When Sammy Jo met a man go-go dancing with novelty spectacles, little did he know it was an encounter that would lead to one of the best gigs in town. Who was that man? Jake Shears from the Scissor Sisters.

Some may call it serendipity, others may say fate. But in some instances, people’s paths are simply meant to intersect, as was the case for Sammy Jo.

“The night I met Jake Shears, we were both working at my friend’s cyberfetish party called Click + Drag,” he tells AXN. 

“He was go-go dancing and I was spinning. I remember the theme was ‘Superhero’ night and Jake had a cape on and these hysterical glasses that gave him huge cartoon googley eyes. I thought anyone that would go-go dance and make themself look that silly has got to be fierce.”

Fierce is perhaps an understatement when one refers to Jake Shears. But then again, this was before the Scissor Sisters became a household name, or rather a global musical phenomenon.

The pair instantly hit it off. “We became friends, talking about music mainly. Jake’s obviously obsessed with music of all kinds, as am I, so I guess we sort of bonded. And we also lived next door to each other.”

Sammy Jo admits to being charmed by Jake’s unflinching honesty, a trait that would later display itself in their music. “I love that Jake is not always trying to be perceived as hip or cool. He will talk your ear off about how much he loves The Neverending Story with absolutely zero irony.

“[With the Scissor Sisters] I think people are inspired by the honesty behind the songs. They are not some marketing tool or trying to be the most famous band in the world. They just want to write songs and have a party on stage and I think people appreciate that. If you don’t like the music then don’t come to the party. You know what I mean?”

Sammy and Jake built such a rapport that in the spring of 2004, as the Scissor Sisters teetered on the brink of superstardom, Jake asked Sammy Jo to DJ on the band’s Crevice Canyon Tour. Sammy Jo, without hesitation, jumped on board.

“It was the first time I had ever done any kind of touring so it was really exciting for me,” he says. “I had no idea if it would work or that it would become an actual job title for me. It was their first proper tour with a sleeper bus so everyone felt like rockstars for the first time.”

The arrangement worked out so well that the band eventually recruited Sammy as their official tour DJ.

“It’s fantastic. For nine months every other year I get to travel the world with my mates. And it has done amazing things for my DJ career.”

When not on tour, Sammy Jo travels the world, playing at various clubs and music festivals. And this month, he is set to appear at the opening night party of the Brisbane Queer Film Festival on May 23.

Asked what we can expect, he replies: “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.”

Afterwards, Sammy Jo will be heading south to Sydney, playing at the GAF and Loose Ends.

“I really enjoy Sydney and spent quite a bit of time there last year so I’m happy to be coming back to play,” he says. “People really tend to lose their minds when they go clubbing there. It’s great fun. And Loose Ends really reminds me of this filthy NYC bar called The Cock.

“I find the musical taste to be very cutting edge in Australia. You also tend to like it a bit harder and dirtier here. Music, I mean.” AXN

DJ Sammy Jo plays at the 9th Annual Brisbane Queer Film Festival on Friday, May 23 at Brisbane Powerhouse. For more information, visit brisbanepowerhouse.org.