Who wants to be a DJ?

Nathan Leonard is tired, tired, tired of talented New York City DJs getting the short end of the stick. Between promoting nights, organizing parties and hassling club owners, the music and the atmosphere the DJ is supposed to create got lost. So in June of 2002, Leonard, along with Bogdan Butuc and Ron Haymovitz, decided to start an open turntable night. They began with the idea of filling the night with four 60-minute open time slots for bedroom DJs based upon their mix CDs.

The party has taken off. Starting last August, the Homegrown NYC crew has held a weekly party on Tuesday nights at Sin Sin/Leopard Lounge showcasing a wide variety of talent that spans the electronic musical gamut. From the micro-genres to the wide-open definition of house, finally, the shut-in DJ had a chance to see if his track selection worked on a crowd.

Leonard, a computer programmer in daylight, is a product of the tech-savvy generation of do-it-yourselfers?basically, a product of New York City. He talks enthusiastically about revitalizing a stagnant underground music scene and responds to questions with long, well-thought-out answers. The idea for the project came when he became frustrated with uneducated crowds at stuffy lounges that didn't appreciate his type of music.

"People would come up to me and say, 'Can you play some 80s music?'"

Clearly, promoters weren't keeping up their end of the bargain?the crowds they were drawing expected pop standards, not interesting sounds and mixes of tracks.

"Eighties music is fine," he adds, "but I'm not a wedding DJ."

Homegrown NYC is acting as a middleman. They handle all of the promoting, and don't require the DJ to bring in a certain amount of heads. Homegrown hopes their name will be associated with good parties that provide a unique selection of music. Their website (homegrownnyc.com) is part of the project?a stream of just about every event the group has run since its inception is available on demand. According to Leonard, this technique?the promoter or promotional company being the key component to generating excitement for a party?is used almost everywhere else, except New York City.

This is true, but only to an extent. In the early to mid-90s, the DJ become a celebrity in his or her own right, commanding large paychecks based entirely on their names. The mix CD, once a passed-along collection of tracks for loyal fans distributed for free, became a marketing tool for major record labels and ambitious, self-promoting DJs. Now house and electronic music, which has had slight brushes with mainstream airplay, is sold mostly through the popularity of a name. The promoter's job, then, was to book these big names for the mega-clubs that began to spring up around them.

Popular and underground music goes through cycles. Many of the bloated clubs of the late 90s have failed to generate large enough profits to remain open. This isn't to say people aren't trying?Twilo is said to be opening up again, this time as Spirit. And, if rumors are true, the franchise club Crobar could be up and running by this fall. But the faltering economy, new crackdowns on nightlife and fewer tourists visiting the city will create plenty of obstacles.

Which is actually good news for music fans. If electronic music continues the backslide into the underground, cover charges will come down, and talent will play smaller spaces. It seems like the perfect time for an operation like Homegrown NYC to thrive.

Says Leonard: "We really have two demographics we try to reach out to: DJs and the people who listen to them."

Music is going back into the womb, residing again in the small communities of dedicated artists and fans. Even popular jocks among the scene, including Francois K and Eric Morillo, are taking their record bags to more intimate locations.

Homegrown's DJs and parties are booked in advance. To try and get your 60 minutes of adulation, you can bring your mix down to Sin Sin on Tuesday nights. Ask the bartender to talk to any one of the promoters. They're not the only open turntable project, either; there are other locations to get your music heard. Another party goes down on Mondays at The Five Spot (459 Myrtle Ave. in Ft. Greene) starting at 8, hosted by DJ OBah. Both locations suggest you get there early to sign up for a slot.