Justin Michael

“From the first time I heard his remix of Jay J’s “Groove It To The Rhythm” on Ultra Records, I knew I had to keep a sharp eye and ear out for this Justin Michael character. I’d never heard of him before but I knew he was up to something big for the house music community. I sought out his EP’s and remixes with the same veracity I did for my other inspirations: Eric Kupper, Frankie Knuckles, and Louie Vega. The greats, you know?
A multi-talented individual, seeing Justin work the DJ booth is just as impressive as hearing his productions. With Ginsu sharp mixes, flowing melodically from one funk-laden groove to the next, Justin Michael is officially the DJ & producer to keep your eye on. What can I say, the guy’s got a gift.
An extraordinarily grateful and humble personality, I sat down with Justin over stuffed crust pizza and beer on his recent trip to Chicago and he told me his story. (He even picked up the tab!)
A trained pianist and guitar player, Justin Michael took to DJ’ing like a fish to water; skillfully crafted dance music was a natural progression for him. Cutting his teeth early in the House Music game, Justin began spinning at high-profile L.A. raves at the tender age of 15. In a scene where House DJ’s are a dime-a-dozen, Justin’s talent for creating a funky, finely-tuned groove quickly separated him from the rest of the pack.
By age 18, Justin was an in-demand DJ at L.A.’s most exclusive nightclubs. “I was too damn young to even be at these clubs but the promoters kept booking me, so I kept coming back,” Justin remarked. “I was flanked by bodyguards everywhere I went in the club. They’d even follow me to the toilet to make sure I wasn’t sneaking a drink in the stall!”.
Not one to rest on his laurels, Justin added production and remixing to his repertoire. Although he learned thru tireless dedication and experimentation, Justin’s technique was honed with the help of some of the industry’s most skilled & influential studio jocks, including Kaskade, Alex Marlowe, and Global Underground producer Leo Nine. Grammy-nominated producer John Hernandez (Jay-J) even took Justin under his wing at the now legendary Moulton Studios, teaching him the fine art of mastering and the mix-down.
Making his recording debut in 2005, Justin Michael released singles on labels such as Look At You, MoD, and Duffnote Recordings with production partner Darwin Paul. If that prestige wasn’t enough, his 2005 single “Funky Love” featuring Jackie Wilson spent 16 weeks in the Billboard Dance Charts Top 20. That’s a hell of a debut, freshman.
With his string of early success on noted house labels, Justin put all of his chips on the table and started Hermosa Recordings in late 2005. As an outlet for truly inspired dance music, Hermosa Recordings quickly became synonymous with thoughtful, soul-drenched funky house music.
Hermosa Recordings’ first release, “You Don’t Have To”, featured the velvety vocals of Hawaiian-born R&B singer Jason Lent with remix work by the Duffnote don, Richard Earnshaw. Crafting a steady string of singles and remixes featuring the Hermosa sound, 2006 was an exciting year for Justin and his brand new label.
With subsequent releases featuring Blake Reary and guitarist Balage Antal under his belt, Justin stepped it up once more with – count ‘em – THREE remixes for Ultra Records in 2006. Giving back to those who gave so much to him, Justin remixed two songs for the very sensational Kaskade – “In This Life” and “Sometimes” – and “Groove It To The Rhythm” by his mentor Jay J.
Catching the ear of Kinkysweet/Swank Recordings, label head Ben Clark commissioned Justin to mix and compile the Habitat Series: Beach CD. If that wasn’t enough exposure, Swank had something much bigger in store for Justin Michael in 2007: his first artist album, “Everything”.
Reflecting his passion and inspiration of all musical styles, “Everything” soulfully laced together House, Jazz, Funk, and Soul into an incredible 12-track debut album. With each song on “Everything” as tightly constructed as the next, it’s damn near impossible to pick a favorite. Singer Jason Lent, the silky voice of “You Don’t Have to” fame, appears on the funky stomper “Free My Soul”, “Back In My Life”, “Dancefloor”, and the album’s first single, “Play House”. Donnie Romello graces the smooth and jazzy “Stay With Me” with a voice that can easily double for “Off The Wall”-era Michael Jackson. Hell, it had me singing along! The highlights of the album come from Soulstice diva Gina Rene on the funk-tinged, broken beat “Don’t Hold Back” and on “Weekend Lover”, a hip-house groover featuring Pharcyde frontman Tre Hardson doing his thang-thang.
Couple an album release with a hectic 2007 touring schedule to Taipei, Budapest, Chicago, London, and all points in between, you’d think Justin would take a breather. But, he didn’t. His recent trip to Taipei landed him a remix of Asian pop star Vaness Wu, released on Sony Music Asia in late 2007. Justin and longtime partner-in-crime Solo also did remix duty on one of the biggest deep house tracks of the year, “Victory Dance” by Micky More on Jask’s Thaisoul label.
2007 also saw the release of three remix singles – “Play House”, “Dancefloor”, and “You’re My Angel” – on Swank Recordings, featuring remixes by Panevino, Raul Rincon, and the prodigious Jon Cutler, to name a few.
Keeping good momentum going is what Justin Michael is all about. 4 months into 2008, we’ve already seen 2 new remix singles from “Everything” and a Justin Michael and Solo remix of Lisa Shaw’s peaktime funk-fest “All Night” on Miguel Migs’ Salted Music.
He can’t tell me what just yet but Hermosa has an army of exciting releases in store for 2008, along with a number of Justin Michael remixes on a few well-noted international labels.
So, what now, Justin?
“Well, keep your eyes and ears open for our new releases – 2008 is going to be another huge year for us. Keep dancing, keep moving. Oh, and you owe me a pizza next time I see you, Dalton. That last one wasn’t free, dude.”
- Dalton K. Finney, Chicago, IL – April 2008