DJ Phsh And The Superdope Movement– Philly’s Wednesday Night, Revitalized

June 20th, 2009. Philadelphia, PA

ATEtraks Photography

     Humpday is no longer a problem for Philadelphians. While the rest of us grumble with nostalgia of past weekends or anticipation of those to come, an enlightened many have no problem taking the day in stride– and they’ve got every reason to. Every Wednesday night, about 350 bodies wander into O.N.E. in Rittenhouse Square, aching for an outlet to rid frustration, catch a buzz and most importantly– to dance. They’ve caught on to Philly’s newest party epidemic.
     Matthew Fishman-Dickerson, known to most as DJ Phsh, is instantly recognizable by his afro and black-rimmed glasses. If you’re from the Philadelphia area and you still don’t know him, chances are you’ll cross paths at least once, either at a function or on his way to one. He seems to be everywhere nowadays, having scored a place atop many promoters’ list of DJs to call for their events.
     But amidst his busy schedule, Wednesday nights stay reserved for a byproduct of his own imagination: Superdope.

     He churns out filthy beats for the party’s five-hour duration, and heads all promotion and planning for the event. He’s even in the process of getting it copyrighted. But he laughs as I ask him about the legacy of Superdope. “It’s only been a few months,” he says, then stops. “Wow, six months already?”
     But in that short time, 21-year old Phsh has managed to take his creation to impressive heights. Not only does the party get weekly coverage on phrequency.com and other various blogs around the city, but its attendance is rapidly growing and the name is being passed around as readily as handshakes.
     “It started in January,” he explains. “Wednesday nights were open at O.N.E. and I had just stopped doing stuff at Bubble House. I was broke,” he laughs, “but I had to pay rent. So I came up with this party– hated the name “Superdope” at first but I couldn’t get it out of my head on some destiny-type shit, so that became the name.”

     “Bryant started befriending people and inviting people on Facebook and just because of his connects– he’s one of the few real socialites– it started growing.” he tells us. Bryant, who goes by his moniker Vanache, is a close friend of his who spends the party glued to his camera, documenting the night and publishing it the next morning on his widely-received blog.
     “A lot of the social people who exist in Philly, they all have their gimmicks but Bryant doesn’t have a gimmick. He just meets people and they just come. It’s why the party is so diverse.”
     The rest of the Superdope army includes tU pHACe and F.A.M.E., whose collective popularity in the Philly circuit has drawn quite the eclectic crowd. “You can’t really describe it because it’s different every week. The “hipsters” come out, in all forms. Black, White, Puerto Rican, Chinese, Asian– to quote Missy. We have everyone.”
     Superdope boasts a broad demographic– drawing people from all races, ages (above 21), wealth (it’s free!) and music tastes. Phsh does his best to cater to all of them, spinning music anywhere from electro-punk to baltimore club mash-ups, new jazz to house.
     And because he wants to pioneer a new, fresh take on nightlife like Superdope seems to have done, he plans to open up the first floor of the three-story venue to host a movie night every 1st and 3rd Wednesday.
In the following months, for just $2 partygoers will be able to enjoy wine and PBR and snack on popcorn and Swedish Fish while enjoying a movie. After the film, the dance party can begin. “You have to be as creative as possible in that space,” Phsh has realized.
     He has set his sights on extending the party not only in within O.N.E. lounge, but past its Center City residence as well.
     “We will eventually travel, hopefully to different cities, eventually different countries. I see a lot of artists like The Roots coming here, representing for Philly and going other places. I feel like that’s a good look, for Philly to be represented. Since I’m the face of the party, I could do that.”

     He’s lived his whole life in a 15-block radius, so Philly’s booming culture pumps through his veins. He’s already gained plenty of comparisons to other native DJs like King Britt and Rich Medina because of his popularity, and they’ve served as his mentors, among others like the whole Illvibe Collective, Statik and Lil’ Dave. But he makes definite plans to match their heights.
     “It’s the crab-in-the-bucket mentality. And that’s part of the thing that makes Philly Philly. Everyone’s trying to get at it at the same time, but certain minds come together and…they don’t necessarily counteract, but we crabs, we link up and come up together with whatever appendages.”
     The relationships he’s secured and maintained, paired with his talent and the “growing monster” that is Superdope, seems to leave a certain, final destination of success.
     “People are still trying to do the whole post-Roots thing, people who are trying to do the Spank Rock electro-type stuff and people trying to do everything, like me. I am everywhere. You need to be somewhere, so it’s not like I’m never there, you know what I mean?”

Words by SamSun

Photos by Nakeya B.