Who: (your name): Q ( Qussay Asad , the nick name “ Q “ came about when a couple of friends decided to call me that )
What: (classification of music played): I hate classifications , but anything that sounds good to me , especially tracks with solid melodies and good vocals .
When: (when did you start): I think I started playing in high school at friends parties etc , around 1990 ?! ( Damn I am getting old ! )
Where: (where did you start): Friend’s and high school parties
Why: (why did you decide to do this): Because I like to control people’s emotions !! ?
What gave you that initial push? People kept on telling me I have good taste in music , and I realized its fun to do . Although I never really took it up as a career , its always been a hobby or something I do on the side.
Why did you start playing music? Umm … isn’t this the same as Question 5 ?
What would your dream gig be? On a beach somewhere in Europe or Latin America , with around 500 people , with a line up of around 7 Djs and myself , starting around noon time with chillout music and ending at dawn with a full on trance set !
What was the first event you ever played at? In Amman , as a kid it was a friends party at his place , in Washington DC , it was a Halloween party at a place called Marakesh.
What's the best event you've played at? Wow , I really never thought of this before ! Probably in DC , Babylon’s closing party ! It wasn’t a big event , but sooo many good memories came from that place , the last night was something very special !
What was the first record you bought? I don’t really remember but I think it was Kylie Minogue – Put Your Hand on Your Heart !
Out of all the tunes you have, which one 'never fails?' It really depends on the crowd and place you are playing at . In Amman , its usually an old track remixed into a house / club track . Jordanians love to sing because they all think they have excellent voices ! The past year , I have been playing a remix of Cutting Crew’s Died in Your Arms , and people go crazy for it !
What's your favorite tune of all time? Motorcycle – As the Rush Comes
When all the partying is over how do you like to chill out? With a couple of friends , Roger Shah’s chillout music , and a shi sha ! ?
Funniest thing that ever happened at an event? I was playing in DC , and it was towards the end of the night , and I usually play more trance tunes towards the end , so I played a track by Cosmic Gate called Fire Wire , and in the track , all they say is Fire Wire . So a girl ( who had asked me for Madonna or Hip Hop tracks earlier ) came up to me and furiously said “ You know , you play very meaningful songs , what the HELL does FIRE WIRE Mean ????? “ I almost fell on the floor from laughter !!
Other DJs that’s have influenced your style? Oh sooo many to mention , Roger Shah , Martin Roth , Armin Van Buuren , Deep Dish ( before they split up ) , Tiesto before 2005 , Above & Beyond , Markus Schulz , Andy Moor, Cosmic Gate ( Nic Chagal to be precise ) , Sasha, Chicane , to name a few !
Describe a ‘playing’ day for you. I don’t usually have a special “playing” day routine , I just like to go to the venue early to check it out , and see it fill up .
When you play is the set pre planned? Not at all , I cant plan a set and I think it doesn’t work well , since you have no clue what people will react to the most .
In your opinion, how has the music scene changed throughout the years? Lately . I think the boundaries between the “ so called “ labeling and classifications has been crossed . You see a lot of House Music Djs playing more melodic music , and Trance Djs playing lower BPM tracks and more House influenced music , which is great ! More and more people are listening to Electronic music , of course “ Electronic Music “ means different things to different people . At the end of the day , not everyone is expected to have the same taste . Armin Van Buuren once said “ Don’t be a prisoner of your own style ! “ and I agree 100 % !
What has been your proudest moment of your career? Good question , I have soo many but a couple would be donating the money from a couple of events here in Amman to the Children of Palestine Fund . and Armin Van Buuren sending me a thank you voice message for the “ Armin Van Buuren “ Special I recorded on Play 99.6 before his event at Distant Heat in 2004 .
Where can we catch you ripping up the decks? I doubt there will be any ripping , but I play occasionally at Flow , and hopefully some interesting events coming up this summer ! Keep your eyes open !
