Mikey Lion is a conduit of bright white light, a vibe conductor of the highest order, and a champion of positive energy and dusty funky beats. Positioned at the center of the West Coast house movement, he’s one of the founding members of the Desert Hearts crew. Alongside his brother Porkchop, childhood friend Marbs, Lee Reynolds, and Kristoff McKay, he’s created a loving community of wide-eyed dancers that believe house, techno, and love can change the world.

He embarked on his sonic journey at the age of 13. Young Mikey was a massive hip-hop head. When his parents offered to buy him any musical instrument, the DJ culture-obsessed teenager chose Technic 1200s. Undeterred by the fact that his parents didn’t think turntables were an instrument, he bought his own six months later. Mikey immersed himself in the world of turntablism and eventually proved to his parents that his decks were just as impactful and beautiful as any woodwind, piano, or stringed instrument.

“They saw how much I was obsessed with it and they saw how it could be a musical instrument. They ended up paying me back and just been my number one supporters ever since. My dad drove up to San Louis Obispo where I was going to college and surprised me for my first official gig at a bar. They were there the first time that I played Lightning In A Bottle. Now my mom does our accounting for Desert Hearts.”

When he was 17, he went to his first Coachella. His first festival was a life-changing day not just for him but for dance music culture. Coachella 2006 was a flashpoint. 

“I didn't have any idea what I was getting into," he remembers. "And the very first time that I took my very first ecstasy, which also happened to be the very first time I ever heard dance music at the debut of the Daft Punk pyramid.”

The steadfast hip-hop head was converted. “In that moment,” he explains “I'm just like, ‘Fuck hip hop this is what I want to do with my life from now on.’”

When he co-founded the Desert Hearts crew in 2012 he was several years into his journey in dance music. Attending Lightning In A Bottle and Burning Man inspired him and his crew to create something that could bring people together for the love of house and techno. The first renegade in the Mojave Desert was a near disaster. 200 attendees huddled around a campfire on the dancefloor with no sound until 6 am Saturday. And from then on things locked in. Desert Hearts has now grown to encompass a record label and a global community of thousands.

“It came from this really pure hearted place of just wanting to make the world a better place, wanting to build community wanting to show people, how they can be a part of community, how they can go back and create their own parties, their own communities themselves. And really, I think that that's, that's the stronghold foundation of our of our entire brand.”

Mikey has countless stories of Desert Hearts fam sharing how Desert Hearts has changed lives. “One of my favorite stories is this woman came up to me and Lee at Lightning In A Bottle a couple of years ago, pregnant woman, and she just grabs our hands and puts our hands on her belly. And she goes ‘this baby was conceived at Desert Hearts festival.’ I've heard about Desert Hearts changing lives countless times. But never heard of Desert Hearts, creating life.”

During the pandemic, Desert Hearts strengthened their community in an entirely unexpected way. The crew hopped on the streaming game early, and the nightly Desert Hearts streams welcomed tens of thousands of people. 

“I think the coolest thing about Twitch for us was just how amazing it was that we are able to provide this home for so many people online … It was such an unexplainable way of DJing. There's is a real deep connection that was made when I was playing music every Wednesday, It really was like, [we were] together alone. It was incredible.”

Mikey’s personal journey during the pandemic led him to reconfirm why he does what he does. After having a difficult time coping, he realigned his purpose and his place in the universe.

“I've noticed over the years that when I stray from the more spiritual path, which is trying to help people, trying to show people love, trying to just make the world a better place. When my purpose is misaligned, I think that things don't go nearly as well as they're supposed to. And so when I put out my album … I really wanted to make sure that I was completely realigning myself.”

His 2021 album For the Love is more than just a collection of psychedelic beats and basslines. It’s a declaration of love for the scene and his well-being. 

He recently released, “This Is The Beat,” a continuation of the inner work that he established with his album. Given his newfound focus and intention, writing music has become a more organic process. The song was written on a surfing trip in El Salvador. 

“The hotel that I was staying at had this million dollar studio…I ended up making that track, and basis for another track…It wasn't forced at all. I was going on vacation. And I had access to the studio, so I had some downtime in between the surf being blown out. I couldn't think of a better thing.”

Mikey’s newly aligned direction has been a source of clarity. He feels like he’s in the most comfortable space in his career. 

“I know that when I play music, I have a very positive impact on people. And I've learned how to harness my own energy to push this healing energy out. When I was first figuring this out, it was something that I was always thinking like, ‘Whoa, don't let your ego get too big there, dude.’ But then it was like, oh wait, no this is a real thing that is tangible. And I can see the effect that it's having on people. So, if you just lean into it and harness it, it's working. And oddly enough, once I've started moving myself in that newly aligned space, gigs have been better, parties been better. Everything's just been better. So that's my goal now.”

Niteplan emerged in recent years with a string of diverse releases ranging in sound from deep tech to jungle-inspired melodic breaks. The British producer quickly turned the heads of industry luminaries like Jamie Jones, Detlef, A-Trak, The Martinez Brothers, Waff, and Anja Schneider. It’s quite unheard of for someone to receive such widespread support so early on in a career. However, with releases on Solardo’s Sola imprint and a personal nod from industry icon Skream after releasing “Waiting For You” on Of Unsound Mind, it’s evident that Niteplan isn’t your average artist.

Raised in London, his parents imbued him with a wide range of music to draw inspiration from. This may offer some insight into why his output is so varied.

“You know, my mum was mainly sort of like hip hop and R&B. Quite a lot of Brown Sugar, Missy Elliott. And my dad was a lot of classical. So, doesn't really match up. But there's a mixture of influences in there for sure.”

He says, “A lot of my music is focused around taking samples from sort of certain popular genres currently in mainstream music and then I started pressing it into my own sort of vibe.”

He didn’t come from a family that pushed him to learn an instrument, but he tried his hand at drums, guitar, and piano in his youth. He drifted from hard rock to hip hop, finally landing on dance and electronic at university.

“I used to listen to Rage Against The Machine when I was younger. And then it sort of turned into more drum and bass and then grime and sort of entered into house when I was early university.”

And while he can trace his journey through styles, it’s harder to pinpoint when he truly decided he wanted to pursue music as a career.

“I've been thinking back, and I think it was always there. But I just didn't really realize how to approach it. Because even when I was sort of like 17, 18 I used to listen to grime. And I'd be searching for YouTube and taking instrumentals and taking samples and finding little audio clips of lyrics, and then just save them and putting them together in GarageBand at the time. Not really thinking anything of it. And then later down the line, I still had all these files saved, and I was like, ah, these could be these perfect for what I want to do now.”

He’s been a passionate fan and producer for years, but it wasn’t until 2020 that he found the time to give it is his all.

“I think my problem used to be just having enough time to do it. And I feel like the whole thing has happened in the last year of you know, lockdowns, and not being able to go out… Although it was terrible, it's quite positive situation where I was given all this time. In that space of a year, I've just managed to sort of hone my craft and I'm in a position that I wanted to be in. It was just a matter of having the amount of time to do it. So, I've just I feel like I've just shot myself a couple of years, because I've been able to focus on it a lot more.”

One of his biggest wins was getting signed by Skream. If anyone could inspire to Nite Plan it would be Skream. They are both artists who reject strict genre classifications and instead simply create what makes them happy.

“Waiting For You” and “Hold On” are deep ravey breaks at their melodic peak. Crispy drums, lilting pads, and a mild trace of that 90s jungle sound. He couldn’t imagine a better place to sign such unique records.

“It's quite difficult where I'd say I want to get a release that would do [them] justice. And Of Unsound Mind was a target I wanted to hit with that. So, I sent some music through to him. And in the same day, he said he wanted to sign it.”

The same diversity of sound that has put him on the mark with so many big artists, can sometimes be a double-edged sword. But Niteplan feels at home in his style.

“Sometimes if people are going through my catalog, they might not be sure what they're gonna’ get, or what sort of vibe I'm gonna’ put up…So, I've got to take a step back when I actually go into the studio. Think, right? Don't get too wild. But I've got my sound. Now, my main sound is like the deepest sort of stripped-back tech house. But I always want to have that ability to sort of go a bit wider if I want, because as an artist, I'm producing stuff I like. And if people receive it, well, then you know, so it goes, but I don't want to be sort of pigeonholed into just doing one thing.”

Before 2011, you could find Squire—aka Jaime Alguersuari—speeding around the track behind the wheel of a Formula One car. And while he achieved great success there, when he left the sport he did so to pursue the thing that he’d been passionate about his whole life. Dance music has been omnipresent in the Spanish artist’s life for as long as he can remember. And as the allure of the beat became too strong to deny, he embarked on a journey to map his musical DNA.

“My parents started to go to Ibiza in 1975,” he says. “And I used to go there when I was very, very young. My musical background started there. My parents used to go to the opera … but as a child, I grew up between radio stations in Ibiza.”

DJ culture and club culture are synonymous with the island. But, as a teenager he was too young to go to the clubs, so he would take over basements with his friends to play music. “it all started as, as a game of friends in a basement. We used to buy all these records and show each record to each other to see which one had the best record or the coolest record. “

He wrapped himself in the hunt for the most exclusive cuts. Even in the early 00s before online download stores dominated the scene, you had to travel to get the rare gems. Every city had its sonic imprint, and to keep winning the game, you had to travel to find those rare gems.

Having friends that were a bit older than him proved an advantage. They’d sneak him in the back door of clubs, and when he was 16, got him his first gig. It was at a gay bar called Lola’s, a hidden gem and one of the first clubs to open in Ibiza Town over 40 years ago.

“I was 16. And I played my first record there. I felt like this amazing energy between the crowd and the booth. I think I got captured by the moment and fell so much in love with how much of an influence you can make by playing this tune or that other tune.”

As he traveled a path deeper into the dance music rabbit hole, he realized that the best way to always have the most exclusive music was to make it yourself. Because no matter how exclusive you think your promos are, at some point everyone is going to play the same tunes.

