Today we’d like to introduce you to Courtney Wolfgang.
Courtney, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’ve been a life-long music lover and album collector. I was the kind of kid who stayed up late listening to my favorite albums, obsessing over lyrics and the details of the lives of my favorite musicians. In high school, I learned to play the drums (eventually joining a punk rock band) and constantly went to shows around Atlanta, especially in the punk and ska scene. I would make flyers for and help promote my favorite bands anytime they had shows.
Reggae was always one of my favorite types of music since I was a teenager. I was first introduced to the genre by the band Sublime, who were heavily influenced by Jamaican reggae. I loved Sublime and I learned everything I could about their influences such as Barrington Levy, Peter Tosh and Toots and the Maytals.
When I moved to Cocoa Beach, Florida in 2007, I delved even deeper into reggae as the genre seemed to perfectly fit the beach lifestyle and vibe. Again, I began obsessively learning all I could about the roots reggae and dancehall artists of the time and attended every reggae party and concert possible.
I found myself particularly drawn to reggae DJs and the important role they played in reggae culture. I became good friends with many of the DJs and seemed to always hang out as close to the DJ booth as possible at events. One day in summer 2011, I asked my good friend and long-time DJ Mark Longenecker (Selector Longenecker), “If I love DJing so much, why don’t I just learn to do it myself??”
He couldn’t argue with that logic, so a couple of weeks later, he gave me a crash course on his CDJs and invited me to play a small guest set at one of his reggae events at Captain Hiram’s Resort in Sebastian, Florida. The experience was thrilling, and I proceeded to gather my own equipment and teach myself the art of reggae selecting. Though mostly self-taught, I had Mark’s guidance along with DJ Ozone out of Los Angeles, who was a huge influence and was generous in helping me remotely all the way from LA.
As I began to play more and more parties, I gained knowledge and experience from working with several of Florida’s best reggae DJs.
In 2015, I took a few years off of DJing for other career and personal pursuits before realizing there was a huge void in my life that only music could fill. I started producing and promoting reggae events in Cocoa Beach in 2018 and made the decision to pursue DJing professionally in early 2019 after several friends and members of the Florida reggae community encouraged me to take it back up.
When my good friend Lance O’Brien heard I was returning to DJing, he immediately reached out and asked me to come on board with his well-known Florida-based reggae brand Kulcha Shok Muzik. A few short weeks later, I made my debut as a Kulcha Shok Official DJ at their Reggae Sunday Grand Finale event at Wynwood Yard, Miami in front of a crowd of a thousand reggae lovers. It was a huge honor and tons of fun!
I have gained so much from my close association with Kulcha Shok ever since and couldn’t be more proud to represent such a positive brand. I have been humbled by the great response to my DJing, and the opportunities I’ve gotten to share my love of reggae and related genres with others through live performances and collaborations with other artists and DJs. I am thankful to have produced and performed at numerous reggae parties and concerts in Florida during 2019.
Since moving back to my hometown Atlanta in January 2020, I’ve begun networking with other talented musicians to produce collaborations and events. I am looking forward to the warm weather season and all the opportunities for reggae parties, concerts and collabs to come! Keep it locked to my social media to find out what big things are happening next for me and Kulcha Shok here in Atlanta.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
One of the biggest struggles I’ve had was in learning how to best support myself mentally and emotionally in my mission to pursue music as a career path. This has involved moving on from relationships and situations that did not fully align with my goals, and that has not always been easy.
Since that time, I’ve still had hard lessons about who I can and cannot trust to work with professionally, to the point that I now make being a good person with integrity the first requirement for anyone I choose to work with. Sticking to this principle has proved to be hugely rewarding though, and I am so grateful to have had these difficult lessons early on.
I have also struggled with self belief, which can be a huge obstacle on the path to success. My passion has motivated me to overcome that struggle, so I have learned to always have my own back and be accepting of where I’m at. We all start somewhere and we all have more to learn. When I remain humble and accept myself for where I’m at, doors just keep opening and I keep aligning with the right people for my journey.
It’s important that we all help and support one another on our missions; I would be nowhere without the amazing support of my fellow DJs, musicians, and other industry professionals I’ve had the pleasure of working with. Because of that, I do all I can to support others as well. To me, the heartfelt mutual support is the best part of working in the music industry.
DJ C-Lioness of Kulcha Shok Muzik – what should we know? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
DJ C-Lioness is a Kulcha Shok Official DJ specializing in classic and modern roots reggae and dancehall and related genres. As a Kulcha Shok representative, I am available not only for event bookings as a DJ but also for full event production and promotion.
As a DJ, I’m known for my deep commitment to and knowledge of the reggae genre and bringing exposure to reggae artists. I love sharing the classic tunes the reggae community knows and loves as well as new fire from talented up and coming artists.
Kulcha Shok events are known for their positive, upbeat, cool atmosphere where anyone (often all ages) is welcome to come hold a vibe. We work with the best local and internationally touring reggae artists and DJs to produce music events that uplift, and often are community-centered.
I am most proud of how Kulcha Shok events bring people together, spread positivity, and aim to uplift and support the communities in which they are held. The message is always about good vibes, giving thanks and enjoying life through a shared experience of great music. Our passion for spreading love and reggae always comes through in all that we do.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
To me, success means getting to a place where I regularly experience fulfillment and joy out of what I’m putting out into the world. I believe one of our roles as members of the human family is to support one another, so I also need to feel my life’s work is uplifting others in some way.
Success to me also means the ability to move through the world as my true self, not having to hide or change what I really think and feel. And of course, money is nice for the freedom and experiences it can yield if managed properly.
Contact Info:
- Website: cocoabeachreggae.com/dj-clioness
- Phone: 4073769929
- Email: djclioness@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/djclioness
- Facebook: facebook.com/djclioness
- Other: kulchashok.com
Image Credit:
All “C-Lioness Krog” photos by Stephanie Heath, Smiling Eyes Media. Photos titled “Good DM 15” and “CL and RI at DM” by Dominic Agostini.
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