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David Nicholas: House electronic music began in the Chicago underground club scene in the late 1970's.
(House music plays)
DN: DJ's would spin the four-on-the-floor beat, altering disco songs to give them a more mechanical sound for club goers to dance to. And one of those early DJ's in Chicago was Val Harmon of Onekema, just north of Manistee. WCMU's Tina Sawyer recently talked with "DJ VAL" about her five decades in the music business and how it kept her going in the face of numerous health challenges.
Tina Sawyer: And you have a history of this Chicago house music, and to those who don't know what that means or what that is, could you give us a quick explainer?
Val Harmon: It's hard to explain to people, like when I go out of town, if you're in Chicago, you know what it is. It's mainly dance music that came from Chicago, although there's arguments about that. But being from Chicago, new music that was coming out that wasn't commercial, it started out in the gay bars and it just blew up.
(House music plays)
VH: There was a place called the Warehouse in Chicago, and they started playing this music. And all the DJs in the city were like, "What is that?" "Well, how do I get that record?" And, "where'd you get this?" You know? So we all started talking. We started going to Warehouse and hearing what they were playing. And that's how the music got named house music, because they were playing at a club called the Warehouse. So when they would go into the record store, "Hey, you got any of that stuff that they're playing at the Warehouse? House music, that house stuff." You know? That's derived from that. That's where EDM comes from.
(House music plays)
VH: I have my vinyl. I still have four turntables at the house. I can play anything from 8-tracks to MP4s. So, I've played through all the changes. I started at the beginning, and I'm still spinning today.
TS: And in the midst of your career, Val, you've battled some major illnesses. Could you tell us about that and how it affected you?
VH: Well, I had Grave's disease. When they removed my thyroid, they found cancer, so I had thyroid cancer. So I had to go through radiation. And then five years later, I had bladder cancer, and that was like a four-and-a-half-year tour. Like the day I would get the chemo treatment, I was down, but I would spend the next night to get my mind off of it. Now here I sit 20 years later. We all have stories and battles.
TS: And music seems to be a healer in some ways.
VH: When you're going through treatments like chemo, you are always thinking about it and the possibility of death. I mean, let's face it, it's the C word. So when you're DJing, you know, 3-4 nights in the club, going through all this, there's no better escape than being in charge of the whole entire evening for other people. You're lifting their spirits. So, you're there to give them an escape. And at the same time, I was giving myself one.
TS: Could you tell us about your single “Rise Again,” and what that means to you?
VH: I co-wrote that song with Georgie Porgie. He owns Music Plant Records, and it's America's longest running dance label. And him and I co-wrote that because I thought it was an important thing for people to hear that are going through something like cancer. It's mainly a statement of, I'm not ready to give up. I'll rise again. I'll come through this. And when people were giving up on me, say, “Oh, she got cancer. She's, you know, she's done.” No, I was not done.
TS: How long do you plan to DJ, Val?
VH: Till I'm knocking on heaven's door, I would say. I never will give it up. I think when you're that passionate about something, to be doing it for 53 years, not a damn thing is gonna stop you, nothing.
DN: That was Chicago's longest running female DJ, Val Harmon of Onekema.
