Lighting up the room

Hard working Special Olympian runs deejay venture on the side

It’s difficult to find a harder worker than 21-year old Matthew McCarthy. When McCarthy isn’t participating in Special Olympics bowling, or wrangling shopping carts at the Dominion Supermarket in Long Pond, you can find him behind a booth arranging tunes for his part-time DJ venture.    

“I’m kept busy,” said McCarthy. “I deejay dart parties, Christmas parties and birthday parties.”

McCarthy said he caters the music that he plays to the venue where he is playing. He’s always eager to continue learning the ropes of the business, going to parties to watch other DJ’s and constantly updating his music library. The young DJ continues to invest in his business, purchasing new lighting and sound systems.

“The lights are my favourite part,” said McCarthy, smiling. “I like to sit back, listen to the music and watch the lights.”

The enthusiastic young DJ said he has been playing for about a year, beginning by playing at parties he attended. He said people enjoyed his music so he began investing in all of his own equipment, a computer, speaker system and lighting systems. The lights are the best part of McCarthy’s DJ performance. His operation features a number of multi-colored lights, along with timed laser lights.

The proud owner and operator of Matthew’s DJ Service said he charges $150 for weddings and $100 for birthdays. He likes to take bookings at least two weeks in advance.

“Some DJ’s charge $300 or $400, but a lot of people can’t afford that much,” said McCarthy.

McCarthy said anyone interested in his services can reach him for bookings at 730-8708.