DJ CARISMA - 3 Course Tortilla

cooking today? Dj? Charisma? While I come from Southern California, Santana to be exact, and Mexican household, and we always have tortillas on hand. So I'm gonna show you how to whip up three cool little dishes with the tortillas today. Yeah, and what are your ingredients? We got one of them is gonna's gonna be straight up tortillas and butter than

we got. You know, if you're really lucky, you got some cheese at the house, We're gonna do that, and then we're gonna whip up a little dessert with the sugar in the cinnamon. Wow. Okay, so if you're really really down on your luck, you have your tortillas. And I'm excited to see how tortillas and butters turn out, So go ahead, let's get started. And I just want to know what was the last time you ate this? I mean probably just the other night. Like I taught

my daughter how to make it. This is something real simple that like a kid can make, so like if you're nine home alone and your parents are at work type of deal. That's really where I started, you know, making this dish, right, and this this dish, like you know, I don't I don't really know the difference between flower

and quarantinias. Hate to hate to be that person from New York y'all um, but I noticed the price point, Like you know, I shopped for the show, so I like look at the prices and I think I paid five bucks and it was like a million flower tortillas in that bag that could last you quite quite a while. Definitely, I feel like growing up like that was one thing we really always had in the fridge, was the tortilla. So that's you know why this is definitely my dish

because my mama always had those on deck. So let's try the flower and butter tortillas, all right, So the flower and butter is, like I said, if you really you know, that's all you got you get home from school, Mom and dad aren't there. You need to whip something up. You go on the fridge and there's nothing there. So you got tortillas. Go ahead, and so the first one's real simple. You just get a flower tortilla, put it on. You don't even need butter on the pan. We're gonna

put the butter on right now. I know it's an electric skillet. Usually I would have done this with the flame skillet. It's a lot easier to toss your tortilla on there, you know. But if you got an electric skill, we're gonna do it this way. Oh you mean you would put the tortilla on directly on the flame, directly on the flame. He did tortilla first, both sides, heat it up, and then put your butter on, rolling into a roll and that's it. Okay, I want to see it.

That's it. So we're gonna try it with this electric skillet. Would that be considered like but with the difference, Oh, it's okay, it's it's hot enough, we're good. Okay, we're good. Sea it's bubbling up. Yeah like that. I mean, you can't use corn. There were times I use corn tortillas, but the preference was always flower for me and my sister growing up. The taste or yeah, it tasted better, just tasted better. I feel like quarantin teas are better

for other street tacos and good. Okay, so this is he know when it took two seconds? Two seconds because I like a little bit of crispiness. That's what you need, the crispiness. Like that's why I like the flame definitely. So but this is good. This is good se same night. Now you're gonna be electric, lover. Get to heat it up. And you know, like we said, this is definitely a broke meal. So you know, when you're a kid, your

taste buds are a little different. You know when you were a kid, did you know this was a broke meal? Or did you know this was bombed? To me? Like I couldn't wait get to get home and just make one of these. When I was a little you know, okay, okay, what was going on? Like what's your home environment when

all this is going on? Definitely I was the older sibling, so you know, I took care of my little sister and me and her would go and once my mom started working when I was like three or four years old. She never stopped working and neither did my dad, so they were always at work and we were always alone a lot of times. So this is what we will come home and what we do. And how old were you when you were making the like nine? That's why I said, this is really simple that your kid can

make when they're by themselves. Like, but when she showed us, you know what, you know what I mean, she showed us that my daughter is ten and I got her doing it already too, so it's definitely doable. She's like, there's nothing even like that there. This one is over seeing. Basically, if you want, all you gotta do is slap a little butter in there for yourself, okay, and then rolling into a roll because I don't know how much butter you like I was slathering it. Okay. Oh wow, So

all this is going on, you're cooking at home. When do you desire to become? D J Crais Well, I grew up in in the Golden era of music, like I feel like I grew up in the golden era of radio in the nineties, Like I was a little kid at that era, and that's when radio was at its finest. You know. So I always had my radio. I was always making um, stealing my mom's cassettes, cold tissue in the top so I can record over whatever she had on there. Remember how you used to do that.

You know you can stick tissue in the time. You had to put taper tissue on the top to block a cassette so you could rerecord over it. Oh no, I was popping in there and make my own mixtapes. Yeah, I remember recording off the radio, but I didn't do that part. That was like next level ingenuity, right, Yeah, because you know, I didn't have no money to go get the blanks, you know what I mean. So I would just take my mom's tape and would she what would she say, like if she would be really mad

depending on what it was. So I was careful of what cassette I chose. Don't be burning your parents stuff. But yeah, so I would do that. And so that's how I really gathered it on. The whole thing. Is that's how you do it? Yeah, and then just go ahead and roll it on up. I roll it like a taketo, roll it like a taketo. I feel like by the end of the season, I am going to be fully prepared to handle tortillas. See, I would always give it that little folder so I don't drip all

over me. I did it, no, no worries. Oh that's smart. That's there you go, and there you go. You got your little butter takido and you're hungry you get home from school, just a little snack whom it will work right when you're hungry and feels the stomach for sure. Now have you found other stuff, like random stuff in your freads? You just throw it in there so it got good. If you had like some leftover salsa from grandpa,

