Daily Inspiration: Meet DJ Nabs

Today we’d like to introduce you to DJ Nabs.

Hi DJ, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Youtha A. Fowler or simply, NABS.
Known internationally as “the DJ who toured with Michael Jackson,” NABS continues to demonstrate why he is one of the most prolific DJs of his time.  Building an unprecedented career through his creative, innovative, and visionary work across many facets of the entertainment industry.

Early Beginnings in the Walltown Community
I was born in Durham, North Carolina at the historic Lincoln Hospital to my father, Youtha Y. Fowler (YY) and mother, Mary Ann Milford. I grew up in the Walltown Community which is where I spent most of my childhood.  It was in this neighborhood where I began to manifest my dreams.

I actually started with music in the choir and playing saxophone at Bible Way Church. I also played sax at Brogden Junior High, but it wasn’t until my sophomore year in high school that I realized I had another musical calling. Rap Music!  So many memories from the ’80s and the way the whole b-boy/b-girl movement was coming with break dancing and emcees on the mic. I was pretty quiet so becoming a mixing, scratching DJ while someone else rocked the mic was perfect for me.

Back then, we learned about mixing and scratching through listening, not necessarily watching. I didn’t live near Grand Master Flash in the Bronx, so I used my ears to learn and my fingers to find and discover the records that he and others were using to make these scratches with. So, a fresh pack of double AA batteries, a Sony walkman, cassette and headphones were required gear for hardcore listening and learning sessions of mix show DJs, that were passed around on cassette with the latest rap or freestyle type records. I really loved the different styles of Chuck Chillout, Marley Marl, Red Alert and The Latin Rascals.  It was discovery mode at all times!

Once I saw an actual set of turntables with a DJ set up for the first time at my childhood friend, Fred James’ (Kiss Disco DJ Crew) house in Walltown, “He was hooked” as my best friend brother Luke Duke would say and BAM!

In NC, my experience with rap music came directly from older DJs in Durham like DJ Polo (DHS), Fred James, DJ Snooge, DJ Alpo, Generette, Ant Rush (DJ Majik) Strike Force Disco, Wizards Of Sound, and Waxmaster Torey.  At this point my DJ superheroes, Grandmaster Flash, Mixmaster Ice, Jam Master Jay lead the way with movies, records, TV shows, magazine covers…. ya know…. the life!!! I aspired to be like them. This was the 80s!

In 1984, I came up with my stage name, DJ Nabs (Nabisco Disco), back then, the word “Disco” seemed very necessary. At 15-years-old I began my quest to be the best DJ on the planet.  However, that came with the stipulation from my mother, that I would still attend and play saxophone at church each week. My turntables and my sax were my steady partners through high school and college.  During my junior and senior years at Durham High School (now Durham School of the Arts), I was the drum major of the DHS Marching Bulldogs Band and served as student body president.  During my senior year, my younger sister, J. Ra’Chel Fowler, joined me as we became the first and only brother-sister drum major duo in the history of the school (1985-1986).

Eventually I became popular deejaying at school dances, neighborhood house parties, and local teen nightclubs.  I met Mr. Freeze of Mr. Freeze Record Shop in Raleigh.  He was impressed by my deejaying skills and showmanship, and began to book me for different shows that he was promoting in the area.  One of the most infamous concerts Mr. Freeze organized was at The Dorton Arena in Raleigh, featuring Roxanne Shante, Marley Marl, and Sparky D.  Another big party I have to mention was the Friday Night Jam at The Deck (2840 Industrial Drive, Raleigh), featuring myself and fellow DJ, the mighty Sound Machine.  The party was the first jam of the year and everyone had better be there!

Early Success

I really started gaining notoriety in the Triangle when I started being heard on the radio, which was a rare opportunity.  My mixing debut was on North Carolina State University’s WKNC 88.1 radio station as a guest DJ on Waxmaster Torey Music Showcase in 1985 (YouTube video).  Torey Drinker, later becoming known as personality Tre Black, was one of the first radio DJs in the area to feature rap music on a live radio broadcast which was a real game changer in the rap music movement.  Torey and I remained in touch over the years until his untimely passing in 2010.

