DJ Beverly Bond is one of the most respected and in-demand DJ’s on the scene having worked for such diverse clients as Jay-Z, Martha Stewart, P. Diddy, and Britney Spears.  She stands out not only because she’s a beautiful former model behind the turntables, but mainly because she’s a talented DJ with a unique skill for spinning her eclectic tastes into one jamming harmony suitable for the dance floor of Heaven. 

For the past two years, DJ Bond has been focused on turning the tables not only to change the beat but to also change the current condition of women of color.  Two years ago, DJ Bond founded Black Girls Rock! a mentoring outreach program targeting “at risk” teenage women of color.  Founded in response to the images of women of color in hip-hop and the mainstream media, DJ Bond is determined to empower today’s young women. 

DJ Bond spoke with Sixshot about why her organization is needed in today’s climate, how she balances being immersed in the hip-hop scene as a DJ and being a critic of the music, why young men need to be part of the dialogue concerning female empowerment, and she reveals her own struggles to attaining positive self-esteem. 

Some people may see the title of your organization as only catering to black girl s but in the mission statement you make it clear that it’s for all women of color.  For those that may not understand, why did you choose to specifically reference black women in the title?

I feel like there is a sate of emergency going on with black women and black youth.  Women of color in general are being perceived as one way in the media but more specifically black women are only viewed as one way.  You will see other cultures being portrayed in the media in multiple ways, but unfortunately even in our movies you barely see black women cast in positive ways.  Also other people embrace their culture way more than African-Americans do.  We’re never held up on those pedestals that everyone else is so that’s one of the reasons.

What was the epiphany for you when you said I need to start an organization to address issues of female empowerment?

B:  I was going to make it a T-shirt and when I said it out loud I said, “This is a bigger than a T-shirt.”  Black girls rock is something that our women need to know.  The thought behind it is that we are the oldest known humans.  It’s a known fact that life started in Africa.  We’re the first ones here so how in the hell are we allowing ourselves to be degraded and objectified in such a way that our worth is only based on our physical attributes. 

If we understood our existence and presence in this world then maybe it would change the way we perceive ourselves.  And certainly there’s no one telling us that we rock and the name is affirmation.  Black girls rock!  When they hear it and say it they’re like, “Yeah, that’s right!  Thanks you!  Nobody ever told us that!”

S:  One of the messages of the organization is to empower women with positive messages.  One of the places that you target is the music industry and specifically hip-hop.  Yet as a female DJ how do you balance your views and then your job where you are often faced with the decision as to whether or not to play a hot song with degrading lyrics?

That is such a great question because you’re absolutely right.  That is one of the reasons why I had to start this organization.  I’m not going to say that I’m not guilty of playing things that are probably offensive to some, and I won’t say that I will never play things that are offensive to some.  My only defense in my balancing is that I play for adult in adult clubs.  It’s not like I’m on the radio where everybody’s exposed to it. Now if I was on the radio then I’d have a bigger issue but I play in adult clubs. 

I don’t think that the issue is about censorship and I don’t think that the issue is about taste.  I think the issue has more to do with what is exposed to our children. There are porno magazines and stations all over the place but you can’t see it if you’re a child.  There are restrictions so that they’re not allowed to purchase it.  So when things are adult-oriented then adults make their own decisions.

I get that point.  But just to play devil’s advocate the counter argument would be that even though we say adults can have access to such material, it is still the adults that perpetuate the mindset of objectifying women that gets taught to young people.  Isn’t this a catch-22?

Yes, you’re absolutely right and again I feel like it’s a weird position to be in as a hip-hop DJ.  I agree with what you’re saying but I still think that adults make adult decisions.  Back in the day we weren’t mad at Snoop [Dogg] because we also had KRS-One.  It wasn’t all one-sided and I think that’s also how I balance my thing.  Sometimes we’re in these moods.  It’s human nature to want to explore all sides of oneself.  That’s why I say in an adult world you can make adult decisions.

Rock & Roll is another genre of music that has and still does often feature video vixens which someone would say objectifies women.  So is it fair to just focus on hip-hop without looking at the broader context of American culture as a whole?