My grandpa used to make homemade salsa, green salsa. If you got lucky, you have some sour cream, maybe he would just dip it in whatever your flavor of dip is. You know, ironically, I wish I had just grown up. It works, It surely works. And how we get down in the Mexican house. You doesn't have to salt a pepper on it the butter, does it? Now? Did you have real butter or margarine? Do you know? Um? Whatever mama had, I don't know, because you don't need pepper

at all. This is delicious. Two seconds to make, two seconds easy for your kids to make. All right, let's do it this thing now, let's see, because normally I would have a fire. If you got real lucky, you put a little cheese in it, and you got your good old classic kids of here. No, your passion for music is going on all while you're young. You're burning tapes. Where does it take the next pivotal turn before you

become DJ? Who? Isma? Well, I mean in high school I used to program all the the when the varsity basketball team would run out, I used to sit back there and control the speaker and handle all that kind of stuff. So that's how I knew I was really interested in it, you know, like volunteered to do that. Yeah. Well, I was on the basketball team. I played ball, so I was always really like, man, we need music, we need some park while we run out, you know, so

I would. I really got into that, and the coach let me do it. He showed me the speaker and I taught myself how to use it. It It was this massive p a and then from there I just kind of learned. And there wasn't too many dj is at my school. M hm. So next time you put butter on it, huh. Yeah, this time, we're doing okay, all right, So you you start to peep that there's no DJs. There's not a lot of DJs. But I hear him on the radio and I see him, so I started.

You know, this was the MTV era, you know, b et the basement. I was sold in love with hip hop, the culture of hip hop and R and B. Like, I was just in love with it. So I just wanted to do more. And I was like, man, there's DJs. And growing up there was only one female DJ I knew, and that was Spinderella. Oh it wasn't you from like Salt Peppers, but she was, you know, she was an artist DJ. As far as like real club DJs and radio DJs, I didn't know any So did you desire

to fill that void? Yeah? I desired to fill that void because it was it was all boys and then growing up too like it was that same thing, that competition. All the boys that did have of the turntables didn't want to let me try it or do any of that. So I went and I saved up all my money mode lawns, wash cars, saved up all my bread and bought my first creative records, my first turntable, and it started teaching myself. You know, how did you know to do that? To go out in mo lawns and wash

cars like I was just hustler. Did you proparach your mom? Like mom, one day's equipment, she says no, and then you go out and hustle. Or you just said no, mom and dad's at work, I need these turntables. Mom

and dad's at work. Like I learned early on, don't ask them for nothing, because healthy were gonna say no. They were gonna say no. Even when it came to like high school and my my, the things that you typically get in high school, like the prom and the in the letterman jackets and all that stuff, I had to get it myself. So so becoming an entrepreneur was like second, Yeah, it was like you had to do it. You know, my mom and dad worked, so they showed me they worked, so I had to do the same.

Can we turn this down? This thing? These electric skillets ain't no Jo turned your boy up on her? So natural instinct you naturally and instinctually you just went to, Okay, I'm gonna hustle up my own stuff, so you door knock. Yeah, all my neighbors knew me and stuff, So I just got to hustling. Started working at fifteen years old, Soult shoes. I worked at the athletes Foot. I worked there for

eight years straight, became the manager. Just I was a hustler, saved up my bread and every night and every weekend, I would do any house party I could do, Like I DJed on washers and dryers upside down, trash cans before, like anything to get the job done. It didn't matter how much you were getting paid or did you do it, because I did it in the beginning, I just did it, did it, did it? And the money eventually came, you know, with the years of once it became a professional thing,

the money started coming in. So when would you have said, like when did you I guess how long did it take for you to go from doing it for free to actually like making money? Um, the money came kind of quick because you know, weddings and house parties those are long events and like they gotta pay you something. So it came. It came once I started like actually

getting good and I knew the music. It came within a year or two, A little bit of money, a little bit, a little bit did you have to did you were you always able to do hip hop music or did you have to do what? Oh? No, It took a long time for me to get to where I wanted to, and that's in the world of hip hop.