I really started building a reputation in the Raleigh-Durham, Chapel Hill and Apex areas, and found myself deejaying for female, rap duo, The Icey Girls.  Frosty, from the group was signed to the label, Tommy Boy Records and released one studio single, “I Need LLove Now” in 1987.  The record was being played nationally on the radio and that resulted in us getting booked for shows, concerts, and parties outside of North Carolina.  After several performances, Frosty decided she no longer wanted to continue and we never performed together again.

Leaving Durham for the Bigger City
Hip-hop was beginning to take off, with movies such as Wild Style, Breakin’, and Krush Groove came out, most aspiring DJs and rappers headed to New York. I had no interest in going to New York, so after attending North Carolina Central University for two years, I decided to go South. When I relocated to Atlanta in 1988, I enrolled at Morris Brown College located in the city’s historic college district.  While in school, I joined the 116th US National Guard Band, playing in the big band, trio, quartet, and concert bands for over four years.  I was still fulfilling the pact I made with my mom to continue playing the saxophone, although I was not playing for church I was playing for military officials and dignitaries; it was a compromise.

Atlanta was a city unknown as far as hip-hop and I had to start making a name for myself in this new terrain, in a time when social media was simply word of mouth.  I was only in Atlanta for a few days, when my friends and I saw a flyer that said “DJ Nab” would be playing at the park.  How can I make a name for myself now, if there was already a DJ Nab in Atlanta I thought?  My best friend, Luke Duke wasn’t going to stand for it, he drove us to Piedmont Park immediately so I could battle DJ Nab for the right to use my name.  Nab (Noel A. Booker) decided to bring DJ Toomp in the mix to battle me.  Toomp was a fierce DJ/producer known for his work with MC Shy D, Raheem The Dream (GA) and Uncle Luke (FL) at that time. I was quick, nimble and on time with my cuts and scratches.  Back then, I kept my own needles and my slipmates (thin plastic to make spinning vinyl smoother) with me at all times. We had a good three rounds between us and it was just all good. Respect was given all around.

Following the battle, we all became friends and Nab actually booked me for an upcoming Freaknik party at Jon A. White Park in Atlanta GA. This was 1988 (there’s a new Freaknik 2024 movie…I’m in it)

A Legend In the Making
Breaking through in a new city was not easy.  I was entering as many DJ competitions I could find around Atlanta and won.  I also auditioned and got hired by various nightclubs in the city, which helped get my name out to the people.  I ended up meeting the not yet famous Jermaine Dupri at the club where I was spinning.  Not knowing that we would cross paths again, making history for the hip-hop music scene in Atlanta.

I found my way back on college radio, this time at Georgia State University’s WRAS 88.5 Album 88, mixing live as a guest DJ on weekend show Tha Bomb.  I later worked my way in at a local FM station by mixing on late night hip-hop mix shows, The Fresh Party and The Thunderstorm, both on WVEE V103.3.

After four years of literally scratching and surviving, I finally got my first break in the industry.  When my college friend and fellow DJ, Todd Thomas, known as Speech of Arrested Development, released their first hit single, he asked me to record a remix dedicated to the turntable instrumentalists* of the world for the song “Tennessee” which went number 1 and sold multiplatinum. (*the word turntablist had not been coined)

The breaks kept coming, I ended up getting hired by teen phenomenon, Kris Kross to be their Musical Director and DJ in 1992.  My very first tour with the duo was the Michael Jackson Dangerous Tour in Europe (1992).  We only two weeks to prepare a forty-five-minute opening show for the King of Pop.  The performance included me opening the show and a solo in between as Chris and Chris came on and off stage.  I still don’t know how I developed nerves of steel to perform in front of crowds that were in the tens to hundreds of thousands of people but that year broke that quiet mode on the mic. I was live and in ya face!!

After returning from the Dangerous Tour, I continued touring with Kris Kross in the US and abroad for a few more years.  The following year in 1993, Michael Mauldin, father of producer and CEO, Jermaine Dupri, opened So So Def Recordings in Atlanta, and I continued to work with JD and his forthcoming groups Da Brat and Xscape.

