BB FANS

Thank you for the lovely pics of Kate hard at work, Rincewind.

Yeah, great piccies - sounds like peeps thought Kate and Reggie were pretty cool.
The gig was last saturday in Newcastle by the look of things - Kate's been moaning this week on Kerrang! that she lost her mobile!

Yes thanks for the pics

Kates reviewed in Mixmag-unfortunately in a "celebrity dj"expose-which of course is nonsense for anyone who knows.She does get top ranking and is criticised for being too cool and low key.But its the MOS they reviewed and Kate was probably scared of scratching the console! Shame they didn't check her out in the heartlands of Brighton Reading Ireland or up Norf. I'll maybe write it up as its almost a fiver for the mag.

Well I looked at it in Tesco.

I must admit the more I read these types of mags, the more confused I am in general. Mind you, as a fat middle-aged man I guess I would be even sadder then I am, if I followed and claimed to understand the Dance scene.

The article seemed to have a pop at people just using their "celebrity" status to become DJs, then there main criticism of Kate was that she didn't use that, and just played her music.

Still, actually a fairly decent review (good DJ and she can mix), and I'd say she's come out of it quite well considering they were doing an hatchet-job on the "sleb-Dj culture"

Yeah, but the main point is why should Kate after all her hard work, continual comments from herself that she's not in this for z-list celebrity pictures in dreadful tabloids, be waiting for some positive comment from mixmag?

Kate was a true clubber long before Big Brother - something the apparently elitist mixmag forget about.
And as for the so-called 'djs' listed in the article along with Kate - just laughable.

I don't know if OJ Borg was trying to be cool, but he once mentioned that he would have loved to have gone to the Hacienda.
Peter Hook was promoting his cd about the Hacienda the other week and said Sankeys was the natural successor.

Full comments from this month's mixmag article regarding 'celebrity' DJs:

'The 29-year-old first female winner of Big Brother in 2002 and subsequent TV presenter, Love Island Island contestant, Ann Summers model, radio presenter, gossip columnist and disc jockey with a recent residency at Sankeys oop north(do mixmag think the dance scene begins and stops in London/Ibiza?)

Venue Bar Room @ The Gallery, Ministry of Sound

Length of Gig Two Hours

Genre/Style Tech House

Tune Selection No-nonsense 'steady as she goes' beeps and bleeps. But no excitement either with few peaks and troughs, or indeed anything that resembles a risk. 6/10

Mixing Despite missing a golden opportunity to announce herself with a killer drop, Kate's technique proves she can mix and beat match like a real DJ. In fact, she is a real DJ. The lack of showmanship and musical ammo, however, leaves plenty of room to improve. 8/10

Crowd Response Very little change from the set before, she holds the mixed crowd in their early 20s. It stays that way throughout. No more. No less. And no magic numbers. 6/10.

X Factor Beyond a friendly chat with a fan as she picks her tracks, and shamelessly donning black fingerless gloves, any expectant sense of Kate as a celebrity seems stunted in her DJ guise and all rather constrained. Shame. A tantrum would've livened things up. 2/10.

Overall In a Sunday league of celeb-jockeys, Lawler has the potential to reach the Championship of real-deal DJs. Yet in her effort to be taken seriously she may repress the flair, confidence and personality that would see her rise up the tables. Driving gloves or driving basslines... 7/10.'

Well, it's obvious that Big Brother has blighted Kate in her attempts to be respected as a real? DJ in certain quarters, but she has been very successful. Kate has to work twice as hard and be ten times as good as her peers to get respect from some.

I think it was a mistake to miss out Ibiza in its entirety this year because surely she would have been offered some good opportunities. Kerrang! Radio is a good job away from the dance scene, more-or-less 9-5, 5-days-a-week, a job which needs serious commitment, a job which she's very good at, but a job which can be transient as the culling of DJs this year has proved.

As for the review:

Don't know if Kate was a bit tentative because she was playing a gig at The Ministry of Sound, bit of an important milestone, but that opinion of mixmag is not the general one on forums. Kate is generally considered very impressive, many comments saying she's better than the DJs mixmag do laud.

The 'x-factor' comments seem quite contradictory. Do they want Kate to act like a 'celebrity' or don't they?
Kate should never have been in the article listed against the rest. She creates her own tunes and has very much in the main resisted the chance to make a fortune as a 'celebrity' DJ/DJing for corporates, etc. And she could have if she wanted.

Still, can't deny positive recognition from mixmag is not important, because it is.
I think they get a bit pretentious when they refer to themselves as the 'DJ bible' because the dance scene was supposed to be totally egalitarian and Kate was a real dance aficionado long before she took to the decks.

However, the fact that mixmag puts a question-mark regarding whether Kate will become 'championship' could be a major future compliment...