Like I had to play because I came from southern California where the the Hispanic population is massive it dominates, So I had to know how to play all the Spanish music, all the seventies funk, old school, that's like where I started. I couldn't wait until I could be able to do a full party and play hip hop like. That was my goal, you know what I mean, I really had to When did you have every papish like what was that? Do you remember your first time actually

being able to like play hip hop? I mean certain like parties is depending on who booked me. But it got really good when I finally broke into l A and got on the street team and did my first club. Like once I got into the world, I was able to start Okay, this is it right here, and this is when I knew, okay, I'm gonna do this. And I had three day jobs. I worked at That's how

I am right now. I worked at I worked at a Chicago title in the daytime, I worked at home depot at night, and then I worked at Coca Cola in the graveyard, you know. And then on the weekends where you working to like pay bills and pursue your dreams or where you like, why were you working so much? Yeah, I lived on my own since I was seventeen. I moved out at seventeen, you know, and just I was just a hustler and just had to pay bills. Never

I didn't like to ask my parents for nothing. I wanted to always take care of them because they worked so hard the whole lives. They still worked to this day and I'm still trying to make it so they don't gotta work no more. But yeah, I just hustling. And then, uh, I knew it was real when I got hired at the Street Team at Power one oh six, And that's when I officially quit my day jobs and I just took this. But the Street team didn't doesn't

really pay them nothing. So yeah, right back to eating this, right back to eating this kind of stuff. When I started do, when I when I made myself full time and you were willing to actually take a pay cut. Yeah, because I just really was so passionate about it. I don't know where the passion came from, but the passion came. Didn't You have to give up some of your lifestyle to to to do that? Well, I was never a flashy person, thank god. So were you like living in

my roommates because that's a big pay cut. Yeah, I had roommates. Definitely had roommates throughout the years and all that good stuff? You know? Did you have to explain? And I'm a little I'm a hustler like and plus you learn on street teams, you learn how to like talk to people in trade. I'm a great trader, barter some ship. That's how I am. Like, I can just give you, I'll get you these, you give me those like I did a lot of that coming from a

lot of that. I like that. Yeah, I know people that started on the street team level from d from djaying to go onto street team level. It's a lot of work. You think this work, I want we can. We're gonna try this because electric Skillet. I No, I'm scared. I'm scared by the way this is, sir right now. So this is just a simple kiss of thea you know, if you if you're really on a good day, you got cheese in the fridge, Like that's such a good thing.

So you get your cheese and you sprinkle it on some butter and you just roll it up same way, folded however you want to do it. This thing was really hot, so I didn't want to fold it roll it, so we folded it. And that's the second meal you can make. And like the same thing if you got some chili, guacamole, anything dipping into make it not so dry, and you know it work for you and kids taste bloods are really simple, so this kind of stuff always, you know, you know our kids are I'm a grown

up and I think this is awesome. Um now I have to have guacamola and SALTSA I can't, No, I can't. I need I need that spice. Well, guys, just for you listeners, I need the whole in butter. Like it was nothing simple, so simple, and it was delicious and she didn't need some on pepper. She also just made the cheese case of dia. So now you guys are probably thinking I'm fat at home, but I'm really not that big. The dessert should be easy. This should be simple. Yeah,

this is perfect, shredded cheese and tortilla. This is case of deal. You know, working three jobs, I ain't got no time come home real quick. I continue to eat these meals throughout. You know, I never went to fancy restaurants. Always assume you never ate a TV dinner. They're gross. I think TV dinners are pretty gross. I used to live on TV dinners. M hm. You know what. My mom always had hot pockets kinda kinda did you eat those a lot? I ate some hot pockets, Yeah, I

definitely remember hot pockets. These are fashion in hot pockets. Okay, so this is the dessert. This is like the easy part. It's eating everything. Put a little butter on there, and then sprinkle a little bit of cinnamon and a little bit of sugar, and it's like a a hood churl. If you ain't got the deep fried churls. If you're a kid, you don't want to do all that, all right? Can you sprinkle a little sugar, a little cinnamon, roll that thing up. Okay, cinnamon and sugar. My first. Now

I've had a case of dia. I've never had a butter tortilla roll and I've never had the cinnamon, and I hope I'm not jacking this up. Here he goes, that's just like that cinnamon, butter cinnamon, and then he's that spoon. There you go, Here we go, here we go. Let's see if it's I'm probably messing this up. Guys, there you go. Okay, you don't think alright? Sold the folding and so it don't drip because you know a little kids running around like that folds your in and

then roll it and then roll it. Now, let's see homemade version of a churl. Let's see if it's really tastes like a churl. It tastes like it tastes like a tortilla with butter, tastes like a tortillo with butter, cinnamon and sugar. But if you like the flavor of the you know, the cinnamon and tuggar, I guess, dude, I just realized just now that a churl is centament and trigger, but it still has a tortilla doesn't have. This is good though. Honestly, this is girlfriending. You know,

I think your kids would like that. I wouldn't have to do that ever, tried to on a date with a girl like I got an appetizer, I got the meal, and I have the dessert. I got you. I got you right now, girl, just basically what you just did. Yeah, you know, depending on if you like cinnamon sugar, I feel like there would always be a gigantic bottle of cinnamon just for months, right, or to be in there for years, so you don't have to count on having

cinnamon or sugar or something random. I love that this meal is affordable and no matter what age you are, you can make it. They'll flow you up. It takes two seconds to make. Yeah, you just fold it, roll it. What shall we name this? And you can run off the practice or whatever you needed to do. What should we name this tortilla with the cinnamon and sugar? What do we call it? It's good, I'm not gonna I'm gonna eat all years. That's pretty good right there. Mm hmmm.