“That was the main reason for me to start making music … I thought, why don't I start making my own music. So, whenever I have a show, and I play music, I can play my own tracks.” He didn’t begin with the intention of publishing his tunes, it was all for the love of the chase. However, his obsession grew into a career. And when he decided to leave racing, it was because the music was the only thing he could see himself focusing on.

He does however see some interesting parallels between music and racing. He says that every time he put his helmet on, he knew he was going to work. The discipline, routine, and psychological fortitude it took to remain focused on the track are no different from how he works in the studio.

“Going into the studio every day, I have to follow a certain routine. And it starts very early in the morning, I take things seriously. If I want to evolve and develop my career in the music industry. I need to have a disciplined life or let's say, a routine that that puts the benchmark every day a bit higher.”

When he was younger, his competitive spirit drove him on the race track and behind the DJ booth. Now, he’s only competing with himself to push for even better music with each release. His steadfast dedication to his craft has led to releases on iconic labels like Crosstown Rebels, Do Not Sit on the Furniture, Get Physical sub-label Kindisch, and his album Stop on the innovative German label Mobilee.

When he began to discuss the project with label head Ralf Kollmann he was told to go in whatever direction he wanted to take. And as the world shut down during the COVID pandemic, he found the time to seek inspiration from within.

“Many of us, we don't have the time to be in the studio, and like, jam around and feel the synergy. Sometimes you are thinking too much and pushing too much. And that's why the album is called Stop, because everything came to a stop,” He explains.

"It gave me the possibility to be relaxed, in my zone, in a studio. Just thinking about making music that I love. I don't know if it's going to work if it's not going to work, but at least I know I'm connected with this music I'm producing. And that's why I felt like making more personal music … something unexpected.”

With the constant barrage of releases, the lifecycle of a song has become woefully short. He remembers when he could drop a song that was a decade old in a set and it would still hit. He’s seeking to reconnect with that time, and ultimately create music that takes people places.

“I always say music has to have a story, even if it's a one minute song.” And the message that he wants to communicate is a simple lesson he learned during the pandemic.

“With the digital era, there's an excess of information. And there's so much happening, that it looks like we live in a crazy world…it looks like we're always unhappy, because we want things faster and quicker ... I think we do have to stop and ask ourselves, who we are, what do we think what do we want to do?”

“I was always really influenced by soul and funk. My father played a lot of older music like Stevie Wonder, Jackson 5, Earth Wind and Fire. That's where a lot of my early inspirations came from. I think this had a big impact on my sound. When I want to make house music I always try to take something organic from the past to keep the harmonies going and create songs rather than just creating club tracks.”

It's an accurate self assesment. The Defected Records mainstay is known for upbeat, soul and funk-driven house music. David Penn keeps the vibes happy and uplifting at all times, spreading his unique brand of house music globally.

A true veteran of the scene, David began his career in Spain, in the early 90s. From 1992-1999 he produced music under a different moniker. Although he loved electronic music he was not a DJ. 

“Once I started to DJ I had a better understanding of what I wanted to make. I wanted to take my own path. It’s amazing it’s been so many years, especially when the EDM boom happened. I was surprised we came out of that. I’m happy that people know me from 20 years ago and are still discovering me.” 

Growing up in Spain, David Penn struggled initially to discover his musical identity. There were not many DJs and producers making the kind of music that he felt an affinity for. Although Ibiza was always a great place for him, mainland Spain did not provide the same type of inspiration. As he got more into DJing and producing, he found himself thinking about the rest of Europe and influences from other places. 

“During the two years of lockdown, it’s more apparent than ever that it’s a different era. My style is more European than Spanish in particular. I have some Latin influences and Soul influences. There are more new DJs now in Spain but there’s not a huge bank making house. People here usually make techno or tech house. I sometimes felt like someone in the wrong country. My style is much more international. Some of my best sets have happened in Miami and South America.”

David has long been aware of the sense that his music is not necessarily the most popular in his home country. At the start of his career, he experienced difficulty getting his music out to his international fan base. Although we are now able to access any song at any time, it’s easy to forget that only a few years ago, finding music was a true endeavor. David founded his record label, Urbana Records in 2003 to keep up with demand. When he released music in the US, his European fans couldn't find it and vice versa. He determined that creating a label would give him an outlet to both release music whenever he wanted, and to make it simple for anyone, anywhere to hear his records.

“I don’t really use it like a business, the label is for me to put music on that I think is interesting. My records usually chart so having them out on my label, it’s nice to see.”

Although Urbana Records has had tremendous success, David Penn cannot simply be contained to one label. His immense output, and tremendous charting success led to a long held relationship with the iconic Defected Records.

“I’ve been releasing music with them for a long time. When the EDM boom happened music just changed a lot… I didn’t like the music I was listening to and everyone was remembering my old tracks but I wanted to create some new identity for myself... My music is normally energetic and happy so I tried to follow my instinct and luckily Defected called me to have me back over and over.”

Although he first released with Defected many years ago, their continued belief in David has given him a second wind. He readily admits that he is feeling more comfortable now than he ever has with his music. Decades of success have left him feeling that he can truly express himself and trust his instincts musically. Having the power to decide what to do and what not to do based on inspiration rather than financial need, has been a blessing for David. As he continues to create new fans, David has taken plenty of time to reflect on how much his career has been able to grow in recent years.

“Many of us early on were doing well but no one was famous or anything like that. People knew the music and booked us but there was no celebrity to it. Now with how easy it is to access music, the reach of your career is just so much higher. I feel like in the last few years, people come to my shows more and more to see me rather than just going to a club to go. In the start of the pandemic I was happy to spend more time at home and in the studio but now I’ve been so eager to play live shows and I feel amazing getting back out there.”

The art of turntablism is often forgotten in dance music. Maybe because there are so few that straddle the line between the two worlds effectively. A-Trak, Jack Beats, and DJ Craze immediately come to mind. But Indianapolis-born, New York-based Matsu is entering the conversation to stand among them. 

By the time he was 24 He’d conquered the world of turntablist competitions. He was hand-selected by A-trak to compete in the Fool's Gold Goldie Awards and came in second in the Redbull 3Style USA Finals. However, his long love for dance music has taken control. In addition to helping DJ Craze run his legendary Slow Roast Records imprint, he just released his first original EP R U With Me. The three-tracker is the culmination of years of cultivating his musical DNA, dissecting the elements of music, and crafting mind-bending DJ sets. 

Matsu’s earliest musical memory is being dragged to piano lessons at the Russian Sunday School in Indianapolis by his mom. “It was in one of the ballet studios of the JCC (Jewish Community Center). And it was this really scary, mean old lady who taught piano to everybody… Definitely a little bit of the immigrant pressure involved there.”

His mom insisted he learn an instrument (of his choice), and while he recognizes the value of that now, he was never really into it. “When I look back at it, I'm very thankful for the fact that she pushed me into doing those things. Because here I am today, right?”

By the time he was 13, he was starting to understand his musical taste. A child of the internet age, he was deep into Pirate Bay, downloading Jay Z discographies and Kanye albums. He was also starting to have a deep appreciation for DJ culture. Turntablism was fascinating to him, and Technic 1200s would quickly become his instrument of choice.

And while most DJs envision themselves on stage rocking a party, Matsu wanted to prove that he had the juice.

“I'm competitive. It's just a part of my personality,” he admits. “That's what always intrigued me about hip hop battling. It doesn't matter where you're from, it doesn't matter your race, your gender, anything. If you go up there, and you do the dopest shit, you win.”

The hard work and determination that his mother instilled in him were invaluable when he prepared for competitions. “I got so much better in the three months that I spent preparing for 3Style Finals than I did [in] two years before that," he explains. "Same thing with the Goldie's. I was a senior in college when I got into the Goldie's, and I went to my professors, and I was like, ‘I'm not coming to class for the next two months. I'll do some of the homework. You pass me or you'll see me next semester. I don't care. This is my priority.’”

And while hip hop loomed large in his life. He says he always had large respect for dance music DJs as well. “When I discovered hip hop, I discovered happy hardcore and hardstyle at the same time. Ravine and Cotts, they used to play back to back sets. I was like, ‘This is hip hop style of DJing. There’s an emcee at these raves. They're playing on records. They're scratching, but they're doing it at 170 BPM,’ and I thought that was badass.”

As trap started to cross over into dance music, he began to shift his focus. But going to Miami in 2017 was the turning point. It was a late night, and the libations were flowing. And as he watched Amine Edge and Dance drop a late-night set, he realized the power of house music. It was the beautiful moment when the kick drum drops and the whole room waits in anticipation for the snare and hi-hat to come back in that struck a chord with him. 

“And ever since then, I've like really put a lot of time and energy into understanding the genre. Even more than just as a fan but as somebody who wants to contribute and be a part of it.”

When he graduated from Indianapolis University, he moved to New York to take a job at Paradigm Talent Agency. It was the first time he lived in the same city as one of his idols turned friends, DJ Craze. The two met when Matsu opened for him years before, and they continued to bump into each other over the years.

“The agency thing was just not my vibe. So, I called him the day before I was going to quit. And he was like, ‘Do you want to come work on Slow Roast with me?' And I was like, ‘I will literally go and quit tomorrow.’”

Matsu has never been risk-averse. It takes a certain amount of courage to jump into the deep end as many times as he has been it quitting a stable job to work for an independent record label or telling your professor that homework is no longer a priority because DJing. He says he owes that courage to his parents.

“I'm the first generation American and both of [my parents] took massive risks to leave their countries. My mom is from Russia, my dad is from Japan. So that immigrant mentality of leaving somewhere and taking the risk and believing in yourself and also this ideal whether that's the American dream or your own career, whatever it is, is kind of like ingrained in you from day one. I hear it every family gathering. There's always the retelling of when we left Russia. I think it's just a part of who I am. And a part of my upbringing is to have that faith and just kind of say fuck it and go for it. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn't I'll figure it out. Everything will be fine anyways, right?”

