How Adaptability Saved One of the Wildest Shows I’ve Ever DJ’d
One thing I’ve learned about live events is that sometimes the audience only sees the final product… not everything it took to get there. People see the lights, the performances, the crowd reactions, and the clips that get posted afterward. What they usually don’t see is everything happening behind the scenes while people are scrambling to make the night come together in real time.
1K Phew’s annual Phew Day Bash this past weekend was one of the clearest reminders I’ve had of that.
The wild part is… I wasn’t even originally part of the concert.
A few hours before the show, I was sitting in a new members class at church when I received messages from Torey D’Shaun and Gully.
“Yoooo you free today bro?? Phew needs a DJ!”
There wasn’t much time to think about it. No long preparation process. No detailed planning. Just a last-minute opportunity that needed somebody ready to step in and make it happen.
Thankfully, I was available.
When I arrived at the venue, it immediately became clear that this was going to be one of those nights. 😅 One of the venue’s speakers had already gone out, so the team was trying to secure a last-minute sound system and soundman before doors opened. At the same time, the original host of the event had an emergency and suddenly couldn’t make it anymore. Everybody was moving quickly trying to adapt while the countdown to showtime kept getting shorter.
Then we realized something else…
The church had completely run out of tables for my DJ setup.
At that point, there’s no use stressing. You just start solving problems one at a time. Fortunately, everybody involved was willing to adapt and do whatever needed to be done to keep the night moving.
While waiting for things to get sorted out, I helped hang backdrops for the VIP photo-op section while also trying to retrieve and organize music for the openers and 1K Phew’s set. Meanwhile, VIP ticket holders were already lined up outside waiting to enter. Time was moving fast, and it felt like everything was happening at once.
Once 1K Phew arrived, we immediately jumped into soundcheck. Even though I’ve DJ’d for dozens of Christian Hip-Hop artists over the years, I’d actually never worked with or even met 1K Phew before that night. But with time running short, there wasn’t time for many formalities. We had to get to work quickly.
During soundcheck, some of the wireless microphones started cutting out. Thankfully, I had extra AA batteries in my bag, so we swapped them out and kept moving. Problem after problem kept showing up, but everybody continued adapting.
Immediately after soundcheck, VIP guests started filing in for photos with 1K Phew while I DJ’d music in the background. At the exact same time, I was still organizing music for the openers. I hadn’t even fully gotten dressed for the show yet. My masks and some of my stage gear were still sitting underneath my DJ table because there simply wasn’t enough time anymore.
At a certain point, you stop focusing on perfection and just focus on execution.
During the VIP session, Boost Radio’s Nteg stepped in as a last-minute host. We previewed some unreleased 1K Phew tracks while fans took pictures and vibed out. Even with all the behind-the-scenes chaos, the energy in the building was already starting to grow.
Then the concert officially started.
I DJ’d for all 10 openers while continuing to manage transitions and keep momentum throughout the night. Then, in the middle of one of the performances, another speaker and subwoofer suddenly went out. The room was getting hot, and the soundman believed the equipment overheated because the packed crowd was pushing the air conditioning to its limit.
At that moment, we had no choice but to improvise.
To buy time while the sound issues were being fixed, 1K Phew came out and started doing karaoke games with the crowd. Honestly, that unexpected moment probably made the night even more memorable. Instead of the energy completely dying, the crowd stayed engaged, laughed, participated, and kept the atmosphere alive while everything got sorted out.
Eventually the sound came back, and it was finally showtime.
1K’s manager came by and handed me a song to cue up for a surprise guest while fans started chanting, “1K PHEW! 1K PHEW!”
Then I realized something…
I’d never received a microphone, and nobody had told me whether I was supposed to start the surprise song first or begin 1K Phew’s actual set.
Everybody was trying to coordinate in real time while the crowd’s energy kept building.
Then I heard 1K Phew from the side of the stage:
“Start my set first.”
I hit play. And it was on.
The set exploded out of the gate with “HUH?” from 1K Phew’s new Any Given Sunday album, and immediately the entire energy in the room shifted. After spending the whole night navigating problems, troubleshooting equipment, organizing music, and adapting on the fly, it finally felt like everything locked in at once.
From there, the crowd went crazy as the set rolled through records like “MOVE IT!” and “Kung Fu.” At one point, we transitioned into a Bone Thugs-N-Harmony “Crossroads” melody that blended into “Speed Racer” and “Show Love,” which gave the whole set this unexpected mix of nostalgia and high-energy momentum.
One of my favorite moments was hearing the crowd react when the Swag Surfin-inspired section transitioned into the Zaytoven-produced “LORD JESUS.” The room was already hot and packed by that point, and between the crowd’s energy and me jumping around behind the DJ table, my jacket was completely drenched in sweat. Somehow though, the energy in the building just kept climbing higher.
Then came tracks like “Favorite Trapper” featuring Young Dro, “Back Then,” and “Million Dollar Baby” blended into “Back Soon,” keeping the crowd fully engaged from beginning to end.
By the time the night closed out with the high-energy “Let Go Let God” anthem, the room was completely alive.
Honestly, standing there in that moment felt surreal considering how chaotic everything had been just hours earlier. What started as a last-minute booking with nonstop problems behind the scenes somehow transformed into one of the most memorable live concert experiences I’ve been part of in a long time.
Then came one of the biggest moments of the night.
After the crowd had already spent the entire set jumping, rapping along, and feeding off the energy in the room, 1K Phew surprised everybody by bringing out Torey D’Shaun to perform “Same Ole.” The second Torey touched the stage, the crowd erupted.
Standing there during that moment, I couldn’t help but think about how many things almost went wrong throughout the night. Most people in the crowd probably had no idea how much was being adjusted behind the scenes in real time. From speaker issues to missing equipment to last-minute changes, it easily could’ve turned into a frustrating experience for everybody involved.
Instead, it turned into one of the most memorable live concert experiences I’ve DJ’d in a long time.
Not because everything was perfect.
But because everybody adapted.
Moments like that remind me that professionalism isn’t always about having perfect conditions. Sometimes it’s about staying calm under pressure, solving problems quickly, and still finding a way to create an unforgettable experience for people.
That’s live entertainment.
That’s DJ life.
And honestly… those are usually the nights people remember the most.
📌 Read more about Andre Arkade’s touring experiences in his interview with Rolling Out