Have you shown your daughter how to make this? I've shown her how to make all this? Yes, what are you gonna name this for the cookbook? But the cookbook m charismas cinnamon charismas centnamon to stick tortilla sticks. Yeah, we gotta work on it. Where you come out, We need your help. We need some help so we could turn off the stove. Because you basically cooked our appetizer, meal and dessert. We actually did it on an electric stove. I was worried. We did it, so shout out if

you got electric stove as possible. It is possible. And now I know that if I have tortillas in my house, I'll never started it at boom, I'm literally gonna start having to our days in my house. Shek They're good, they last, they last long, They're super easy to looks A whole dish right there is right there. We got the dessert, we got the main course, We've got the appetizer. You know what I mean. Easy, peasy easy, So come

over here and sit with me. So you go from working three day jobs in corporate America, so saying I want to put these jobs and pursue being a street Uh what do you call it? A street, um ambassador? I would say street working on the street team, working on the street team for Power one or six eight. So like I had no kids, you know what I mean? I was like, you know I had I knew what I was capable if I put my mind to it.

I was like, let me just do it, and that voice just spoke to me, and I did it and

fill that voice. Did you feel like there was good potentially gonna be uh like uh like a rainbow at the end of the journey or something, or did you just like doing it like you had you tried it at least it did part time and then you did the transition like I just already well, I mean I was doing it for a couple of weeks, and I knew because it was hard going from Santa and all the way to Bourbank, California, to the Media City where all the radio stations in L A. R And all

that good stuff. So I was like, I can't do this to quit my day jobs and come out here and just go for it. Wow. And so you're on the street team, You're working crazy hours, i'd assume, And what is power one all six? Are they noticing that you have these other skill sets at this point? Yeah, definitely. And the crazy thing is like remember ninety two point three the beat. In fact, I like applied to both of them for years, and for both of them, I

got rejection letters that I saved to this day. So it took me years before I finally got hired and you were just applying for street team level and they what do you think that was? Do you think it was because I had to I mean back then, this woman, Dad, I'm a woman. I'm not your with the men in the industry like type of woman. Real you know, you don't see me and a Leo. It's hard or nothing like I'm one of the tomboys, you know, So I'm definitely wasn't anything they were used to. But did they

actually interview you before they rejected you? Or did they see your resume come in and then reject you resumes? I did get an Inverury one time at ninety two point three. I'll never forget that, and uh yeah, I didn't get the job after that, but it was just, you know, kept trying to forget that because it was I actually went in there, and I'll never forget the

question that guy asked me. He's like, what would you do right now if you saw D'Angelo and like Maxwell in the hallway and I go it was like, you know question, and I wouldn't do anything else. I was just not, you know, because that's what they want. They don't want people that are group. He's you know, you gotta learn to act professional. So that was the one question that stood out to me. And he asked me what color is your brain? And I was like, what

color is your brain? I think it's pink. I don't know. I immediately said blue. Why I don't know? I go, I feel like my thought process in my aura is blue, like I don't know what it is water. And he's like, I love that answer, and he's like, that's the type of answer I'm looking for when I asked that question. He's like, when people tell me pink, they think more like logical, and I'm looking for her creatives. So that was interesting that he asked, I'll never forget that question.

But he didn't give you the job now, mm hmm. Though you like my answers, So how did you not say at that point, like, okay, maybe this is informed me and you just keep keep applying. I just I think God forgiving me this blinding like bubbly passion, you know what I mean in the beginning, because I really if I didn't have that, I would have never made it this far. Never, because this industry will eat you up. Why do you say that, because it's brutal, especially for

a woman. A brown skinned woman, like it's it's tough. It's really tough. So I'm just glad that he gave me that those blinders where I had, I had complete tunnel vision, you like new this is what I wanted. And it was also a competitive thing, like I'm gonna really show y'all, like you think I can't do it, Like, okay, I'm gonna show all, y'all. So you're on the Street Team,

You're doing us for how long? Years? Street Team for like three or four years, and then I was killing it, Like I was more popular than a lot of the on air guys because they have your call in right. No, we didn't even do that at this time anymore. They cut that out. By this time in radio was already changing. And this was when the Internet really came and you started having the birth of Spotify and all these other platforms. So radio started changing. So how did you end up

developing that following from Street Team to being outside. I was everywhere any high school, any college, like I just you never saw me sleep. I do events from night to day, didn't matter what kind of event, and really hustled and I got and I that's how I really knew what the kids wanted, and I always was tapped in with what the next level of kids wanted, and it just happened to be the jerking movement in the key movement. And I'll never forget. I went to Westminster

