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Meet olea, a first-generation Latino from the San Fernando Valley who makes sense of the world through the things he enjoys most: music, food, and books. With creativity at his core, his purpose is to showcase that he is unbound to a single discipline as he recently earned a Master’s from UCLA and a Bachelor’s from UC Berkeley while pursuing his dream of being a worldwide DJ–the ultimate testament that art and education can coexist.
“The way I see it, I’m a kid of immigrant parents, and one, maybe two generations away from people that were living on a farm as their day-to-day. I have no choice but to go hard with this music-ish, with this life-ish–I came from nothing; therefore I have nothing to lose.”
From house parties in his backyard to the venues, olea, who was once referred to as “DJ No Pay” or “DJ For Free,” has come a long way as he has played all around the states and across the world in cities like San Francisco, New York, London, and Paris.
“If it came down to naming the people whose catalogs I can take apart and confidently say shaped my persona, I would have to say Kanye West, Tyler the Creator, and my older brother Richard. Of course, I can’t go on without expressing my deepest gratitude to the home team, Soulection, and my greatest mentor, Joe Kay, as the biggest influences on my sound. Not to mention, they provided a space where I was able to graduate from my house parties and play different sounds that give me life.”
No signature sound, just good vibes.
According to olea, there is no signature sound when your crates are loaded with all the best SoundCloud gems, R&B, hip hop, Latin, house, and everything in between.
Download full playlist on BPM Supreme.
The gear olea can’t live without.
AIAIAI Unit-4 portable wireless speakers that make remote music sessions a breeze with zero latency.
“I’ll usually pair it with my Hercules Starlight controller and just jam out on my own. Battery life is phenomenal, sound is buttery, and AIAIAI just builds really good products.”
Getting outdoors to hear the music better.
When olea isn’t behind the decks or behind the scenes at a Soulection event, a place he likes to frequent for inspiration is the outdoors. He states there’s nothing like a good hike through a canyon to help clear the mind.
“I think silence is good, I feel it helps me hear the music better.”
