Nick Monaco

Last updated

Nick Monaco is an electronic music DJ and LGBT advocate. [1] He has released three albums over his career: Mating Call in 2014, Half Naked in 2016, and Heroin Disco in 2018. Monaco is the cofounder of UNISEX Records and founder of the lipstick company Freak Flag.

Contents

Music

Nick Monaco began his career as a DJ and producer in San Francisco. In 2012 he was signed to the newly formed label Soul Clap Records. [2] As a live performer, Monaco has stated that he intends to portray an air of androgyny, and creates shows that challenge gender roles and gender binaries. [3] He has toured internationally, [4] and creates flamboyant stage shows for his performances. [5]

In 2013 Monaco released his first EP Naked is my Nature on the Soul Clap Records label. His first album, released on the same label, was entitled Mating Call in September 2014. Vibe magazine called the debut album “an aural exploration of sexuality”. [6] In 2016 he released the album Half Naked, which was influenced by jazz and funk music genres. [7] It also featured the original guitar compositions of David Marston. The two of them also produce a two-song EP Island Life, recorded in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica. [8]

In 2018, Monaco released his third studio album, [9] Heroin Disco. [7] The album explores the contemporary overdose culture of the United States, including “drug abuse, phone addiction, and hedonism”, according to Ear Milk, in addition to "excess, vanity, and aesthetic". [10] The album was released on UNISEX Records, a label he cofounded. [11] Tracks from the record have been remixed by other DJs including Mija. [12] Monaco also created a new perfume scent for each of the tracks on his album Half Naked. [13]

Personal life and businesses

Nick Monaco is a citizen of the United States, Italy, and Switzerland, [6] and is originally from Northern California. [14] Monaco is also the co-founder of UNISEX Records alongside musician and partner Emmett Kai. [10] He also owns a lipstick company called Freak Flag; the proceeds from which go to charities supporting gender reassignment surgeries [6] through the Jim Collins Foundation. Additionally, Monaco has founded a perfume line to co-incide with his album Half Naked. [15] He has otherwise been an advocate of the history of the queer and trans roots of electronic and DJ music. [3]

Related Research Articles

House is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by a repetitive four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 115–130 beats per minute. It was created by DJs and music producers from Chicago's Black gay underground club culture and evolved slowly in the early/mid 1980s as DJs began altering disco songs to give them a more mechanical beat. By early 1988, House became mainstream and supplanted the typical 80s music beat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony De Vit</span> Musical artist

Antony de Vit was an English DJ and music producer. He is considered one of the most influential of his generation. He was credited with helping to take the "hard house" and fast "hard NRG" sounds out of the London and Birmingham gay scene into mainstream clubs. His single "Burning Up" reached number 25 on the UK Singles Chart in March 1995, with "To the Limit" making number 44 in September 1995. During that year, he won BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix of the Year Award, as voted by listeners of the show, and Music Week's re-mix of Year Award for Louise's "Naked". He remixed several UK top 40 hits during his career with artists such as Taylor Dayne and East 17. Between 1994 and 1998 his popularity with the clubbing public was rivaled by only Paul Oakenfold and Carl Cox. In September 2010, Mixmag UK announced the nominations of 35 DJs chosen by other big names in the world of dance music as those they considered the best DJs ever. A subsequent 15-month survey, which polled hundreds of thousands of global votes, asked who was the "greatest DJ of all time" and when the result was announced in January 2011, de Vit was ranked number 9.