High School. We had a basketball game with Power six versus the School for Fun for charity, and I was like, please, I begged my boss, please please let the New Boys perform, like please, just give him one chance. I swear to God, I'm gonna show you. So he's like, alright, alright, alright, alright, So he let the New Boys come out do your jerk. The entire stadium, Like eight d kids swarmed the gymnasium floor and started jerking, and he just looks at me like and I was like, I told you, You've been

telling you. And then that's how I actually became on their DJ that very moment. He let me be on a because you And it's funny because this has come up before, and like another interview, people underestimate the power I think of the high school in the middle school demographic. The kids truth. They literally if you want to know if something sucks or as real, and they're searching, they're

literally searching. They're like, I dare you to try and sell me something, because I'm going to question the hell out of it. Right, I was that kid? Yeah, I was like, I got the brand new, unreleased Tupac mixtape, Volume one. You ain't got it? Like that was me. So I've always kept that mentality. And I know that the kids set the trends. So here you decided to approach your boss and say, take a chance on the

new Boys. Why were you so passionate about it? Where is it that you really wanted to give the kids a great event or did you really want to like show the radio station that they were they weren't really paying attention to something. I was very passionate about the culture of hip hop, you know what I mean? And that was a time I don't know if you remember this, but R and B changed. They went from R and

B to pop. Yeah, I remember that. And then hip hop did the same thing and went from hip hop to pop. And I'm like, this is not hip hop? Do you blame? This is not hip hop? I just have to ask you this. Then, I feel like played a major role in hip hop plant transitioning to popping. I think it was it was a bunch of things it went. It started with Pocket Biggie getting murdered and then the South taking over, and then it just like was event after event after event, and it changed a lot.

Do you feel like hip hop it's more pop now? We are pop music? I think because well popular pop it means popular and hip hop is the number one genre in the country for like the past three years now, for three or four years. So officially hip hop is pop because we are the most popular music. And that took people fighting for it and sticking up for it, because it did change. The sound became e d M

and up tempo. So that's why like people like me and the West Coast and Drew Ski and the and DJ self in the East Coast and Drama in the South, we kept it all alive. I really feel that DJs don't get enough credit because they don't understand what we were fighting with at the radio stations, like fighting against the bosses because they wanted the let's just be safe and play the Bruno Mars and then with listen, we're not gonna be open to the y g s. Who's

yg no, So it'll be you guys pushing it back. Yeah, back. It's a lot of pushback and back and forth. Why do you think that they were the unsung heroes. We don't get the credit never. DJs do not get the credit for what they do, especially radio DJs. Now, so there's street DJs and there's radio DJs. You have a background in both both. That was my my goal to I wanted to be able to do all of it. Okay, you know what I mean. Because there's different kinds of DJs.

There's DJs that are real technical. Back in the day, they used to have battles. You know, they don't see that too much anymore. You know. Then you have people who are just in the industry. Then you have people who are tapped in with the streets only. And I'm trying to I want to have it all. I want to be tapped into the clubs, the youth, the radio, everything, like I want to be tapped in. So the other night I was out with I Heart Radio shout out to y'all because they do. They had Paris Hilton DJ

is set. So I was like, no, I'm curious, Like I was genuinely like hopeful, Like for some strange reason, I was really hopeful for her. You know she's been DJ for years too. Years. Yeah the year says in like not as long as you, but maybe like what the last five years years? DJs for years because like I remember, a girl like me couldn't get booked. Those were the only type of women that would get booked

in Vegas. To this day, it's still like that. Well, I still can't get booked in Las Vegas, like they only book I don't even know if they're really DJ, and I think someone made it for him and they're just pushing it. Yeah. I've actually had tours and the they weren't really DJ. But now Paris Hilton did her set. If I had to rate it on like a one to ten, I probably would have rated it at like

a two. And I don't know if it's because I'm such a hip hop head or like I was just so hopeful for her and then like her, you know, I feel like the first track you drop is like it's gonna make or break you, you know what I'm saying. And I think she went for like maybe E d M or something. But I was hopeful, man, I was, you know what I'm saying. Most female DJs are E d M DJs as said, I don't have too many. I really didn't have no one to look up to

outside of Spinderella. Did you did you give you her ap parents ELTs on set? I've seen clips of them, so I already know what it is. You know, I get it, de rate it? What would you rate it? Though? I mean, that's E D M. I'm not okay, So I'm so it's not fair to rate it because it's adi um. So I'm telling like, try if you're a DJ out there and you've never mixed medium, tried it. It's easy as can be. Just it all rolls together. There's no lyrics, really simple. So hip hop's a little

more challenging. Reggae and Spanish is a way more challenging if you're ask me. But so you become a radio DJ after the New Boys even by the way, shout out to the New Boys, I love them. That was Actually they're one of the first people that I had, Like, what do you call it? When he smoked weed, car fills up? Hot box? Hot box you j J? Hot box me shout out J. Yeah, he hot boxed me.