Dj Rae’s silky voice adds a scintillating layer of soul to every track she touches. One of the few multi-hyphenate women in dance music, the British singer, songwriter, producer, and DJ has worked closely with industry legends like Todd Terry, Kenny Dope, Roger Sanchez, Kevin Saunderson, and MK. Her smoky alto is a unique force in dance music. She effortlessly takes command of any genre, and her lyrics have heightened the emotional impact of releases on lauded labels like Toolroom, Defected, Knee Deep In Sound, and Farris Wheel.

She discovered her superpower early in life. She doesn't come from a particularly musical family, but they did have good taste in music. The music she heard in the home had a powerful impact on her.

She recalls one of the most joyous memories of her childhood, sifting through Motown records her parents had. “They kept [them] in a little red leather box which felt quite special…The Supremes album stuck out to me, it's got lips on the cover. I took it and played it relentlessly and did the whole hairbrush thing in the bedroom.”


She absorbed every sound in her orbit. And when she began to hear the pulse of the kick drum thumping through the walls, she was captivated.


“I used to hear these beats coming from his bedroom and I was just enthralled,” she recalls. “So obviously when he went out, I would go and try and find where that music came from. I just kind of latched on to it. I was probably quite annoying to him at the time. And so, I had to do everything on the DL.”


She was good at swiping his CDs and tapes, and by the time she was old enough to go out, house music had brought her and her brother together in a special way.


“House music did [that] for so many different kind of relationships. It just kind of it just allowed bridges to happen.”


Being in the building when a DJ performed was a transcendent experience for Rae. She was on the dancefloor when she realized her life purpose.


“I'd just be kind of standing the club like looking, thinking ‘That's where I need to be.’ It was just this yearning. I really want to be playing the music to people like me.”


So, when her brother got turntables, she saw her window of opportunity open.


“The timing of it was just so beautiful. It was as if the tapestry of my life just kind of played out so well.” She already had a collection of vinyl but had no way to weave it all together.  


“I didn't know really what I was doing, I was just stumbling around, finding my way, and doing what felt natural to me.”


Rae continued to do what felt right, and manifest opportunities for herself. Her ability to magnetize is a talent that almost rivals her innate musical abilities. She never misses an opportunity. When she was leaving Ibiza and heard Sandy Rivera was going to play at Bora Bora, she grabbed her records and asked the owner if she could step in and DJ when he was late. It put her right behind the decks with him and sparked a working relationship and friendship that would last for years. The pair have collaborated on a number of hits including their rework of Kosheen’s “Hide U.”





There’s a sense of nostalgia that overcomes her when she sings dance classics like that. And she gets to do it often with Hacienda Classical, an ensemble that performs classical renditions of dance music’s most iconic songs. It sparks visceral memories of singing to her brother’s CDs and tapes in her room as a kid.


“I remember being in my old bedroom singing to Inner City and quite a few of the songs that we do in the Hacienda Classical. And to do it with live orchestra with thousands of people in front of you, it's just the most beautiful way of delivering such timeless songs. Honestly, I have goosebumps so often throughout the show.”


When COVID obliterated her gig schedule, she hit the studio hard. She also found out she was pregnant, so the break from late nights and early flights was perfect timing.


“I made loads of music. I was able to sit here in my studio, and produce, write, and sing and do all the things that I love,” She explains. One of the projects that came out of that time was her collaboration with David Morales, “Something I’m Going Through,” a poignant, soulful, and personal number.


“Sometimes it feels like there's that cloud over you and I don't like that feeling. I need an outlet for it just get the weight off my shoulders. That process for me, making a song like that, it really does just lift your spirits. It’s so strange, because you sometimes write and [are] almost in tears doing it, but then it's just cathartic to get it out there. It's like writing pages in your diary. Once it's done, now [you] can breathe.”


Now that her beautiful baby girl is in the world, she’s shifting her focus. “So, this time I have to be a devoted mother. There's still so much happening as the overspill of all that work that I plowed into when I had the time. I know that I will find the time again, as well. As a parent, any parent knows there's windows, and it never feels like a chore. If I really want to make a certain thing happen, I'll make it happen and I won't compromise her. I won't compromise the music, it will just happen naturally.”


She wants her baby to grow up in a world where vocalists get the same kind of recognition as producers and DJs. They make invaluable contributions to dance music, yet often go completely unrecognized.  


“I've always also wanted to try to champion that. Because so many people will be like, ‘Oh yeah, I know that song, but I didn't know that was you, or I didn't know that was her or him.’ You would not know so many of the greatest voices of house music if they literally walked past you right now. And I really want a chance to kind of change that in my career. And I hope that it is changing now. So, the voices have a face, have a name, have a profile that people know, and I will keep trying to champion that for as long as I'm doing this.”

Los Angeles-based DJ, producer, audio engineer, and visual artist HELLBOUND!—aka Vince Tascione—is leading the charge in North America to revive the early rave sounds of acid and hard techno. A genre dominated by European names, he’s continuing the work started by that late i_o through a string of hard thumping releases and the curation of a recent hard techno compilation for Space Yacht Records.

The veteran producer had already achieved a solid level of success as a touring bass music act. And his command of crystal clear sonics and intelligent sound design is well-honed. He says, “The only genre that's truly exciting me is techno and hard techno. It’s all I listen to, because that's what's really inspiring me.” As one of hard techno’s fiercest stateside champions, he’s on the precipice of dominating the genre.

His musical pedigree is impressive, to say he comes from a musical family would be understating the obvious. 

Tascione learned piano from his grandmother at a young age. His great grandfather played the flute with Tony Bennet, Frank Sinatra, and in pit orchestras for early television broadcasts in the 40s and 50s. He also tells me he has an uncle by marriage who he calls, “one of the most talented musicians I’ve ever met.” He’s played with Eric Clapton, Van Morison, and Tina Turner.

Growing up with such a creative backdrop meant his parents were comfortable with their son pursuing a career in the arts. He chose film, but by the time college was over, he was over it.

“I wasn't feeling very inspired by film anymore. And I wasn't hitting that creative quota that I needed. It just felt very rigid.”


So he joined his friends and started to learn to produce. He found parallels between editing for film and using music software, “I just sort of bridge the two worlds together and I picked it up really fast and I loved [that] I could do it on my own.”

He insists that he would do anything to keep being an artist. As he honed his craft, he picked up a job at a mortgage company during the day. 



“I will take a bullshit nine to five corporate job and play the game. I'm not too good for that. I'll put a suit and tie on, I'll show up but at the end of the day, it's only so I can do art.”


He spent lunch breaks in his car with an aux cord plugged into his laptop making music. He knew this wasn’t the end game for him. And eventually, he got recruited to do sound design for Cymatics, a dance music-focused audio resources company. He wasn’t yet touring, so he had no problem working 50 hours a week if it meant he was getting his foot in the door in the industry.

Through a series of opportune moments and hard work, he found himself touring as a trap artist. But he grew tired of bass music.

“It just felt like I was one of like, 500 people in America doing it and I [thought] ‘Does it really matter if either of us were here or not? Would the scene suffer if I was gone?’ “


He goes on to explain, “I just got so burnt out on bass music it just it felt very empty. I didn't feel anything when I made it. I didn't feel anything when I listened to it. [It] wasn't making me happy anymore...I straight up almost quit making music. And then I met I met Revel who's one of my best friends.”



He was enthralled by Revel’s blend of early rave and thumping techno. Revel exposed Tascione to the history of rave music and taught him how to harness the power of acid house and make it bang for the modern dancefloor.


Revel went on to help Tascione co-found  Nullsect, "a hub of creatives united through the net, pushing future driven counter-culture." The record label and artist collective are an extension of their collective vision to change the world through music.

He tells me he feels like his early releases as HELLBOUND! weren’t exactly what he envisioned, “I started making what I considered like rave music, but it was really just kind of like ravy like bass house.” And over the last two years, that sound has evolved. 



"Fortunately, a lot of the music that I've been writing over the past two years is about to come out, which is really nice, because that's the most current version of me.”

That sound is a full realization of the rave-inspired hard techno that is just starting to peek into the American dance floor but has dominated Europe and South America for years. Artists like Anna, Charlotte DeWitte, and Deborah DeLuca have taken warehouse techno back to the rave. HELLBOUND! and the Nullsect crew hope to do the same for the US.


Tascione’s journey has been one of constant evolution and focus. And in true artist fashion, he wouldn’t have it any other way. His journey has always been a pursuit of self-discovery, his fans just happen to be along for the ride.

“Some artists can stay in the same pocket for years. And I think sometimes that ultimately the most successful artists can do that. That takes a lot of discipline and commitment. And it's not that I'm not disciplined or committed, but I just love to grow and discover. At the end of the day, if nobody listened to my music, I wouldn't change a single thing I was doing in my life. It doesn't matter because I'm making it for me to enjoy.”

ALX—aka Alex Sanchez—had the benefit of growing up surrounded by DJ culture. The veteran Miami DJ and producer was raised in a city steeped in dance music. His high-octane techno sets are laced with the memories and experience of an established maestro on the decks, Sanchez doesn’t just understand how the dancefloor moves he plays the tunes that urge the club to move in his direction.


Born and raised in South Florida, he grew listening to Spanish music at home with his parents. And while you can still hear notes of his Cuban heritage in the way he plays with rhythms, his brother had the biggest influence on his musical DNA.  


“My brother was four years older. He’s the one that got me into electronic music. He was part of that 90s rave scene,” Sanchez remembers. “I was hearing electronic music at a young age.”

Like most people who are first exposed to dance music, its hypnotic and repetitive nature was initially confusing but grew more compelling with time.


“At first, I was like, what is this? Why am I hearing the same song? And then little by little I started getting into it. I started enjoying it. I started catching myself going to all ages parties bouncing around clubs with electronic music and listening.”


He wasn’t completely sold on it yet though. Rock and hip hop still played heavily for him. Then when some friends left a CDJ setup at his house after his brother’s birthday party, he decided to try his hand at DJing.


“[My friends] left the DJ system for like a week with electronic records and stuff. I just started messing around for fun. And then I just kept going with it. Now here we are.”


