Keoki

Probably the most visible DJ on the mainstream U.S. dance scene, Keoki released a half-dozen mix LPs and, beginning with 1997's Ego Trip, his own breakbeat-trance productions as well. Born in Panama but raised in Hawaii, Keoki hit the mainland in the mid-'80s and gained an airline job in New York. While moonlighting at the Danceteria nightclub, he decide to translate his love of music into a DJ career and soon became one of the city's most flamboyant DJs -- he dubbed himself "Superstar DJ Keoki" long before he gained any fame at all. After releasing several mixtapes during the early '90s, Keoki gained a licensing deal through Moonshine Music and debuted with a volume in the label's Journeys by DJ series in 1994. Several more mix albums followed during the next two years, with Keoki spotlighting his love of deep trance on 1995's All Mixed Up and cultivating a sense of humor on the following year's Disco Death Race 2000. Though he released his fourth mix LP in 1996 as well, Keoki had already decided to pursue a different path, with the release of his first own-production single, "Caterpillar." The single crested at number three on the dance charts and earned him a spot on that summer's Lollapalooza circuit. After a move from New York to Southern California, Keoki began work on his production debut album, and released Ego-Trip in July 1997. Always one to stay at least a step ahead of expectations, Keoki returned in 1998 with another mix LP plus an album of Ego-Trip remixes (from the Crystal Method, Rabbit in the Moon, Omar Santana and Cirrus, among others). Djmixed.com followed in 2000 and was chased by the full-length album Jealousy a year later. The limited edition of the album includes remixes and unreleased tracks.~ John Bush