I think I was like sad about a breakup and he was like, you know, he was signing Nick Cannon and they were all doing that whole thing in He was like, oh, you just come to the back and I get in the car, and boy, I mean, your eyes was burdening. It was impossible not to get high. I think that was the first real time I got high, and then it would have been perfect. Right after and I think I had another incident with them where I

don't even remember, but it had involved weed. Yeah, but they were great, and I was kind of sad to see the breakup of them. It was like, work it out, work it out, work it out. A lot of these groups they couldn't work it out. It was, you know, so you become this huge radio DJ. But it was it was it a smooth transition, Like what was that transition? Like it happened fast once they let me in the

doors and put me on. It was fast because all of a sudden, I started coming out, all right, here's new boys, meet yg Meat Mustard and Ty Dollars sign here you go, and they were the next one's boom and then it was teach me how to cat Daddy. And I also was in the bay. Here's the heartbreaking I am too stage Gemini, all these cats, one after another, one after another, one after another. Now did you know these artists? Or I just you hit him up on my Space back in the day Facebook shout out to

my Space and just reached out. I was never scared to reach out. I was really hungry and passionate and I just did it. Yeah. Like I said, I had tunnel vision. I was really blind to what people were saying or anything. I just did it. That's how I got DJ Charisma. I emailed her, I called some close acquaintances, and then eventually I landed in the d M. We here and we here, And because she wasn't initially really responded to the DM. Just so ya know, I had like inside a friend do a group d M, and

I was like, oh, this is gonna do it. And it worked. So give me all my d ms ladies. And for some reason, my DM is broken into three categories. Oh I know there's like one where why did they put these? The other day I went in there and like Trino was in there, like what she send me a message three years ago? Like what is this? So I apologize, I'm gonna get better at it. Yeah. I don't know why it does that because I did notice I'll miss d ms and it goes into like that

third little bucket. But I don't know if you have to follow them to get it to not. I do follow some of them, so I don't. I'm trying to figure it out. Instagram, Yeah, Instagram is tough, but hey, you know what, we finally got DJ Charisma and then like made my day. I was like, yes, I got her, I got her, and then I was demon her. You got the email, You're gonna be there, you gonna come from. But being a radio DJ is tough. And then like eating while broke is something you're gonna have to do

if you want to get into the radio game. Yes, so you go from street to mainstream. People are now listening to your advice. There's no competitive there's no I don't know because there's tons of competitive business. But it's always just keep it going. Okay, the competitives never stopped. It still goes on in this day. Okay. So too, in addition to the radio, you're doing side gigs. You're blowing up. I'm sure your fee is going up. Your now the feast stayed the same, you know, you know,

it's harder. I'm really trying to fight for equal pay for women, especially in the radio industry. It's mind blowing the difference. It's like a fourth of what the men's make. Just what it is. That's why I personally quit both radio stations and walked away from radio because it was just mind blowing to me how big of a gap there wasn't the pay difference, but my name was just

as massive and way bigger than most of them. And then other guy DJs were like, Yo, this is what I'm getting paid, and you just me, just me, they no one ever told me like. It was just me figuring things out, you know, because I had a couple of office spots here and there where I was able to, damn you make they're making this, they're making what all right? I need? I need? I need at least a fifth of that or something, because I was making like a fraction of what they make. So that's why I left

Power one of six and went to my heart. And you know, my heart was a tabit better. But once I figured out the inside workings, I blown away. I'm still only making a fourth of what these men are making, you know what I mean. So that's why I ended up walking away from my heart and then just started getting into programming for all these tech companies because there's so many options now a DJ, we could go to Spotify and program these massive playlists, and it's kind of

the same thing. So you go, you mean, so you'd work for a spot up, Well, you don't work for Spotify, but I guess you get a contract and then you program a playlist, which multiple they're they're like stations playlist. But that's how you're basically supplementing the income that you're really supposed to be making. And begin with how is

this still possible? In two thousand and twenty one, though, coming back to I ended up coming back to radio just because I'm so passionate about it because in Nick Canyon like, yeah, you're the only DJ I can have. Yeah, I really don't want to do radio. I was so excited when I heard it. I was like, Dick cannon More's with DJ. I was like, what Christmas? Unfortunately COVID hit and there was just a rough Yeah, of course nothing going on. So but the pay is still it's

still a battle. It's still a battle to get with these men get, you know, and I'm fighting so the next little girls don't have to have as part of a battle as I did. I've officially accepted that I'm that person because there was no female DJ like me before me. You threaten them, you think they would be willing to lose you, because didn't. They happened with like I want to say, big Boy years ago, like where

what radio station was? He did leave. He left, and he and they could pay him the whole time, and they didn't. And then they tried to come back around and offer him the money and it was too late. And then they tried to assume him, didn't they Do you remember that? Yep? I remember all that. So Big Boy did that, you know, And I tried to follow his footsteps and the exact same thing, and they were like, okay, well we'll challenge it. No, the power was like well

and then you went time. They just try to convince me to stay, you know, like, oh maybe in a couple of years. You don't understand how hard it is once you leave, like people will stop calling you. It's it's a lot of mind game. It's a lot of threats. What did you think when they're saying that, all right, I'm gonna show you. So I quit and I ended up going to our heart and things got a little bit better, but still their sharks there and they're big.

