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In between breaks in the action of Bloomington’s coolest new team — the ECHL’s Bison hockey team — Springfield disc jockey David Hale III keeps the entertainment going.
Hale, who goes by DH3 while blasting music, loves his latest gig as the DJ at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington, where the first-year Bison play. Hale, who has a passion for almost every kind of music, credits his parents for his eclectic tastes, which allow him to smoothly transition between playing music at weddings, parties, bars and now hockey.
“I’ve always have been into the arts and music and my parents (David Hale Jr., and Carol Hale) did an amazing job of exposing me and my (three) sisters (Alexis, Carmen and Lisa) to plays and concerts and all sorts of stuff like that,” Hale said. “So, my passion for entertainment started at a very young age. I really pride myself on being able to to go into different environments and accommodate all sorts of different musical tastes."
More: ‘I'm going to play softball': Woodworth makes quick comeback after car wreck six months ago
He added his dad was into jazz music while his mom listened to pop, R&B and soul.
Hockey might be his biggest challenge yet. Stoppages in hockey can last anywhere from seconds to minutes and he has to keep up with the feel of the game to be able to provide appropriate music. When a Bison opponent scores, a fight breaks out, the Bison score or a penalty is called, DH3 has to quickly pivot to a corresponding tune.
“I wouldn’t say it’s the easiest DJ gig out there because you really have to keep up on timing and what sort of vibe the game might be in: you might be playing more hype music when we’re down or getting certain sound effects going when we’re trying to amp up the crowd,” said David Galli, the Bison’s Director of Game Operations.
“It's definitely extremely fast-paced — way more fast-paced than any other environment I've ever DJ’ed in,” Hale said. “Normally I'm used to just keeping a dance floor going.”
The 41-year-old Springfield High School class of 2000 graduate is also quickly becoming a fan of the game, learning the nuances of hockey — rules, terminology and just how fast-paced and exciting it can be. He also has a custom DH3 jersey the team provided. Before this gig, he said his experience with hockey was, “Almost none.
“I had a friend back in the day who actually was a member of Collabo (a local rap group Hale was a part of),” DH3 said. “He moved down to St. Louis and started working with the Blues. He was able to hook me up with some all-inclusive seats for me and my girlfriend, Nikki at the time. We went to a game, absolutely had a blast and enjoyed it, but that's the only pro game I've ever been to. I didn't really have a lot of exposure to it.”
More: Who is the Springfield area high school baseball preseason Player of the Year?
Hockey might’ve been one of the few things he had limited exposure to. With his parents’ encouragement, he dabbled in many things. The rap group merged with a rock group to form a unique sound called Gypsy Callabo. He worked as an on-air talent for 99.7 FM, The Mix, has been a restaurant server and then really dove head-first into DJ’ing, starting out working school dances before branching out to pretty much anywhere a DJ might be needed.
Hale is also providing the team more than an hour away with some Springfield public relations. As Hale recently walked into a local coffee shop, a woman exiting noticed his Bison shirt and hat and the pair struck up a conversation. She said she had heard about the team and wanted to check it out while Hale eagerly encouraged her. When the woman learned that she was talking to the team’s in-house DJ, she seemed to become even more receptive about making the north on Interstate 55 to check out the Bison.
“It might sound cheesy, but I feel like a member of the team,” Hale said. “I feel like the things that I do either help us win or help us lose. I almost feel like I might as well be on the bench because that's how much of an effect I feel like the music has on the game. If the energy is not optimal in the arena, I take it on myself to really try to raise that vibration, to give the team the energy they need to be victorious.”
Galli said, “We’re definitely going to keep (Hale) for ... years ahead.”
The expansion Bison, who are 28-29-4-2 with 62 points through 63 games, are the New York Rangers' ECHL affiliate. Bloomington has nine games remaining this season, including four at Grossinger Motors Arena. The Bison play the Fort Wayne Komets at 7 p.m. Friday in Bloomington and return home to play Toledo Walleye (April 4) and the Kalamazoo Kings (April 5-6).
“Yeah, their attention to detail is immaculate,” Hale said of the Bison's ownership group, Hallett Sports and Entertainment. “Although we're a first-year team, our owners have experience with team ownership and with putting on these types of events.
“The organization is extremely diverse, so that's really refreshing. There's a lot of women on the (front) office staff and then we've got the most diverse players and actual team in the league. So that's awesome as well and adds to the to the strength as organization, too."
Hale gets most of his gigs through Epic Entertainment, out of Carlinville, or word of mouth. For more information about Hale, he can be found at https://www.facebook.com/dh3music, on TikTok and Instagram by searching for @dh3music, @whoisdh3 on X — formerly called Twitter — and by email at [email protected].
Contact Ryan Mahan: 788-1546, [email protected], Twitter.com/RyanMahanSJR.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: ECHL hockey: Springfield DJ Hale entertains Bison faithful
Continue reading...
