Local party Disc Jockey Donovan Yaukey is once again a top 12 Finalist for “DJ Entertainer of the Year” at the International Disc Jockey Conference.
Yaukey, the founder of Phantom Shadow Entertainment, will be competing Aug. 14 with 11 other Disc Jockeys for the coveted “DJ Entertainer of the Year” trophy.
It is the industry’s most impressive award.
This won’t be Donovan’s first time as a finalist for his industry’s top award. Four years ago he made the top 12 and competed for the coveted award.
“It’s like Christmas to compete,” he said, remembering how terrified he was during that competition. “You are standing up there before 3,000 of your peers. It was terrifying at first.”
But then he began performing like he has done at weddings and events at least 2,500 times during his career. He had two Broadway dancers with him to help demonstrate intricate moves in a dance he created for the occasion.
The nervousness passed and the performance went well. (See it in video below.) But Donovan’s new dance moves were too complicated for his peers to adapt for their use.
That’s one of the criteria used in judging for the Entertainer of the Year title. A contestant’s performance must be something that DJ’s at the convention can reproduce themselves.
He didn’t win the title that year, but Donovan believes he has a good shot at it this year.
Still Nervous but Better Prepared
“I’m better prepared this year,” he said. “Yes, I’m still a little nervous. I’ve still got butterflies. But I will come home with that trophy next week.”
While that would be a feather in Donovan’s cap, it wouldn’t mean the veteran DJ is ready to retire. (Urban Dictionary definition of term feather in your cap)
At 52, he has been a mobile disc jockey for 34 years and loves what he does. It’s not just the excitement of being in the limelight and entertaining, but making people happy and helping others.
Over the years, he has mentored many young, talented DJs who went on to find success in the field themselves.
“Nothing gives me more joy than training a new DJ who can go out and make a living at it,” he said.
Donovan just turned a large part of his Phantom Shadow entertainment business over to his brother Dean, owner of Carlisle’s Phantom Entertainment.
That included the inflatable bounce houses he provided for outdoor events, the casino and novelty programs for parties and other events, and everything except his DJ business.
“Phantom Shadow is still rocking and rolling (in Carlisle),” he said. “I’m getting back to my roots, and what I love to do most.”
About the DJ Entertainer of the Year competition
The contest will take place at The Golden Nugget this year in Atlantic City, starting at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 14.
Judging is done by a panel of 10 entertainment industry veterans, many of which are also authors of Disc Jockey Industry books.
The criteria for judging is as follows:
Initial Introduction: Each contestant will do a one-minute introduction explaining what their routine will be for the contest. This includes microphone clarity, technique, and substance to the introduction.
Originality: Crowd Response and Involvement (audience interaction). Efficacy is 10 %, based on whether the 3,000 DJ’s at the convention can reproduce the performance you just did at parties in their area. Is it plausible? Super expensive? Require difficult dance moves? Total Entertainment Value, Overall Presentation
About Donovan Yaukey
Donovan founded Phantom Shadow Entertainment Services in 1985 in Mont Alto. Over the next 34 years, Phantom Shadow became a staple in the community for providing excellent services in addition to countless volunteer events to better our communities.
The company grew from Disc Jockeys to Limousines, Inflatable Bouncy Houses, Videography, Invitations, Casino Parties, and Novelty Entertainment.
Phantom Shadow performed all over the USA at major events including the largest youth gathering in the country — The Evangelical Lutherian Church of America event with 50,000 attendants. The Five national ELCA conventions were in Atlanta 2003, San Antonio 2006, New Orleans 2009, New Orleans 2012, and Detroit 2015.
In March of 2019, Phantom Shadow Entertainment was given to Donovan’s brother Dean Yaukey at Phantom Entertainment in Carlisle. All the events and employees moved to his office.
In March of 2019, Donovan Yaukey returned to his roots of simply being a Mobile Disc Jockey. He founded his new company, “DJ Donovan Entertainment & Associates.”
Based out of Mont Alto once again, Donovan is looking forward to entertaining at local and national events for at least 30 more years.
[td_block_2 custom_title=”Local Entertainment News” header_color=”#000000″ category_id=”16″ header_text_color=”#ffffff” limit=”4″]
