RICHIE, A FOURTH YEAR STUDENT AND DJ, EMBRACES HIS PASSION TO MAKE MONEY
There has always been debate about the possibility of turning a passion into a source of income. Some people agree it can and should be done, others are not so sold on the idea. U of O fourth year psychology student, Richard Pham believes that starting small and maintaining connections are key to successfully achieving this undertaking.
Pham, professionally known as Richie, has been a DJ for almost 14 years. Starting out in middle school with the Virtual DJ software, he slowly developed his skills through self-teaching until he was able to land his first gig at a friend’s party.
Pham realized his interest in DJing after attending an older friend’s performance at his (the friend’s) high school party. His curiosity was sparked afterwards and his friend encouraged him to explore the world of DJing.
“It was an accident,” remarked Richard when he recalled what got him interested in his current passion, “I’m into sports … watching sports, playing sports. Discovering DJing was an accident.”
His parents were supportive of his new-found passion and bought the then 13-year-old Richard his first controller.
Since then, Pham has performed at nightclubs, house parties, school parties, and at several clubs on and off the U of O campus. It hasn’t always been easy and sometimes, business has been slow.
“Last year, I didn’t receive many bookings. I thought to myself that maybe I should be done with DJing … I just wanted to focus on school and graduate — until my friend called me about a gig for a party in April. Then I decided, yeah, I’ll do it.”
Balancing school and work has not always been easy and moving on to higher education while pursuing his passion has not made things any easier for Richard.
“You need to focus on schoolwork … but if you don’t practice DJing regularly, you’ll lose your touch,” he mentioned.
Despite the pressure, Pham encourages anyone interested in pursuing a career in the music industry or any passion to just go for it.
“It’s very hard work, it’s not easy but it’s [rewarding]. Have a schedule, use it and go for it.”
The uOShow has been Richard’s largest gig in his career so far.
“I was pretty nervous … I could feel my heart beating and I was sweating on my hands … I just got my body shaking and once I turned on the music, I was calm.”
Pham recalled in the interview with the Fulcrum that it was a rewarding and exciting experience for him, especially since playing the uOShow was on his bucket list of places to play at as a DJ.
He got the gig with the power of social media, tagging UOSU and other uOShow organizers. Similarly, he convinced all his contacts from his years as a DJ to tag and reshare the post until it made it to the uOShow organizers.
These connections have also been key to building up his reputation as a DJ and obtaining gigs. Richard admits that making connections, as well as advertising himself have been a huge part of his marketing strategy so far and have brought him success.
“When I talk to people, I tell them I’m a DJ. It’s basically a kind of exposure for yourself.”
Pham also opened up the Post Panda Party on Oct. 6 — just after I talked to him. He performed for 45 minutes as opposed to the 30 minute slot he had at the uOShow and was extremely excited for the performance.
