Man in the Mirror

You may have seen Jamell Mingo in an article we posted online last year called “Awesome People We Met at EDC Las Vegas,” or you may have been one of the lucky ones to catch a random hug from him as he and his crew explored the festival grounds. It’s possible you took a picture with him and his mirror-face mask, or maybe you even exchanged kandi with him, as he always has plenty on hand to trade and remember people by.

“When you’re out with people that all have common interests, you feel free to be yourself. You don’t have to worry about anything.”

Even if you haven’t met him in person, Jamell is one of those people you will never forget—a quality that is in no doubt due to his genuine love of electronic music and the culture surrounding it. While he’s been listening to electronic music since the eighth grade, it wasn’t until Jamell attended Nocturnal Wonderland in 2007 that everything changed.

“Sure, there’s hip-hop that always talks about this and that and girls, but for me it was always more about how the music makes you feel and moves your soul,” says Jamell. “For me, electronic music really helped me come out of my shell and to just be free and dance the night away.”

A former professional arena football player for the Kentucky Drillers, Jamell is quick to point out the ways in which his athleticism and his love of shuffling go hand-in-hand. “First off, I shuffle to express, not impress. Everybody thinks that raves are just for people that just go out there for nonsense, but I’m a professional athlete, and I go out and enjoy the music; that’s what I do. I love the music, I love the vibes. It’s for anybody; if a professional athlete can do it, you can do it.”

Citing artists like Blasterjaxx, Oliver Heldens, Fedde Le Grand and Tchami for inspiring him on the dancefloor, Jamell is also well-known for his role in inspiring others—most notably through the development of local crews, like Soul Rhythm Tribe and PLUR Republic, which he calls his rave families.

“We’re basically all best friends,” says Jamell. “When you’re out with people that all have common interests, you feel free to be yourself, and you don’t have to worry about anything. I call all these guys my best friends. I mean, if I meet one person, we’re family already, no matter what. I don’t ever give anybody handshakes—always hugs, man.”

To the uninitiated, hugging complete strangers may seem, well, strange. But when friends who aren’t in the scene question Jamell about his life outside of sports, he takes it as an opportunity to break down any preconceived notions they may have about raves and the culture of which he is a part. “Especially my football buddies—they’re like, ‘What do you do at these raves? You just go out there and dance the whole time?’ And I’m like, nah man, it’s like family out there—family and friendship. You just have to go to one to understand.”

One aspect that Jamell loves to explain is the central role of kandi and custom-designed outfits in the expression of these family values. Jamell’s interest and fascination with this side of things was ignited when he came into contact with the “Mirror Ball Man” at Nocturnal Wonderland in 2008.

“When I saw the way that costume was put together, I was blown away,” says Jamel. The very next year, he and his friend Steven, “who works with wiring and such,” put together an LED-lit mirror mask that took inspiration from both Jabbawockeez and the Mirror Ball Man.

Looking ahead to this year’s EDC, Jamell is already hard at work on a project that involves transforming himself into a “PLUR Warrior,” using a perler bead headband and a feather necklace with individual feathers designed by each of his closest friends. “I told them they can do their own style, their own colors, whatever; I want them to design it themselves. That way, no matter what, I will always have my closest friends with me.”

To those going to EDC for the first time, Jamell advises looking at it all as “one big playground that you can have fun in and live free. You don’t have worry about no drama or anything, because you’ll finally be with your family, at home. There’s no better feeling than that.”

Photo by Erik Voake.