Hale, who goes by DH3 while blasting music, loves his latest gig as the DJ at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington, where the first-year Bison play. Hale, who has a passion for almost every kind of music, credits his parents for his eclectic tastes, which allow him to smoothly transition between playing music at weddings, parties, bars and now hockey.
“I’ve always have been into the arts and music and my parents (David Hale Jr., and Carol Hale) did an amazing job of exposing me and my (three) sisters (Alexis, Carmen and Lisa) to plays and concerts and all sorts of stuff like that,” Hale said. “So, my passion for entertainment started at a very young age. I really pride myself on being able to to go into different environments and accommodate all sorts of different musical tastes."
More: ‘I'm going to play softball': Woodworth makes quick comeback after car wreck six months ago
He added his dad was into jazz music while his mom listened to pop, R&B and soul.
Hockey might be his biggest challenge yet. Stoppages in hockey can last anywhere from seconds to minutes and he has to keep up with the feel of the game to be able to provide appropriate music. When a Bison opponent scores, a fight breaks out, the Bison score or a penalty is called, DH3 has to quickly pivot to a corresponding tune.
“I wouldn’t say it’s the easiest DJ gig out there because you really have to keep up on timing and what sort of vibe the game might be in: you might be playing more hype music when we’re down or getting certain sound effects going when we’re trying to amp up the crowd,” said David Galli, the Bison’s Director of Game Operations.
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“It's definitely extremely fast-paced — way more fast-paced than any other environment I've ever DJ’ed in,” Hale said. “Normally I'm used to just keeping a dance floor going.”
The 41-year-old Springfield High School class of 2000 graduate is also quickly becoming a fan of the game, learning the nuances of hockey — rules, terminology and just how fast-paced and exciting it can be. He also has a custom DH3 jersey the team provided. Before this gig, he said his experience with hockey was, “Almost none.
“I had a friend back in the day who actually was a member of Collabo (a local rap group Hale was a part of),” DH3 said. “He moved down to St. Louis and started working with the Blues. He was able to hook me up with some all-inclusive seats for me and my girlfriend, Nikki at the time. We went to a game, absolutely had a blast and enjoyed it, but that's the only pro game I've ever been to. I didn't really have a lot of exposure to it.”
More: Who is the Springfield area high school baseball preseason Player of the Year?
Hockey might’ve been one of the few things he had limited exposure to. With his parents’ encouragement, he dabbled in many things. The rap group merged with a rock group to form a unique sound called Gypsy Callabo. He worked as an on-air talent for 99.7 FM, The Mix, has been a restaurant server and then really dove head-first into DJ’ing, starting out working school dances before branching out to pretty much anywhere a DJ might be needed.
Hale is also providing the team more than an hour away with some Springfield public relations. As Hale recently walked into a local coffee shop, a woman exiting noticed his Bison shirt and hat and the pair struck up a conversation. She said she had heard about the team and wanted to check it out while Hale eagerly encouraged her. When the woman learned that she was talking to the team’s in-house DJ, she seemed to become even more receptive about making the north on Interstate 55 to check out the Bison.
You must be registered for see images attach
“It might sound cheesy, but I feel like a member of the team,” Hale said. “I feel like the things that I do either help us win or help us lose. I almost feel like I might as well be on the bench because that's how much of an effect I feel like the music has on the game. If the energy is not optimal in the arena, I take it on myself to really try to raise that vibration, to give the team the energy they need to be victorious.”
Galli said, “We’re definitely going to keep (Hale) for ... years ahead.”
The expansion Bison, who are 28-29-4-2 with 62 points through 63 games, are the New York Rangers' ECHL affiliate. Bloomington has nine games remaining this season, including four at Grossinger Motors Arena. The Bison play the Fort Wayne Komets at 7 p.m. Friday in Bloomington and return home to play Toledo Walleye (April 4) and the Kalamazoo Kings (April 5-6).
“Yeah, their attention to detail is immaculate,” Hale said of the Bison's ownership group, Hallett Sports and Entertainment. “Although we're a first-year team, our owners have experience with team ownership and with putting on these types of events.
“The organization is extremely diverse, so that's really refreshing. There's a lot of women on the (front) office staff and then we've got the most diverse players and actual team in the league. So that's awesome as well and adds to the to the strength as organization, too."
Hale gets most of his gigs through Epic Entertainment, out of Carlinville, or word of mouth. For more information about Hale, he can be found at https://www.facebook.com/dh3music, on TikTok and Instagram by searching for @dh3music, @whoisdh3 on X — formerly called Twitter — and by email at [email protected].
Contact Ryan Mahan: 788-1546, [email protected], Twitter.com/RyanMahanSJR.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: ECHL hockey: Springfield DJ Hale entertains Bison faithful
Continue reading...
