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International Yoga Musician DJ Taz Rashid Shares His Story AND His Music (Interview)

As an international yoga musician, DJ Taz Rashid has recently taken the yoga world by storm!

You might recognize Taz from one of the many yoga festivals across the country held prior to the pandemic, or it is highly possible you’ve heard one of his tunes in a yoga or fitness class.

According to his Facebook page, “DJ Taz instantly brings a high vibrational energy to any room by mixing the beats and rhythms of Love, Ancient New World, House, Tribal, Nu Jazz/Disco, Funk, Classic Remixes, and all the cosmic sounds.”

“The music creates this journey and it allows the yogi to sink really deep into their practice.” – DJ Taz

Not only has DJ Taz Rashid found success mixing music for countless in-person yoga events, but he recently created an easy and risk-free solution for all music loving yogis to share their love of yoga and music across the inter-webs, and ultimately, across the globe.

While many yogis may want to share their flows accompanied by the freshest beats from Beyonce or Bieber, internet music copyright laws are an issue. Online videos that violate these laws are almost immediately removed and violators could incur costly royalty fees as well.

In order to address this problem, DJ Taz Rashid has created a royalty-free music library so that health and wellness professionals can create online content without any risk of copyright violations.
 

 
 
Fitness professionals teaching yoga, pilates, barre, HIIT, etc. and sharing their respective content online can all benefit from this incredible resource amid a pandemic and beyond.

Learn more about DJ Taz Rashid’s musical yoga journey and how to gain access to his free music library!
 
 

Get to Know DJ Taz Rashid

We sat down with DJ Taz Rashid so you can learn all about this world-renowned yoga DJ!
 

1. YA: What inspired you to become a DJ for the yoga world?

DJ Taz Rashid: It was really through the power of invitation. Around 2012, I started DJing, because I left the corporate world and I wanted to play music in the mindfulness arena.

I was DJing a lot of mindful and spiritual-type events in Chicago and I started doing a lot of my own events, which were more like free dancing, conscious dance, etc.

So I started getting invited to play at a lot of local yoga studios, and all of a sudden, I was teaching all over the North Side of Chicago, about 10 to 12 events per month. Then I started getting invited to events like Yoga Rocks the Park and Wanderlust.

So it was really through the power of invitation, being invited into the scene and I’m happy that happened because I can be around people that I really actually want to be around and do my job.

That was the start of it and then, of course, I started going to a lot of the festivals. It has been a really cool journey that started locally.
 

DJ Taz Rashid

2. YA: What does your own yoga and/or meditation practice look like? How has it changed over time?

DJ Taz Rashid: I first did yoga back in 6th or 7th grade because I loved anatomy, working out, etc. I would check out books from the local library on yoga and then go to my parent’s basement and try out different postures. And I had no idea about the spiritual side of it.

Around 2007/2008, my wife was doing a lot of yoga and I was doing a lot more Kirtan and spiritual-type music at the festivals. We would go to certain festivals around 2011 and she would go do yoga and I would like meditation and then I would like the music.

Chanting and Kirtan: Everything You Need to Know (Plus a Few Chants to Try!)

For me, it was meditation first and then yoga. I personally love Hot Yoga or any kind of Vinyasa in a hot space.
 

3. YA: Please describe the impact of music on our yoga asana practice. Why do you think we need it?

DJ Taz Rashid: I love doing meditations with music. I love practicing with music. A lot of people say “its a distraction,” but if used properly, it can actually be like a second teacher or a support rather than a distraction or a nuisance.

If you know what you’re doing, it can be really epic or almost cinematic for your experience. It really helps create the journey: the 60- to 75-minutes mini-journey of your day and the music becomes the underscore.

It’s like watching a movie. The music creates this journey and it allows the yogi to sink really deep into their practice and if the music is done right, they can really feel the beats as support for their floor practice and it can act as support for the entire space and energy itself.
 

4. YA: What inspired you to create a Royalty Free Music Library for online yoga teachers?

DJ Taz Rashid: I started the Royalty Free Music Library last year, but this year, I started going bigger into it because I saw the need. People were looking for an affordable option.