!K7 Music is a music company based in Berlin, Germany that focuses mostly on electronic music. The name is an abbreviation of the company's original Berlin address, Kaiserdamm 7. !K7 has since opened branch offices in New York City and London. The company now operates an artist management division, managing a roster of artists including the British musician Tricky. !K7 Music also runs a successful Label Services and Synch and Licensing department.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simian Mobile Disco</span> English electronic music duo

Simian Mobile Disco are an English electronic music duo and production team, formed in 2003 by James Ford and Jas Shaw of the band Simian. Musically, they are known for their analogue production. Ford is also known for his production work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claude VonStroke</span> Musical artist

Barclay Macbride Crenshaw, who is known by the stage name Claude VonStroke, is an American house producer based in Los Angeles. He owned Dirtybird Records based in San Francisco. In July 2006 he released his debut album, Beware of the Bird. He has produced a 'Fabric' mix, which was released in May 2009, and has also appeared on Pete Tong's Essential Mix Radio show in 2007, 2013, and 2020. In 2009, he released his second studio album, Bird Brain. In 2016, he was named America's Best DJ in Pioneer DJ and DJ Times’ annual poll. In 2017, he was nominated at the Electronic Music Awards for both DJ of the Year and Radio Show of the Year for "The Birdhouse".

Daniel Bangalter, known in his musical career as Daniel Vangarde, is a French former producer, lyricist and songwriter who co-wrote and produced several hit records in the 1970s and 1980s, including "Aie a Mwana" with Jean Kluger, "D.I.S.C.O." by Ottawan, and "Cuba" by the Gibson Brothers. The father of Thomas Bangalter, best known as a member of the electronic music duo Daft Punk, he is credited with aiding the duo in their early musical career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boys Noize</span> German music producer (born 1982)

Alexander Ridha, better known by his stage name Boys Noize, is a German electronic music record producer, songwriter, and DJ. In 2005, Ridha established his label, Boysnoize Records. Ridha has remixed the work of a number of other artists, including Snoop Dogg and Depeche Mode. In 2019, he produced Frank Ocean's song "DHL".

Matthew (Matt) Edwards is an English electronic music producer and DJ based in Berlin, Germany. He is best known for his work in house and techno that he produces under his Radio Slave moniker. He has also released under a variety of different aliases including Cabin Fever, Canvas, DJ Maxxi, The Machine, REKID, Seadevils and Quiet Village. He is also co-founder of London-based record label Rekids, which he formed in 2006 with James Masters. Rekids is also mother label to the REK'D and Pyramids of Mars imprints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DJ Koze</span> German DJ and music producer (born 1972)

Stefan Kozalla, better known as DJ Koze, is a German DJ and music producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin McKay (musician)</span> Musical artist

Kevin McKay, is a Scottish DJ, electronic musician, record label owner and record producer now based in London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soul Clap</span> American DJ and production duo

Soul Clap is an American DJ and production duo from Boston, Massachusetts. Active in the club scene since 2001, the group has released a number of mixtapes, EPs, singles, and albums. In 2012 they released their first album, EFUNK. According to XLR8R, Soul Clap "[tempt] the listener into the darker, more abstract corners of house by dressing them up with smooth, jazzy trimmings." The BBC wrote "they blend neon-splattered nostalgia with a crisp futurism thanks to their experimental production techniques."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mija (DJ)</span> Musical artist

Amber Giles, known professionally as Mija, is an American DJ, music producer, and promoter, originally from Phoenix, Arizona, who came to attention in 2014 after she played with Skrillex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ghastly (DJ)</span> American electronic music producer and DJ

David Lee Crow, better known by his stage name Ghastly, is an American DJ and record producer based in Los Angeles, California and originally from Avondale, Arizona. He has released songs on Owsla, Buygore, and Dim Mak, such as "Miami Connection" with Jauz and "Crank It" with Mija and Lil Jon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wild & Free (band)</span>

Wild & Free is an American, Los Angeles based duo composed of producers, vocalists, and multi-instrumentalists, Drew Kramer and George Cochrane. They produce songs in the electronic dance music, disco, chillwave, and related genres. Their first single "Tropique" was released in 2015, and Spin Magazine described it as filled with "fat bass lines, tropical-tinged percussion and universally agreeable party sentiments." In 2015, their music was licensed for use on The CW series, The Vampire Diaries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midland (DJ)</span> Musical artist

Harry Agius, known professionally as Midland, is a British DJ, producer and record label owner who began his career in Leeds and is now based in London. He founded his label Graded in 2013 as an output for his own productions.

