Robert Lindquist

The 2011 Inductee to the Hall of Fame is the author of “Spinnin” and the creator of Mobile Beat Magazine, Robert Lindquist.

Mobile Beat: In the beginning…..An interview with Bob Lindquist

MB: Bob, tell us about the creation of Mobile Beat…

BL:The case could be made that the publication’s roots go as deep as my own obsession
with music, audio systems and broadcasting—and that goes waaaaay back. But that
would take all day and comes up lacking (except for a few side stories) in terms of being
truly riveting content. So, to save time, let’s jump forward (well, backward actually) to
1984 as I try to piece together, to the best of my recollection, how timing and technology
collided to create the perfect storm that led to “Mobile Beat: The Premier Issue.”

Aside from it’s Orwellian implications, most computer geeks will recall that ‘84 was the
year that Apple introduced the first Macintosh computer. At the time, along with hosting
a morning radio show, I was a partner in an advertising agency and doing DJ shows
on the weekends. When I first got my hands on a Mac, I immediately recognized it’s
potential—which back then was nothing compared to today. At that time, we were still
composing copy on electric typewriters and sending it out to be typeset. The Mac was
a really big deal, but aside from making quick work of ad layouts and radio copy, I really
couldn’t find a way to make money with it… until some friends prodded me to write a
book about how to start a DJ service. From their encouraging words “Spinnin: How To
Score A Hit As A Mobile DJ” was born—complete with a step-by-step guide detailing
what to say and what to play at weddings, handy illustrations on how to slip cue vinyl,
and really corny chapter titles.

At about the time that box upon box of finished printed copies of “Spinnin’” were
delivered to my house, something else arrived: A magazine entitled “DJ Times.” While
overall impressive, DJT seemed to be really lacking in terms of content for mobiles.
I called up the editor, Chuck Arnold, complimented him on the new publication, and
offered to write a monthly column for mobiles—in exchange for an ad promoting my
book. We did the deal, but instead of a column for mobiles, he asked if I would do
something a bit off beat that DJs would hopefully find humorous. I love writing stuff
that’s over the edge, so I delivered him the first six columns in exchange for ads. The
good news was, he thought the stuff was really funny – the bad news was, a lot of the
readers didn’t. Some even complained that it was offensive (gimme a break!).

At least I had somewhat established myself with DJ community, so rather than give up,
I went right to the top and made a pitch to DJ Times Publisher, Vinny Testa, suggesting
that he do a magazine for the up and coming audience of Mobile DJs, but he didn’t even
nibble. So convinced that the timing was ripe for a magazine for mobiles, I just started
making wild pitches all over the place—many that ended with me being told “Don’t quit
your day job!”

MB: But obviously, you didn’t give up there….

BL: Well, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that there was only one way
to get this done. I now had the means (the Mac) and the need (I gotta sell these
books!) to start a publication for Mobiles. And the rest is pretty much history. I raised
the initial cash for production through the sale of ads in the back of Spinnin’ and
it’s sequel “Spinnin’ 2000.” Then, just prior to the launch of the first issue, another
Rochester area DJ, Mike Buonaccorso, decided to join me in this insane leap of faith to try his hand at ad sales for anon-existent publication. To this day, I’d bet the farm that Mike still recalls who bought
the first ad from him. Twenty years later and the smell of our dining room stacked with
10,000 freshly printed copies of Mobile Beat remains in my mind. My wife, our two
daughters, and myself spent an entire Easter Sunday manually labeling and bundling
copies of that first issue for shipping.

We had hoped that once our first issue was out the door that the naysayers would be
silent—not so. Then again, you have to expect that when you try to do something bigger
than yourself, the sidelines will be filled with well-meaning folks who would like to see
you go down in flames. We just kept keeping on. For the first few issues, it was touch
and go, but God always provided a way and with each issue more subscribers and
advertisers got behind the publication—and it is truly their support that has made Mobile
Beat a centerpiece to the mobile DJ community for 2 decades.