224. Shaq Jones on Dance, DJing and Curation

Shaq Jones, aka Scottie Pigeon, is a dancer and DJ.

Jones uses his platform to center the experience of Black men in the arts. He grew up in North Omaha and attended Lincoln University of Missouri, a historically Black college, where he led the school’s dance troupe before graduating in 2017. He returned to Omaha and began collaborating with various performing arts organizations around town, including AP’s Legacy Dance Studio, the annual Omaha Beautillion event, Omaha Performing Arts and Opera Omaha.

Scottie Pigeon is Jones’ DJ persona. He began teaching himself the skill in 2019 at the encouragement of his father, who is also a DJ. 

The Union for Contemporary Arts selected Jones for the 2024 Inside/Outside Fellowship, where his work centered on sound and movement exploration.

Jones and Michael Griffin are talking about where Jones finds inspiration, how his dance and DJ experiences inform each other, and how he uses his work to curate emotional experiences for an audience.