Digital Festival Team
The dream team behind the You Are Important Project Digital Festival
Streamed live on twitch.tv/youareimportantproject on January 9. 2021.
Together, we raised $1,000 for Queens Care Collective!
Chenice / Branqueeno
Festival producer, Project manager, DJ
You Are Important Project founder, house music lover, nurse.
Leslie / DJ Karen
DJ, Design, Technical
Leslie is the design mastermind behind all the visuals and displays for the festival. His eye for design, display, and attention to detail is truly unique and talented.
NY local with a hip-hop background, DJ Karen weaves through bouncy, soulful house & techno. He has performed at Elsewhere & Knockdown Center, held residency at Arlene's Grocery (Tragic Tuesday), and is co-founder of VONOV; curator of NYC events including Liquid Brunch at Secret Loft, Afternoon Delight at Museum of Sex, and Inverse at Eris.
Instagram: @djdjkaren // @5ofnov
Twitch
JCruz
DJ
A passionate house music DJ and supporter of You Are Important project, the festival was actually an idea proposed by him.
Cheechmo
DJ
Cheechmo, true to his spontaneous and fun nature, brought a unique and fun twist to the stream, featuring performance art with mimes during his set.
Imagine you’re cruising a lonesome desert highway. The party is over and you are relishing in the bliss of a night well spent. You come to a stop at a solitary diner and suddenly a man in a large hat and brightly colored button up pulls alongside of you, acoustic guitar in hand. He asks if you’d like to do a quick sing along before you hit the road again. It’s Cheechmo! The man behind the silky sexy hooks that have blessed releases for Psycho Disco, OKNF, and House Of Hustle.
The multi-instrumentalist turned vocal powerhouse grew up with music at every turn. While his dad introduced him to hair metal, young Cheechmo quickly forged his own path and learned the viola, alto and tenor sax, guitar, and bass. By high school he found himself in a scream-o band. He changed directions quickly when he was first introduced to Rusko’s seminal 2008 Essential Mix. He viewed DJing as a new instrument to master. With that his new passion was born.
His sultry baritone has lit up chart topping releases for the likes of Casmalia and Grensta. He continues to drop slyly suggestive lyrics for house music’s most promising underground heroes. In 2021 he has his sights set on his own work. His booty poppin’ basslines and ultra-funky beats will extend his mission statement, that we are all sexy AF.
Zakariyah
Kareem Woods
Dancer, Dance class instructor
Kareem Woods is a Hip-Hop dancer based out of Brooklyn, NY. Kareem was born & raised in Springfield, MA. He moved to NYC to pursue his dream of becoming a professional dancer. Kareem specializes in improvisation, commonly in unconventional settings. When choreographing, he tries to embody the same raw energy found in freestyle dancing.
Kareem was trained in Hip-Hop technique by the dance crew, Paradox Institute. He blends various dance techniques to create his own unique style. Kareem is currently a company member of Dancers Unlimited. He has been training, performing, and touring with DU for the past 3 years. He is also a creative specialist and a mixed media artist. For dance videos and an excess of terrible puns.
Ace on Earth
Meditation artist, DJ
Austin is a multi medium artist based in Providence, RI with a focus on mental health and meditation. He produces guided meditation tracks and creates spaces for humans to connect and discover the infinite capabilities of their mind.
See below for a guided meditation that was recorded from the festival’s live stream. Subscribe to his channel, linked below!
