Today we’d like to introduce you to Bob Cronin.
Hi Bob, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’m a multimedia artist who has touched on a lot of different areas in my creative career. Under the name dj BC, I am a mashup artist, probably best known for my “Beastles” albums and “Wu Orleans” albums. I’m part of the Bootie Mashup collaborative and started nightclub events in Boston and Atlanta and at DragonCon. I also have an ongoing collaborative band project called Ghost Cave. To date, we have released a full-length album and two 7″ singles. Some artists involved include Ana Balka, Scott Burland (from Duet for Theremin and Lap Steel), Okorie Johnson, Black Hesher, Dave McWane (From Big D and The Kids Table), Keenon Rush, The Doped Up Dollies, Edo G, Fahamu Pecou, and many others. So I’ve been fortunate to work with some talented collaborators. I’ve worked in comedy as well, and that’s the focus of my current project on YouTube, The Dennis Ball Show. Dennis is a tennis ball puppet who does a Dad Joke Game Show, with some really cool artists, bands and authors as guests.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Oh man. Art’s always a struggle. Here’s a few! Musical Obstacles, as mashup artist dj BC Mashups are legally dubious. So, despite the fact that a lot of what I created as dj BC was non-profit, for free online, I got my share of threatening legal letters, especially following the release of “Let It Beast” which was the second Beastles album. The first one was in Rolling Stone, Wired, and some other big publications, so when the second one came out it blew up fast and I got a cease and desist in 24 hours. It was released for free and online only. I’ve been fortunate to be defended by some fine legal minds, and through some productive conversations, somehow www.thebeastles.com remains up and running. A bootleg vinyl operation, which I have no connection to, released a bunch of my mashup records, which is cool in a way but it also makes record companies think I’m behind it. I didn’t make any money from that but I’m really glad some of my best albums were immortalized on wax. But ultimately, I spent a lot of time and energy creating these records and there is no real way for me to release them legally. Discogs has even banned a few of those records from being sold used. So, I guess that’s kind of punk… right? The new records I created as Ghost Cave are 100% legal and 100% cool.
And of course, there are always challenges in starting over with new approaches. You have to convince your audience to come along for the ride. THE DENNIS BALL SHOW Obstacles The Dennis Ball Show – my new YouTube Talk Show, starring a tennis ball – has involved a whole new set of obstacles. I’ve had to develop a coherent approach to this comedy show that’s easy for people to quickly understand and which provides value to viewers without wasting a moment. I’ve also had to “niche-down” to hone in on a specific format and audience. That took the form of The Dad Joke Game Show, and I’ve been booking a lot of musicians and visual artists as my guests, at least one a week. So the humor provides value, and the guests are all interesting people as well. So interviewing them, and showing them in a fun comedic context, provides a lot of value as well, both to fans who know their work or people who are being introduced to it. It’s a cool way to get to know an artist or band. Booking guests is a challenge. Even people who I’ve worked with on music are often hesitant to appear on a dumb show hosted by a tennis ball. I don’t know if they think it will make them look bad or if they just don’t think it’s funny. In any case, people either seem to love it or hate it. Which I can understand. But I’ve had some success, with notables such as Joe Jack Talcum (The Dead Milkmen), Kalyn Hardman (Lovecraft Country, So Queer No Fear), Coolie Ranx (Pilfers), Atlanta rapper Kennon Rush, David McWane (Big D and The Kids Table), and YouTuber Jacob The Carpetbagger appearing on the program.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Over the years, I’ve realized that I’m a multimedia artist who specializes in coalescing talent and energy around different kinds of creative happenings. This has in the past taken various forms, including comic art gallery shows, Bootie Mashup parties (Boston and Atlanta) and Ghost Cave musical collaborations and record releases. (Ghost Cave is the name of both my band and record label) I’m proud of the records I’ve produced and the incredibly talented people I’ve collaborated with musically as Ghost Cave and dj BC. And I’m proud of the incredible parties I threw at Bootie Dragon Con and Bootie ATL. I’m incredibly proud that Bootie Boston continues today – more than ten years later, it’s still a slamming party at Good Life, one of the coolest clubs in Boston.
My newest project, The Dennis Ball Show, is a different kind of event. Over the past year, live performance has been no longer possible, so Dennis Ball Show is reaching out and engaging with bands and artists of different kinds to have some fun, tell some Dad Jokes and share some of their work with viewers. It’s a new show, but I’m proud of the amazing variety of guests we’ve had and the over 150 episodes and shorts we have taped which embody positive energy. We’ve found a niche and a small but growing audience that is devoted and enthusiastic about the show. I’m using my own music for instrumental beds and using my network of contacts to book great guests, so it feels like all my passions are coming together to create a really funny, authentic and weird show that is a good, entertaining use of your ten minutes, or 6 minutes, or 12 seconds, depending. So yeah… watch it.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
In general, when you identify talent in your field, don’t complete. Collaborate. Support what they do. Find ways to work with lots of different people. It doesn’t always work, but if you stick with it and find good collaborators, it can and will amplify your impact and can lead to great things. Actively look for ways to build and engage with creative communities. It also makes it a lot more fun and rewarding to share your creative successes with other like-minded people. In the end, it can change you as an artist.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.dennisballshow.com, www.ghostcaveatl.com, www.djbc.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dennis_ball_show/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dennisballshow
- Twitter: twitter.com/ghostcaveatl
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDennisBallShow
- Other: https://ghostcaveatl.bandcamp.com/music
Image Credits
THese are all photos by Bob Cronin, or screenshots from The Dennis Ball Show.
