The story of DJ Bad Boy Bill (born William Renkosik) reads like the story of house music itself, and namely how this once geo-specific Chicagoan music subculture disseminated itself across the greater American and international cultures to become the mainstream phenomenon it is today.
Schooled in the Chicago house boom of the mid-'80s, fledgling DJ Bill first made a name for himself by distributing promo mixtapes out of the trunk of his car. In the future he would become widely-credited as the founding father of the mixtape after an entire generation of DJs caught on to this effective medium of self-promotion by word-of-mouth.
Getting recruited by prominent radio jockey and house legend Farley Jackmaster Funk at WGCI Chicago in the late-'80s would land Bill his first of many local radio gigs, where he would hone the rapidfire DJ chops that make him famous today -- he often spins up to 20 records in the time it takes the average DJ to mix 5.
In the new decade the house music veteran has embraced the new hybrid EDM sounds of the new generation, mixing equal parts house, rock and hip-hop in his sets, and always with his signature banging peak-hour energy. Get down to some Bad Boy Bill tonight when he throws down at Gryphon nightclub at the Seminole Hard Rock.
Bad Boy Bill. Friday, July 9. Gryphon, 5711 Seminole Way, Hollywood. Doors open at 10 p.m. Tickets cost $20 in advance from wantickets.com. Ages 21+ with ID. 954-581-5454; gryphon-club.com
