Off the Mic
Claire Anderson
DJ Name: DJ Cleezus, Clarawana (It changes week to week)
DJ Shift: Mondays 6-7PM (Local Block)
Other KJHK Contributions: Content Staff, Multimedia Staff, Arts and Culture Staff
Year in School: Senior
Major: Illustration/Animation
Minor: Business
Favorite Color: Blue
Hobbies: Live music, Drawing, Painting, Drinking, Playing guitar badly
Favorite TV Shows: Archer, King of the Hill
Ellie Fehlig: How did you hear about KJHK?
Claire Anderson: A couple of my friends did an overnight DJ shift when they still had live DJs. I would be doing homework at 3am listening to them goof around on the radio and I thought, “Yeah, I want to do that.” They said it was fun and really easy so it was like, “Hmm, fun and easy. Sounds like my kind of thing.”
EF: That is awesome. What kinds of things have you learned or realized about yourself because of KJ? It does not have to be just from DJing. It can be from anything.
CA: I have learned a lot about filming and angles and more about production than I have ever known. That was kind of an unexpected thing that I jumped into.
EF: KJ is definitely a good place to learn all that stuff. What are some of your favorite memories from KJ?
CA: Probably going to Winfield to cover a story with Jacob Pouch and Katie Werner. We went down to Winfield to cover a bluegrass festival and there was this really magical moment where we were watching this 10-piece bluegrass band cover “Love Train” and we all just looked at each other and smiled. It was beautiful.
EF: Wow, that does sound magical. What is your favorite thing about DJing?
CA: I like feeling like I am just sitting in a room talking to myself but also knowing that there are at least 20 people out there listening to me talk. Basically, I kind of like feeling like I am talking to myself. It is fun.
EF: I do that a lot except for I am not on the radio. Is there anything you struggled with before joining KJ that you now do not struggle with necessarily?
CA: Kind of a stage fright anxiety thing. I used to be really nervous speaking in front of people but now it is a cool middle step because you are speaking to people when you are on the radio but they are not right in front of you staring you down. It is a nice little stepping stone.
EF: Yeah, I definitely struggle with that. I know what you mean. Describe your taste in music and what you play during your DJ shift if it is the same thing.
CA: My taste in music has really evolved since I started KJHK. When I do rotation, I like to play a lot of Alternative Hip Hop like FKA Twigs, stuff like that. On my local block I play local music and I kind of like the crunchier local tunes like The Sluts and Gnarly Davidson. I love Gnarly Davidson.
EF: That is a good word, “crunchy.” So who are your favorite artists that you do not play on the radio?
CA: Stuff that I am really not allowed to play on KJHK…I have got a dumb thing for Green Day.
EF: Classic.
CA: Yeah, and Black Sabbath and death metal that never really fits into my show.
EF: Nice. I like it. Describe yourself in three words.
CA: Charming, beautiful, no. I am trying to decide whether or not to be braggy.
F: That is okay. Ethan Graham said “good-looking.”
CA: Okay, excessively-good-looking. That should be one word. What was my first word? Charming. And sarcastic.