DANIEL W. BEST (DJ)
At a time when djing is less about connecting with music lovers and more about branding, play counts and frequent flyer miles, Daniel W. Best’s approach is so straightforward that it’s almost groundbreaking: an egoless passion, a fine-tuned ear and most important, an open mind with good taste.
Although he prefers to call himself a music activist rather than a DJ, Best has over two decades of experience behind the decks, getting crowds onto their feet whether he plays jazz, soul, reggae, rare groove, disco or house – sometimes all within the same set, always on vinyl.
Rooted in Berlin for over 15 years, he has established residencies at Cookies and Bar Tausend and organizes a variety of special parties and one-off events. But his DJing is only one aspect of his musical credibility: he runs his own company Best Works, which serves as a powerhouse for booking, staging, staffing and publishing.
Bringing professionalism to partying, Best was responsible for some of Berlin’s most successful events, including Kaleideskop, which paired Jazzanova’s DJ team with top names from around the world such as Masters at Work, Carl Craig and Metro Area, as well as Dixon’s now defunct club night Innercity held at Weekend, and the oldschool house party Washing Machine which has been running in Berlin for over 10 years at different clubs and which finally arrived at Kater Holzig and Panorama Bar.
Aside from all this, Daniel has proven his A&R prowess, most notable with his two labels Best Seven Records – a Sonar Kollektiv imprint focusing on reggae and soul sounds – and Best Works Records, together with André Lodemann focusing on house music. His three "Best Seven Selections" compilations have earned praise for their classic yet contemporary angle on reggae, and his "Polish Jazz" compilation for Jazzanova Compost Records showed his ear for the obscure. Together with Berlin hip hop DJ Kalle Kuts, he brought "G.I. Disco" to live - a project that encompasses a club night, a compilation released by legendary London label BBE, and the temporary exhibition „From G.I Blues to G.I. Disco“ at the Allied Museum.
REFERENCES
K-Swiss
Huawei
Bread & Butter
Hyatt
SoHo House
Michelberger Hotel
nhow Hotels
Prêt à Diner
Design Hotels
Echo
X-Filme
Quartier 206
Red Bull
Baby Phat
Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin
