‘Not afraid to have fun’: How a Wareham resident became the life of the party

A lot of kids say they want to be famous. Some kids want to sing and dance, others want to play professional sports or make the world's next big discovery. Brett Outchcunis takes a different approach.

Outchcunis has made a name for himself as DJ Ooch. He travels the South Coast putting on entertaining, yet motivational performances for kids and families, using his yo-yo and DJ equipment to teach his audience to never stop having fun.

"I'm trying to give kids great memories and introduce them to new ways of thinking," he said. "Everybody is so afraid of looking bad and I want kids to know it's ok to have fun. I don't want anyone to ever lose that and I want them to see an adult who is not afraid to have fun."

While growing up in Wareham, Outchcunis liked entertainment and loved performing which led him to dance and theater.

He also explored a more unique avenue of entertainment, the yo-yo. His dad got him one when he was 9-years-old and it "fascinated and amazed" him.

"From that moment on I had this hobby no one else was really doing," said Outchcunis.

But as he hit adolescence, the yo-yo stayed in the closet and the dance shoes lived on the shelf.

As a teenager he was told something by a close friend he would never forget.

"You're not fun anymore," his friend said.

"At that moment I really looked at myself and it blew me away," said Outchcunis. "It was a moment that changed the trajectory of my life. I decided to be more fun."

After that, the yo-yo stayed wrapped around Outchcunis' finger for many years. He continued to "walk the dog" and "rock the baby" through his time at UMass Amherst.

While studying communications there, he worked part time at a toy store called A to Z Science and Learning. Fortunately for Outchcunis, the store specialized in yo-yos.

"It was like heaven," he said.

At the time in the late 1990s, yo-yo companies were looking for professionals to sponsor.

"As it turned out, this store was one of the big yo-yo retailers and yo-yo companies were reaching out to this store looking for people," said Outchcunis. "The store recommended me and while I was never awesome at yo-yos, I was good at entertaining."

While finishing his finals during his senior year, Outchcunis got a job as a full time travelling yo-yo demonstrator for the Fall River based company Yomega.

"I flew out to Vegas for the world yo-yo competitions to represent the company and I traveled the world demonstrating for Yomega for about five years," said Outchcunis.

While performing, he noticed how much more focused the kids were on him during his performances.

"Obviously they were really focused on the yo-yo but I noticed they were really listening," he said. "I saw an opportunity and said ‘if I'm not going to be selling yo-yos my whole life I might as well give the kids some sort of information that will be useful.’"

It was out of this observation and a love for the television show “Mr. Rogers” that Outchcunis formed his own brand of yo-yo shows.

In his new performance, kids could be entertained and learn valuable life lessons.

Over the course of 22 years, he eventually created an eight part series called "Skills for Life" which combines compassion, empathy, dance, music and yo-yo tricks," he said.

He dubbed himself a motivational performer and over time he began to branch out from the yo-yo.

Between yo-yo performances, he began experimenting with DJ equipment. To help fuel his growing interest in the new technology, he started DJing weddings.

He applied his newfound skills to motivational dance parties for kids.

"I want these kids to feel like they have a friend in the DJ," said Outchcunis. "I want them to feel like it was more than just a party. I want them to feel connected and seen. I think those moments really stand out in a kid's early memories."

He added forming a connection with the kids so they feel seen is almost more important than the performance itself.

"When I look out and I see kids holding their bellies and rolling from laughter or at the end of the show and I hit my signature ‘aw yeah’ move and a kid does it back, I know I was able to make a connection," he said.