Today we’d like to introduce you to Cristian Gomez (DJ CRG).
Hi Cristian, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I was born and raised in Houston, TX and as a young boy music was no stranger to me, yet little did I know DJing would ever be my career path. When I was in middle school and high school, I was the kid who would make and pass around mixtapes for the other kids at school, you know that guy! I was an avid music festival attendee where I would gain inspiration from many different musical artists and genres. My passion for music carried over once I started college at The University of San Antonio where I would host large college parties and curate a playlist of my favorite party songs to play, and they were always a hit! One day I found a Vestax TYPHOON controller at a garage sale and right there in that moment started the spark that then lit the fire for my passion for DJing. I remember sitting there playing around with the controller for hours, days on end learning about transitioning, BPMs, EQ, etc. Soon enough, I started doing small gigs for free, just for fun, DJing my own parties, opening shows just to get my name out there.
Year 2013 my world turned upside down and I was diagnosed with stomach cancer. This was the hardest year of my life as the unimaginable happened but fortunately I was able to beat cancer. That year was a huge reflection point for me, I started to think about the things that truly made me happy and didn’t want to waste another day doing what I didn’t love doing, so I made the decision to dropout of college and follow my passion for music and DJing. Now you can only imagine what my parents’ thoughts were on my decision, but little did I know this was about to be the greatest decision of my life, opening up so many doors in the future.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I wish I could say it was smooth sailing once I decided to dropout of school and start my new career journey but it was far from it. I was so close to graduating, and I remember always questioning my decision, should I have stayed in school? Finished up my last year? Self doubt and impostor syndrome started to settle in. I had to start all over from the bottom to gain experience and build my resume. I went out constantly to learn from and improve my skills by listening to other DJs and people’s reactions. I took a lot of free gigs or gigs with very little pay just to build my brand. During this time, I was in major debt from all the medical bills after having cancer, so I was working hard to pay those off, selling off my shoe collection to pay rent. I still remained hopeful and determined that I made the right decision to pursue this career path and that’s what got me through those rough years. I felt like I found my purpose.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am proud to say that I am the Assistant Entertainment Director for Trinity Hospitality Group here in Austin. We own Summit Rooftop, Parlor Room, Key Bar, Ah Sing Den, and the iconic Bungalow (RIP). I manage the entire DJ/artist booking and scheduling process, sound operations, and private event production and management for all the venues. I love working with this team because we work together as a collective and it allows me to also DJ at all of those venues during the weekend.
I’m extremely proud after moving to Austin five years ago, to be able to say I can do this full time, travel all over the US for bookings, and also be respected by many DJs all over the world as a top music editor working with Club Killers as an editor. The amount of opportunities that have been presented to me here are unimaginable and I am forever grateful. I’m proud to say I have DJ’d in almost every major venue here in Austin. The culture of this city is a big part of what inspires me and my music.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I’m not one to believe in luck, however I do know that hard work, perseverance, determination, and resilience can open up doors for you in the future. My success is a direct reflection of this as I never gave up, no matter how many no’s I received, and how lonely the journey may have felt at times.
Contact Info:
- Email: djcrginfo@gmail.com
- Website: djcrg.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/djcrg/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DJCRGmusic
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/djcrgmusic
