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SayphoniK = Trance and progressive (myspace.com/sayphonik)

Venice Blvd. = Prog House/Trance

Dj LaOboYy aka S.I.L.87 = Funky/Trancey Breaks

Still a teenager, Laoboyy is one of the youngest breaks DJs in the Northwest. Don't let his age fool you though, Laoboyy can keep up with the best of them. Known for producing his own funky breaks remix tracks, get ready for a trip down memory lane!

Interview with a journalism student, Lisa Wong

SEATTLE, Wash. – With the flip of a switch, a throaty female voice entwined with a fast-paced bass-thumping beat resonates in the warm, muggy air. In a living room meant for less than 20 people, 60 people ranging from 17-to-29-year-olds cram into the room like a can of sardines.

In stark contrast from a mellow crowd adorning plain-colored shirts and track jackets, a girl wearing overalls with a multi-colored Rainbow Brite shirt spins glow sticks maddeningly in the middle of the room. Philip Saypanya stands at the back of the living room. Focused with head phones on, Saypanya barely notices any of the commotion in front of him as his fingers effortlessly spin records, switches, and dials on the turntables. The crowd erupts in a roar of approval.

At 19, Philip Saypanya, better known as DJ LaOboYy, is the youngest disc jockey and producer in Seattle’s shrinking electronica scene. Having lived a rollercoaster life of trouble with the law, school, family, and drugs, Saypanya overcame it all when his career as a disc jockey reached a point of maturation that occurred synonymously with his 18th birthday. Music, Saypanya admitted, saved him.

The small “rave party” at Saypanya’s friend’s house in Kent, Wash. ended around 2 am. At first glance, you wouldn’t know that Saypanya has played on the radio already or that he’s spun alongside trance superstars The Warp Brothers and DJ Irene. At 5 feet 6 inches, Saypanya is skinnier than your average male with a jaw structure that reflects his Laotian heritage. His shy, child-like demeanor however, exposes a cheeky sense of humor.

Saypanya appeared calm after four hours of nonstop record spinning. Smoking a Camel Wide Filter outside the Kent house, he smiles sheepishly as he recounts his first steps in the journey of becoming a DJ.

“I have a huge history,” Saypanya laughed. He took another drag. “They [his parents] always thought I was a badass when I got into some kinda trouble.”

It was a life of nonstop moving. Born in Charlotte, N.C., Saypanya’s parents divorced when he was 8 years old and shuffled him from state to state to keep Saypanya away from drugs, gangs, and run-ins with the law. “My mom and I moved to Modesto, Calif. when I was in the fourth grade. I got into trouble there from smoking cigarettes and gang stuff,” Saypanya said. “This gang was after me ‘cause they wanted to jump me in.”

His family in California, which included his mother, grandparents, sister, cousins, and uncles, sent Saypanya on another move, this time to Seattle with his mother. Thing were going ok, Saypanya said, until the end of his sixth grade there. That’s when he threatened another student and was consequently expelled from the Seattle School District.

According to Saypanya, it all went downhill from there. His expulsion from the Seattle School District caused another move back to North Carolina. “In seventh grade I started smoking hella weed,” Saypanya said. “I dropped E [ecstacy], I was selling drugs in school, and got sent to boot camp by the school.”

However dismal his future looked, it was in seventh grade that Saypanya first discovered his two passions, computers and electronic music. It was then that Saypanya’s stepbrother had him listen to a trance song called “Thunder in Paradise” by international chart-toppers ATB. “There were no words in the song, but it was kinda catchy,” Saypanya said. “After that, I started getting into the breakbeat scene cause it sounded ‘trancey’ and freestyle at the same time.”

Saypanya fused his two passions and since the seventh grade, has been remixing songs on the computer.

With his newfound hobby, Saypanya said his life took a slight turn for the better, despite family problems and other troubles.

“In eighth grade I was still down in North Carolina, but I calmed down a lot,” Saypanya said. “I got into less trouble, but then there were family issues, bad parenting problems.”

After a short move to California to live with his sister, Saypanya finally settled down in Seattle with his mother in 10th grade. Through an Asian networking site similar to Myspace, Saypanya met Tony Nguyen, 21, a close friend who has supported Saypanya’s music career and helped him network with club promoters.

“I think he is very passionate and knows that he wants to evolve his DJing hobby into a career,” Nguyen said. “I’ve been to almost every single gig he’s been booked to support him.”

Club promoters began to offer Saypanya DJ opportunities as he started attending local raves. At 16, Saypanya played his first professional gig at an outdoor rave and subsequently released a CD entitled Tranzluscent Studio Mix 001.

Raves, or electronica music shows, are events where DJs spin electronic music until early-morning hours. Such events range from small house parties, rave parties in abandoned warehouses, to large professionally promoted events at venues such as Seattle’s Qwest Field and club Studio B.

Encouraged, Saypanya was offered another chance at showing off his talent. At a rave entitled Divalicious 5 averaging 3,000 people at club Studio B, Saypanya played alongside DJ Irene, a renowned DJ in the electronica scene. Other opportunities also arose; Saypanya played at two other major raves and produced a live album recorded at one of his shows.

