Raised on a healthy diet of 70's Disco, Soul, Funk, Global Soul, and Latin music, RJ Duran found his beat early in life. After purchasing his first set of turntables when he was 14 and experimenting with hardware & software for creating music throughout his teen years, his interest and curiosity with eclectic sounds grew with every passing moment spent digging in the crates and observing the nuances in all forms of music. This attention to detail naturally progressed into an obsession with the underlying principles of electronic music and the process for creating it. While studying engineering in Ft Collins, CO he hosted one of the only "electronic music" radio shows of the time on student run radio 90.5 KCSU. Following graduation and a short hiatus in the mountains of Colorado he found himself in Phoenix, AZ.
It was there where the seeds of house music grew from within. He was introduced to the key players of the Phoenix house music scene, Joe DiPadova, Pete "SuperMix" Salaz, Senbad, Santos, and World Famous Rani "g". Prior to the now well known event dubbed "ONE" created by Joe DiPadova, when it was referred as "StraightNoChaser", RJ was an essential element in the foundation, promotion, and sound. Much of the influence in his current endeavors started from being part of these events and being exposed to the array of sounds from JojoFlores, Lars Behrenroth, Carlos Mena, Francois K, Jephte Guillaume, Joe Claussell, and Osunlade.
Seeking a change once again RJ moved back to Colorado in 2006. Armed with a vast record collection of Global Soul and determination to bring a soulful and meaningful event to Denver he set out to do just that. Shortly after moving he met Afroblu creator's Peju Alawusa aka Yorubawoman & Ashara Ekundayo of BluBlak Media and quickly became the driving force behind the sound of Afroblu. Playing along side local DJ's Peter Black/Aztec, Musa, and Matthew Bandy he quickly became part of the family. Now as one of the Afroblu and Afroblu Remix Resident DJ's along side DJ Ces (Denver), DJ Sabine (Brooklyn Mecca, NY), and DJ Offbeat (SoulFunktion, NY) the future looks bright and the musical journey continues..
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