After they picked the CDJs up, he got equipment of his own, and he was off. He soon found himself at his first gig playing dance music with a friend at a Halloween house party.


“We didn't know each other at the time. This girl just booked both of us. And we both liked electronic music. Half the party want to electronic the other half wanted different music and we just kept looking at each other. Like I'm not playing that. So, we just kept playing electronic music.”



He established his sonic footprint at smaller clubs like Treehouse and Electric Pickle. His skills as a mood shaper and talented selector made him a sought-after DJ in the highly competitive South Florida scene. And while he says his family connections to the Miami dance music scene played an important part in securing some key opportunities for him, they only got him so far.


“I was fortunate enough that my cousin was part of this industry for a long time. He was close friends of Victor Calderon and did work with Victor for a bit. I was working with the people who ran Space [and] Nikki Beach.”


However, Sanchez explains that because he was friends with these people, the pressure to perform was even more intense.  “A lot of people say I was just given it. I [had] to grind.” Because getting the opportunity to play once is one thing. Being asked to be a resident at lauded institutions like Mansion, Nikki Beach, and Space proved his skills were undeniable.


“They definitely didn't short out on the putting pressure on me. They took me to play Electric Festival in Aruba. I had just started to play Space not too long before. They threw me on stage, [with] like four or five thousand people in front of me.”


It wouldn’t be the last time he had the opportunity to travel to spread his infectious beats. While he’s traveled to Amsterdam, Colombia, Germany, and more to play, his most impactful DJing experience was in Cuba.


When he went there to play, he was the first person in his family to step foot on the island in almost 40 years.


He says his parents arrived in Florida in the early 80s. And when he got the opportunity to DJ there, it was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream, “I was desperate to go to Cuba,” he explains.

“It was surreal experience on multiple levels. After the gig, I was very emotional. Knowing that's where my family's from. Those are my roots. I got to also explore the island see where my parents grew up. And I got home and I told mom and dad thank you.”


The trip highlighted the gravity of the sacrifices immigrants make when they come to the US


“I think we sometimes take [things] for granted in this country. We don't realize that 90 miles away from where I'm at right now there's people that have no food or water, have no rights. I appreciate it my parents taking the risks coming to a place [where they] knew nobody, had nobody and started from scratch. And give me the opportunity to do everything that I want to do with my life.”


And this sense of gratitude is a quality that Sanchez carries with him constantly. After over a year without dancefloors, Sanchez recognizes that fans are showing more appreciation for the music, and each other. And he is in an attitude of gratitude. He tells me that regardless of the size of the room, or the number of people in it, he’s blessed to have the opportunity to play the music he loves for people who love to hear it.

“Being a bass player and growing up around disco and house music made me very inclined to focus my music on bass-lines. I’ve always been drawn to the 4x4 beat. I was also listening to a lot of D&B music which is known for crazy bass lines and modulation. I wanted to put those two styles together. Back then it wasn’t bass house. It was more of a UK bass sound.”

Although he is known now for his bass house sound, Brazilian-born Rrotik had a unique introduction and upbringing. Growing up in Brazil, he was exposed to electronic music but in a different fashion than artists who grow up elsewhere. When he first stumbled upon the scene in 2007, the most popular sound locally was psy-trance.

“I wanted to become a local psytrance DJ. I didn’t have the connection to get good tracks though. There was no Beatport or anything. You had to buy albums or know someone who would send you music… I used to play in different bands which helped me learn music composition.” 

Soon after discovering the music, a friend introduced Rrotik to production software. He started producing music, and one year later, he was introduced to electro house. It changed how Rrotik viewed music and forever altered the path of his career. He started a project with a friend called Dirtyloud which is how he first broke into the scene. They got a gig at the Shrine in Los Angeles and ended up touring the US for two years. After experiencing some burnout from touring, he decided to go solo and start the Rrotik project. 

He first released music under the name in 2015, but really began to break out in 2019 with the track, "Ride or Cry" produced alongside J. Worra and Dances with White Girls. The track dropped on Mau5trap, and Rrotik was able to follow up the success with releases on Box of Cats, Spinnin’, and Night Bass. Despite the increased success, Rrotik found himself receding in the last year, struggling with depression during the Covid Pandemic. 

“Last year during peak Covid times I had a really rough time. I know I’m not alone in that feeling. I was never happy with the music I was making. I didn’t quite feel like it was worth putting out. I’ve struggled with my mental health for quite a while, so it’s been another challenge that I just work on every day… I’ve been saving up and building up a body of work so I can put out music on a more regular basis and have more strategy.”

Despite the struggles, Rrotik feels invigorated by how the scene in Brazil, and locally for him now in Atlanta has grown. After the EDM boom, electronic music became very popular in Brazil. Artists like Vintage Culture and Alok have helped to inspire a generation of young producers to follow their dreams. In Atlanta, Rrotik has noticed that local promoters have found a way to create strong brand identities, drawing people to their parties without having to spend top dollar for marquee talent. Moving to Atlanta from Brazil was a challenge, but one well worth it.

“I had family in Boston so I was familiar with being here. As an artist it’s always a goal to move to the US. I moved two years ago to be with my now wife who I met on Holy Ship.” After moving, Rrotik felt a new sense of inspiration in the studio.

“When I sit here in the studio, my creative process has always been to focus on the new. I’ve really tried to create new sounds and challenge myself. I started to listen to a lot of other artists and try to incorporate that into my music. Learning more about hardware and synthesis helps this as well. Having more hardware has changed how I make music.” embed

As Alan Nieves speaks to me from his New York studio, he presents a poster from the closing days of legendary New York club Output. “It's just a piece of New York nightlife lore,” he explains. “[At] the time of course I knew it would be special, but now after however many years with it being gone it just feels just a little more special.” And so our conversation goes a deep dive into the moments that formed the New York artist's musical DNA. A career steeped in a collective history lived between New Orleans, Chicago, and finally New York. All cities with deep musical histories of their own, that continue to inspire him to this day.



Nieves grew up with the sounds of Celia Cruz and the Beegees wafting from his mother’s stereo. And he tells me those sounds have informed his work. “You can hear it in my music. I just released a track on Circus Recordings which is Yousef’s label called "Bailar Prohibido" which I did a little bit of the vocal for. I found some other conga riffs that I put into the track. So that's a heavy influence on some of my stuff.”


And as much as Latin music makes its way into his music now, when he was growing up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana he was heavy into southern hip hop. Lil Wayne and Master P are still two of his favorite artists.


In 2001 his brother handed him a CD with a mix of classic 90s and early 00s dance tracks. The shelf life of music was longer then, and even though both “Better Off Alone” by Alice DJ and “Freestyler” by Bomfunk MC were two years old at that point, they still sounded fresh.


“I listened to that on repeat, and I never heard music like that.” It was such an inspiration that he downloaded his first DAW shortly after.

He wasn’t completely sold on dance music as his focus at the time. He was still heavy into hip hop and was also listening to a lot of reggaeton. Jumping from genre to genre is a constant in his life. “That kind of informed my musical taste. It kind of was just a hodgepodge. I would love to be like, ‘Oh, I grew up listening to Richie Hawtin.’ But I found my way through like all kinds of other different styles of music, and here I am now.”


His rich tapestry of musical influences goes deeper than the music he consumed. He comes from a musical family. His grandfather was a saxophonist and his mom was a singer. He knew he had musical leanings, but instruments never stuck. It until he downloaded his first bit of music software that he ever considered being a musician. His need to understand how music worked, combined with the era of the producer flipped the switch.


“When I was in college is when it shifted in hip hop. You had Scott Storch and you had Timberland, and it was The Neptunes. It the first time that producers were stars in and of themselves. So for me when Scott Storch became a personality in his own way. Or DJ Khaled, I wanted to be more like them. I wanted to be the producer making all the beats.”


And had it not been for a sliver of opportunity when he was living in Chicago, he might have never realized that a music career was even remotely possible. He sold his first beat to a local rapper for $200 when he was 20. 

“It was a start that kind of got me hooked. And then from there, I just kind of kept playing with it and found my way.”


As he started to make more dance music, he realized it made sense to pick up DJing. And in a competitive city like New York, getting ahead wasn’t always easy. But he made some legendary friends that gave him valuable insight into the inner workings of dance music.


Harry Romero and Joeski are both good friends of Nieves. He’s thrown parties with them and even helped Joeski run his label Maya Recordings. 


“They've they've given me invaluable insight into how they produce,” Nieves says. “And they are just great people and great individuals. And I think their music speaks for itself over the years. They've managed to just stay at the forefront by always dropping great releases.”

In recent years Alan Nieves has come into his own as a producer. He boasts releases labels like Circus, Sola, and Rawthentic. He’s charted in the Beatport and Tracksource top 100 no less than 26 times. He’s also hit the top 10 overall charts on Beatport on more than one occasion. And while it’s important to revel in the successes of the past, Nieves is far more interested in what the future holds for dance music.


“There’s never been more people paying attention to dance music. The places that you're hearing people play are crazier. There’s people doing house music parties in Jacksonville, Florida, they're in Des Moines, Iowa. There used to be like seven cities as recently as 10 years ago where you could have a good underground party. Now it's just blossoming and once that younger crowd in America catches on, then it's going to keep blowing up.”

Sun-soaked rhythms, a slick command of warm slippery basslines, and interlocking grooves that bounce and softly tickle that spot in your heart that makes you want to move. Dillon Nathaniel has exhibited all of these throughout his career. He’s your favorite producer’s favorite producer. His repeat releases on venerated labels like Repopulate Mars, Glasgow Underground, Sola, Big Beat, and Insomniac have made him a sought-after sonic technician. Yet, more so, he's a passionate champion of dance music culture. Probably because his roots run so much deeper than his contemporaries, he started training for a career in dance music before he could even walk.



Not too many kids in the 90s grew up with Carl Cox mixes blasting from the speakers of the family car. And when your earliest musical memory is of listening to the Mortal Kombat theme song on repeat, it’s clear dance music is in your blood. However, Nathaniel says his older brother had a greater impact on his listening habits and development as a musician in his youth.

“My brother was the first person that really introduced me and music because he was so big into playing the guitar. He taught me how to play the guitar when I was eight and I was really into like classic rock for a long time. So, I used to think the stuff my dad listened to [was] lame.”

Nathaniel drifted through the popular music of the early ’00s moving from rock to West Coast hip hop, a natural fit for the LA-born artist. He didn’t even have a passing interest in dance music or DJing until at 16 he came across a DJ controller his dad bought but never used.



“It was just laying around and I was always interested in trying to learn every instrument that I can so I like picked it up one day.”

It was the first time he was interested in the music his dad was into. And as he learned this new instrument, a growing appreciation for dance music formed.


Mashing up his dad’s old school house and trance tracks with pop and hip hop, he started to understand the fundamentals of dance music. He had no idea what his dad's unlabeled relics of dance music history were, but his love for dance music was confirmed.

As he tinkered with the controller and a demo copy of Fruity Loops (yes the program before it FL) he found himself in a world of happy accidents and discovery. “Just pure joy of making weird sounds and throwing them together even though they don't make any sense," he explains.

At the time Nathaniel lived in Texas with his mother. He was defiant and unruly. After being kicked out of school, she was at her wit's end and sent him to live in LA with his dad.



The move ended up being a boon for the sixteen-year-old. And he got two life-altering gifts that year. A full copy of FL, and he went to his first rave.

“I was starting to get more into house music with all the DJing and producing stuff. And he was like, ‘you know, you're 16 this year, you're finally able to go to a rave.’ “ So, his dad brought him to EDC in 2010.

“It was like you're legitimately walking into a carnival. But with the nicest people ever, and the coolest music ever. I was like, there's no way this is real, it felt like a dream. Just to be there with my dad, but not only my dad, but my aunt, my uncle were there and like all of their friends. People that I've known my whole life. I felt safe.”

He was in the perfect environment to become a rave lifer. A new world of sound opened up to him. And as Deadmau5 performed Ghosts N Stuff he turned to his dad and said, “This is what I want to do dad. I want to be that person on the stage.“



“I just had this epiphany," he says about the transformational moment. "This is calling to me. I really feel like these are my people.”

After high school, he made the practical decision to enroll in a sound engineering program and got an internship at Atlantic Records. Five months into his internship, he was no closer to working in a studio, but he was an expert at taking people's coffee orders.


“That was the first sign that I realized the kind of work that I was getting into was still that nine to five. It was suppressing the artist that I actually am. It was all of this work but for other people's music.”


The second sign was getting the okay from his grandmother who he was always close to.


"She always wanted me to get a degree and go to college. Right before my grandma passed away I was just saying [that] I don't know if I'm going to be happy doing this. And she kind of gave me the thumbs up." She told him, "Whatever it is that you want. Go do what you want to do.”


On the advice of a fellow DJ at an Orange County nightclub, he enrolled at Icon Collective, LA's premier electronic music school. And he began to form many of the relationships that would bring him full circle.

In 2019, a wind storm in Las Vegas shut down many of the larger stages at EDC Vegas on Saturday night. StereoBLOOM, the Insomniac Records stronghold, stayed rocking all night. Dillon prayed that the wind wouldn't dash his chance to close out the festival. And around 5 am he DJed at the event that started it all for him. As the darkness faded and the sun peaked over the horizon, he shared an emotional moment with his dad, who was on stage with him.


“Since day one. I was like, 'I'm going to play at EDC' and I wrote it on my mirror when I was 16,” he explains joyfully. “Working my way up to that and doing EDC 2019 was probably the most rewarding part of my entire career.”

Music, as an art form is beautiful and fascinating in its own right. Yet, what elevates music into a deified force with the power to change the world are the bonds it creates between human beings; the communities of people that come together because of it. 

Community is the reason LA-based producer, composer, DJ, and co-founder of Delusional Records, Maude Vôs fell in love with music. Every new idea she manifests in her vast array of synthesizers (which she equates with aquatic plants and animals) is in service to a larger community.

“Music to me is community,” says Vôs, “Whether it be sharing my own work, feeling that the artist is trying to tell a story or take you on a journey when I’m listening, or collaborating with vocalists or friends, that’s really for me what it’s about.”

This idea of community emanates from Vôs’s singular relationship with music. For her, music creates a space, a realm free of judgment, welcoming to all. It is within this space that communities can form.

“Music is my sacred space. The space I go for expression. The space I go for release. The space I got to feel whole,” say Vôs.

Throughout her life, Vôs has learned a lot about herself within this space, becoming a part of many communities herself and even creating her own. 



One of Vôs’s earliest memories of music was listening to oldies with her father in his classic car as they drove down by the beach in LA. As enjoyable as it was to share that with her father, though, she recognized that oldies were not her style of music. Rather, it was not the kind of music that created a space for her.

Vôs first found herself in that space when she was gifted a CD from the English electronica duo, Orbital. Within that space, a newfound curiosity was catalyzed.

“That cracked open a whole new realm for me. I was like ‘What is this sound?’ And then I found The Prodigy, and then I found Crystal Method,” says Vôs. “I was on Napster downloading all the things, and that’s when I started wondering how this music was made.”

As her connection to electronic music continued to flourish, Vôs frequently traveled between Los Angeles, Utah, and Germany, where her father’s family originated. She started making friends from all over the world, joining communities of like-minded individuals, and becoming exposed to a wide variety of genres.

“Utah at that time was heavily drum and bass. I found a lot of friends in that community and we were doing a lot of really cool events on the salt flats. I found a harder, darker, industrial when I was in Germany because that was more prevalent. Then in LA, there were some DNB and jungle heads in that community as well. There was also more underground dance music at that time. So I really was being influenced in so many ways. I was all in with electronica,” Vôs says.

Vôs’s affinity for electronica carried her to the career she has now which touches on all aspects of production. She’s released original music on impressive labels—for example, her latest track, “Opulence” came out on the new Desert Hearts Black compilation, Gateways Vol. II—but she works in various other fields as well. 

She’s produced for vocalists, film shorts, art galleries, fashion shows. She’s even curated her contracts for getting sync placements for her music.

“It’s really just realizing that you can’t always pigeon hole yourself in dance music,” says Vôs. “We can all make art all day, but we have to feed ourselves and put a roof over our heads and buy more synthesizers.”

The foundation of Vôs’s work in production is her arsenal of synthesizers. She pretty much always uses hardware regardless of the project, including in many of her live performances.

“When I get obsessed with something I get really obsessed and I need to know everything,” Vôs says. “It became semi-modular. Then came the effects. I wanted all the effects and started learning about all the reverbs and different types of delays. Then I got into modular with my eurorack and my arp. Having something tangible is so lovely and special to me.”

Over time, her interest in synths grew along with her studio, and Vôs found another community of people who shared that interest via SoCal Synth Society. 

Started by fellow LA-based synth artists Trovarsi and Space Racer, Socal Synth Society helps educate artists about synthesizers and analog production. All skill levels from complete beginners to seasoned veterans are welcome. Throughout the pandemic, they held various virtual events including panels and performances, both of which have included Maude Vôs.

“It’s really just a super inclusive space for underrepresented people in the industry who are into hardware,” says Vôs.

Vôs felt a deep connection to that intention not just because of the hardware aspect, but because she is underrepresented as a queer artist. Back when she was a teenager, the electronic music community was where she first felt at home, where she first felt accepted in her queerness. 

“Let’s be real. House and techno is Black and gay. It’s crazy where it’s gone, but its roots are Black and gay, and so feeling like finally I found a place that I feel aligned with, and I can be me, and that I’m home is so lovely,” says Vôs.

Vôs found that home within the house and techno community and is adamant about creating a space for others to find the same via her new record label Delusional Records, which she started with her partner and fellow LA-based queer artist, Marie Nyx.

One of their main values is creating a catalog with a 60/40 ratio of female and non-binary artists to male artists, and having music itself be equally diverse.

“We are trying to really break the industry that is 90 percent or more white male, and trying to share a lot of different music from different parts of the world and the country in a super inclusive, meaningful way,” says Vôs.

Music can connect people from all over the world, regardless of race, religion, gender identity, or sexual orientation, and bring them into one community. Maude Vôs feels at home in that space, and she invites any and all to join her.

Not many have had the opportunity to witness the origins of New York City’s house scene in the early 90s and also play at The Brooklyn Mirage in 2021. Harry Romero is a legendary figure. A house historian, modern legend, and non-stop touring DJ, Harry has been building his resume for decades. 


“I really started going out to these parties in the mid 90s. At any given night in NYC there were multiple clubs hosting 3000+ people. Guiliani came in and enforced his cabaret laws which wiped out the scene in Manhattan. It’s been seeing BK take the helm on throwing proper events. I was a regular back in the day at the Sound Factory Bar in Manhattan. Louie Vega was the resident and it was a seminal club for me because I just knew I was experiencing something special, Louie is a big reason that I do what I do.”


Harry first released music in 1995. The experience of putting out a record back then was nowhere near where it is today. There were not a plethora of small artist-driven labels, no Soundcloud to upload your music for free, no Spotify to add you to a playlist for discovery. 
“There were two major players in the city at the time. Nervous Records and Strictly Rhythm. I was pushed to Strictly Rhythm. The head A&R was a woman named Gladys (Pizarro) who does not get enough acclaim or credit for being a massive part in the second wave of house. The first wave was the mid 80s in Chicago. Second wave was 88 to early 90s in NYC. I tried many times to bring her music before she eventually signed something of mine.”


Releasing music for over 20 years means Harry Romero has experimented with countless methods of production. Although he lived through the transition from hardware to software, he maintains some of his techniques from the early days. He has managed to evolve his sound over the years without compromising the core of his musical identity which in his words, is based around drums. 


