Gazzo jams out at Westcott Theater despite sparse crowd

By the middle of DJ Gazzo's set, only about 20 of the roughly 150 initial people were still around to jam to what was an awesome performance Friday night at The Westcott Theater.

"I've played everything from house parties to huge clubs and festivals. Coming into it, I didn't know much about the promo," said Mike Gazzo, who dropped his first name to create his DJ persona. "With a charity-type situation, it's harder to get people out, especially on a college campus. I think a lot of people think that it's a dry event, but I didn't really have any expectations."

The crowd could have potentially been a lot larger had word gotten out more. Gazzo's performance wasn't heavily advertised on The Westcott Theater website, nor were posters easily found around the Syracuse University campus.

Two separate opening acts came out to get the audience moving, but this tactic seemed to have backfired. By the time Gazzo was ready to perform, most of the audience had already left.

"Every city is different," Gazzo said. "There could be a multitude of reasons people aren't at an event. But I show up and I play my set, that's how I roll."

With song artists ranging from The Chainsmokers to blink-182, Gazzo put on an excellent performance that was fun to watch. During his set, he was seen drinking Jack Daniel's Whiskey from the bottle.

The LA-based DJ remained upbeat, saying he was going to an after-party on Syracuse University's campus because he knew some people visiting for Orange Central, SU's alumni weekend.

Gazzo told The NewsHouse he is collaborating with New York City-based rock group American Authors on a new single. Gazzo is familiar with their sound; he famously remixed "Best Day of My Life" by the band in 2014.

"The biggest positive of making music is the escape from any emotions you have," he said.