When it comes to great music, one Mississippi State University student has exactly what it takes to find the right tune for different audiences. Around school she goes by Lake Bundy, but in the music industry, she is known as DJ LakeGang.
Bundy, senior broadcasting major from Corinth, began her career on the turntables in 2013, but her love for music started at a much younger age.
Her passion for music began as a child, singing in the church choir. Bundy said she was inspired by her mother’s singing and her grandfather’s taste for old school classics.
“My granddad had big bags of cassette tapes, and I would get into them and listen to people like Marvin Gaye and Al Green,” Bundy said.
Inspired by the 2002 film “Drumline,” Bundy joined the school band in fifth grade.
“I tried out to play the drums, but they put me on saxophone,” Bundy said. “It turned out that I was pretty good at it. I was always the top chair in my band from the very beginning.”
She continued her band career throughout high school, and was a member of the Famous Maroon Band. Bundy said she loved being a part of the band, but she wanted to explore music from a different angle.
“I started exploring other things,” Bundy said. “I couldn’t let music go, so I started doing promotion for Da Unda Ground Railroad.”
It was not long before Bundy began to delve into the world of music production. She began to sample the same songs she once grew up listening to and remixing them into something brand new.
Bundy said she was interested in getting her hands into all aspects of production. According to Meiko Woods, a producer and COO for Da Unda Ground Railroad, Bundy’s talent could be seen from the very beginning.
“When she came up with the DJ idea it was like, that’s perfect,” Woods said. “I was like that is a market and lane, so let’s tackle it.”
In 2013, Woods purchased Bundy a DJ board three days before Christmas. Bundy said she was glued to the board the moment she got it.
“On Christmas I had my very first gig,” Bundy said. “Everybody was supportive. They were chanting LakeGang.”
Her name LakeGang derived from her name and the fact that she believes that she can be successful by herself. She describes herself as a one person gang.
In a predominantly male field, Bundy is one of four female DJs in Mississippi. Woods, who is also Bundy’s boyfriend, managed over 40 artists and produced music for Midway Games, said watching her flourish into the Dj she is today is inspirational.
“Everything she has done, she has done on her own,” Woods said. “I’ve watched her grow personally and business wise. She’s a businesswoman. Her progress has always been a lot quicker than a lot of DJs.”
After DJ’ing for artists such as Louisiana native Lil’ Boosie and Atlanta’s own Young Thug, Bundy continues to perfect her talent as a DJ. She said one of her most memorable moments DJing was working with rap artist Lil’ Scrappy.
“It was my first time ever DJing for a major artist,” Bundy said. “It was memorable because I messed up like three times, but he was cool though. When the show was over, he was like I did great.”
Two years later and Bundy continues to chase her musical dreams. One of her goals is to have a syndicated mix show. Her ultimate goal however, is to expose people to all of the great talent in Mississippi.
“I think that if we let people know what’s going on here, people might take more pride in being from here,” Bundy said. “People would stay here and enhance it instead of taking their talents elsewhere.”
Bundy’s DJ’ing career has blossomed tremendously in less than two years, and she is already making big waves in the southern music industry. This year, she has been nominated for best mixtape DJ, best club DJ and best DJ in the first annual North Mississippi Hip Hop Awards (NMHHA).
The NMHHA will be held Dec. 11 at 7 p.m. at the Starkville Sportsplex with performances by Rich Boy and other southern artists.
