'Prince vs. Michael Jackson' at the Crescent Ballroom on January 3, 2014

by **Admin** Thu Jan 02, 2014 5:41 pm

'Prince vs. Michael Jackson' at the Crescent Ballroom
By Laura Latzko - azcentral.com

Dec 31, 2013

Fans of Prince and Michael Jackson can reminisce and dance to music with special meaning to them on Friday, Jan. 3, at the Crescent Ballroom.

Based on a theme party hosted at Club Congress in Tucson, the show isn’t meant to create a rivalry but instead gets clubgoers involved through an old-school dance party with interactive costume and dance contests.

Throughout the night, DJ DanH (Dan Hernandez) and DJ Sid the Kid (J.R. Harrison) plan to get people hyped with originals, remixes and music videos from the two pop artists.

The DJs plan to get into the spirit by dressing up in throwback Prince and Michael Jackson looks, and they invite others to do the same.

Hernandez said the night pays tribute to two artists whose music and styles have become universally recognizable to people of different ages.

“Who wasn’t amazed by the ‘Thriller’ video? Even if you don’t know the dance, you know the dance,” Hernandez said. “Certain things are ingrained in a pop-culture consciousness, and you see it in everything today.”

The DJs will play songs from throughout the artists’ careers, including Top 40 hits.

“That’s what everyone wants, the best of these guys,” said Harrison, the resident DJ during Club Congress’ Monday Retro-Lution nights. “That’s what we have to give them. Anything less would be unacceptable.”

Harrison said he tries to give younger and older generations something to dance, bob their heads, jump around or tap their feet to during theme nights.

“When you play the right songs, you get people going. The dancers are only as good as the DJ,” Harrison said.

Hernandez has periodically hosted the Prince and Michael Jackson theme party at Club Congress since 2009.

“The idea is to encourage people to be involved,” Hernandez said. “People gravitate towards that and express their own fandom, whether it’s mild or rabid. If you give people wide enough latitude, they create their own theme parties.”

Hernandez said the Prince and Michael Jackson nights in Tucson have attracted up to 800 fans.

For Harrison, Prince’s “Erotic City” and Jackson’s “Off the Wall” are among the first songs he ever mixed, so they hold special meaning to him.

Growing up, Hernandez wore out a Michael-Jackson-like leather jacket with 17 zippers and loved Prince’s “Little Red Corvette” and Jackson’s “Thriller” video.

“I find that when people argue about Michael Jackson and Prince, they bring up their own personal experiences and connections with the songs,” Hernandez said. “I don’t believe in guilty pleasures. It’s all authentic. If you love them, you love them.”

Prince vs. Michael Jackson

When: 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 3.

Where: Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix.

Admission: $1-$2 general admission. Age 21 and older.

Details: 602-716-2222 , crescentphx.com