They're like McDonald's, they're they're a corporation, and they got all these stations all over the country and they run them all so and then once I got in there, I saw, Okay, they're a little bit. They treated me better to get me, to steal me away from power, but they're not taking care of me nowhere near the way I should be taken care of. And I think that's a tough battle as a woman because women's biggest I think women's biggest downflaw is we struggle with our

networth or not our net worth? Are worth? Are worth? Are worth? Is? Ultimately, I say, the biggest dilemma woman face. It's not man, it's not love. It is literally self worth. So you have to live in a world where you're undervalued right period, off top and you have to jump. You have to know you're worth, you're worth, and then

you gotta stand by stand by it. It's just the most difficult win the press and when not to press too hard because like Nicki Minaj said it best, like if jay Z goes into a meeting nam this needs to get done. He's a boss. She goes into a meeting and starts breaking it down. She's a bit And that's like definitely what it is for us. So it's

really finding that balance. I had to cater to these guys egos that are your bosses, but holding your ground, you know, I think what you're drunk like, I'm honestly like, but it takes it. It takes people to pave the way. And like I said, I've accepted that I'm the one they because now look at how many female DJs there are, It's beautiful. I've never seen this many female DJs in hip hop. It's a beautiful thing, like, and they're successful on all different levels and I've never seen that when

I was coming up. So I think that's some change has been made. Change has been made. Thanks thanks to you and your contributions. Now, I ain't gonna lie the Jamakan means Hella piste off because I feel like, um, what the funk? Like, you know, we had to me to error, Like we've survived so much. I feel like women is like the you know, between the black black lives or black racism and women, I don't know who has it worse. To be honest, it's just different and we all got it. We all got it work. We're

all set behind that that that invisible white life. Because literally even when I left Heart my Heart, there was a white man that got the exact same position as me and kid got paid double what I was making. You know what I mean? For this is that protects people from that or not? But we gotta keep pushing. Is there a union? You might be right, but I'm a DJ. We don't even have insurance. You know what I mean? This is like, wow, self independent? You guys

are independent, correct, I left know what it's like. We don't get you, We don't get none of that. We got to figure this out. And I feel like things are changing. Feel I've heard of companies that are being created, so eventually, like I said, I think feel eventually there

will be more. I think you're dispelling so many myths because when you hear someone on the radio and you see someone like DJ Charisma, you're like, oh my god, DJ Charisma huge, following, big parties, Chris Brown every night, and like literally like stuff that you're saying here, like I would never say, I would never even imagine that you DJ Charisma goes through this and gets eight dollars an hour at power one six never made more than

forty eight dollars every two weeks. Like it's rough, that's crazy, that's a crazy journey. So how long have you been in DJ now? It's almost sixteen years, sixteen since I started starting. So if you decide like say like f this, Like I'm like, what is your bar? Like where you're like f this? And then you just you go a hundred percent independent, Like what does that scope look like? I mean, that's what I did when I quit radio, and I when there's so many options nowadays, we're in

a great time in era. Technology is booming. There are so many platforms now and these tech companies will pay triple what a traditional radio station is paying. So I feel like it is just so much more opportunity. And do they reach out to reach out to them? Both? But like I like your hustle. Yeah, And I think that you came from mud and flower Tortilla's case of Dias wearing nothing but thirty and a gangster. Can we call it the gangster church gangster churro. I don't know,

we're going We're gonna figure it out. We need your help. We need your help. I love that you came through and you dispelled probably every thought that I even I honestly had no idea what the life of a DJ was. You want to be a DJ, you better get used to eating while broke, you know what I'm saying. And if you are one of the lucky ones that become did you finally passed that bar? I passed that bar, then it's it'll all pay off. Look at Kalin, like he broke huge walls. He's the first of his kind

in so many ways. But he was like name dropping his name only like I don't know how he was able to. He eatd a lot. He was a curator. He was the brain that said, let's put you you, you and together you would sound good on this A and our work and a lot of DJs we don't get our and our credit, you know what I mean? So do you guys stick together? Who the DJs? Yeah? I feel the DJs do a lot of us, you know what I mean. For the most part, I get a lot of love from a lot of the males,

especially outside of the West Coast. So I'm gonna ask another controversial question. I hate to keep bringing her up. But now I'm curious, so you walking through Parashilton walks in the room. Now she's a he. She doesn't even need the money. I'm muna say, looking at from outside, she's obviously gonna make more just because she's white, right of course, off to say that, right, And she's famous,

