Born in Torrance and raised in Los Angeles, Rob Gonzalez started a lifelong love affair with underground raves in his senior year (1992) and never looked back. As Machete behind the decks, it was then that he tuned his signature hip-hop and jungle techniques, spinning on vinyl.

He later teamed up with Noface, Scooba, and Clutch to start the Junglist Platoon who birthed some of the meanest breaks the city had ever seen, in addition to a world famous weekly drum & bass staple. Today, Respect Thursdays stand tall as the single longest running event of its type in North America and the quintessential definition of contemporary drum and bass in Los Angeles. As Respect excelled so did Machete. In fact, just a few years ago we named him one of the top DJs in Los Angeles.

“We’ve been doing it so long that we’ve really brought that culture to everything we do and that’s why the events we do are the highest quality.” Gonzalez told us while enroute to meet a friend at Dino’s Chicken and Burgers on Pico.

With steady momentum leading into 2020, Gonzalez plans to head back into the studio while committing his keen ear for style to stacking the roster at the now one-year old Respect Artist Agency. Fans can also look forward to a forthcoming live teamup with DMC world champion John1st and Shield, and the 21st Anniversary of the weekly event in March. 

“You just kinda ride the ebb and flow of it.” Gonzalez says. “It’s tough to get people to come out every week too, but that’s the nature of a weekly. In the end, I just try to be happy with the result knowing the event and the vibe we’re creating is necessary.”

 

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