<i>Where Are We Going?</i> 2017 studio album by Octo Octa

Where Are We Going? is the fourth studio album of American house producer Maya Bouldry-Morrison, known by her stage name as Octo Octa. It was released in March 2017 by HNYTRX, a sub-imprint of queer label Honey Soundsystem. It is her first album to be released after publicly revealing in 2016 that she was transgender and contains a much more uplifting tone than the records she released before revealing her gender identity. While still following the classic house sound of her past releases, Bouldry-Morrison intended the LP to be a more "overt" statement than the "coded queer statement" of her previous album Between Two Selves (2013). The album was well received by critics and landed on the year-end lists of Crack Magazine, Mixmag, Noisey, and Resident Advisor.

Billy Stephen Kenny is a British DJ. Billy is based between Leeds UK, Los Angeles California and Hannover Germany where his co-owned record label, This Ain’t Bristol, is headquartered.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moon Boots</span> American DJ and music producer (born 1984)

Peter Dougherty, who goes by the stage name Moon Boots, is an American DJ and music producer from Brooklyn, New York.

Emma Kirby, known as Elkka, is a Welsh producer, vocalist, and DJ. With a background of songwriter and vocalist for Elkka is best known for winning the Essential Mix of the Year (BBC1) in 2021. She is also known as the co-founder of femme culture, which she founded with her partner Alex Lambert, an inclusive queer platform. The label organizes the annual HeForShe compilation, and all profits go to the charity U.N. Women.

Bruno Boumendil, known artistically as Folamour, is a French DJ, producer, and founder of FHUO Records. Considered an influential figure in the recent revival of French house and disco producers, his diverse catalog includes albums, EPs, and remixes, featuring a blend of house grooves and disco textures. Known for his dynamic performances and versatile sets, Folamour has established himself in the underground house scene with his sample-based four-on-the-floor tracks.

References

  1. ↑ "Nick Monaco Gets Playful For New Single "Physical Therapy"".
  2. ↑ Levisman, Sean (5 August 2013). "Nick Monaco on His Slap & Tickle Show: "Sexual Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik"".
  3. 1 2 "DJ Nick Monaco on Honoring the Queer, Trans Roots of Dance Music". 5 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "L'appel à l'aventure de Nick Monaco".
  5. ↑ "Nick Monaco Dismantles Dance Music's Heteronormativity One Lipstick At A Time". 5 February 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 "10 Things You Should Know About Nick Monaco". 28 August 2014.
  7. 1 2 "Nick Monaco teases his forthcoming album with the seductive 'River'".
  8. ↑ "Nick Monaco & David Marston Recorded a Collaborative Record In Jamaica". 16 January 2016.
  9. ↑ "Nick Monaco talks 'Heroin Disco' at the salon in Mixmag and WAV's 'Off Top'". mixmag.net.
  10. 1 2 "Nick Monaco gets sensual in "Pink Pussies In My Dreams" - EARMILK". 2 August 2018.
  11. ↑ Barnes, Emily (5 October 2018). "Nick Monaco Answers Cosmic Calling On 'Heroin Disco' - Milk". Archived from the original on November 15, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  12. ↑ "Mija's Turns Up the Disco On Nick Monaco's Dark 'River': Exclusive".
  13. ↑ "Nick Monaco's Heroin Chic - October 10, 2018 - SF Weekly". 10 October 2018.
  14. ↑ "Summer Love Series Interview + Playlist: Nick Monaco Gets Deep Before Crew Love Heads To Chi-Town".
  15. ↑ "Lipstick, Bros, and the Grateful Dead: A Conversation with Nick Monaco". 15 July 2016.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.