When work with the groups started to slow down around 1995, I had to find another way to continue deejaying. I returned to my radio roots and was able to grab a full-time slot with the help of Jerry “Smokin’ B” (Milwaukee/Atl) and Steve Hegwood, as a full-time radio personality and mix show DJ.

This station in Atlanta was only Radio One’s third station.

Nabs you left 100,00 FM Watts for Hip-Hop?

Believe it or not, I was on the largest FM radio signal in Atlanta of 100,000 watts, when I stepped down to broadcast from a much, much smaller signal; which was actually in a cow pasture initially.  I accepted a position at the new radio station, Hot 97.5, the first 24-hour hip-hop station in the Atlanta area.  I debuted my branded radio show, In the Lab with DJ Nabs in 1996, what would end up become a household name in the city.  Around 1997, I brought on a sidekick to the show, Chris Luva Luva and Poon Daddy.  Who later would be known to the world as rapper and actor, Ludacris.

I also turned my radio show into a live, club production, starting one of the first live hip-hop nights in midtown Atlanta, with legendary hip-hop acts such as Jay Z, The X Ecutioners, Redman, Ja Rule, Method Man, Wyclef Jean, The Sugarhill Gang, Run DMC, Kurtis Blow, Grand Master Flash, Biz Markie, Poor Righteous Teacher, Questlove and more performing live on stage.

In the Lab with DJ Nabs Old Skool Sundays was the Studio 54 of the South, as many of the industries who’s who of artists, actors, and sports figures made regular appearances at the club.  OSS brought a new experience to Atlanta nightlife and it was the most historic night the city has ever had.  The In the Lab with DJ Nabs brand became a trifecta in 1998, with the release of my first studio album of the same name on Columbia Records.

What is Something Most People Don’t Know about You?
A lot of my peers are not aware of my other professional experience when I was not behind the turntables. When I was not performing as a DJ, I worked for under the direct leadership of Michael Mauldin (Mauldin Brand Agency), as a music executive, holding such roles as manager for several artists, publishing executive, road manager, estate management, and concert production. I’ve also been in video production for over two decades which is something else most don’t know.

My studio production work is also fairly diverse for a DJ.  My first studio album was one of the first of its kind featuring live recordings of performances by many legendary hip-hop artists. I also have production credits on several records for my production, scratch composition, and/or remix.  I am featured on recordings with Lenny Kravitz, Randy Jackson, Jay-Z, Ludacris, and other award-winning artists. In addition to being credited on over 40 projects for production, scratch composition, composing, and remixing.

My interest and respect for history has allowed me and my company to licensed footage/content to major television and streaming networks for documentaries about hip-hop in the South and hip-hop in general.  The latest being an appearance in Hulu’s documentary Freaknik: The Wildest Party Never Told (2024) and PBS’ Talking Black In America (2017) which is a part of the Language and Life Project at North Carolina State University.

The Next Frontier
I aspire to be a trailblazer in the industry through reinvention and evolution. I continue to be a student of the business and I understand how important it is to maintain relationships with mentors and colleagues.  This is why I continue to share my experiences through my own productions.

The latest venture and inspiration started in 2020 when I co-founded Em City Recordings (emcityworld.com), where my team and I began producing, recording, and releasing our own digital content.  In addition, Em City also produces animations, podcasts, documentaries and series, events, and workshops.  Currently, we are screening my personal story, N.A.B.S Got Something To Say and the Back When It Was Rap mobile exhibit.  More details can before found on the site. www.djnabs.com

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Countless but conquering every day.

Please let us know if this is not answered in the write up provided.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Nabs’ music credits are listed here – https://www.djnabs.com/nabs-music-page/

More about his independent projects can be found here – https://emcityworld.com/

Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
Please let us know if this is not answered in the write up provided.

Contact Info:

• Website: djnabs.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/d.j.nabs/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/djnabsinlab/
• Twitter: https://x.com/djnabsinlab
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/DJNABSTV
• Other: https://music.youtube.com/channel/UCLuprZEuD9xpG3LHlTNtv7w