“It’s so much more accessible now than it used to be. Everything I did back then was done on an EPS keyboard. We used floppy discs and an 8 channel mixer. I would sample records and just try and create anything I could. My music was always based around drums. My production is focused on what I say, Dope drums. Todd Terry and Kenny Dope were two of my biggest influences.” 


As Harry worked tirelessly to maintain and continue his career, he noticed drastic changes within the industry. Coming up in NYC in the 90s, he was acutely aware of who was important to the culture of house music, and who really owned the underground scene. When the EDM boom occurred around 2008, it was a strange time for him and his peers. 


“The mechanism changed. The way of doing business changed. The EDM thing really commercialized the industry and for them to claim that they were house music was just strange. The reality is that it became a business. It was pop music all of a sudden. A lot of people steered away from what they loved. I’m not mad at technology or the times, you just have to find a way to put your own twist on it.”

Working through this time was challenging to artists who had been around beforehand. For Harry Romero, the key was always just to try and have fun. When the fun stops, so will his career. But for now, he knows that fun is the name of the game.


“It’s always been a feeling that’s almost physical. I know when it’s good and I know when it’s not. When you’re in the studio and your butt starts shaking and the hair on your arms stands up… When the drum beat is popping people gravitate towards it. You wanna shake asses, make people sweat, that’s just how I go about it… You’re not always going to make a hit but the important thing is to just have fun.”


Harry Romero has no plans of slowing down. He continues to evolve and twist modern innovations and changes to fit his sound and style. He has a collaboration with Claude VonStroke coming out soon and will be playing the Dirtybird Campout in October. He’s touring the country, releasing music, and continuing to make asses shake.

One of Bachir Salloum’s earliest memories of dance music was listening to James Holden’s 2003 Balance 005 mix. Even close to 20 years later, it gives him the same blissful feeling he had upon hearing it for the first time. It’s fitting since Salloum’s languid and gently rolling progressive is so reminiscent of Holden’s. A sound just as much inspired by his homeland as his musical past. He gently folds in the multi-ethnic sounds of Lebanon with emotive, slow-burning house beats. A style that earned him the notice of the likes of Hernan Cattaneo and releases on Balance Music, the label that released the mix that inspired his
love for dance music.

He grew up in Beiruit, a world-class city for music. “You have fusion. you have a combination of Arabic [and] Armenian because you have a lot of nationalities,” he explains about his culturally diverse hometown. 

“You listen to different types of music everywhere. You get inspired by the city also and the people.“

One of the people that provided the earliest inspiration was his brother. Salloum sat and watched his brother spin hip hop and R&B records for hours. It was the first time he
remembers connecting with music on a visceral level. 

“I didn't know what style that was because I was a kid. But I had feelings. You know, I was feeling something. I was happy when I see him like that, playing.”

Salloum's brother didn't share his DJ equipment, a sentiment he tells me he understands now as he speaks to me from his well-appointed studio in Dubai. His brother did share his musical acumen, and abilities as a selector. And he brought him to his first dance music event in Beiruit’s famed dance music scene.

“Anthony Papa was the first one [sic] I go to a club in my life.” He leans into the camera as if to share a secret, “I was underage.”

Salloum eventually inherited his brother’s turntables and began his journey as a musician. He joyfully recalls some key steps in his journey. His first gig—a near-empty club with only his close friends dancing. And the first time he conjured the courage to play one of his productions in front of a crowd.

“The first music I released,” he remembers. “I didn't have the courage to play one track…but now the first time I played a track and it worked. I can’t believe that. Like, it was goosebumps and everything. You know that your music is actually working.”

He continues to chase that feeling with every new track he writes. And at the turn of the pandemic, he realized he needed to devote his entire being to the chase. 

“I always had a daily job, you know, an office job and everything. And I always had the music on the side,” he explains the plight every producer understands. 

“Recently, during the pandemic, I made the decision that I only want to work in the music industry… I don't want to do anything I'm not passionate about… And I said, to most of my
friends, I said, 'Guys, if you're not doing anything you love if you're not working in anything you're passionate about, I think you are wasting your time.' ”

Part of the reason he feels so confident about this decision is because of his surroundings. In 2014 he moved to Dubai. He loves the people and culture of Lebanon but needed more
stability.

“You cannot deny the culture that you are raised with, you know, it affects you as a person… You think about Lebanon and it's unfortunate, very unfortunate, because the people are very nice people. The country is super beautiful. But the political situation it's
killing the generation. Yeah, it's killing the future of the country.”

“I think it gave me the opportunity to be more focused,” he says about his move. And while aligning with a new community was initially difficult it was well worth it.

“First, you are safe. And here if you work, you have the opportunity to focus on what you really want. Because all the unnecessary stress that you think about in Lebanon, it doesn't
exist here,” he explains.

Dubai is a young city that consistently inspires him. It’s vibrant, with a nightlife scene that reflects its beauty and diversity. “You know, in Dubai, you can find all genres of music, that's very important. And people now they know more about the music. You know, you can tell that you are giving the crowd what they want. When there's good music, there's also good people on the dance floor. “

Devon James is full of stories from his colorful musical past. He picked out his first concert at the age of seven, Maxi Priest and Shaggy—an obvious choice for a boy whose father was the guitarist for Jamaican band, the Skatalites. He spent four hours in a basement studio with Lee Scratch Perry. It was part of an album he recorded with legendary house producer Felix Da Housecat. He’s traveled the world as the tour manager for Nicole Moudaber and stage-managed for major festivals. He’s the consummate dot connector. A Swiss army knife of music industry skills that he started honing as a child.
 
Industry know-how aside, James is also an accomplished producer. With a style that touches funk, breaks, disco, tech house, and weird and filthy bass house he’s released on a wide range of lauded labels that continue to come back for more. Box Of Cats, We Jack, Founders of Filth, and Farris Wheel have all tagged James for his diversity of style.

James was groomed for a career in the music industry early on. At 12, while his father was in Europe on tour, he was enlisted to help with admin work, faxing documents to agents when his father couldn’t. The observations he made as his dad navigated a career as a musician and band manager helped inform the industry knowledge he needed to break his way into music. 
 
James is, as some might say, is industry AF. 
 
“I knew how to talk to people,” James tells me. “It was just really always easy for me to reach out to people and ask for an opportunity.”
 
It’s a skill that many in music don’t develop early enough, he explains. “I think that's one of the biggest things that I see with people is like, they sit back and wait for things to come to them. But I've just always been a go getter. I've never really been intimidated to talk to people.” 

Those that get the furthest the fastest in music know that you miss 100% of the shots you don’t shoot. James is a master of shooting his shot, even when it may seem he’s in uncharted territory. Just after graduating from Syracuse University, he moved to New York City. He’d picked up DJing in college and had some expertise in DJ controllers and software, namely Traktor—software manufacturer Native Instrument’s DJ suite. At the time, most DJs in dance music were exclusively using CDJs, digital DJing was not common practice. 

He went to work for now-defunct New York DJ and production school Dubspot. His colleague and Traktor expert Mike Henderson, aka DJ Endo, connected James to Felix Da Housecat who was a Traktor novice and needed an expert to go on tour with him.
 
James gravitated to the bubbly and hilarious spirit that Felix exudes. Felix gave James the nickname Devon Dazzler after his 2004 album, Devin Dazzle & the Neon Fever, on their very first call. 
 
“Felix had a show at the Hilton or something around Halloween. [He] calls me the day he's supposed to play and he's like, ‘What's up Devin Dazzle? What's up Dazzler?’ Felix thinks I'm like Devin Dazzle incarnate. That was like delivered to his doorstep at his hotel.”
 
Their fast friendship strengthed the working relationship, and James became his go-to guy. They toured Europe together, and Felix encouraged James to continue producing. He even invited him to work on music. And then at an afterparty in Brooklyn, Felix was offered a record deal. James and Felix moved into an old monastery on 16th street in Manhattan, apparently the former home of Ashley Simpson. And for four months, worked on the album Narrative Of Thee Blast Illusion. 

The James and Felix relationship has also resulted in a new collaborative song called “Dazzler,” a quirky house track that features Felix’s
glamorous vocals. The inane lyrics were pulled from voice notes sent to James on an old phone. It’s a hilarious look at the relationship the two have built over the last decade.
 
To say that Felix was instrumental in James’ career would be an understatement. However, the industry know-how and skills as a relationship builder were the things he trained his whole life for. And James has continued to be the consummate dot connector in the house music community. He went on to be the label manager for Golf Clap’s Country Club Disco imprint, and now manages Ghettoblaster’s We Jack
record label.



Devon also throws his events in New York. Radioactive is dedicated to social responsibility. The multi-disciplinary artist collective started in 2012 as a way for a group of graphic designers, filmmakers, and musicians to support each other’s work. It grew into a covertly activist action network.
 
Instead of insisting on donations for causes, Radioactive supports marginalized communities by giving them real-life opportunities. “I think the, the biggest way to prove something, or to do something is just do it. One of the biggest things that we did was this thing called the Tunnel Project, where we went and interviewed different musicians that we saw in the subway station… we started to talk to these people. And, you know, we just started to tell their stories.”
 
James is an amalgamation of the cornucopia of experiences he’s had in music. He overflows with positivity and love for the culture and spirit of dance music. So when I ask him what excites him about the future of dance music, his answer is 100% what I’d expect.
 
“I think what we're seeing right now is like a lot of a lot of like cross-pollination… I think we're seeing a lot more of that stuff, pop music producers, like, Sophie Tucker working with John Summit. I think that dance music is becoming popular music. And I hope that it keeps expanding like that. I hope it definitely includes a
little bit more diversity and inclusion."

Talent is only part of the equation when it comes to success in the music industry. So many opportunities arise through a mix of ingenuity, self-motivation, and tenacity. Mr.Diamond—aka Jamil Alvear—represents what happens when these qualities coalesce in one artist. Only two years into releasing music under this moniker and he’s already hitting all the marks. His masterful mix of soulful funk and bassline tech put him on the rosters of lauded labels like Moon Harbour, Solid Grooves, King Street, and Hot Creations. How he got there in such a short time is a nod to the intense drive and focus he exhibits.


