Damian Lazarus

Before settling into his current and hopefully permanent role as a producer and DJ, Damian Lazarus wore a few different hats in the music and media businesses. In the early Nineties, he was an editor for London style mag Dazed and Confused, and followed that journey with a sidestep into an A&R job at London Records, a half-century-old label that at the time was breaking fresh artists such as Orbital worldwide.

The gig at London Records was a stepping stone for Lazarus to later set up his own London independent label, Crosstown Rebels, in 2003. He had already been making tunes for Mind Horizon Recordings and City Rockers, and it was the buzz from working with the latter that cemented his transition. Championing a motley crew of hybrid genre-defying artists such as Pier Bucci, Blackstrobe, and Jahcoozi, Crosstown Rebels honors its motto to bring the "freshest, weirdest, and stinkiest underground dance music to dance floors across the globe." He used to throw a party called Stink, so he must truly mean it. He also once released a mix CD called Suck My Deck, so he must also like to really get intimately funky with his music.