Biography
David Starfire artfully blends world music, hip hop and breakbeats to create an eclectic, signature sound that is catching the attention of music fans across the globe. The classically-trained multi-instrumentalist, producer, composer, and DJ has performed world-wide and recently signed to international label Six Degrees Records, home to acclaimed artists Bebel Gilberto, Cheb i Sabbah, Karsh Kale, Midival Punditz, Michael Franti, Guadi/Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, DJ Spooky and many more. David Starfire's EP, "Bombay Beatz", reveals the possibility of a world united through sound, merging Hindi, Punjabi, and English vocals with hip-hop, UK breakbeats and traditional Middle Eastern instruments. "Because music and dancing is the great unifier that has no barriers."
David follows in the footsteps of his grandfather, Oscar Rouzan, a famous horn player in New Orleans who played with the likes of Paul Simon, Pete Fountain, Al Hirt and numerous other great artists. David started playing the guitar at 8, and by 17, he was playing five instruments and composing, producing and recording songs in his bedroom. He soon became enthralled with electronic music and gravitated towards computer music production using sampling and drum machines. By 19, David was in a signed band, touring the states with the likes of Nine Inch Nails, Filter and Skinny Puppy. After years of experimentation in his home studio, he mastered the art of mixing and recording electronic music and traditional instruments together. After a solo career and several bands later, David joined critically-acclaimed band, Cellophane Masses to tour the world. With time, his interest shifted towards world music; he started studying artists from the Middle East and incorporating its rich, textured sounds into electronic music. This signature style landed David several DJ gigs along the West Coast and beyond.
In 2004, David became the first American "Breakbeat" DJ to complete a successful DJ club tour throughout India, bringing his unique sound of "Bhangra Breakbeat" to Bombay, Chennai, Goa and several other cities. He has since shared the bill with nearly every major DJ, performed at large scale international festivals such as Coachella, Love Parade, Electric Picnic, Shambhala, Burning Man, Lightning in a Bottle and Earthdance. Through his performances in the UK, Canada, India and other major cities in the USA, David has developed quite a following. Recently, David has added bass guitar and electronic hand drums to his live DJ set, which has been very well-received.
David has songs on several CD compilations for companies such as Lonely Planet, Red Bull, Craig's List and Freek Factory and are also featured on Sharon Kihara's Bellydance Superstar DVD and Sera's "East Coast Tribal" DVD. He’s written songs for video games and TV and cable programs such as ESPN2, Fox Sports, MTV, MTV2, Fuse, Showtime and HBO. He co-wrote and produced the 12†of the industrial dance song “Radiationâ€, which was featured on the national top 20 independent dance charts. Over the years, David has collaborated with FreQ Nasty, MC 900 Ft Jesus, Information Society, members of Beck, American Music Club and Wire Train.
Recently, David was interviewed on XM satellite station “The Move†(Channel 80) on the Thump Radio show and has produced 2 mixes for the show. His songs have been played on BBC1 Radio shows "Bobby & Nihal", "Friction", "Paathan", "GenerAsian" as well as several other stations. In addition to running his own label, Starfire Records, David is also a respected consultant in the music business and has been involved with TVT, Warner Brothers, Atlantic, Elektra and Polygram Records.