In the never-ending quest to cover all the corners of Arkansas’ massive talent pool, we found ourselves sitting across from none other than, thriving DJ and music producer, P for Parker. Sat comfortably in a booth at Conway’s very own Brick and Forge restaurant, Parker walked us through his wild past 10 months as a touring DJ, his unlikely beginnings, his inspirations and influences, as well as what it all means (not existentially) for him and the growing EDM community in Central Arkansas.
“I was raised playing guitar, but for some reason… I wanted something more – I wanted to do something different.”
P for Parker, now 24, spent his entire life living somewhere on the cross-streets of Country Club Rd. & College Ave. in Conway, AR. Though bounded by these two streets, it didn’t stop him from escaping the mundane as a kid. Parker reminisced on his humble journey into EDM, citing that, peculiarly, his first foray into the genre was through Xbox Live, saying, “Growing up, I met a good buddy of mine named Pierce. We met on Xbox. He introduced me to Skrillex, Deadmau5, and Nero[...] About 2011-2012.” It seems only fitting that a love for electronic music would be sparked… well… electronically. Parker noted that he often felt like the odd-man-out in that he found himself surrounded by his family of more traditional musicians. He referred to the likes of his grandmother, a singer, and his grandfather, a guitar player. He credits his mom, who sadly passed away in 2015, as his introduction to a musical world, saying that “her love for 80's dance and early 2000's dance music really fueled [his] desire to step away from traditional instruments and focus more on the exciting world of EDM.” In some years down the line, Parker found himself with a copy of the digital audio workstation (DAW), Ableton. Having acquired a copy of the software from his friend at the time, he “started mixing pretty [heavily] when [he] turned 16-17.” Parker would find himself struggling in the years to come with personal battles that, understandably so, threw him off the course of music.
The years highlighting Parker’s hiatus from mixing roughly lasted from 2018-2020 just until the pandemic hit. As we mentioned in our last article, the pandemic was a fresh opportunity for a lot of creatives. Though it was a tough time in a lot of people’s lives, it managed to ignite many different fires in creatives and those who didn’t even know they had it in them! Luckily that same fire was kindled in Parker. Having had to quarantine for 2 weeks, Parker found himself spending a lot of time with a friend of his who pushed him to get back into DJing. We asked him just how long it took for him to get comfortable with his decks and mixes before he could perform, Parker explained that it took “[about] 2 years [to get confident in mixing],” going on to say that “a lot of it was just learning the board. [Learning to] beat-match, being able to sync-up and not using [the sync button].” Fun fact: Built into many modern DJ-decks, the sync button allows DJs to beat-match songs to other songs instantly, not requiring the DJ to do it manually. DJs often shy away from this, calling it a crutch and shaming other DJs who use it freely.
As he began to warm back up to his set of jog-wheels and faders, Parker found himself mixing the songs he first loved. Parker laughed as he highlighted that “when I started mixing, I was mixing dubstep. Like, 2012-2013 dubstep. Like, Call of Duty: Black Ops II Trickshot-Montage-dubstep.” He built up his confidence with the decks slowly, showcasing his skills in small doses. He describes the process of his growth as “[practicing] … Bedroom DJ, you know… Throwing parties, going to parties, playing – not really getting [any] gigs…” When it came to his defining stage-name, it kind of occurred by happenstance. Parker recalls several times in the early days when people would approach him after a set, praising him with, “Yo, Barker! I loved your stuff,” where he would have to respond in correction, “no it’s Parker – like, P-for-Parker.” It was mainly just a placeholder for a while, but after some time, it stuck (as it usually does). With his feet properly wet in the house party scene, things were bound to change. Not unlike the pandemic, Parker found himself placed in a scenario that he could take advantage of; it was quite green and it lived in a swamp.
Finding himself fully confident in his mixes and DJing power, Parker noticed that Little Rock’s The Hall had booked an EDM rave event entitled “Shrek Rave.” If you’re unfamiliar, this was basically one big party where DJs would play Dreamworks’ classic animated movie, Shrek-themed dance music. Seeing his opportunity, Parker sprung into action, once again trailblazing his own path by a digital means, “I hit up the guy who runs it and I was like, ‘Hey!’ – I hit him up, like 7 times [saying,] ‘Can I play? Come on, let me play.’ So he booked me.” Sometimes when it comes to playing your first gig, all you have to do is ask. Parker recalled going to the side of the stage after his set where host, Tennis Rodman asked him how many shows he had done previously — to which Parker replied, “none!” Parker went on to express his gratitude for the opportunity to open the rave and even throwing in a joke about joining the tour. Rodman admired his tenacity, recommending that Parker talk to the owner of the event about joining them on the road. The host of the rave left Parker with this, "If he says yes, then I'll see you on tour[…]" You can probably assume what happened next.
