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DJ Jazzy Jeff Reveals He Only Picked His Stage Name To Save Money

DJ Jazzy Jeff Only Picked His Name To Save Money
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Entertainment Editor, HuffPost

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The American hip-hop producer and beat maker Jeffrey Allen Townes is better known by his stage name Jazzy Jeff and is here performing a dj-set at RUST nightclub in Copenhagen. He is also known from 'DJ Jazzy Jeffe and the Fresh Prince' with rap star Will Smith. Denmark 2008. (Photo by: PYMCA/UIG via Getty Images)

How do you come up with one of the most iconic DJ names in history? Eh ... just pick whatever's cheapest.

While talking with The Huffington Post, DJ Jazzy Jeff revealed that he only picked his artist name because it saved him money: "Back then, everybody's tag had their name in it. My name used to be Mix Master Jeff, so to promote your name, you would go to the store to get your name out on your shirt, and it was pretty much 50 cents a letter. Mix Master Jeff is really, really long," he laughed. "I shortened it to Jazzy Jeff because that was a little bit easier on my pocket." Jeff has been touring with the name ever since, winning Grammys and becoming one of the most recognized DJs in the business.

Image: Giphy

Besides having a rigorous tour schedule, nowadays Jeff is a celebrity judge and ambassador for Red Bull Thre3style, a DJ contest featuring such a high level of competition that Jeff compared it to "LeBron James in the dunk contest." The contest saw San Francisco's DJ J Espinosa take home the US championship this weekend and will have its world championships in Tokyo this September.

Jeff is also teasing possible upcoming projects with his former collaborator, Will Smith, saying, "We’ve been talking a lot. Our biggest thing has always been time." Later, he added, "Whenever he’s ready, I'm ready." And judging by the legendary DJ's mixing skills in his new video featuring a Run–D.M.C. routine, he's clearly a man of his word. (Hopefully not too many words though. Remember those are 50 cents a letter):

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(credit:Marisa Matluck, <a href="http://marisamatluck.com/" role="link" class=" js-entry-link cet-external-link" data-vars-item-name="Marisamatluck.com" data-vars-item-type="text" data-vars-unit-name="5bb4afe1e4b066f8d25bd59c" data-vars-unit-type="buzz_body" data-vars-target-content-id="http://marisamatluck.com/" data-vars-target-content-type="url" data-vars-type="web_external_link" data-vars-subunit-name="before_you_go_slideshow" data-vars-subunit-type="component" data-vars-position-in-subunit="1" data-vars-position-in-unit="6">Marisamatluck.com</a>)
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Open Image Modal
(credit:Marisa Matluck, <a href="http://marisamatluck.com/" role="link" class=" js-entry-link cet-external-link" data-vars-item-name="Marisamatluck.com" data-vars-item-type="text" data-vars-unit-name="5bb4afe1e4b066f8d25bd59c" data-vars-unit-type="buzz_body" data-vars-target-content-id="http://marisamatluck.com/" data-vars-target-content-type="url" data-vars-type="web_external_link" data-vars-subunit-name="before_you_go_slideshow" data-vars-subunit-type="component" data-vars-position-in-subunit="0" data-vars-position-in-unit="5">Marisamatluck.com</a>)
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