Ursa Minor, also known as the Little Bear, is a constellation in the Northern
Sky. Like the Great Bear, the tail of the
Little Bear may also be seen as the handle of a ladle, hence the North American
name, Little Dipper: seven stars with four in its bowl like its partner
the Big Dipper. Now while all of that
is fascinating that is not the Ursa Minor we’re here to discuss. The Ursa Minor we’re here to discuss is a
classically trained musician
and native of New Orleans, Louisiana who relocated to Dallas with her family a
year before Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Big Easy. She also happens to be one
of the best up and coming DJs here in the metroplex. And I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know
her during the creation of this Women In Transit project. She’s young, wide eyed about life, and
passionate about what she does. Here’s
just a snapshot of that
IT: What led you to do what it is
you do now or how did you get started?
UM:
I DJ here
but I’m a classically trained musician.
Like I play all sorts of instruments and the computer was the last thing
I had to conquer. Like you can make
music on an instrument all day but doing it with a computer is not the same so
I wanted to master that
What is your style of music that you
feature in your set?
I play a
lot of hip hop, r/b that sort of stuff but I kind of go across the whole
spectrum of that. I don’t feel like if
I’m at a certain place that I only have to play a certain type of music. Plus I like playing a lot of local music too.
Photo Cred: Emily McCartney
What is your opinion of the art
scene here in Dallas?
It’s a lot
better than it used to be. Before it was
kind of every man for him or herself.
Seeing what it’s come from like 5 or 6 years ago when I used to just go
to shows to what it is now is awesome. I
feel like we’re the hottest thing popping right now but everybody just doesn’t
see it yet.
What were your early influences
artistically?
Well for
music in general I would have to say my dad because he used to play stand-up
bass. He went to school with Winton
Marsalis and almost went to Julliard.
Janelle Monae because she’s all about being “future-black” and I’m all
about that. And as far as DJing goes DJ Sober
for sure and Super Sam.
Photo Cred: Emily McCartney
It’s been
positive for the most part. I was
expecting it to be negative and I’ve had a couple of negative experiences but
overall it’s been really positive.
What inspires you?
Just music
in general. The idea that you can come
at it from so many different angles and the most unexpected thing will work out
together. Like I did a mix with The
Outfit going into Patrice Rushen and I’m thinking to myself “I wonder is anyone
else nerd enough to be doing this”.
What gives you the most joy in doing
what you do?
Having
those people come up to me after my set and say “yo I can’t believe you played
this song because I didn’t think anyone else knew it”. That’s my favorite! It’ll be the person you least expect. The one that you think wasn’t having fun and
then they come up and say “that’s cool!”.
Photo Cred: Emily McCartney
I put a lot
of thought into it. I don’t mind saying
that. I know that a lot of people
freestyle when they have gigs and just kind of see where they end up but I
practice. I build everything in advance
and treat it like it’s a musical instrument.
I put in hours when I do these mixes.
Like I do everything on purpose.
There is a reason these songs are playing together and I don’t think a
lot of people think like that.
Ok, so what’s next?
Well I’m always doing mixes so I’ll probably put
out Summer Time Texas part 2. But in
2017 I just want to go out the state of Texas and play music at least once a
month.
You can listen to Ursa Minor here and check out the exclusive mix she created for Women In Transit below
