Collingwood DJ looking to make a difference through hip hop
By day, Lucio De Rose is a personal support worker, helping seniors in South Georgian Bay.
When the lights go down, the 28-year-old Collingwood man becomes DJ Primary Sources, a hip hop DJ.
De Rose will be showing his skills at a hip hop show called Man vs. Machine on Aug. 15 at Jozos at Blue Mountain Village at 9 p.m.
The show will feature accomplished rapper and Juno nominated Fresh Kils as well as other hip hop acts including OBM and Vokal Legend.
Always a fan of hip hop music, DeRose got the bug to DJ five years ago.
“I needed a release, always listened to hip hop, and saw there was a lack of respect for the hip hop and DJ communities,” he said. “I started to drive the two hours weekly (to Toronto) to attend every hip hop show I could make.”
He said he networked and built contacts in the hip hop world in Ontario, Canada and worldwide. He realized there was an opportunity for him to travel while doing something he loved.
He soon connected with promoters in Toronto and started performing at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto.
While hip-hop has grown to do big business around the world, De Rose said there are many new artists burgeoning below the surface.
“Canadian and underground hip hop has been hidden from most people’s ears for a long time,” he said. “We are just like any other struggling artists. Recently they have opened an art exhibition at the McMicheal art gallery showcasing Canadian hip hop. This is very important as (hip hop) needs it’s proper place in history.”
De Rose said one of his goals is to bring about change with his music.
“Substance is what I am trying to bring and what inspired me about hip hop,” he said. “I love Margaret Atwood and she believes art without a message is pointless. I feel very similar about hip hop. Hip hop has tried to change the world for the better multiple times.”
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