Remembering everyone’s favorite party starter, DJ Casper

"Everybody clap your hands!" [READER]( The Daily Reader August 16, 2023 Friday night, I was sitting in the nosebleeds at a White Sox game when I heard someone familiar. The cool-headed voice of DJ Casper filled Guaranteed Rate Field to encourage people to show support for the home team with a familiar command: “Everybody clap your hands.” If you’ve been to a wedding or a family reunion or a bar or bat mitzvah or a summer barbecue or a minor league baseball game or any event that gathers several different generations of people in large numbers, chances are you’ve probably heard that phrase before, uttered by the exact same person. Chicago native DJ Casper, born Willie Perry Jr., delivers the line in a smooth talk-singing style in his instructional dance smash, “Cha-Cha Slide.” [Perry died earlier last week](. I’d thought about him a lot in the days before I heard his voice—clear, calm, and suave—enliven the crowd at Friday’s Sox game when the energy began to dip and the team really needed a boost. They lost. It didn’t matter (mostly); I had my MLB ballpark experience, thanks, in part, to the sound of Perry’s voice. There’s a lot I love about “Cha-Cha Slide.” I love how inviting Perry sounds; it’s as if he’s right there on the dance floor with you, encouraging you to get loose and show off your moves. I love how he encourages you to be yourself even as he provides a rudimentary blueprint of dance moves for you to follow; his dance is about participation more than it’s about perfect synchronicity, and he gives people wiggle-room to feel comfortable on the dance floor. I think of how, midway through the song, he asks, “How low can you go?” It’s not about being the best dancer at the party, but enjoying yourself to the fullest. Yes, Perry is known for that one song, but it’s a hell of a song. How many other musicians can say they’ve soundtracked a generation of parties? How many other artists recorded the kind of performance that DJs routinely reach for to play at events where joy is central, if not an absolute requirement? Perry’s song can manifest happiness; “Cha-Cha Slide” can unite tens of thousands of people who may have nothing in common other than a love for (or ticket to see) a baseball team. That’s powerful. I look forward to more people giving him flowers in the years to come. For now, I’ll take a note from Perry and honor him with one command, to all of you. I hope you follow along with this when I ask you all to clap your hands. Sincerely, [“The evolution of Steve Albini: ‘If the dumbest person is on your side, you’re on the wrong side,’”]( by Jeremy Gordon (The Guardian) “[Best friend mourns bandmate killed in Minneapolis punk show mass shooting,]( by Nicole Ki (MPR News) “[Five Songs or Albums I’ve Heard Too Much in Dive Bars,” by Hugo Reyes]( (Hugo Reyes’s Medium) Loona Dae,[ATARI! The Album]( Hurry, [Don’t Look Back]( Aced Spade & Marko Stat$, [Keep The Kid Alive]( 🎤 Leor’s “[Mid-August 2023 playlist]( playlist [Lovely Little Girls drop a dazzling new album of grotesque, theatrical prog rock]( Plus: Members of Naked Raygun promote a tribute to late bassist Pierre Kezdy, improvising chamber group Mad Myth Science release an extraordinary debut, and more. by [J.R. Nelson]( and [Leor Galil]( | [Read more]( → [Lifeguard make a break for indie’s big time with Dressed in Trenches]( by [Leor Galil]( | [Read more]( → [Smushie’s psych-pop will make you believe in endless summers]( by [Leor Galil]( | more]( → Hey Chicago, what are you reading? September 7 is our Books Issue, and we want your book recommendations! Click below to complete our Books Poll. [TAKE OUR BOOKS POLL]( [Issue of Aug. 10 – 23, 2023 Vol. 52, No. 22]( [VIEW / DOWNLOAD ISSUE [PDF]]( [View this e-mail as a web page]( [@chicago_reader]( [/chicagoreader]( [@chicago_reader]( [Chicago Reader on LinkedIn]( [/chicagoreader]( [chicagoreader.com]( [Forward this e-mail to a friend](. Want to change how you receive these e-mails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](. Copyright © 2023 Chicago Reader, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616