“Mikeynormous” the 6 foot 7 inches DJ also known as Michael Kitterick ’24, towered over the crowd of Saint Anselm students at Murphy’s Taproom on Jan 30. Kitterick was hired by the King Edwards Society of Saint Anselm to DJ the event, and he played original music mixes.
Kitterick, who goes by the stage name of “Mikeynormous” is a DJ by night and a nursing student by day. Currently in his final semester at Saint Anselm, he makes sure that he has time to dedicate himself to both of his passions; nursing and music.
“If I want to have to work on [music], then I need to make sure that my other responsibilities are covered,” Kitterick said. Though his passion runs deep for both of his interests, Kitterick understands the stakes of his major and his studies, and makes sure to prioritize his schoolwork. “It’s not about ‘finding’ the time, it’s more about how you use it,” Kitterick said.
Kitterick has a long and passionate history with music. “I’ve been into music for almost ten years now, [I] started out playing the guitar, and eventually got more into audio production,” Kitterick said. Being able to grow his own skills with guitar and audio production, his style “became even more specifically catered to electronic dance music,” Kitterick said.
With electronic dance music being popular in today’s bar scene, Kitterick’s talents served as a satisfactory listening experience for the 21-year-old bar goers. Making these music mixes is not only a skill for Kitterick but something that brings him joy, and “there’s something about performing live that you just can’t get when you’re in your room making a banger,” Kitterick said. His excitement for live music led him to reach out to the King Edwards Society, in hopes of being the official DJ.
“I reached out to people who I knew had control over who gets to perform at Murphy’s Taproom, and they luckily gave me a chance,” Kitterick said. “Last time I played there it was really good,” Kitterick said, making the process of “getting the gig” a little easier. Getting this opportunity all comes down to “getting out there, making yourself known, and then you get your shot and you have to make it,” Kitterick said. Though Kitterick chose not to share exact amounts, he does get paid for every gig that he has the opportunity to DJ for.
With music tastes varying amongst individuals, it can be tricky to gauge what exactly people will enjoy hearing. Kitterick’s musical preferences started by getting into Nirvana, but he “always loved classic rock and alternative rock,” Kitterick said. The classic music staples that adorned his library “gradually became more and more modern and nowadays, I’m a bigger fan of house music and other types of EDM,” Kitterick said.
An eclectic taste in music allowed Kitterick larger varieties of things to play for the bar goers. “At this bar, I just planned on trying to incorporate as many different genres as possible and trying to play something that everyone will enjoy at some point,” Kitterick said. Several genres and plenty of different songs and artists were played, but a lot of popular genres were “EDM, pop, hip hop, and maybe a few classics,” Kitterick said.
Figuring out what music to play ultimately comes down to a few things for Kitterick. “Put your headphones on every once in a while, make sure everything is sounding okay, and even more importantly, read the crowd,” Kitterick said. To gauge the crowd reactions, Kitterick asks himself, “are they dancing around? Are they going to like a dance song? Or are they kind of looking a little less energetic?” All of these factors determined what Kitterick played to maintain the energy the crowd is looking for, as well as feedback from students prior to the event, letting him know what they are looking to hear.
Students on campus were eager and excited for the event, and even sought out Kitterick to let him know that they were attending the event to support him. The week prior, whether it be walking around campus or receiving messages online, “I’ve had people I don’t even know come up to me to say ‘Oh, I saw that you’re DJing’, ” and being excited for him, Kitterick said. These students, some strangers and others friends, all gave their support to their local DJ.
Some 21-year-old students attended the event to see Kitterick, and were more than pleased with his music choices. “I think he’s great,” said Nicole Minnich ’25. Minnich attended the bar event to see Kitterick DJ, and she said “I think it’s awesome that he decided to pursue music when he’s so talented at it.”
Elizabeth Moran ’25, another bar goer who attended the event added that “it’s so cool that with his busy schedule and being in school for nursing that he is still able to pursue his hobbies”. The busy DJ finds time to “make everyone happy with the right songs to play,” Moran added.
Kitterick’s long history and passion for music has grown even more with the opportunities he has been given to share his music with his peers and community at Saint Anselm. “To anyone interested in pursuing nursing who has other passions, stay on your A game with school so that you still have time to kick back and do what you love,” Kitterick said.