DJ Tameil

Tameil became known for his Chicago house mixtapes as a teenager.^[3] He later established connections with the Baltimore scene; he was subsequently introduced to Baltimore stars such as DJ Technics and Rod Lee.^[3] He began playing Baltimore records at teen parties and clubs in the Downtown Newark area.^[4]

Tameil was among the first Jersey artists to produce his own club tracks in 2001 with the Dat Butt EP, released on his own label Anthrax Records.^[3] He began to burn his own CDs and sold them on Broad Street in Newark. Around this time, DJs Tim Dolla and Mike V also began producing their own club tracks as the Brick Bandits to challenge Tameil's monopoly on the market.^[3] The two parties initially feuded but Tameil later joined the group,^[4] coining the phrase "Brick City club" in 2002.^[3] They released popular mixtapes which featured both club and house tracks.^[3] Club parties, hosted primarily in ballrooms and banquet halls, began emerging in Newark and surrounding suburbs such as East Orange and Irvington.^[3] Despite violence in the city, parties thrown by the Brick Bandits or at the Branch Brook Skating Rink were known to be safe spaces for kids.^[3]