Detroit has been credited as one of the Soul Music capitals of the world, spawning legendary artists like The Four Tops, Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross just to name a few. Detroit’s Underground Music Movement has brought rise to artists such as Derrick May, Juan Atkins, Carl Craig, Kevin Saunderson and a host of others. But unlike the aforesaid names, Terrence Parker has established himself as a producer, remixer and DJ of the classic sound of House Music, and is known as a pioneer of the Inspirational / Gospel House movement!

Terrence Parker has performed as a DJ in more than 100 cities throughout the world. Since 1988, he has released more than 100 recordings, and had top 20 hits with his songs “Love’s Got Me High”, “The Question” and albums like “Detroit After Dark” in the U.K., The Netherlands, Germany, and France. As one of the headliners for the 2004 Detroit Movement Festival (May 2004), TP (along with his friend & Detroit legend DJ Mo Reese) performed a stunning Tagteam DJ set on 4 turntables with 2 live vocalists for a crowd of over 100,000 people. As part of the Detroit Historical Museum’s History of Techno International Exhibit, TP’s collective musical works and pioneering efforts have been recognized as a valuable contribution to Detroit’s music history, as well as the International History Dance Music. This exhibit is currently touring museums throughout the United States.

Ahead of his only London date, Legendary Detroit DJ and innovator Terrence Parker takes a few minutes aside from his ’30 Years Of DJing’ tour to answer a few questions on his esteemed career Grand Master Flash, his European tour, today’s music scene and his famous telephone….

1) Congratulations on 30 years of music and your current tour, I’m sure there have been many but can you tell us about some of your favourite moments?

WOW! There have been countless wonderful memories over the past 30 years. One of the events I remember the most is the very first party I ever played. It was our eighth grade graduation party hosted by my classmate named Mike Muirhead. Before that party I had been known for the mix tapes I made, but that party was the first time a large group was able to witness my DJing skills directly. It was a great party which launched my DJing career right into high school. After that party word began to spread and by the time I was a senior in high school I was DJing events at high schools throughout the Detroit area regularly.

I also remember in 1990 sending demo tapes out to many mix show DJs and record labels. Only one person responded. That one person was Tony Humphries! I remember when he first contacted me about the demo, telling me how much he really liked it. He played it on his radio show (which at that time was on Hot 97 in NYC). The track on that demo was “Hold On’, which was later released on Kevin Saunderson’s Trance Fusion label (a division of KMS Records). Tony went on to break my Seven Grand Housing Authority track “The Question” while he was resident at Ministry Of Sound in London.

Some of my most memorable DJ events were in Detroit, but also other countries like Japan, Russia, Germany, UK, France, Italy, Slovenia, Serbia, Belarus, and many others! The largest audience I ever played for was at the Movement Festival in Detroit with over 100,000 people. It has truly been a great 30 years!

2) What’s your opinion on the current state of the music scene?

3) Working with labels such as KMS Records, Serious Grooves, 430 West and Simply Soul, do you feel this is where you gained the experience and confidence to launch your own labels and what would you say to people who would like to launch their own labels?

Yes I learned a lot from watching Kevin Saunderson, Santonio Echols, JD Simpson, The Burden Brothers, Mad Mike Banks and several others. My advice to anyone who wishes to launch their own label is simple. Find some people you feel are successful with their labels and watch how they operate. If you do not know the person directly, read any books, blogs, or other material they have available.

4) Being a such an icon for so long, does this put a lot of pressure on your life as a whole?

I do not feel any pressure because I stay true to who I am. Many years ago I use to feel a lot of pressure to live up to a public image. But now I have my life priorities in order of God first, family second, and everything else follows behind.

5) What was the determining factor that made you want to pursue a career in music and what was the biggest challenge you faced?

Even as a young boy I have always enjoyed music. Watching people like Michael Jackson and George Clinton made me consider a career in music. However, it wasn’t until after I saw Grand Master Flash rocking the turntables that I knew for certain I wanted to enter the music business. Over the years there have been many challenges. Perhaps the biggest and most common challenge I faced was getting someone to listen to my demo and ultimately sign me to their label. Although I have released my music with many labels over the years, the process was very difficult and often times quite discouraging. My frustration with the “demo shopping” aspect of the industry is what motivated me to launch my own label (known at that time as “Intangible Records”).

6) With so many achievements including top twenty hits with tunes including “Love’s Got Me High“, playing in more than 100 cities around the world and hit albums in the U.K like “Detroit After Dark” are there currently any goals you set yourself?

I would like to do more television & film projects. I have a few under my belt but I would like to get deeper into this area. I would love to DJ on the African continent, South America, South East Asia, Australia, and many other interesting places in the world. Most of all I would like to help others (not just with DJing or music, but in life).

7) Your current tour started way back in March taking you all over the world, we are looking forward to seeing you appear here in London at East Village on the 26th November, what can we expect to hear and will it differ from what you have played in other countries?

Although the tone of my DJ sets are the same (strictly positive) I play a different set everywhere I go.
I plan to play a lot of inspirational house music, funk, soul, and disco classics. You may also hear a few of my own productions tossed into the mix.

You come from a golden era in music when the whole world seemed to be taking inspiration from Detroit, what was different there and how was it different to what was happening in other music capitals around the world?

Respectfully I cannot accurately compare Detroit to other areas because I do not know their music history from a personal level. I can only speak from the perspective of a Detroiter. Many years ago music was regional and strictly localized. But in today’s world with the internet, it is much easier to become familiar with music and culture from a global perspective. As I have personally traveled to various places throughout the world I can see the Detroit influence in the up and coming producers in various countries. But I will say that Detroit was very unique because of the tough economic climate, and it’s rich music history from our classical symphony, to jazz, to Motown soul, to hip hop.

9) Your known for mixing with a telephone, how did that come about?

10) Your set at Fuse-In during the Detroit Electronic Music Festival in 2005 was a master class in scratching and working a crowd, do you have an idea of what direction your going to take a set in or do you just see where the vibe takes you?

11) Lastly, if you could give budding DJ’s and Producers a word of advice what would you say?