Born in Ecuador, Alvear was always surrounded by music. His father came from a family of musicians. Latin rock, electronic, trance, and house were the musical backdrop of his childhood. Almost everyone on that side of his family was a musician or artist, so he was encouraged to follow a similar creative path.



As a child, he didn’t see himself following that road. His dad tried to push him into learning piano from some of the top teachers in Ecuador. Alvear wasn’t interested. And when his parents divorced, he actively rebelled against his father's musical wishes. 


He got a guitar from his maternal aunt, a woman who he lists as one of his biggest mentors. She taught him to play "La Bamba." He was hooked, and soon all he did was play the guitar. He enrolled in guitar lessons, and in a departure from the classical style that his father encouraged, he learned an important lesson for all musicians from his teacher.


“It doesn't matter how you play it, or what you play it so long as it sounds good. Yeah. So that, you know, changed my life.”


The simplicity of the statement was so freeing that he went on a journey of discovery and realized a talent for learning instruments quickly. He taught himself the flute, piano, melodica, and bass. And when he picked up his first DAW in high school, he put the same kind of drive and determination into learning how to create dance music.




EDM loomed large in the global dance music conversation, so he picked up progressive house first, then tried his hand at techno, D&B, and hardstyle. When he discovered Jamie Jones, he says things clicked. 


“I immediately fell in love with the way that he plays and the way that he controls the crowd.” Alvear decided to focus all his energy on house music, to get signed to Hot Creations.


Between 2017 and 2019 he relearned everything he knew about music and reapplied it to house. And when he felt he was ready he set off to figure out how to get his music in the hands of Jamie Jones.


With a little internet research, he was able to find Jamie’s email and sent him some music. He was surprised to get a response asking for a different set of files that he could access. And even more surprised when a few months later Jamie asked him to hold on two of those tracks for possible release on Hot Creations. Unfortunately, he ended up passing on those tracks. But that didn’t deter Alvear. In the space of two years, he’s created over 200 songs specifically for Hot Creations. And as the pandemic waned and Miami’s Space Park opened to crowds, Jamie Jones had the chance to test out some Mr.Diamond tracks on a dance floor, shortly after that he got the email that he would be signing a huge batch of songs to Hot Creations throughout the 2021/22 season.


“I knew that was gonna’ happen it was just a matter of time,” he says. “You think about it, you dream about it. When you see it thappening in real life and you're like 'Whoa, I am crazy. Now this really happening.' It's like a confirmation you are in the right place … this is the right thing for you.”



His journey to being signed to some of the hottest labels in house music paralleled a personal journey. In 2019 he decided to devote himself to music full time, he was still living in Ecuador and had some money saved so it seemed like a logical move. He told his mom at the time, “I'm just gonna, you know, take a leap of faith and see how everything evolves.”


But he also moved to the US in the same year. His grandmother is a US citizen and was able to bring Alvear and his father over. He had to go back to working again. But the pandemic job stoppage brought a fresh opportunity to work on music full-time again, and he doesn’t see himself going back.


“I want to focus like 100% in the music in and try to make it because like, there's no other thing that I can do in my life that will feel me the most producing every single day of my life.”


He says that he’s able to look at everything differently. Even his relationship with his father, who he once rebelled against. Ironically, the very thing he was trying to avoid came into being, and he couldn’t be happier that his father helped inspire that.


“The relationship with him is fantastic. He's not like he used to be in the past. And we're actually making music together. Like, I'm producing songs for him right now.” He also asked his father to sing on tracks for him. He’s noticed that the music his dad exposed him to as a youth is now getting popular again, and he’s using his dad’s singing voice to avoid sample clearance.


“It's like a full circle thing. And it's funny because you end up being grateful for everything in your life. Why did it happen this way? ... because [artists] put our emotions, we put our resources, we put our influence we put our feelings, in our creations.”

Marc Spence is much more than a DJ. The Birmingham native is a man of many talents: DJ, producer, A&R specialist for Box Of Cats, and a teacher just to name a few. As a child, his dreams were to become a professional footballer. After an injury, Marc began promoting shows and never looked back.

“We stored our flyers in a record shop. I was much more into urban music back then. The guy I was working for introduced me to drum n’ bass and UK garage… I was going to hip-hop clubs and loved it. Funky house was really big at the time, I appreciated it but wasn’t into it… When I heard the music of Dave Taylor it changed my whole perspective of house music. I had never heard music like it before. I was converted overnight.”

Although Marc Spence eventually found his way into the world of house music, his early introductions into the electronic scene were spurred by the ever-present sounds of UK garage. The golden era of UK garage took place from about 1996-2002. According to Marc, the lack of digital interfaces for music production made music production less accessible, and objectively more of a commitment. This, in turn, led to a more unified sound. 

“You mostly had hardware, the commitment to the music and to the craft was so much higher. Nowadays there’s so many people doing stuff, it’s probably even harder to stand out but it’s easier to make whatever sound you want.” 

Although Marc has now had a lengthy and successful career, he is perpetually wary of relying too heavily on one source of income. For Marc, relying on the next gig check or royalty payment causes art to suffer as the extra pressure leads to creation without inspiration. Early on in his career, Marc found himself living with a fellow DJ and Birmingham native, Chris Lorenzo. Chris Lorenzo brought Marc the idea of working at a DJ school, and it has been a passion for Marc ever since. 

“If it wasn’t for the technology, I don’t think we’d be able to have a company as successful as it is… I teach anyone from an eight-year-old to a couple in their 60s who are banging out hard techno in our sessions… The visual aids in CDJ screens make the floor of learning so easy.” 

Working at the DJ school gave Marc a fresh perspective on the industry that he is an integral part in. His relationship with Chris Lorenzo can not be understated as well. The two lived together for many years and helped bring one another to the next level professionally. 

“I sometimes have trouble getting into the studio with other people. Chris used to be in the speed garage scene. I was on the house side of things. There was a crossover period about 8-9 years ago and my friend, Dr. Love, introduced the two of us. We met and had an immediate connection.”

In 2015, Marc saw the trajectory of his career take a major upswing. Following the release of the massive track, "Nasty," he soon joined the iconic label, Box Of Cats. It was the culmination of months of work. He admits it’s the longest he’s ever worked on a track, pushing the limits on the amount of time he would typically allot a production. 

“I was living with Chris Lorenzo at the time… I had created the core of the track using a DNB sample. I remember snapping all the pieces together but when it came to the mix, there was so much class. It took me months to finish. I remember Chris walking up the stairs and saying I gotta give up the tune. For him, if he hasn’t finished a track in 2-3 days, he moves on. I know he’s usually right because you have to get music out there. You can’t just work on one track for six months. But he drove me to finish it because I knew it was a special one.” 

After the success of "Nasty," Marc received an invitation to become part of the Box Of Cats collective. With their first release in 2016, Box Of Cats quickly became a tastemaking label, helping some of the brightest names in house music break out. The invitation to become one of the leaders of the label was an immediate yes.

“I was a bit of a late comer. They had it all set up and I was talking to Wongo and he just invited me and told me about the project. It was a no brainer.”

What makes Box Of Cats so unique is the label's lack of discrimination in sound. They do not subscribe to any one style or genre. As Marc puts it, “it just has to bang.” While Marc has had his hands full with the label and his solo career, he has somehow also managed to find time for a side project. 

His collaborative project called Ilgot n’ Gane will see the release of an album soon. “We’ve been working on an an album for over ten years. The concept of the album is to represent Birmingham from the '90s. In order to be authentic, we’re trying to use as much hardware as we can.” 

While we eagerly await the passion project, Marc Spence will be coming stateside in early 2022.

“Working in two is not easy. But for us, it felt natural. I am the black, he is the white. I am the night, he is the day. We combine a good contrast of ideas and concepts to work together well. We love Acid music and try to put those sounds in our tracks… We balance our sounds, with one of us being more minimal, and one of us having deeper darker sounds.”

The Italian duo, Adne, works to bring dark, minimal sounds back to their home country. As natives of Florence, Adne has been making a name for themselves for a decade. Despite having a lengthy career under their belts, they recognize that the local scene for their sound is not strong. 

“About 10 years ago there was a huge scene in Italy… the techno is strong but the minimal scene is pretty non existent… South Italy has more of a minimal scene but here in Tuscany it’s scarce.” 

They first met 10 years ago in Florence. Coming up as promoters, hustling to make a buck selling tickets for any club that would allow them, the two decided to give DJing a try. They landed a residency at a club in Florence called Hedonist. For four years, they honed their craft and learned the ins and outs of the music industry.

“We got an understanding of what it means to be a DJ… it’s more than just playing for people you love, you’re flying all the time, playing shows in countries you don’t know… the club was called Hedonist. It was our first project together, it was a boiler room type vibe with an amazing sound system and a DJ booth right in the middle of the floor.” 

Studying that tight-knit crowd gave them intimate knowledge of not only what people wanted to hear but how to deliver their sound effectively. An essential part of the Adne project is their complete rejection of the standard methods of music production and performance. Although they are more than capable of performing with CDJs or vinyl, Adne prefers a live setup using a plethora of synthesizers and analog boards. This method mirrors itself in the studio. 

“It always felt like something was missing… We invested some money and time into learning synthesizers and how to use them live as well as analog sounds… The process changed a lot as we learned. Changing cables while you make music can be stressful but at the same time, the sounds and feelings are incredible. When we do it this way, every live set is completely different and the sound quality is supreme.”

For Adne, the desire to be different stemmed from the desire to have freedom. After years of resident DJ warm-up sets, and having their performance dictated by the headliner, Adne wants the ability to present their music in its most pure form. “We really just want the ability to play our own music in the exact way we envision it.” 

Adne’s unique vision was recognized early on by one of their biggest idols, Seth Troxler. They met Troxler four years ago at a party in Italy, and after talking with him and showing him music, he was sold immediately. Soon after, Adne released multiple tracks on Seth’s iconic label, Play It Say It. The sign-off from such a major player gave Adne’s career the jumpstart it needed. 

