SINGAPORE : They are usually in the shadows or, even worse, sometimes mistaken for the wannabes in search of the disco limelight at clubs. But without them your clubbing experience might simply BE a dark room with really loud music.

Let us introduce you to the humble video jockey, more fashionably known these days as a visual jockey (VJ) to set them apart from Utt, Denise and other smiley presenters on MTV.

This under appreciated sidekick of the mighty DJ is usually hidden behind a battery of state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment, and could enhance even the most boring of DJ sets by manipulating and mixing funky special-effects laden anime, graphics, videos and other images that are flashed on giant plasma screens or walls of a club that goes with the mood of the track.

Basically, these are the people who make DJs look good.

Eye Candy

“We are there so that you don’t have to look at the floor while you dance,” laughed Nicole Bianca Chaw, top resident VJ at Zouk. “If, say, the DJ is playing something that reminds you of an ocean, wouldn’t it be nice to see something blue or something that enhances that feeling? The music and the visuals add up together and creates an atmosphere — not a dark place full of smoke,” she said, explaining about how VJs complement the work of DJs.

In fact, the art form has evolved from simply being the dressing on the club salad to becoming multimedia performances of their own at concerts and music festivals. Some VJs have formed their own collectives like Addictive TV and the United Visual Artists (both from the UK) who not only dazzle crowds with their light favours but also their own music.

“Five or six years ago, people thought VJs were MTVtype video jockeys. Now more people know club VJs are the guys playing the visuals. And it’s huge overseas. That’s why I play abroad most of the time,” said 31-year old Edmond Tan, who regularly VJs under the moniker Discord at the Ministry of Sound and at international festivals like Japan’s annual Fuji Rock Festival.

But a sure sign that the art has truly arrived is its increasing popularity at fashion shows and corporate events — even in Singapore.

What do you do with an arts degree?

Local VJ act Achtung!Achtung!, comprising 30-year-olds Jasmine Tuan and Quincy Teofisto, have performed for corporate clients like Lamborghini and Volkswagen and even the J.Co Donuts & Coffee — on top of their regular ReadySetGlo gigs at Zouk.

“We played around with their logo and we did an interpretation of the donuts,” chuckled Tuan who, when not VJing, is a graphic designer and co-owns the FruFru & Tiger Lily clothes label. Teofisto is a broadcast designer for a creative agency.

So what does it take to become a good VJ? How about an arts background like street artist-turned-graphic designer Tan? It helps when it comes to shooting stills and videos, designing graphics and adding special effects, said the VJs Today spoke to, almost all of whom had a foundation in one art form or the other. Tuan and Quincy Teofisto studied multimedia design at Temasek Polytechnic and video arts at Lasalle College of the Arts respectively.

But 35-year-old Chaw feels an arts background isn’t necessary to become a good VJ. She joined Zouk’s now defunct MTV Bar (Phuture wasn’t always there, you know) in 1995 through an audition while still working at a record shop. A couple of years later, she went on to become the very first VJ at Zouk’s main room.

“(The fine arts graduates) might be ‘arty’ but if they don’t know anything (about the technical aspects), then they would just be blindly playing nice visuals,” said the self-taught Chaw. She now leads Zouk’s team of six other VJs — who mostly work part-time — and designs the club’s famous lighting systems.

DJ > VJ?

Ministry of Sound’s international resident Dan Tait has a degree in fine arts. But Tait was looking for a way to fuse his passion for music with art. “During my degree, I used to always try to find a way of mixing music with my love of art.” The result: DVJ-ing.

“DVJ-ing allows me to combine music and visuals fantastically,” said the 30- year-old from his home in Leeds. Tait and superstar DJ James Zabiela are helping electronics maker Pioneer with product development and testing for its DVJ console which, to put it broadly, brings the worlds of DJ-ing and VJ-ing together to allow just one person to do both jobs.

This variant of the art form looks like it’s catching on. SingTel Mio TV recently brought in VJ Hi Grade to Singapore for the launch its new music channel Trace last Monday, where the Frenchman, who also hosts the urban music show I Love My Mix on the channel, showcased his nifty DVJ-ing skills.

On August 1, Zouk will team up with hot Tokyo nightspot Womb, where VJs from the Japanese club will present Singapore’s first 3-D party to celebrate the anniversary of Tab, a night by Zouk residents Tony Tay and DJ B.

However, despite the rising popularity of VJs, none of them have any delusions about eventually enjoying the status equal to that of a superstar DJ.

“VJs will never get as big as DJs,” said Zouk’s Chaw. “Unless you are a special VJ, most (clubbers) will not pay attention to the visuals — they’d think it was some technician who is playing it,” she added.

Was that a hint of jealously we detected? “No problems. We are second best but it’s okay. Sometimes the crowd mistakes us for DJs and request for songs,” said Tuan with a laugh. “At the end of the day it’s still fun. Just partying.”

And that’s how a club manages to look as good as it sounds.

-TODAY/bl