20 Questions With Steve Aoki

Emerging from the hedonistic froth of the late-’00s L.A. party scene, Aoki has become one of the most recognizable faces of global EDM. The SoCal-born, Las Vegas-based producer, now 43, has achieved this position through general relentlessness: more than 200 shows a year for the past 15 years, plus a memoir, a documentary, a celebrated party night (Dim Mak Tuesdays, which ran out of a Hollywood loft from 2003 to 2014), myriad restaurants (Pizzaoki and also the forthcoming Kuru Kuru Pa, a Japanese and anime-inspired Vegas operation from Aoki and his brother Kevin Aoki), partnerships with brands as disparate as Zumba and Nutterbutter, NFTs, a clothing line, his longstanding label Dim Mak, charity events, Twitch events, virtual festivals, and music. A lot of music.

Aoki’s steady stream of releases is heavily based on collaborations, which in the past few years have included Backstreet Boys, Zooey Deschanel, Sapiens author Yuval Harari, director J.J. Abrams, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, Louis Tomlinson, will.i.am, BTS, Daddy Yankee, dozens of dance music artists, and Sting.