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Doc B
Doc B is a DJ and entertainer whose career in Milwaukee music spans over 40 years. Having been doing what he loves full-time since 1995, B prides himself on his comfort playing music in just about any dynamic whether he’s working with an older crowd, a younger crowd, a party setting or a relaxed setting. His DJing business is B-Boy Productions, and he occasionally appears as a morning talk show radio host on 101.7FM The Truth.
Born and raised in Milwaukee, Doc B learned to appreciate music from a young age. His parents played artists like The Temptations, Ray Charles and Billy Preston in the house while his cousins profoundly influenced his interest as well. B recalls, “My cousins were ten years older than me, and being as they were part of the younger demographic, they put me onto more of the funk stuff. I remember really gravitating towards Kool and the Gang, but Parliament-Funkadelic I consider the greatest group ever.”
B’s inception into the music scene would occur around the dawn of mainstream hip hop in the late 70’s and early 80’s. He came up in Milwaukee music closely with hip hop artist Twan Mack, whom he credits for putting him onto some of the earliest known hip hop records. “When he came back from New Jersey with a cassette tape that had Super Rhymes and Count Coolout on it, my mind was blown,” B reminisces.
“There’s a common misconception that “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang was the first rap record when really it was just the first one to go big,” he points out. “The first rap record I heard was “King Tim III (Personality Jock)” by Fatback Band and that was the one that got me going. Then there was a Kurtis Blow record called “Christmas Rappin’” that had an instrumental on the b-side, and that got me trying to rap at the time too.”
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DJing for the first time ever in 1981, Doc B’s artist name was inspired by his love for both basketball player Dr. J and George Clinton of Parliament's alter ego Dr. Funkenstein combined with the first initial of his last name.
B cites Grandmaster Flash as his favorite DJ of all time although he took cues from all the greats coming up, saying, “I always tell people that I stand on the shoulders of giants. I saw the way Flash manipulated three turntables at Fresh Fest and at first I thought he had like 13 turntables because that was before I knew about overdubbing. But I also watched how Wolfman Jack talked on the mic a lot and didn’t mix or scratch, and what Frankie Crocker was doing in New York - there’s elements of many DJs from back then that I’ve picked up on.”
He pays homage to the legendary Milwaukee DJs as well. “Dr. Bop would be on WAWA and I was mesmerized by his lengthy intros and Muhammad Ali-like rhymes. Also there was Little Mike, who gave me my first job setting up his equipment and opening for him; he was famous for changing his clothes several times a night and saying his name like an echo machine with his voice fading. Then there was Ernie G, and Larry K Myles - he was the main buyer at Audie’s where he was Milwaukee’s main Black music supplier, plus he mixed at The Circus Circus and Mr. J’s.”
At the time B went professional as a DJ in 1988, there was a club in Milwaukee called Sonny’s on Broadway he would spin at frequently. Reflecting on those days, he said, “It was a two-level club where I would play on the lower level and Reggie Brown would play upstairs. You could feel the floor pulsating from downstairs like people were about to fall through it (laughs). Sonny’s was the place you wanted to be. The name of the game was fun and there was always a lot of crowd participation.”
Closely following and reading up on hip hop culture enticed Doc B to launch B-Boy Productions and adopt the moniker “The Midwest Mixer” to represent the sounds coming out of Milwaukee, Chicago and Detroit at the time. “A lot of younger kids think I’m referring to breakdancing with “B-Boy” when really it comes from calling people dancing to the music “beat boys” and “beat girls” but shortened,” he explains.
Doc B began serving up entertainment for all kinds of parties and events through B-Boy Productions from that point on, which he is still doing to this day. For some time he used the company as a way to mentor up-and-coming DJs and help them navigate the industry as well. “I DJ because I love to DJ, not just to get the dollar,” B asserts. “The dollar is important but it’s not the bottom line; for some people it is but not for me - I might DJ for free or I might do it for $10,000 (laughs).”
On the other hand, B has also established a reputation overtime for DJing in less dance-oriented environments such as supper clubs and restaurants, which are opportunities for him to play a lot of jazz, R&B and blues music. He began embracing these atmospheres more during COVID times and has continued focusing on them since, even currently playing with local jazz band Christopher’s Project, saying, “I’m there to enhance the flavors of all the musicians without talking over them. I don’t take from; I’m adding to.”
Doc B considers versatility his superpower. “You can drop me anywhere and I’ll figure out what to do, if you give me about a half hour,” he laughs.
On what he would like to see more of in the Milwaukee music scene, B shares, “I want to see more combinations like DJs playing a mix of old and new stuff, and I want people to go back to trusting their ears on newer national and underground music as well as older unfamiliar songs. I also want to hear artists performing over instrumentals instead of over their own vocals. Rappers have realized that they don’t need DJs and just need the sound guy to press play, so nowadays DJs haven’t been as much a part of the scene like they used to be. I’d like to see DJs come back to the shows; I want us to show that we haven’t forgotten what we came from.”
Doc B can be found spinning at Cream City Sports Bar in Brown Deer on Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 4. He is also a frequent performer at Uppa Yard Jamaican Restaurant and MKE Daiquiri Lounge. To get in touch, shoot him an email at doctorbmke@gmail.com. For more information, visit: B-BOY PRODUCTIONS - Home of the Midwest Mixer Doc B
