We were lucky to catch up with Miguel A. Rios recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Miguel A. thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

well i have been doing music for almost about 15 years now… I first went to my first rave back in 2007 which where it all started for me when it comes to what i do now for my career and passion in life which is Dance Music. i had always been into music prior to that…but its when i got into dance music where it kinda changed everything I knew about music and how I viewed music as a whole. Shortly after attending my first rave, I began having a interest in what the DJs where doing when I would go to these events. Soon my interest become more than that and I got my first DJ setup. Shortly after that purchase I began DJ whenever I got the chance!! Like literally everyday all day. Id miss class to practice lol but around the same time I met someone that would change my life forever. His name is Leo goldstein, hes a Paris native and was the first person to show me what REAL house music was. He also taught me how to dj and introduced me to producing music. Shortly after we met and he had been showing his knowledge and music collection…. he one day looked at me while we were listening to music and ask me “You wanna do this together??”…what he meant was do I wanna start a DJ duo with him and play shows! Of course I said yes and then our DJ duo “CaliParis” was born!! We had a very productive career together!! We played together for about 5-6 years and played so many big shows!! We opened for so many big artist and played some of the best clubs and parties together! During that time, us playing shows together that this is what I want to do as a career….like even when we had to go our separate ways that I was gonna keep pursuing my dream of being DJ/Producer traveling around the world playing big shows and making all kinds of music. Unfortunately, Leo and I had to go our separate ways because of personal reasons but we both had to start from scratch as music artist. But now im so happy I decided to keep going because Im now making music at the level of quality I want and playing big shows again!!! Its a very scary thing chasing your dreams bc most wont believe in you or say they do but really dont….my advice to anyone trying to do the same is just stay true to yourself and never stop working hard or get complacent. It comes down to one thing “How bad do you want it?”

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

So like I said in the last question….I am DJ/Audio-Studio Engineer/Producer. I play shows under my artist name “Miguel Rios” and I also offer studio services such as Mixing down tracks to full fledged productions for other artists. I also can run sound for any type of event.

For me what I think sets me apart from others is my passion and understanding of music as whole…. Being a dj can teach you so much about music and how you can always make it sound better. Im very happy i began djing first rather than producing first. I learned what the dancefloor likes and what they dont like early on. I have always been a passionate person but when it comes to my music I just let loose and be myself not caring what anyone thinks… I think that really stands out and people can see the authenticity of my actions. For example when I DJ, I have been told my stage presence is very unique and fun! I try and be myself up there and not just put on a “show” as some might say. I play from the heart so what you see is coming from a real place inside me. I try and also interact with the crowd to make to let them know im there to have a good time too with them!

Right now what I can say Im most proud of is doing my first marathon set I did for these two crews called “Under Los Angeles” and I_Underground. The event was called “A Thing” in DTLA… my homie Tony Rafael opened up for 3 hours then we went b2b for another 3 hours then I played solo for another 3 hours and then closed out the party with him till 7am. I played 7 hours straight which i have never done like that in that setting. Let me tell you it was one of the best days of my whole entire life but boy that shit was super hard Lol

The second thing Im most proud of is I just recently played another underground warehouse party throw by a crew called “Lick N Dip” based out of DTLA. I had no idea what they were about going into the night but when I showed up to the event it blew me away from how many people where there already and how big the event was in general. I played from 3am-4am basically the headlining spot and ended playing in front of 2000 people!!!

Main thing i can say I want my cilents/followers/fans to know about my brand is Im always avaible to help a fellow artist out and that if you want to book a dj for your next show then hit me up via my socials. Im always offering my studio services as well so just contact for more info.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

The time where I had the biggest pivot was during COVID when everything had shut down. I had most of my income gone over night and had to really figure out what to do creative since shows where gone for about 2 years. I basically just buckled down and went head first into making more music so for about 2 years thats all i did everyday and that really changed everything for me.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My mission thats driving my creative journey is I want to play and create the best music possible and provide a good time wether its my live sets or productions.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://soundcloud.com/miguelriossd
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/miguelriossd/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MiguelRiossd
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/MiguelRiossd
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxjDsdfFlHNZiPsBcMQezwQ
• Other: https://www.mixcloud.com/miguellriossd/

Image Credits
Photos by: HighAbove, SarasPhotos and Alex Alecio