From the Booth to the Spotlight: DJ Kaye Talks Music, Life, and Scarlett’s Sulphur
We’re sitting down with DJ Kaye, the head strip club DJ at Scarlett’s Sulphur, near Lake Charles, Louisiana. Scarlett’s is a hot after-hours party spot in the lake area, open until 4 AM daily. In this exclusive interview, we dive into what makes Scarlett’s Sulphur the ultimate party destination. Tune in for an inside look at the man behind the decks and the energy that keeps the crowd moving all night long!
DJ Kaye, what's it like bringing the beats to Scarlett's in Sulphur?
It's a party, one of the roughest, toughest, and funniest jobs ever created! I have a long history in music and clubs, over two decades of radio broadcasting and two decades of club spinning, but the best gig I’ve had is this one right here! I have a great team in management and staff, and a deep, strong relationship with my entertainers. Since I’m a native to SWLA, I’ve crossed paths one way or another with a majority of our customers and regulars in my lifetime. I take all that, mix it together, and invite everyone who can hear my voice over the mic to join this massive party where the drinks are pouring, the beats are flowing, and the girls are smoking. Hahaha! Just yesterday, my bro told me I’m living the American man’s dream!
Sulphur might be small, but the party is big! How would you describe the music scene in this town?
Small? Girl, who has been telling you stories, lol! This is the Lake Area, we are the 5th largest area in the state, with 3 major casinos, growing oil & chemical plants, home to a state university and the 2nd largest Mardi Gras in the state right behind New Orleans! And our music is the best in the land! We love our Dirty South hip-hop down here, mixed in with good old Southern Rock and the legends of country! And you haven't lived till you spun on a floor to Zydeco, waltzed to a Cajun French ballad, cut a rug with a line dance with your best mates sweating in a smokey room or had car karaoke with yourself with some Otis! This area is a gumbo pot of such great musical influences, to pin it down to just one genre would ruin the flavor!
When you’re spinning, what’s the secret to keeping the energy high and the crowd hyped all night?
READ YOUR CROWD, man, know who you are playing to! And then talk to your entertainers, get to know them, and find out what makes them really feel the music. Build on that synergy, add your energy to it, keep the music upbeat, pump up the energy in the air and ride it! You are trying to throw the perfect party, with that one playlist that every time it comes on, it's a balls to the walls party! Of course, it's an ever-changing playlist, ha-ha, but that's what makes it fun, always improving your set, making it sound even better every damn time!
We know you’ve got some bangers up your sleeve. What’s your go-to track when the crowd needs a boost?
Currently, it's almost anything by Kendrick Lamar, you toss on one of his current hits, you are going to see heads bobbing and see people singing it, so it's a good burner for the crowd. But when you spin at a multi-genre club like mine, there are so many options to choose from. I can get the same pop from Garth Brooks, “Friends in Low Places”, Cascades “Every Time We Touch”, Journey, Dre, Daddy Yankee as I can get from Kendrick, it all depends on the entertainer, the crowd, the mood in the room, so many things can determine a banger when it comes down to it.
You’ve probably heard all kinds of music requests. What’s the weirdest or funniest one you’ve gotten at Scarlett’s?
I had a featured entertainer who dressed up as C-3PO and danced to the Star Wars cantina music, that one sticks out in my mind. And another who got down to “Chocolate Salty Balls” from South Park, it was such a hit I still spin it on my Sunday Funday shows, lol!
Does the crowd in Sulphur have any surprising song preferences? Anything that always gets the dancers and guests on the floor?
We love Boosie, you will hear many of his songs at any major event in this area, all the clubs, parades, social gatherings, sporting events, you better believe the bride and her bridesmaids know the “Wipe Me Down” dance and with throw it down in front of their grandparents at their wedding!
How do you know when to throw in a classic throwback vs. a new hit? Is there a formula for reading the room?
I like to call that Music Math, and it's something that just comes natural to a DJ, and I learned it by working nightclubs and music programming in radio for so many years. You have to look at your crowd, see how many are men, how many are women, young or old, black or white, how many are wearing hats, cowboy or baseball hats, how many are curved brims and how many flat brimmed, how many people at the bar and how many on the floor, what's on your request list, what are you playing now and what do you want to be playing in 15 minutes. And figure it out Just. Like. That. If you can’t pick that up quickly, you aren’t going to be the best you know you can be. Music Math, that's the breakdown.
What’s your favorite part of being the head DJ at Scarlett’s? Is it the freedom to mix or the chance to create unforgettable moments?
It's getting to doing what I was born to do, man, play music and act up on the microphone, ha-ha! I was born to be a DJ, my initials are D.J.K., and I’m a DJ who goes by the last name KAYE, hahaha! So when I found out I was going to get to play what I wanted, when I wanted, use the entertainers and the lights to paint this beautiful picture up on the stage, be able to come up with the funniest jokes, the most eloquent compliments for the girls, the best insults to burn someone with, all over the loudest sound system in the area....and get paid for it??? It's all of that, I hang out with the most beautiful women, listen to any song ever made and just get to be me.
If someone were to walk into Scarlett’s for the first time, what song would you play to make them feel like they’re about to have the best night of their life?
Can you really say it's one song? Nah, there are so many songs that you can play to let someone know they are about to experience the best night of their life, like Black Eyed Peas, “I Got A Feeling”, or “Time of Your Life” by Bill Melody. If someone is walking into Scarletts for the first time, I gotta make sure that every song, every girl, every drink and every second they are in my doors till they walk back out is going to be the best night of their life, it can’t be just one, it has to be them all!
And finally, what advice do you have for someone wanting to step into the DJ game, especially in a place as lively as Scarlett’s in Sulphur?
Best advice? Don’t come to Scarlett’s and apply, you might be so much better than me, I’m The Worst DJ Ever, and I need this job, hahaha! No, the best advice I can give someone is to start small, if you want to be a DJ, you need to cut your teeth working weddings for a couple of years and work your way up. Next work local events and parties and then move up to regular night clubs. Do those for a couple of years, then, just maybe, you will be ready for a Gentlemans Club like Scarlett's. Our type of clubs, these are a beast, they are top of the line, these are the clubs where dreams come true, and if you walk in unexperienced, it can be rough. These aren’t regular clubs, you are a special case of twisted to make it in this business, and I love that my special case of being twisted fits in so well here!!
