E017 Justin Strauss

Justin introduced himself to me when we first met. It was very strange and uncomfortable for me. You know those moments you remember every detail of, like you can replay and feel the entire thing in your mind? I was DJing every night at this point, but it was early days of my becoming some version of a respectable dance music DJ. I know what club it was, but I don't know which iteration of it, like one of those spaces in Meatpacking that changed names every year. I was hanging, and went to the DJ booth to drop my bag, which was just kinda DJ etiquette that one DJ would watch another DJ's gear. And so I kinda abruptly went to the booth and dropped it without interrupting the guy. But Justin turned and introduced himself, and I felt like such a fucking jackass entering his booth like that. He'd never remember this nor describe it this way, but I really hated myself at that moment. It just wasn't the way I wanted to meet someone I looked up to. I called Eli Escobar the preeminent NYC DJ, but Justin Strauss is singular in his position. His first residency was at the Mudd Club in the early 80s, and he's DJ'd NYC consistently, and on the highest level, since then. He's the DJ's DJ. He's like the guy we all look at to do right by. I remember when I got to book Justin at my parties was a cool surprising moment. It seems obvious that I'd eventually play with him, but it was validating to me. I always thought of him as someone far off, like cooler and more credible than me. Getting to know him over the years has taught me a lot, his humility and sincerity. I love looking at how much he loves what he does. It makes me love it more. On another less sentimental level, the music he releases is always just the perfect dance floor tone. Right now, he's got Each Other, Extra Credit and Trading Places. That's in addition to Whatever/Whatever, A/JUS/TED, Milk & Cookies and man, I don't even know, he's got a lot of music to dive into. Honored to have him on here.