Learning to DJ “Before YouTube Existed”

Literary-moon (day 3): Interview with Anglo-Indian DJ Arnold Heiden

Welcome to day 3 of “literary-moon”: A series where I interview the incredible creatives and artists who contributed to the magic of my recent wedding festivities (both in the SF Bay Area and in Kerala, India).

If you missed our first two stories — the first featured Maria-Joy (curator of our wedding gift hampers) and the second featured Jeremiah de Rozario (my favorite indie singer-songwriter).

Now, please enjoy today’s story featuring Arnold Heiden (DJ Arnold), a multi-talented artist and king of vibes at music venues across India.

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Meet Arnold Heiden

(Read to this song).

Personally, I’m transporting myself back to when DJ Arnold dropped some serious beats at our wedding cocktail party (where my childhood friends and I bopped and shimmy-ed till we couldn’t no more).

V: How did you start DJ-ing? And, were you always drawn to music and sound mixing?

Arnold: I started DJ-ing around 2005-2006 using 2 CD/DVD players & a sound mixer. Back then, I worked a 9-to-5 job and would DJ at night — exclusively for my friend and family circles.

Being an Anglo Indian, I grew up listening to country music everyday.