Ala House
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It is often said that music soothes the soul. Perhaps the expression bests describes the feeling the San Diego based DJ ALA gets when meticulously crafting a session that takes the audience into a deep and uplifting musical journey. Influenced by soul, funk, and disco at an early age, ALA was taught in the San Francisco Bay Area to use the turntable as his instrument to relay the message in the music. No one, including him, could ever imagine the after school hobby would evolve to a passionate commitment to the art.
DJ ALA cherishes his experience, which dates back to 1989, as a messenger and a conscientious motivator of the crowd. Although his eclectic taste allowed him to master his skills in hip-hop, funk, and house formats, ALA insists his passion is rooted from a musical influence molded from icons such as Stevie Wonder, EWF, and Prince. Yet, as with any worthy endeavor, ALA always strived to redefine his musical identity and in the late 90’s discovered an affinity for the powerful music of the underground. DJ’s such as Tony Humphries, Blaze, Masters at Work, and other influential House notables became sources of inspiration for ALA’s sound. His soulful collections, Mar Del Sol and G Lounge, brought international attention to this groove master as each compilation was aired on regular top 10 rotation on many streaming radio stations around the world in 2003. It is his signature sound that he hopes will take listeners in a journey from a funky frenzy to a deep, sexy, & soulful euphoria.
Determined to spread the love, ALA created djala.com in 2003 and established collaborations with ilovehousemusic.com and KhaiMar Music.
Soon thereafter, he, along with his business partner, Brian Cabalic, started a Thursday night called “Urge” at the legendary Rich’s and hosted a monthly show on the Planetsoul Network called “Dive” which evolved into a Thursday night regular in San Diego’s famous Gaslamp Quarter. With these events, ALA has been instrumental in bringing world-renowned talent to San Diego, which gave him the opportunity to play alongside such House luminaries as Roy Davis Jr., Jask, Louie Vega, Marques Wyatt, Julius Papp, jojoflores, Mr. V, Alix Alvarez, Halo, Arnold Jarvis, Mark Grant, Tortured Soul, Miguel Migs, and more.
In 2005, ALA was invited to head the Entertainment Content division of Undefeated Recordings, in which ALA was also responsible for the weekly Undefeated Sessions radio show. The two year stint with Undefeated allowed him to interact with some of the biggest names in the industry while learning the basics of running a booking agency and label. ALA has taken this experience and his entrepreneurial drive to start his own company, DIVE MUSIC, which sets stage for music, radio, and club events in 2008 and beyond.
ALA’s ability to move the crowd earned him invitations to play across the globe. From San Francisco to New York, he has graced the decks of many notable venues around the country including Balance @ King-King (LA), APT (NYC), Pink (SF), End Up (SF), Hyde Park Café (Tampa), Karu & Y (Miami), Boston, Lotus Sound Bar (Honolulu), DEEP (LA), and the legendary Boom Boom Room in Chicago to name a few. He even once showcased his sexy grooves at the grotto of the Playboy Mansion. On the heels of his popular Dive Radio show, this jetsettin DJ has recently taken the international stage with successful gigs in Manila, Boracay Island, Amsterdam, Montreal, London, Brasil, Bordeaux, Royan, France and has twice headlined the infamous soulful club Djoon in Paris. Yet with such a hectic schedule, he still holds down one of the longest running deep house nights in San Diego, DIVE, every Saturday at Candelas Lounge, where you can catch him spinning his token deep soulful sounds with regular guests from around the world.
DJ ALA cherishes his experience, which dates back to 1989, as a messenger and a conscientious motivator of the crowd. Although his eclectic taste allowed him to master his skills in hip-hop, funk, and house formats, ALA insists his passion is rooted from a musical influence molded from icons such as Stevie Wonder, EWF, and Prince. Yet, as with any worthy endeavor, ALA always strived to redefine his musical identity and in the late 90’s discovered an affinity for the powerful music of the underground. DJ’s such as Tony Humphries, Blaze, Masters at Work, and other influential House notables became sources of inspiration for ALA’s sound. His soulful collections, Mar Del Sol and G Lounge, brought international attention to this groove master as each compilation was aired on regular top 10 rotation on many streaming radio stations around the world in 2003. It is his signature sound that he hopes will take listeners in a journey from a funky frenzy to a deep, sexy, & soulful euphoria.
Determined to spread the love, ALA created djala.com in 2003 and established collaborations with ilovehousemusic.com and KhaiMar Music.
Soon thereafter, he, along with his business partner, Brian Cabalic, started a Thursday night called “Urge” at the legendary Rich’s and hosted a monthly show on the Planetsoul Network called “Dive” which evolved into a Thursday night regular in San Diego’s famous Gaslamp Quarter. With these events, ALA has been instrumental in bringing world-renowned talent to San Diego, which gave him the opportunity to play alongside such House luminaries as Roy Davis Jr., Jask, Louie Vega, Marques Wyatt, Julius Papp, jojoflores, Mr. V, Alix Alvarez, Halo, Arnold Jarvis, Mark Grant, Tortured Soul, Miguel Migs, and more.
In 2005, ALA was invited to head the Entertainment Content division of Undefeated Recordings, in which ALA was also responsible for the weekly Undefeated Sessions radio show. The two year stint with Undefeated allowed him to interact with some of the biggest names in the industry while learning the basics of running a booking agency and label. ALA has taken this experience and his entrepreneurial drive to start his own company, DIVE MUSIC, which sets stage for music, radio, and club events in 2008 and beyond.
ALA’s ability to move the crowd earned him invitations to play across the globe. From San Francisco to New York, he has graced the decks of many notable venues around the country including Balance @ King-King (LA), APT (NYC), Pink (SF), End Up (SF), Hyde Park Café (Tampa), Karu & Y (Miami), Boston, Lotus Sound Bar (Honolulu), DEEP (LA), and the legendary Boom Boom Room in Chicago to name a few. He even once showcased his sexy grooves at the grotto of the Playboy Mansion. On the heels of his popular Dive Radio show, this jetsettin DJ has recently taken the international stage with successful gigs in Manila, Boracay Island, Amsterdam, Montreal, London, Brasil, Bordeaux, Royan, France and has twice headlined the infamous soulful club Djoon in Paris. Yet with such a hectic schedule, he still holds down one of the longest running deep house nights in San Diego, DIVE, every Saturday at Candelas Lounge, where you can catch him spinning his token deep soulful sounds with regular guests from around the world.