17 | think like a dj

I recently read an article by J.C. Hall, LCSW, EXAT, a Hip Hop artist and social worker at Mott Haven Community School in the South Bronx. The article details Hall’s founding of the Hip Hop Therapy Studio and his efforts to provide “culturally resonant treatment to youth through artistic media.” The entire effort is worth a close read, but what jumped out at me was Hall’s likening of the creation of Hip Hop Therapy (HHT) to how a DJ operates:

In the mid-’90s, a clinical social worker began laying the empirical foundation for integrating Hip Hop’s healing capacities into mental health treatment. Hip Hop therapy (HHT) was first coined and introduced to the literature by my late professor, mentor, and friend, Dr. Edgar Tyson. HHT blends the inherently cathartic components of the culture with well-established treatment modalities, from music, poetry, and other expressive therapies to solution-focused, narrative, cognitive behavioral, psychodynamic, and dialectical behavioral therapies. It takes what is relevant to the client within these more traditional approaches and reimagines their applicability and procedural processes. Similar to how DJs created sonic arrangements by revising popular records or rejuvenating dated and abstract ones, HHT is a culturally resonant remix of therapeutic conceptions, revitalizing established forms of psychotherapy that have historically overlooked disenfranchised populations.

j.c. hall

Hall’s DJ analogy is apt because a DJ moves a crowd; a therapist moves clients toward healing. Hall, and others using music in therapy, have found a way to combine a client interest (i.e., music) with their own clinical expertise to facilitate that healing. It is evidence-based at this point, but likely would have never made its way into the evidence if not for pioneering clinicians who were willing to merge client interests with evidence-informed approaches.

I see similar value in viewing my role with athletes through the lens (or perhaps ear goggles) of a DJ. The goal for athletes is a clear mind and a relaxed body. The means to that end, however, can look different depending on the athlete. Just as a skilled DJ can take a range of audience selected requests and craft a sonic experience, a skilled performance coach can work within athlete interests to craft an intervention. And, to my thinking, an evidence-based approach is also about the evidence from the individual client. Every client is both a 1-of-1 and an n-of-1. For example, I know of no research protocol that involves an athlete listening to podcasts about coffee as a way to prevent over-thinking before a basketball game, but I can link that approach to evidence to understand why it seems work for my client!

As a practitioner, I don’t care so much about whether an approach is perfectly aligned with a published research protocol (or even a singular theoretical approach). I care that it helps a client achieve a relaxed body and a calm mind, and that it can be understood within the context of the best available evidence. If that means going A.J. Brown-style and reading, great. If it means closing the eyes LeBron-style and breathing, that works, too. If it requires a yoga mat and sleeping bag Yaroslava Mahuchikh-style, fine. And if it involves silent coloring Chloe Kitts-style, go for it! THE mental game may not be a thing. But YOUR mental game most definitely is. So when it comes to helping athletes achieve a relaxed body and calm mind, thinking like a mental game DJ isn’t a bad approach to take!

potential translation to sport: I found the co-creation in this study to be the most interesting aspect. In my experiences within sport, co-creation is not the norm. On one hand, this makes sense. Coaches have the vision. Coaches have the experience. Coaches likely would create the most efficient practice experience in terms of the athletic outcomes. But very few athletes make a living playing sport, and no athlete makes a living playing sport forever. Involving athletes in the co-creation of their experience would likely translate beyond sport in ways that simply following a plan as presented wouldn’t. And there are coaches who set an example in this regard. The clip below shows Steve Kerr having Andre Iguodala run the huddles in game competition!

Today we turn the spotlight on a coach rather than an athlete, with a throwback to a 2018 profile of Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra.

The soundtrack of the Miami Heat’s training camp at Florida Atlantic University has been the ringing of whistles, the bouncing of balls, the deflection of trade rumors . . . and healthy doses of scribbling, spinback, stutter.

Because even if they don’t have Jimmy Butler, there always is the DJ booth at the northeast corner of the gym to help mute the outside noise.

While the upgrade in the sound system on the practice court at AmericanAirlines Arena goes back to the Pat Riley coaching era, to allow for his high fidelity preference for Springsteen and Motown, the mobile DJ booth is in its second year of operation during Heat camp at FAU.

The idea was sparked when Spoelstra, in making his annual rounds to observe coaching at football camps, visited with Chip Kelly at Oregon nearly a decade ago.

MIAMI HEAT HOPE DJ BOOTH CAN MUTE OUTSIDE NOISE AT TRAINING CAMP

Spoelstra is well-known for his efforts to use his off-season to learn from other coaches, and this is just one example of his willingness to let ideas trump ego. Having had the chance to previously work with him through Courtex Performance, this nugget comes as no surprise. During that work, music and sport was not on my radar. I now wish it had been so I could have heard his thoughts on it all!

Reflecting upon Erik Spoelstra for the coaching spotlight brought to mind some DJ-related lyrics from Tom Petty. In a world where NBA coaches are fired left and right and Greg Popovich’s future is uncertain, Spoelstra may be “the last DJ” at the NBA level!

And there goes the last DJ
Who plays what he wants to play
And says what he wants to say

Hey, hey, hey

And there goes your freedom of choice
There goes the last human voice
And there goes the last DJ

tom petty THE LAST DJ

Zach Brandon, Head of Mental Performance and Coach Development for the Arizona Diamondbacks, suggests that it may be helpful for athletes to think of their self-talk like a playlist that they can control. In other words, be your own DJ! Brandon suggests shifting from the role of Inner Critic to Inner Coach, which makes me think of how athletes could create a DJ persona for who is at the self-talk turntables during competition. Looking back on my own athletic efforts, I now realize that DJ Devil Dave was likely on the 1s and 2s for almost the entire thing! If I could do it again, I would love to see what DJ Diencephalon could do with my potential. Note: I am not a neuroscientist and do not care to get into the weeds of what the diencephalon actually does; for my purposes, seeing my brain as distinct from whatever “I” am is enough!

Check out the full article and let me know if you realize your own combo of critic vs. coach DJ names!

I went with songs that reference DJs for this one. I know that there are two types of DJs and they may each resent the other’s use of the initials, but I argue that both serve similar functions for the purposes of this issue. They use some combination of their musical knowledge and technical skill to take you on a sonic journey that you could not travel alone.