Parker reflected on the success of that fateful (in a good way) night at the Shrek Rave, “I heard people cheering, like ‘Par-ker, Par-ker,’ like ‘En-core, En-core!’ It was nuts.” Feeling on top of the world, playing his first gig, and then being offered a spot in the tour, Parker refers to something his friend told him before he even booked the show, “[My friend was like,] ‘If you get this, you’re on a path now. You’ve started something.” Start something, he did. Following the success of the Shrek Rave in October of 2022, he found himself on the road hitting cities like Memphis, St. Louis, New York, Nashville, and Pensacola. The tour lasted from the fall of 2022 to the spring of 2023. Parker shared his thoughts on the life of a touring DJ by saying, “[The touring lifestyle] is hectic.” With time on the road he found himself dealing with the thing he says struck him the hardest, “[...] homesickness. I enjoy traveling, love traveling, but I think that it’s exciting as long as you take care of yourself.” We shook our heads and let out classic I-don’t-know-how-they-do-it sighs at the thought of professional DJs and artists, alike touring for even just a quarter of the year.
P for Parker reiterates that life was never a straight shot for him. He recollects his thoughts on a tougher time, saying, “A year ago… If you had been like, ‘Hey, you’re gonna tour. You’re gonna start hosting shows in Conway and Little Rock. You’re gonna do festivals out of state.’ I would have been like, ‘That’s funny. There’s no way in Hell.’” Before he picked mixing back up as a hobby, Parker cited that he was mostly motivated by his late mom, remarking that “[when I fell out of music for a while, I thought] she would want me to keep going.” Although his tour with the Shrek Rave has come to a close, he’s following that guide by offering not only more opportunities for himself, but for other budding electronic acts as well.
“There’s a lot of options of places you could throw an EDM show, but there’s not a home.”
Having established a proper name for himself and raking in experience abroad, Parker has used his notoriety to put on many different EDM shows across Central Arkansas. For the past several weeks, Parker has put on electronic music showcases in the form of Electro Lounge. He highlights the event as a means to have “new people consistently come in and perform their sets – get their music out there.” He says that he’s doing this not just out of a want, but out of a communal need. He’s frustrated with the state of electronic music in Central Arkansas, saying, “Like, in Fayetteville, you have West & Watson. That’s like the place to go if you want to go see EDM.” He claimed that there are many different places that take in electronic music, but “there’s no place to congregate.” He excitedly draws our attention to Cellhaus, a place that Parker claims “is one of [his] favorite places to play in Little Rock.” Parker defines the music venue that is, quite literally, just a house, as “just a couple of people who wanna throw shows. That’s really what it’s all about. It’s the community, it’s people who want live music.” You can find out what these ‘couple of people’ are doing for their next show @cellhauslive on Instagram.
“I wanna be hosting, organizing, playing, throwing… I want music to be my career and I’m trying to push for that. That’s the long-road.”
As for what’s next for Parker, it’s simple: just keep on keeping on. A wise man once said, “Only shooting stars can break the mold.” And by God, P for Parker is a shooting star. From landing a nation-wide tour off the break of his first gig, to helping other aspiring artists showcase their talents, P for Parker has a bright future ahead – not just in electronic music and DJing, but in the future of the Central Arkansas music scene. While describing his DJ set, he credits one of his favorite DJs, saying that “music’s an art. I’m drawing a painting for people to appreciate and relate to.” No matter the BPM, no matter the genre, this will always ring true. When the interview came to a close, we asked if there was anything Parker would like to add, and he had this to say, “I love doing what I do, you know. I built myself [up] to now. Man, it really wouldn’t be possible without the community. Without different people, without fans, other DJ’s, venues, hosts…” This appreciation is evident in his passion and vigor. You can catch P for Parker on almost any given weekend. He’s constantly booking shows and there seems to be no slowing down for the young DJ. You can keep tabs on his upcoming gigs @itspforparker on Instagram. And remember, it’s P-for-Parker.