Jersey City, NJ – Hudson County OGs have heard the unmistakable sound of Semaj da DJ’s mixtapes bumping throughout the streets of Jersey City—on the $1 bus to Newport Mall or walking down Central Avenue while someone plays it on a boombox right past those “No Boombox” signs they used to have. His sound has not only defined an era but carved out a unique musical identity for the city.
Born in Jersey City to Irish heritage, Semaj attended several local schools, including PS #28, Academy 2, Dickinson High High School. He described how being sent to Academy 2, located in the basement of Academic High School, became a pivotal moment. “All the bad kids from Jersey City were sent there,” he explained.
His journey started with a hands-on approach to mixtapes. “I started recording the hottest songs off the radio while yelling ‘SEMAJ’ over the tracks to create a mixtape,” he recalled. His hustle quickly escalated—he printed covers, duplicated cassettes, and sold them in the streets. Eventually, he upgraded to turntables and discovered his ability to blend beats, melodies, and samples into something entirely new.
His most iconic project, the “Jersey City Mix,” released in 2006 became a cultural touchstone. It featured a classic sample from Naughty by Nature’s track “Craziest.” “The ‘Jersey City’ sample is from that track where they mention multiple cities as the craziest. I just sampled the Jersey City part of it,” Semaj explained.
“I love the feeling and appreciate when people share their story on where they were and how my mixtapes played a part. The Jersey City mix is a staple in the mixtape game, and some people will just never accept that or try to downplay it like that mix didn’t have the biggest impact on Jersey City music,” Semaj shared.
In 1998, he co-founded T.O.M Digital Productions, short for “Team of Monstars.” Originally a local crew, T.O.M evolved into a growing collective that brought together talent from across the city. “We created our own crew,” he said. “The name came from a shirt we got airbrushed with a guy cracking a cassette tape. We nicknamed it ‘the monster.’”

Semaj’s rise continued through partnerships with local record shops. His mixtapes found their way into key stores like Stan’s Records on Bergen Avenue. “Stan told me I had to make a 30-minute demo,” Semaj recounted. “Once I handed it to him, he loved it and told me to bring ten cassettes and a poster right away.” His music spread through other Hudson County spots, eventually leading to a distribution deal that expanded his reach to cities like Newark and New York.

“I started out pushing my mixtapes through local spots like the music stores around 39th & Bergenline and up in the 40s across from Jingle Bells Electronics. Eventually, a distributor gave me a deal to ship my tapes all over—NYC, Newark, to all the bootleggers on the corners, and the buzzing mixtape sites at the time like MixUnit and others. That’s how the hustle grew.”
In 2015 and 2017, Semaj was nominated for “Best Blend/Remix DJ of the Year” at the Allstar Mixtape Awards—milestones that validated his influence. “Just being noticed and nominated meant a lot to me,” he said. “People don’t like to recognize you for what you do. They’d rather show love and support to someone they didn’t even know.”
As he continues to evolve, Semaj encourages younger artists to innovate while respecting the mixtape tradition. “I’d like them to listen to some of my old mixtapes and create their own wave,” he said. “We started on cassettes, but now I’ve evolved to putting my mixtapes on USB drives. There’s no excuse why mixtapes won’t live on past me.”
“However people listen to music, find a way for yours to be heard. YouTube is a major key right now to get your music heard,” explained Semaj. “With all the streaming sites flagging for copyrights, YouTube will still allow you to be heard and they will send any earnings to the appropriate copyright holders.”
For Semaj da DJ, the Jersey City sound is more than just music—it’s a legacy.
"Hudpost" 2025