs as it is at the raves because people can let themselves go more at the raves and not have to worry about security kicking them out because they passed their lollypop to their friend.
RS: When you get ready to spin one, do you prepare your music any differently?
Feelgood: Not really, I really don't. I record shop every week and always have all kinds of house records in my box. I make sure I have plenty of records with me and I never know what I'm going to play until I step up there.