Yes you absolutely have to look at American pop culture.  You can’t just say it’s hip-hop.  I would never say that.  I’m not really taking a stand on hip-hop.  That’s what I do and that’s my platform.  What I’m saying is that we have to be accountable for the things we do.  We can’t start excusing every thing because we’re black and say, “There’s an attack on hip-hop.”  If you know it’s wrong then you know it’s wrong. When are we going to admit it, when we’re dead and all our kids are dead with AIDS because they’ve been super-promiscuous? 

There’s a certain responsibility that everybody has to their community.  Somehow we seem to think that when we step up and decide to defend ourselves against ourselves that there’s a problem. 

Some would say that one of the reasons why there are so many negative images of women in hip-hop is because a lot of the men may not love themselves and have enough self-esteem.  So is there an effort in the organization to begin a dialogue with young men?

Oh absolutely.  If we don’t build our relationships we won’t have communities.

So what do you want to say to young men?  How do you begin to have a dialogue with them and get them to understand your point of view?

I think that the dialogue is already happening.  I was on another radio station and the interviewer thought it was going to be a lot more controversial when people started calling in.  All the brothers that called in—it was on a very popular hip-hop show in New York—were like, “Thank you sister for doing this.”  I know so many young girls and they want to be video vixens and their aspirations are to be something in entertainment but by using their bodies as entertainment.  So I think that the dialogue begins with us recognizing the problem and dealing with it on our own.  Then men need to recognize that we recognize it and then having them recognize their own issues. 

What do you think of the current state of females in hip-hop?

Where are they?  [Laughs]  Where are they?  I think the lack of females in hip-hop, the lack of versatile artists in hip-hop, and the lack of conscious music in hip-hop are all part of the same doing.  It just doesn’t make any sense.  I don’t believe that there are no females out there.  We have no new girls. We have no new Lauryn.  We have no new [Lil’] Kim’s.  You can say what you want but to me she’s [Lil’ Kim] a dope rapper.

What was your greatest obstacle to gaining your own sense of self-esteem and how did you finally gain your sense of self-worth?

I  think by just doing what I do.  You find your way in life.  Everyone’s experiences are different.  I grew up with really low self-esteem because I moved a lot and I was also always a new kid so I got picked on.  I think that you have to always look for the silver lining in the cloud.  I know it sounds like a cliché but it’s really true.  No matter what you’re’ going through you can find your way.  Being a new kid made me get into myself and it made me an independent thinker.

What sort of things were you picked on for?

[Laughs]  Mainly just being flat-chested and new.  We moved like every year to a different school.  I wasn’t in a band and we weren’t in the military.  That’s what people would always think, “Is your family in a band?”

We’ve all seen a young woman walking down the urban streets of America in revealing outfits, letting men feel on her, as she quietly breaks down inside because she has no self-love.  If you passed that girl on the street what would you say to her to give her some inspiration and guidance?

Black girls rock!  Put your clothes on! [Laughs]  But seriously that’s why we are doing what we’re doing.  With Black Girls Rock! the imagery and the marketing of it is very important.  They are seeing glamour, fashion, glitz, and bling.  They think it’s positive because it looks like fun and it’s glamorous.  So we had to approach Black Girls Rock! the same way. Everything about it is so cool.  So if you really have something inside that says I want to be that cool chick—you don’t have to necessarily be the ho to be it.  In fact the ho just got popular because it wasn’t always cool to be the ho.

I think that’s what we’re trying to show with our role model campaign.  I’m in the first one [in the campaign] and the slogan is “Don’t just look like a model.  Be one.”  On the bottom it says, “Black Girls Rock: Proud to be positive role models.”  We’re taking different women who do different things and we’re focusing on them.  We’re showing that they could be the women that objectified themselves but they’ve chosen not to be, and they are way more empowered than what you want to aspire to be.

The organization is almost two years old now so what is the future vision?

We’re going big man, we’re going big! [Laughs]

[Laughs] Big things poppin’

 [Laughs] Well actually we’re in talks about televising the Black Girls Rock! awards show for next year which is a great thing.  And basically we’re just trying to get our message out worldwide which is absolutely needed.  My neighbors are from Brazil and they were telling me that, “We really need Black Girls Rock! in Brazil because what’s going on out there with the young women of color is crazy.” So it’s not just an issue here [U.S.] but it’s an issue worldwide.  I think that it’s not just a black girl’s movement but it’s a women’s movement and it’s also a black people’s movement. 

For more information please visit:
http://www.blackgirlsrockinc.com/
www.djbeverlybond.biz