MAKJ @ The Village, Dublin
It is with great delight that I recently heard news of a forthcoming visit to Dublin of American DJ and producer MAKJ (January 31st with Residence). Over the course of the last five years I have absorbed myself in dance music and he was somebody who I constantly found myself admiring. His transformation from edit/mashup king to mainroom superstar is one I have watched with great fascination. He made what is a tough transition in a seamless manner, something that most be commended when you consider the fast paced nature of today’s game.
A weird quirk of mine is that I like to regularly peruse the bios of DJs and discover their background or how they came to make it in the big time and it’s fair to say that MAKJ is right up with the very best of them. A former professional race-car driver who then went on to receive scratching lessons from the legendary DJ AM it seems he has a story to match his rapid accent to the top of the mainroom game. He appears to be a very interesting character, someone who was bound to excel no matter what career he decided to pursue.
As I mentioned he began his career as somewhat of a mashup specialist (receiving support from all the big hitters at one stage or another) before going on to become a fully fledged producer (having spent time at the renowned Icon Collective school in LA) with a steady stream of releases including Hakaka, Encore, Springen (a festival staple for many DJs last year) and the jewel in the crown Countdown, a collaboration with the worlds number 1 DJ Hardwell.
He’s also developed quite a reputation behind the decks, in part due to his quickfire mixing style with the artist himself commenting that due to his hip hop roots he has ‘never played a track for more than two minutes’- a rule he still abides by today. He has also referenced the ADD culture of today’s audience who quickly tire of the same drops (something that inspired him when developing the arrangement for Countdown a track which contains three different drops within just 4 and a half minutes).
So it would appear that January 31st is a night not to be missed for mainroom house fans throughout Ireland as Residence once more bring the world’s finest talent right to the centre of Dublin city. Expect the usual in your face production, envisage a full house and enjoy the stylings of someone who will most definitely be making a large imprint on the musical world over the next few years.