At a rave from the view on the dance floor, Saypanya said he looked up towards the DJ booth and in that moment, realized his “true calling.”

“I said to myself, ‘One day I’m gonna be up there, I’m gonna play up there no matter how long it’s gonna take,’” Saypanya recalled.

Victor Cape, a veteran DJ of Chinese ethnicity named DJ Whistler, was one of the people who gave Saypanya a chance to get “up there” in the DJ booth.

“He [Saypanya] always had the talent, but no one actually gave him the opportunity to strut his stuff,” Cape said. “I got him a main stage slot at a New Year’s Eve show.”

In larger raves at bigger venues, the more popular DJs usually play on the main stage rather than on stages in the side rooms.

“DJ Whistler is one of the very few people I looked up to as a local DJ cause he’s Asian,” Saypanya said. “You don’t see too many big Asian DJs out there.”

Despite Saypanya’s epiphany and newly found goals, his troubles weren’t over entirely. Traffic violations started to pile up at his door.

“My only troubles came from driving,” Saypanya said. “When I started driving, I got hella tickets, getting pulled over left and right. I got my first DUI when I was 17 and the last one recently when I was 18.”

With an inkling sense of fear that his troubled past would return, Saypanya turned to music to help him refocus.

“Music is my only escape from anything,” Saypanya said. “If something happens and I need to get my head straight, I just sit in front of the computer, browsing and finding new songs. Either that or I’m mixing a new track. Nothing can bother me.”

After his last DUI offense and 18th birthday, Saypanya said he knew it was “time to grow up.”

“I didn’t calm down until I turned 18. That’s when everything toned down,” Saypanya said. “I’ve just been trying to stay out of trouble.”

Gigs started pouring in. With a large and growing list of venues asking Saypanya to play for them, Saypanya has gained even bigger notoriety within the Seattle electronica music scene.

Seattle trance radio station C-89.5 FM offered Saypanya a spot to play live at the studio. He’s come back to play on air a total of four times, the last of which was a solo slot.

Playing at larger raves and shows alongside idols like Kirsty Hawkshaw, Thomas Datt, Dj Irene, Dj Jean, and The Warp Brothers helped him climb the steps of local stardom.

It wasn’t the fame or money however, that changed his bad habits. Saypanya said money was a trivial incentive, especially when he receives only $100 to $200 per show. His passion for music is what motivated him to “come clean” and pursue his DJ career.

“I spin because it’s a way to express myself. I love the music and I love the people and it’s just a passion of mine,” Saypanya said. “Promoters don’t have to pay me…I do it because I want to do it.”

Nguyen agrees and said Saypanya’s passion is genuine. “He enjoys what he’s doing and seems like he feels a lot for the music which I admire,” Nguyen said. “On top of that he can bring out the crowds.”

Saypanya’s dedication and commitment has also inspired others to start DJ careers of their own. Janice Chae, 21, a former student of Saypanya’s who goes by the name DJ Haeyooni, is grateful for his insight in helping her further her own career.

“He influenced me to keep practicing so that someday I’ll be able to play at a big event,” Chae said.

As for his work so far, Saypanya has refined his genres to include hard trance, break beats, progressive house, trance, drum and bass, and freestyle. He has released seven CDs to date and is planning on compiling a freestyle CD for his next album.

“I might put together an old school freestyle CD ‘cause freestyle is what influenced me to begin with,” Saypanya said. “That’s how it got me to where I am now.”

If anything, Saypanya’s struggle has not only proven him worthy of the success he’s gained, but has also motivated others in achieving dreams of their own.

“A lot of random people come to me to say I’ve inspired them to DJ,” Saypanya said. “If I can touch a life in any way, whether it’s through music or by being me, that makes me really happy.”

Special thanks to Rod aka Soulkid, Victor aka Dj Whistler, and to everyone who helped and supported me until now, I'd name more but that would take days! You guys know who u are!!

Affiliations: BazSiC Elements, Lovetribe, and Televisionary Recordings

Contact info:

For booking inquiries contact Linda at:

Download FULL QUALITY mix here FREE hosted on Megaupload:

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=NV23GY8I

Here are some of my past mix cds from oldest (top) to newest (bottom). Just click on the banner to download that particular cd. If you get confused, the server is megaupload.com and NO you DO NOT have to sign up or pay anything. Enter the captcha box on the top right to continue which will bring you to the download page where you will have to wait a few seconds!!! its a legitimate space and i promise it wont bite =) Just follow the instructions/read!!!! ENJOY!!!!!!

The newest debut mix under Venice Blvd!!!!

Free individual LaOboYy aka S.I.L.87 Bootlegs!!

Ne Yo - Because Of You (LaOboYy RMX)

Daft Punk - Work It Harder (LaOboYy RMX)

Adain - Beautiful Things (LaOboYy RMX)

Way Out West - Mindcircus (LaOboYy RMX)

The Outfielders - Use Your Love (LaOboYy RMX)

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