DJ CoolkidSue Makes Ferndale Pride Debut

DJ CoolkidSue calls herself a "rebel," a "blast" and a "party animal." All of which make her a perfect fit to perform at this year's Ferndale Pride at 4:15 p.m. on June 2 on the Genisys Credit Union DJ Dance Stage.
"I'm down for anything that promotes the LGBT culture as a whole, even if you're not in the LGBT culture, you just support it," she said. "It's just having a moment where everyone can come together and be positive and showcase differences, but everyone's just together. That's why I'm really excited to be able to showcase my talent to everyone who's coming as well as celebrating everyone's individuality who's coming. So that's what Pride means to me and why I'm really excited to be a part of it this year."
Her talent is DJing – something she taught herself to do at a young age. She grew up on Detroit's east side as SueNeko Carmichaels, but her nickname stuck.
"It's just always been CoolkidSue … once I became a DJ I didn't feel the need to change it," she said. "I wouldn't say I'm the coolest, but I try to be involved in the world enough to be cool."
CoolkidSue graduated from Walled Lake Western High School and briefly went to Wayne State University to study graphic design. But she couldn't stop thinking about music.
"Always, at every party, I had the best music," she said. "My phone always ended up on the auxiliary cord or my playlist was played. Then last June I was like, 'I think this is what I want to do.' So I saved money to buy a deck. And from that day I was like, 'Wow! This is fun.' That's how I got into DJing. I didn't grow up around DJs. But I just got into it and so far it's working for me."
Her music is a mix of trap and pop. It's similar to DJ Jazzy Jeff, one of her favorite DJs.
"He's really good at playing multiple genres at one time and that's kind of like how I am," said CoolkidSue, who learned by watching and studying other DJs on YouTube. "If I can take a really good pop song and mix it with like Future or Drake then I accomplished something."
Something else CoolkidSue would like to accomplish is event organizing.
"I have a passion for it. I like to create spaces. So if I can get a really nice loft and just open space and I'm free to decorate it the way that I want, just full of art, that would be my dream place."
Beyond that, when not playing music for the masses, CoolkidSue said she can probably be found "aggravating my friends. I'm a jokester. So I'm always out there causing some trouble with my friends. I like skateboarding on the Riverwalk. I like dancing whenever I get a chance. And I really like entertaining my friends. They come over a lot and we make cocktails and I have small events in my home."
And just like CoolkidSue entertains her friends, she will entertain Pride-goers also.
"It will definitely be a good vibe that's chill and poppin,' but lit," she said. "As a DJ, my goal is to create memories, that 'Ahh' moment. Like, 'this is my song,' or, 'OMG, what song is this?' Or, 'OMG, let me kiss this person next to me.' That's who I am as a DJ. I just really enjoy good music and happy people around me."
Connect with DJ CoolkidSue on Facebook at https://facebook.com/djcoolkidsue/.