"These days I travel more out of the United States than inside," Dan explains. "For some reason, in the past year the international promoters seem to have really taken to me." Obviously. In the past year DJ Dan has performed in nearly every major city in the world at least once, and has collaborated with leading DJs and producers. This has exposed Dan to the best of the best in terms of nightlife, and has shown him what the rest of the world has to offer. While Dan claims Montreal to be his absolute favorite city to perform in, "Las Vegas is definitely one of my favorite places to play. ... It has just come so far from where it used to be and is truly becoming the Ibiza of the United States."
We trust he knows what he is talking about. He was recently ranked the No. 6 DJ in the world by BPM magazine and holds a number of similar titles from publications far and wide. "It's nice to be recognized," Dan explains, "but I really don't put a lot into it. It just is what it is." Always acutely aware of what those at his level in the industry are doing, Dan has found great inspiration and encouragement from his longtime friend and mentor Donald Glaude. "I used to watch him play while I was in high school." After collaborating on many projects and helping each others' careers, Dan and Glaude remain great friends to this day. "His friendship has helped me in so many ways," Dan says. "It is great to have someone like that to work with, and I'm glad that we are able to talk on the phone on almost a weekly basis."
Whether it has been Glaude's long-time inspiration or simply a matter of natural talent, DJ Dan has gained a reputation for being very meticulous in everything he does, and for spending many sleepless hours in the studio, listening to every second of his tracks time and again until he gets them just right. That's in part why he remains one of the most influential founders of electronic music.
As for his live performance at Empire Ballroom, he tells us to "expect some new funky electro jams. I've picked up a lot of different music from the different countries that I've found out on the road and am pleased to be able to bring that into the mix."