Although they have only been releasing music for two years, Adne is a name to watch in the minimal scene. Purists in the studio, the Italian duo are quickly on the rise and will be headlining stages globally before we know it.

To watch Miss Nine—aka Kristin Schrot—DJ is to understand how the multi-hyphenate creative approaches her life. She rarely spends a moment at rest, a constant ball of energy, absorbing every beat exuding pure joy and positive energy from her core. She moves fluidly from DJing at lauded venues like Nikki Beach, Pacha, and Space and releasing with labels like her own 925 imprint, Yoshitoshi, Flamingo, and Be Yourself to modeling for Tommy Hilfiger and advocating for the rights of girls around the world. And all with a positive, life-affirming spirit and an overwhelming streak of honesty. And all the interest of improving the lives of others and spreading joy as far as she can.





She was raised in East Germany before the Berlin Wall fell. She fondly remembers sitting in the backseat of her parent's car in the ‘80s listening to bands like Nena on the radio. Her sensory memories are her strongest, like when she tasted cuties for the first time one Christmas.

"We had family in the west part of Germany. So, they invited us, and they had mandarins. And they were so sweet. I never ate a mandarin before. So, I almost ate like a whole net. And I remember the taste today.”

She says growing up with so little was a benefit to her budding creative mind. “I think I'm actually very lucky to grow up in such an environment. We didn't need much to actually be happy. I remember [my mother] could put me into a room with a piece of paper and I could play for hours with a pen and a piece of paper. So basically, making something out of nothing or working with limited tools. And this is when creativity comes to life.”

When the wall fell, a whole new world opened to her as Western culture flooded the former soviet side of Germany. The influence spread quickly to music as techno created a vibrant scene, and her older brother made sure that she was there to take it in.



Her mother was a nurse and often left Schott at home with him while she worked 24-hour shifts. He introduced her to soulful house and planted a seed. 

However, expectations were high in her household. She had to learn a musical instrument like everyone else in her family had. Schott was also to follow in her mom’s footsteps. And while she did work in a hospital for a short time, she quickly realized that her future lie elsewhere.

After falling into a career in modeling by submitting her pictures to a national TV contest, she started to realize a new goal. Daft Punk’s “One More Time” had etched itself on her soul, and suddenly all those parties her brother had taken her to, began to make sense. She built a record collection and on Queens Day in Amsterdam, she performed her first gig in 2003.

“It was very windy, and the needle was jumping up and down the whole time. I was like, ‘Oh my god, what would people think of me?’ But everybody enjoyed it. Everybody had a great time. And then slowly in my free time, more and more gigs came on my path. And then creating events. That was the key and transition to more.”

Schott and a few friends began to curate the legendary Motion events in Amsterdam. They hosted some of dance music’s finest selectors like Nick Warren, Layo and Bushawacka!, and so many more. Motion also gave Schrot the connections that to go on tour with Deep Dish and Avicii.





The opportunities that came her way during this period were incredible. Her 2006 Yoshitoshi Ibiza mix reached number one in the iTunes dance charts. She traveled the world to play at iconic events like Carnival in Brazil, but behind the glamour, she struggled to stay healthy.

“I learned the hard way, I was close to a second lung infection,” she says. The constant movement of a life split between modeling, advocacy work, and DJing caught up with her. She didn’t want to cancel on a big-name fashion campaign for Peter Lindbergh but flying to LA with a high temperature was the last straw. She chose to get healthy.

“Basically, I was laying low for almost five to six months to recover. And that opened my eyes … your body is not a machine, when your body craves for something, you really have to listen.”

It also opened her eyes to the role the fashion industry plays in body image for girls. “If a girl's body is made with curves, or with a certain bone structure, you cannot just take these inches away. You have them, so embrace them, and live with them.”

Spreading positive messaging to young women plays a crucial role in Schort’s life of service. When she travels to DJ, she's not just living the Instagram lifestyle. She sees how people truly live even when it means she has to deal with the harsh realities of life in a developing nation.





Her work with Plan International helps young girls understand the value of education and the kind of power that wields. 

“When you give a girl education, she puts it into the family, and it's like a cycle. And then she puts the education in the kids, and then it grows,” she explains. “We had campaigns for early forced marriages, and for prostitution. I've seen it with my eyes in, in India, in Bolivia. We recorded and created documentaries, to raise awareness."

Schrot’s tapestry of life experience creates a varied palette of colors to paint her musical identity. Her life of service through music and advocacy is a fulfillment of her mother’s intention to ensure that she did something to help those in need. She continues to heal the world with the joy she spreads with her music and the lives she touches with her activism.

Music is Michael Frazier’s whole life. It’s who he is. Frazier, who DJs and produces under the name Monsieur Frazier, has the ear of a musicologist; reveling in the deepest intentions and history behind genres across the full sonic spectrum. 

For over ten years Frazier has displayed this level of knowledge in his DJ sets, hitting the stage at celebrated institutions like Coachella, Splash House, and a residency at Hollywood’s top-rated nightclub, Sound. 

He also recently made his first official entry as a producer with his self-titled debut EP, Monsieur Frazier, on Understated Recordings, the label arm of the event series and artist collective, Understated, which he co-founded.

Michael’s interest in music came long before he first started DJing, and he owes much of his influence to Los Angeles, the city where he was born, raised, and currently resides.

“LA is my musical identity. One of my first memories of music and life in general is being two or three years old and hearing ‘Nothing But A G Thang.’ I think the sounds that I gravitate towards now have a lot to do with the sound of west coast hip hop and west coast music in general,” Michael says. “I remember very often hearing ‘Everybody Loves The Sunshine,’ as a kid. Roy Ayers is from LA. The chords, the colors, that song sounds like how LA looks.”

Any song that retains the jazz-funk aesthetic championed in the City of Angels brings him to a place of home. So many LA groups, from classic artists like The Doors moving through time to more modern stalwarts like Rage Against The Machine and Red Hot Chili Peppers, all have that power and widely influence his taste and output.

While N.W.A. and Roy Ayers have made frequent appearances in Michael’s sets over the years, his career as a DJ and producer is largely supported by house and techno. Similar to the sounds of Los Angeles, his ear doesn’t get caught up in the granular sub genres of dance music, rather he hears the intention and history behind it due to his family’s east coast roots.


“My family is from the east coast, and house is a very distinctly east coast/ midwest genre. Because of that, it’s always been a part of me,” Michael says. “The same way that west coast vibe is in me, that east coast vibe is in me too ‘cause that’s my roots. So I think I have a natural inclination to it as well.” 

Michael’s natural inclination towards dance music started to take off around 2007-2008 as a myriad of sounds entered his awareness. Daft Punk was on the road for their legendary Alive tour at the time. Justice, Crookers, and the rest of the Bloghouse movement was on the cusp. 

Michael also went to his first EDC Los Angeles in 2008. As soon as he walked into the festival, he heard both drum and bass and dubstep for the first time. It opened up a whole new realm and added to his already widespread appreciation of dance music. 

With an appreciation and growing reverence for those different styles feeding into Michael’s existing affinity for hip hop, rock, soul, and funk, DJing was the most natural conclusion to express his eclectic taste in a tangible way.

“[As a DJ] I can bend music genres to my will and also present them in ways that I can show that they’re linked together,” Michael says. “I love all these different types of music. I’m such a music head in general and I want to express that. I want to show that this is who I am.”

When the conversation hinges towards DJing, a passion lights up in Michael’s eyes. Anyone could talk to him about it and know that he belongs on the decks without ever seeing him play 

He discusses the pure DJs who don’t produce and the derision he feels because people who champion the art form aren’t celebrated the way producers are. 

In his opinion, DJing requires a different talent, and different kind of musical knowledge; a knowledge based on the connectivity between all genres of music. DJing unlocks the creative freedom to demonstrate that connection in the moment. This idea is his guiding light on the decks, which is why when people ask what genre he plays, he doesn’t know the answer.

Michael then launches into a quickfire history lesson on the evolution of American popular music. From blues to jazz to rock to funk to disco to techno and beyond.

“When I got into DJing and dance music and house music I just did my research,” Michael says. “I studied. I did my homework. I watched videos and documentaries. Read Wikipedia pages. I read books. I did so many different things and I really learned the history of it. I learned where it came from. I learned the roots of it, and that to me is what unlocked that creative freedom.”

That archival knowledge of the craft gave Michael complete confidence in his skills behind the decks. 

“I know once I play, I’m going to shut it down because I really unlocked that creative freedom in my brain,” he says.

From there all it took was the grind to make things happen for himself and the LA community. He played all over town and landed a coveted residency at Sound Nightclub as a pure DJ, also spinning at other notable venues and parties like Exchange, Minimal Effort, Day Trip, and his own parties through Understated.

Michael co-founded Understated with friends and fellow members of the LA community back in 2016. Upon asking about how it came to be, he finds himself a bit lost for words because of the organic nature. 

“We just followed our instinct, our intuition,” Michael says. Their first party was a hit. The second one was bigger. The third one was bigger than that. Eventually, notable artists like Mija, Mat Zo, and Amtrac started playing their events.

Understated is a means of giving back to the LA scene; the scene that gave him and his crew good times and so much more. As the circle got wider, Michael and the team wanted to give back in another way, so they started a record label, Understated Recordings. 

After serving as A&R for the label since it launched in 2017, Michael put out his debut EP, Monsieur Frazier, this year. It was made with the same confidence he has in his DJing.

“During lockdown I needed to do something so that’s when I started working on music again. I had the time, the energy. I had a fearlessness. It’s now or never. I might as well go all the way in on this,” Michael says. 

The result was three tracks that are only similar in essence. Rhythms, melodies, basslines, samples, they all harken back to different eras of music history. There are elements of garage, tech house, breaks, soul, funk, jazz, hip hop. The single connection between them is Michael Frazier because music isn’t what he does. It’s who he is.

Artist Interviews