Follow + Connect with Vertekz
[By: Garth Jones]
We Get Up To Get Down With SLC-Based Rising Talent Vertekz
Q1: Thanks for joining us, Vertekz! For any new, soon-to-be, and existing fans of yours, can you walk us into the originating days of Vertekz? Where did this all begin?
A1: Hey thanks for having me! So I started playing shows in 2010 but even prior to that, I was selling tickets or helping get flyers to various smoke shops or working the door at random shows. I went to my first show in 2008, but my mom had introduced me to artists like The Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, and The Chemical Brothers after I brought home a DJ Icey CD that I found while I was walking home from school, so by the time I went to my first show I instantly thought, “that’s the shit that I wanna do”. It’s been 10 years since my first show and I couldn’t be happier with what I’ve been able to accomplish.
Q2: Vertekz is a unique yet powerful moniker. Where does the choice to name your artist’s alias this? Take us all the way back to those days, reminiscing on that very choice!
Vertekz is actually my second alias. I used to go by Timmy Teaze and was doing predominantly breakbeat sets. In 2019, I was talking with some folks and just felt like I had said everything I needed to or could say with that project and made the decision to fully rebrand and it was slightly terrifying lmao. Ian from Sky asked if I wanted to play direct support for Downlink and Phiso so I figured there’s the sign I needed to launch. As far as my choosing for the name Vertekz, in math (which I’m absolutely not a fan of), a vertex is the highest point or the apex of a shape. With me feeling like I had done everything I could want to do with Timmy Teaze, the word vertex really resonated with me. When we were doing my logo, we stylized it so the T was the middle point as an homage to Timmy Teaze.
Q3: You’re an SLC-based local who has his red-hot irons in a couple of industrial fires. In addition to being a dance music artist, what else do you do for the community and scene as a whole?
A3: Outside of my own music stuff, I also do social media promo for V2 Presents and BlaqVoid, and I’m also the social media manager for Recall Network. You may or may not see me put a management hat on for some people that I absolutely adore and believe in sometime in the future.
Q4: You recently opened for Wuki with Awar3wolf playing just before you. What was this experience like? Give us the dirt, grime, and grit of that evening!
A4: That set was actually a B2B [back to back] with Awar3wolf. It worked out because I love rocking Sky AND I was able to bring Logan out for his first set and he absolutely crushed it for his first time on stage. I played some of my unreleased stuff and got to flex some of the homies unreleased as well and they were well-received.
Q5: In what ways do you plan to make the rest of 2021 that much more memorable than years before? Get us stoked to get soaked with Vertekz!
A5: The rest of 2021 is absolutely going to make up for that fart of a year that we called 2020 lmao. I’m fortunate enough to have a slot at Das Energi with my dude In2gr8, which is going to get me back into my breakbeat roots. At the moment I’ve got a couple tracks that will for sure see release. Ruckus is a 130 bpm trap track with a big room drop; and Guillotine, which is my 150 bpm head knocker trap thing. I played Guillotine at the show Blaq Void did for Juneteenth and was shocked at how well it did. Make no mistake though, I’ve got a ton of stuff that’s staying unreleased specifically for my sets so if you guys wanna hear it, the only places will be when I play.
Q6: Who is destroying the game right now? Give them a straight up-and-down vertical Vertekz shout-out!
A6: First and foremost, tremendous shout out to my man Perses. This dude is easily one of my best friends and I’m beyond fortunate to have him in my life. He also makes some gnarly tunes that destroy dance floors. Also shouts to Peytn, Fransis Derelle, Nate Lowpass, Kryo, Quackson, Guppi, VRG, Gawm, Birthdayy Partyy, VRZ, Wolfik, Friendzone, Wye Nawt, Flatland Funk, Audie-O, Awoltalk, X&G, Moore Kismet, Runnit, Mirr.Img, Chuck None, Mylky, Ghosts Are Real, Kwantum and of course my lovely baby djs Awar3wolf, Cryztl, and Neon Drip.
I’d also like to give some thanks to V2 Presents, Blaq Void, and Recall Network. All of these teams are full of some of the brightest, most forward thinking and biggest, sexiest-brained individuals and I’m so lucky to call all of you colleagues and friends.
Drink some water and sit up straight, you dehydrated bananas. I love you!
Logo picture credit- Cartoon Advisory
Picture credit – Candace Cabalquinto, Migpxl, Chatterz Photo
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