Yeah not too bad, as I said.

TBH the Kerrang job is her REAL bread & butter, it really does need to be the big priority.

Disagree; Kate's dance career is real, Kerrang! Radio is very serious, but the ultimate bonus, something that gives Kate a kudos amongst the z-list who have no real jobs apart from being 'z-list celebrities', of course.
I could never understand why a wannabe dance dj like OJ Borg belittled Kate's dance career, even for 'comedy' purposes.
Simon James on the breakfast show always promotes his dj career at some club in walsall, and he only plays indie/rock, something we've always heard in clubs?

Well, it's very much in what earns the girl a living PiL (BTW wasn't Lydon really great on the Culture Show). Her dance career is something she's clearly really into, has worked hard at, and has garlanded great plaudits from both peers and customers alike.

But it's a really really hard business to make cash from, how do you make money from it unless you're one of the top 50 in the country? Most of 'em try to make cash from promoting and tracks, both of which Kate has done, yet to no massive success that I can see. Also KL has admitted to being bit of a party animal, so it's quite possible that much of her clubbing wages go into having fun.

So, Kerrang which she seems to be getting better every day, is the thing she needs to be concentrating on surely?

Both careers are complimentary-I weekdays the other weekends.Plus the bonus of the move to Birmingham that opened up different celeb opportunities away from london and helped with journey times.Its pointless arguing which is best as both are best and suit each other.Mentally one refreshes the other.Kate has a history of making changes when nearing a rut-but I hope she sticks with this combo as its very rewarding.I'd say she's lucky to get the gigs at the weekend s but the fees are worth it to the promoters and Kate would be clearing a tidy profit on 50 gigs a year.I doubt the Kerrang gig is all that well paid.

Bin a while since I put dates up. Early days for 2009 but one interesting one at Pacha-

05 Dec Hustle @ Fusion Guernsey
12 Dec Techno Prisoners Maidstone
31 Dec Byblos Glasgow
23 Jan Nightowl @ Pacha London
30 Jan The Venue Dumfries
13 Feb Kiwi Club Lithuania



Nightowl
Who would have thought that what started as a small gathering of friends at a local nightclub would fast become one of London's most talked about club nights. Nightowl have succeeded where others have failed since it's inaugural event just two years ago. From humble beginnings to commencing a new Saturday night residency at one of the most iconic club brands in the world.

For this second birthday special, two of Nightowl's most popular guest's have been invited back behind the decks. Expect big main room house beats and an electric atmosphere to match.

:::::::::Main Room:::::::::::

Kate Lawler
Raymundo Rodriguez
Scott Hayhoe
Williams & Du Bois
James Murray
Dave Lane

:::::::::::Global Room:::::::::::

Nightowl residents

Tickets available soon!

Price: £15 in advance £20 on the door
Door times: 10:00pm - 05:00am
VIP Tables: available by calling 0845 371 4489

Agree with you guys!

But the mixmag review was important for Kate, though rather churlish to include Kate as 'celebrity' dj at all, something Kate has been careful about distancing herself from the outset.

Why isn't Kate allowed to be classed alongside the likes of Annie Mac, Ann Savage and Lisa Lashes? - surely, she's as good as them.

A couple of years ago Kate was asked by Lorraine Kelly of GMTV to DJ at a fashion show, z-list selebs et al.
Kate had to rush around getting a commercial DJ set together because her music is non-commercial. I think that says a lot.
Also, a couple of months ago on Kerrang! Radio, Kate played her answer phone message which tells people how to contact her DJ agent. The message was Hill from Kerrang!'s breakfast show doing an Alan Partridge impression saying: 'for corporate work, see Bill Oddie!'. That says a lot too.
Kate, in the main, has not taken the corporate dollar like others who claim to be DJs, but she could have.

I don't know, but the last fee I saw mentioned on the internet for booking Kate Lawler as a DJ was 3k.

Vilt's right in saying that Kate is on a moderate salary at Kerrang! Radio. Can only remember her referring to it once with Tim Shaw. Kate is there because she loves presenting radio, and with times as they are at Kerrang! Radio and across the industry, you just have to accept that.

Yes I remember her saying it wasn't massive at Kerrang, but that was when she was a side-kick to Shaw. Now she has her own drive-time show.

Must admit I'm surprised at 3 grand a gig, if so good on her. Should be mentioned that no doubt she will get a number of gigs around xmas that aren't mentioned in her diary, that has happened in the past anyway.

Hi, not even thinking about which job is best. I think someone like Kate can manage both. As long as Kerrang! Radio lasts, Kate's career as a House DJ and mainstream radio presenter can complement each other.

Just think it was wrong of mixmag to include Kate in the 'celebrity' DJ list when she's gone out of her way to prove she's not one, and missed out on much money.