27 Years, One Last Set: What DJ Enuff Taught Us About Legacy

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Hello Cultivators,

Yesterday, DJ Enuff closed out his last set on Hot 97 after 27 years. As he mixed the same tracks he played in his 1998 debut on the station, tears flowed. He wasn’t just spinning music—he was sharing a piece of himself, full circle, with the audience that grew up alongside him. As a fan, it was painful to watch, because I got mad love for him but as a man… I was proud of him. It is ok for men to cry.

That moment says a lot about what it means to be a creator that lives authentically with the community they serve. Let’s reflect on this moment… right now.

Vulnerability Is Connection

Enuff didn’t hide his emotions. He let listeners feel the weight of the moment. That’s the kind of honesty that creates lasting bonds. Vulnerability is often framed as weakness, but in reality, it’s a superpower.

Ask yourself: when was the last time you allowed your audience to see you beyond the polished content?

Bring People Into Your Story

By playing tracks from his first set, Enuff reminded his listeners of the journey. Nostalgia and storytelling aren’t gimmicks—they’re bridges. They connect your past to your present and invite people to walk that journey with you.

Men and Emotional Health

One of the most powerful parts of Enuff’s last set was his willingness to cry publicly. For men, showing sadness, disappointment, or anger in healthy ways is often discouraged. But processing those feelings is essential for our mental and physical health.

Bottling up emotions doesn’t protect us—it isolates us. Finding safe spaces to work through pain creates strength, clarity, and resilience.

Here are resources men can turn to:

• Therapy for Black Men (therapyforblackmen.org)

• Man Therapy (mantherapy.org)

• The Good Men Project (goodmenproject.com)

• HeadsUpGuys (headsupguys.org)

• Local men’s support groups through churches, community centers, or MeetUp.

• Seeking therapy through platforms like BetterHelp or Talkspace if local access is limited.

If you subscribe to ChatGPT - Try my experimental Men’s Mental Health App The Green Hoodie Project by clicking here. If you try it, I would love to get your feedback.

Email me at - [email protected] 

If DJ Enuff’s tears taught us anything, it’s that letting yourself feel is part of the journey. Healing starts when we stop pretending we’re fine.

A Lesson That DJ Enuff Is About To Learn

Here’s the tough part: after 27 years, Enuff’s chapter at Hot 97 ended—allegedly by firing. One decision by a company can change everything. That’s the risk when your access to your audience depends on someone else’s platform.

At the time of publishing this piece, DJ Enuff’s career hinged on the HOT97 Platform and Social Media (TikTok / Twitter) with no official website as his domain is currently parked). This is a major opportunity as he enters free agency and decides he wants to continue on radio. He will have to take some time and really invest in his own brand to own the relationship between him and his audience.

As creators, we need to:

• Build our email lists and create excitement around all that we do.

• Create your own community space (newsletter, podcast, membership).

• Use social media as a tool, not your only lifeline and place for sourcing business.

Because if you don’t own the connection, you can lose it overnight.

Audit Your Blind Spots

Many creators don’t realize how much of their visibility depends on platforms they don’t control. That’s a blind spot.

People get fired. Algorithms shift. Accounts get suspended. Platforms disappear.

If you’re not auditing where your content lives, you’re putting your brand at risk.

Take time to map out where your audience actually connects with you:

• Are you leaning too heavily on Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube?

• Do you have a strong presence on your own site, newsletter, or community hub?

Shifting more weight onto platforms you own ensures you keep the relationship with your audience—no matter what changes around you.

My final thoughts…

DJ Enuff’s tears weren’t just about leaving a job. It was about maybe losing trust in someone that he may have had a lot of love and respect for. My guess is that it was about closing a chapter with people he loved serving.

That’s the kind of connection we should all strive to build—real, human, and lasting.

So share more of yourself. Tell your story. And most importantly, make sure you own the keys to your community.

it’s moments like these that help us pivot and grow.

Thank you Big Spanish for all they years you kept us bumpin… can’t wait to see whats next. Hit me up if you need me.

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