The Beat Junkies

Along with The Invisibl Skratch Piklz and The X-ecutioners, The Beat Junkies were one of the seminal DJ crews that revived the art of turntablism (i.e., using turntables as musical instruments in and of themselves) during the '90s. Distinguished by their multicultural membership and trademark Green Lantern rings, The Beat Junkies were formed in Orange County (outside Los Angeles) in 1992 by J-rocc (born Jason Jackson). Fellow core DJs Rhettmatic (born Nazareth Nizra) and Melo-D (born David Mendoza) were joined by charter members Curse, Icy Ice, Symphony, and DJ WhatNULL!. Other crew members came onboard within the next year, including core DJ Babu (born Chris Oroc) and two future members of The Invisibl Skratch Piklz, Shortkut and D-styles, plus Havikk and Tommy Gun. Mr. Choc completed the crew upon his arrival in 1995. That year, The Beat Junkies got their own radio show in the suburb of Santa Ana, and began testing their skill regularly on the DJ battle circuit around southern California. The core quartet of J-rocc, Babu, Rhettmatic, and Melo-D all won individual titles at various levels of competition, and as a team, The Beat Junkies won the ITF (International Turntable Federation) world team championships in both 1997 and 1998, after which they collectively retired from competition.

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