she's paras Hilton song. But you're also famous. I mean you're She's getting big, big, big, massive checks that hip hop DJs do not get. And that's another thing like I'm I'm also pushing forward is to hip hop DJs. We need the same respect as these international DJs. It's just mind blowing, like a DJ snake in them. They're getting a hundred K a set a hip hop DJ, you're fucking lucky if you get a thousand? Yes what yes, there, you're lucky. And those DJs in Vegas? Who's who's that

big DJ in Vegas? It was a big DJ Vegas? What's his name? Who? Why are you telling me who's a hip hop? Big hip hop? Not a hip hop? It was hip hop. They're all E d M DJs, all of them. So why why don't you, for lack of better words, a passionate about hip hop. Okay, so because you're passionate about hip hop, you're not gonna sell out. I'm not gonna sell out. I'm passionate. I'm gonna change things. So someone's like, I've been told that. I have been

told that to my face plenty of times. Like when I was the first time we are a dish, I was having an audition for Beats by Dre Headphones and it was me versus one of my co workers. A man. He's like, Christmas, You're gonna get nowhere in this industry. He's like, first of all, it's like the way you dressed. He's like, you're a tomboy. And then goes and then he's like all you do is vouch for the hood, you got for the streets. And he's like, it's gonna

get you nowhere. He's like, you're gonna learn. He's like, you're gonna see. He's like, you need to be doing E d M sets, and you need to be doing pop and international sets. And I didn't were looking at him like fuck, You're like you know, I'm like, nah, I love hip hop funk that you guys will culture vulture it because you catch these E d M DJs using hip hop pieces constantly, you know what I mean? So nah, but how do you cope with that? Mentally though?

Like that would be difficult challenge me, Like I always look at everything as a challenge, and I always feel like everyone's challenging me. All right, cool? And then I ended up getting that gig that day and he didn't. By the way, guy ended up being featured in Best Buys Christmas catalog, you know, And it was just that was the start, and then that confirmed my thoughts to likec I got this gig over your heirs, I'm gonna

keep doing what I do. I look at the world and I see social media and I feel like everything that's negative or sexual like does really well. Then you have like our podcast Eating Broke. You know, it's like, oh, for lack of better word, we're more on the positive achievement, positive stories, but you know, we're in the world where you're constantly based like maybe we should do something controversial,

like why are we gonna stay loyal? Now? Of course this is my baby, so I'm gonna stay loyal to it. But it's hard to wake up every day going and you're competing against a girl in a bikini. You're competing against sexual stuff, for negative stuff. You just gotta put them tonal vision glasses on the go, because that's exactly what I was against, and I didn't. You know what I mean, I love it, and I mean for all your little girls out there that are just like me,

we could do it. Kah me and while broken broken, I respect you and like you inspire me. Straight up, let's go, so Charisma, where can we catch you? Where can we find you? How can people book you if they wanted to? I mean, just shoot your shot shot, I try a d M or you know, as somebody like I do. My best answer, Uh, you can catch me if you're out in the southern California area. I'm on your radio all the time. I'm also on Series XM.

I gotta show every Saturday night called Live from the West Side, and that's national, so no matter where you're at in the country, you can tune into that. I like, I got more music coming. I got a brand new song with Little Kim on the Way. Yeah, we shot the video and everything, so it's got Little Kim coil Ray, Lady London. It's like a Ladies night. Yeah, it's just special to me because it's something I've been wanting to

do for years. When does it drop? It's I'm waiting on the clearances, so any day now, like we're just waiting on those clearances to go through. That's coming. It's called she Ball. You can actually hear it in the name. It's in the movie. It's the theme song of the movie, so it does play a little bit. You can hear it. Waiting for that to come out. Just trying to be a game changer. You know, I got a lot of stuff I'm working on. I got my own cannabis line.

Now got my own string, my Charisma strain. So where can people up to Charisma and eat broke? You can get us to benj. You heard that she got our own straight. If you're out here in California, you can get it. All the cookies. Shout out to my brother Bernard, thank you for letting me being all the cookie stores. I'm at all this easy stories. I'm at a lot of stories out here. But if you catch me, you can get it. You know what I mean. Look for

me and I'm always in the clubs. I'm always somewhere DJ follow my Instagram at DJ Charisma, Always outside come, stay, what's up? I don't bite. She definitely doesn't bite, and I think the damns work fine for me. But definitely follow her. Check her out anywhere you you gag sister podcasts, right huh for your national syndicated serious call. Yeah, what's what it's called? Life on this It's a mixed show. It's not a podcast. It's good music. You want me

to do? You want to tune in for two hours and here some hot new ship like every Saturday night on Hip Hop Nation series XIM, hip Hop Nation Series x M. You heard it here. Just follow me on d follow me on Instagram, Follow her on Instagram where you can keep it put all okay, perfect al right? Joe Peace. For more Eating while Broke from I Heart Radio and The Black Effect, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows while Broke