DJ Brisk: The Creative Behind Twitch’s Team Brisk
Note: This article was originally authored by Ashley from Streamtribe on July 5th, 2022. Due to Streamtribe closing down at the end of July 2023, we’re reposting the article to preserve the content.
Spending his youth in the UK when Rap and Dance music made their way over from the US, Brisk boasts a concoction of flavor in his sound. In 1985, he was introduced to the music scene by rap and Hip Hop, as these genres were already blowing up in the US. In the late 80s, House and Techno music became a prominent factor in the UK club scene, introducing the explosion of the “rave” that we all know and love today.
Brisk shared with us this brief history lesson of Dance music as he’s been living it for the past few decades. In fact, he played a significant role in introducing Hardcore to the UK rave scene in the early 90s. As time passed, he expanded his club reach by diving into Hard House. However, Brisk notes that his core origins are not with dance music at all.
According to Brisk, Rap is where it all began for him. Even his name, Brisk, originated from his early days in the Hip Hop scene. “I came up through the music scene as a youngster listening to Rap music and the whole Hip Hop scene captured the youth of my era,” he explains. “I dabbled in break dancing and graffiti and ‘Brisk’ was my graffiti tag back in the day. The name works well in terms of how I play my music and I tend to pitch things up and maintain a level of energy regardless of which genres I’m playing.”
Although with roots in Hardcore, Brisk never likes to limit himself to one genre. He notes that streaming has opened doors for him to explore new genres and never really feel confined to one sound or idea. Brisk enjoys playing Rap, House, Progressive, Melodic, Breaks, Electro, Juke, BMore, Drum & Bass, Trance, and Techno. However, he notes that these are just a few favorites—the list could go on.
A Lifetime of Accomplishments
Brisk is a well-accomplished award-winning DJ with a success story that any aspiring artist can appreciate. He has toured the globe, acquired numerous accolades and awards, compiled and mixed multiple albums, hosted radio shows and podcasts, and much more. Not to mention, Brisk is the co-owner of three successful underground record labels, Blatant Beats, Next Generation, and Stimulant Records. The labels have released more than 600 titles combined.
For someone so accomplished and well-rounded with decades of experience in the scene, it’s fair to ask, why Twitch? How did someone so wrapped up in the budding UK music scene transition into a highly-regarded Twitch streamer with a global team of artists in his collective?
Brisk’s Transition to Twitch
Brisk is somewhat of a veteran in the Twitch DJ scene, as he got involved in 2017, long before any pandemic was on the world’s radar. In fact, he had been streaming four years before that on Facebook, where he first immersed himself into this fascinating digital production world.
“After around 4 years streaming via Facebook I migrated to Twitch in late 2017. I was feeling burned out with the lack of streaming foresight and functionality on Facebook and despite having significant viewers on the platform I found the algorithms and quality very lacklustre with constant issues with each show,” says Brisk. “It was a big leap of faith as I left behind hundreds of viewers and started with around 10 viewers on Twitch and I did question whether or not I’d made the right choice. Suffice to say I now wish I’d discovered the platform much sooner.”
Everyone measures success differently, but in any world, reaching Partner status on Twitch is something to raise a glass to. Brisk recently celebrated two years as Partner, which has allowed him to completely reformat his vision for the Brisk project.
For starters, Brisk notes that his Partner status was a driving force behind his ability to set up a team—Team Brisk.
Team Brisk
Team Brisk is a global collective of artists covering many styles of music and streaming. Initially, his vision was to build a team page with 24-hour streaming similar to what one might find at a radio station. However, with an open mind, Brisk could integrate various forms of art outside of music into his team. ASMR, art streams, and other alternative shows are streams that make up Team Brisk today.
On that note, Brisk adds, “I have to say that I’m very proud of the team and the way in which we all strive to help each achieve our streaming goals.”
The Reason to Stay
Twitch presented Brisk with opportunities he’d never know would be possible. Once a skeptic, Brisk couldn’t imagine life without it. In addition to providing a welcoming space for him to flex all the many genres he loves, the platform offers an unfathomable convenience that creators cannot find elsewhere.
Brisk loves being able to jump on a stream from his home whenever he finds the time. There’s no need to go anywhere or coordinate with friends. He can log on at any time and be in front of an audience anywhere in the world. The flexibility is important to him, as he works a job that involves many irregular hours, including evenings and weekends. Luckily for the Twitch community, time zones don’t necessarily exist—the party starts whenever you say it does.
He adds, “it’s great to know that I can stream when convenient and always have a blast with people!”
New Beginnings: Moving to Australia
Relocating across the globe from the UK to the subtropical Brisbane, Australia, ten years ago, Brisk had to make some significant lifestyle adjustments. First, he was forced to adjust to “a very irregular delivery of quality of internet speed.” And as anyone can imagine, technical difficulties galore.
Especially for someone who is turning to streaming as their primary form of content sharing, a high-quality internet connection is non-negotiable.
“There was a point in the early years where my internet connection was so poor that I had to use a portable 4G dongle in order to stream and the data costs were outrageous,” he adds.
For viewers, it’s easy to sit back and watch the show without considering what it takes to run a stream. Of course, your favorite streamers don’t want you to be worried about their technical difficulties. Still, it’s certainly something to allow you to express gratitude to everyone involved—from the streamers to the mods. As a viewer, your job is to sit back and enjoy the music, whatever that means to you.
Brisk goes on, “I’m pleased to say that I now have a custom stream room with fibre to the premises and I can now achieve the quality I’ve been yearning for for so many years. It really does make a huge difference having reliable internet and decent speeds.”
Some Things Come Full Circle
We asked Brisk to reflect on his years in the music scene and choose a moment that stood out. With nearly four decades of music under his belt, he understandably finds it a difficult question to answer. Having traveled the world, accepted rewards, and pioneered several record labels, any memories that do stand out must be good ones.
Brisks reflects on his birthday celebrations in the early 90s at the famous Club Kinetic, where he was a resident DJ at the time. He again recalls on his recent 50th birthday celebration on Twitch which began as a special back-to-back set with the legendary hardcore DJ S3RL and snowballed into a five-day bender thanks to the Team Brisk members. “Which really was an epic experience and something I’ll never forget,” he adds.
“A special thanks to my mod and technical team: Kezza, Kara, Ken, Craig, Emma, Lianne, Zora, Charlotte, Amy, Luna, Emily, Ian,” says Brisk. “A huge shout to all 191 amazing members of Team Brisk which whom I am proud and privileged to be able to work alongside. And of course a massive thank you and shout out to everyone who turns up week in, week out to attend all of our streams and shows, without you guys it really wouldn’t be worthwhile. Thank you all x.”
5 July 2023 BriskAdmin Uncategorized
