Charles Hawthorne is an Oakland-based Black queer DJ. Hot track selection and divinatory crowd reading have made them a force behind the decks and in the nightlife community, with their unique blend of disco, house, club, and RnB ushering a journey through the history and movement of Black queer dance music.
See Charles Hawthorne and Farsight co-headline our 4-Year Anniversary Afterparty this Saturday, November 9th at Mothership. We look forward to seeing you there!
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Where did you grow up and how long have you lived in the Bay Area?
I am from Indianapolis, IN and I’ve been living in Oakland for seven years!
As an avid community builder and talented DJ, how does lifting people up via advocacy affect your music and vice versa?
I couldn’t really imagine being in any type of community out here without doing some sort of community work. I moved out to the Bay to continue working in harm reduction and public health, and that was my initial connection to many of my favorite people in the queer nightlife community. I’m also a busy body and always look for cool new things to get involved with and help make happen. A big piece of that for me out here has been being the Board President for Oaklash, the Bay Area’s drag and queer performance art nonprofit. It has given me an opportunity to connect with so many incredible artists and cultural workers that continue to shape my ideas around the spaces I want to build.
DJing for me has been a great opportunity to intentionally design spaces. I think the people who show up and are a part of these spaces push me to show up even harder for them. Without the community side of my work, DJing would probably be incredibly boring for me.
The Bay Area gets a lot negative press. What makes this place special to you?
First of all, a lot of the negative attention that comes down on the Bay is spurned by people with active financial investments hinging on it being a bad place to live, especially from a real estate and policing perspective. Overall though my favorite thing about the Bay is the people here know and appreciate great art and work. There is a lot of room out here to try new things, fail, try again, and make absolute magic. Some of the drag, music, theatre, and visual art I have been able to witness in the Bay would have never made it past the ideation phase in other cities because people would be so wrapped up in the execution that they wouldn’t appreciate the concept the artists were going for. Everything doesn’t have to be polished for it to be legendary, and the only true sin out here is being corny. It makes it a very fertile ground for new ideas and movements, and I love being able to grow in and experience this creative space.
What improvements would you like to see to make our community even better?
Some of the stand-out creators I love in the Bay are so incredibly intentional about everything they put together, and I think our community would benefit from more of that energy. A lot of people get so caught up justifying bad art and work that they can’t hold space for how to make it better. I feel that does require us being able to name when something isn’t good, which I see a lot of people in the Bay struggle with from a place of conflict aversion.
Which Bay Area artists, labels, parties, etc., are you most excited about?
Artists: Hugo de la Lune, Oddity, Pleeay, LBXX,
Labels: Dark Entries, 7000COILS, Sound of SOMA (Pillows)
Parties: Elements, anything with Strapt
Beyond the Bay, what music (songs, albums, or artists) have you been listening to the most recently?
I am constantly in a dive for disco deep cuts, but you’ll have to come to Five Finger Disco to hear those!!
Do you have any hopes or predictions for the local music scene?
I’m just excited to watch it continue to develop. It feels like the queer art/nightlife scene out here is really supportive of each other and new performers. I’m hopeful that energy will build towards a really beautiful era of art and music all across the Bay.
See Charles Hawthorne play alongside Farsight and ronny ronny ronny this Saturday, November 9 at Mothership.
