DJ Talent

DJ Tim DeGroot

Georgia

More DJs from Georgia

By choice, DJ Tim DeGroot spent the formative ages of 12-15 living among missionaries in Guatemala. There he did a lot of skateboarding and just like any other teenager, had many “first” — though not necessarily Christian — experiences.

Tim bought his first record, Luke Vibert’s Extreme Possibilities, off the Ninja Tune label in 1992. In the 13 years since, DeGroot has amassed a vinyl collection of more than 8,000 records.

His first gig as a DJ was at a party he threw at the Strand Theater at Marietta Square, which served as his exit exam from Atlanta College of Art. He studied painting and sculpture but ended up with an electronic arts degree.

DeGroot left Atlanta in 2000 to take care of his ailing father and returned the next year. Upon his return, he reconnected with old friend Jason Posey. Under the names TD and J-Sol, the pair became the Rareform Crew. Establishing cred with nights at the Crescent Room, Eleven50, Fountainhead (now the East Side Lounge) and the Mark, the Rareform Crew spins almost every night.

Spinning records doesn’t pay all the bills, so DeGroot works as a graphic designer by day at Penhouse Productions. He, along with Posey, also uses his fine arts training at Bright Futures Atlanta, an art class that’s part of an after-school program for at-risk youth.

The Rareform Crew has expanded its repertoire to include art and has formed Rarefunction. Wanting to recapture the intimate, raw feeling of a college art show, DeGroot has thrown two art events with live graffiti, painting and music.

If you catch Tim out spinning records, don’t ask him to play any Eminem, 50 Cent, Kid Rock, Linkin Park or the often requested “Mustang Sally.” He will, however, fill your ears with ’70s and ’80s funk, soul, R&B and rare grooves mashed up with modern hip-hop, house, break beat and lately, dance rock.