Sometimes it can cost $50 to $100 a track and most teachers/studios don’t have $12 to $15K budgets for their yoga programs online. It’s just not realistic.

So what inspired me [was to find a solution] to create the same value for the yoga/fitness/meditation teacher who is teaching online as I’m doing for all these different brands but not have to charge them an arm and a leg for it.

So I just made it a really simple solution of giving [the individual teacher] access to all my music, playlists, training [on] how to use it, how to make amazing playlists, [all for] less than $100 per year which is less than $9 per month.

[This] is almost like nothing because you get to license it for products that you are monetizing so it’s a huge value, and for yoga studios, there is an option as well.
 

 
 

5. YA: You recently expanded your library by collaborating with a few different artists. Do you have plans to expand that library further?

DJ Taz Rashid: We have music libraries from 3 main artists: DJ Taz Rashid, Momentology, and Songs of Eden, and a lot of my other music like my collaboration with Sol Rising.

The current Library has approximately 700 to 800 tracks and it’s going to grow even more. As it grows, I’m definitely open to including other artists as well.

The different styles of music range from the most ambient Yoga Nidra to pump-up-the-jams electro EDM workout music, world music, modern music, down tempo, house, and lots of multi-genre music!
 

6. YA: Since we can’t connect in person, how are yoga teachers and students able to create the festival yoga experience at home?

DJ Taz Rashid: The best way is to really learn how to make amazing playlists and understand what is really going on there.

A lot of teachers sometimes will just throw in music that they like but there really is an equation to it. You can learn the equations and then you can create your own kind of format, and by doing that, you’ll understand music better and you’ll understand how to connect any kind of music you like with your practice.

DJ Taz Rashid

I’ve got a training that is included in this offering that is called “My Best Playlists” and its how to make really amazing playlists (e.g.. how to use the best BPM for different parts of the class), and by doing that, you get that festival feeling as if there is a DJ playing the music and it’s really connected to the breath and the beat.

So it comes with practice and it comes with exploring new ideas and opportunities of music and just by learning some of the skills that I teach in some of my courses you can create that similar experience.

Real Talk – An Interview With Hanuman Festival Founder Yoshi Aono (Video)
 

7. YA: What do you hope yogis experience after listening to your music?

DJ Taz Rashid: I want people to feel more awakened, empowered, grounded, and abundant after listening to my music.
 

8. YA: Please share your most memorable experience as a yoga DJ

DJ Taz Rashid: In May 2014, with Wanderlust in Grant Park Chicago with 7 to 8K yogis practicing together.

700 people signed up for my email newsletter that day and I didn’t even have a newsletter yet. I saw the future of doing music in the mindfulness community.
 

9. YA: What do you love most about your job as a yoga DJ?

DJ Taz Rashid: The fact that I can make music is the best thing! And then I really love the people I work with.

Everyone’s goal is toward making the world a better place with yoga, meditation, and love, and that’s an awesome thing!

And also working with different mindfulness musicians and creating music for meditation, yoga, and dance, and that’s a great part of this job with a lot of flexibility as well.
 

10. YA: What’s next for you?

DJ Taz Rashid: Next is continuing to spread the word of this music library for teachers and studios. Also continuing to write a lot of music, hosting online events, and being with my family.
 
 

A Big YouAligned Thank You to DJ Taz Rashid for Sharing His Story and His Gifts With Us!

As a husband, a father of a young daughter, and a world-renowned yoga musician, DJ Taz Rashid certainly is keeping busy serving others this year.

If you’d like to learn more about DJ Taz’s Royalty-Free Music Library, you can check out his website to review the options.

An Interview With David Newman – The Power of Bhakti, Meditation, and Spiritual Awakening
 
 

Meditate to the Music of DJ Taz Rashid

Meditate with Yogi Bryan to the beats of DJ Taz Rashid on YA Classes!

Meditation Class
With Yogi Bryan
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Denelle Numis

Denelle Jarro Numis is an advanced yoga teacher (E-RYT 500) based in San Francisco, California. In addition to her yoga credentials, Denelle has a B.S., an MBA, a love of travel and an impassioned zest for life. To learn more about Denelle check out her website or follow her on Instagram.

denelleyoga.com

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