ABOUT

The name, Russell “Big Russ” Gatewood, has been synonymous with the Bay Area music scene for years. His fingerprint can be traced on almost every aspect and genre dating back to the ‘80s. His career began when Hip Hop showed him that turntables could be a musical instrument. He took that inspiration and ran with it, learned the craft from legends, spearheaded a local DJ collective and quickly became one of the more popular DJ’s in the region.

Russ (along with his longtime business partner Rick Patrick) formed what has become an entertainment staple in the Northern California, The World Famous Rick & Russ Show. Their unique blend of curation and engaging humor received instant acclaim and was immediately successful. Now simply known as, The World Famous Show, it wasn’t long before the collective was given opportunities to live up to their moniker and began performing at national conventions and expos as well as touring with award winning artists from coast to coast. Their amazing ability to turn any and every event into a celebration has left indelible marks as far away as the U.K., South Africa, Europe, the Pacific Rim, Canada and South America.

Over the years, “DJ Big Russ” has skillfully blended artistry with technology and professionalism. His attention to detail makes him the “go to guy” when a huge impression must be made. Although he’s known for playing in front of thousands in arenas, stadiums and amphitheaters, he cherishes smaller more intimate gatherings, “I am always honored when someone chooses you to be part of the most important day of their lives. There is no higher compliment!”

Chris “CJ Flash” Jourdan is an extremely talented DJ, songwriter, producer, arranger and musician. He produces everything from Hip-Hop to Jazz and is considered one of the Bay Area’s original Hip-Hop pioneers. His history as a DJ goes back to 1982 when he began experimenting heavily with the turntables. His popularity grew as a party DJ, and earned him a spot on what was then the Bay Area’s hottest underground music show - Music For The People on KALX 90.7FM in Berkeley.

Since the 90’s, he and Russ have been fixtures on the local and national music scenes, playing a variety of venues including The Toyota Concord Pavilion, The Shoreline Amphitheater, The LA & Berkeley Greek Theaters, Chastain Park (Atlanta), and San Jose Jazz Festivals, as well as gracing the stage at a number of international events, most recently the Dave Koz Cruise in 2024.

He has been DJ on a number of prominent tours including the 2008 Katt Williams “It’s Pimpin’, Pimpin’” national tour, playing to thousands of people each week. He shares his knowledge, talent and influence with a large number of Bay Area artists, radio and club DJs throughout the music community. He is equally passionate about sharing this knowledge with Bay Area youth, lending his considerable talents to educating the next generation as a faculty member at Oakland School for the Arts.

These days, you can catch CJ performing live on TikTok, Mixcloud, and Facebook Live Mondays 1-3pm & 7-9pm, Wednesdays 1-3pm & Fridays from 12 - 4pm PST/PDT.