American DJ and record producer Steve Aoki is well-known and of Japanese descent. He founded his own record company, Dim Mak, while still a student. Dim Mak distributed music by groups like “The Bloody Beetroots.” With the Los Angeles-based band “Moving Units,” he began his career doing remixes. Pillowface and His Airplane Chronicles, his debut mix album, was played on BBC Radio 1’s “Essential Mix.” He performed shows across the US, Canada, China, and Japan while on tour with other musicians and rose to fame for his stage acrobatics. At the “55th Annual Grammy Awards,” his first solo album, “Wonderland,” received a nomination for “Best Dance/Electronica Album.” He owns his own clothing company, “The Dim Mak Collection,” and is wedded to Tiernan Cowling. He is the creator of the “Steve Aoki Charitable Fund,” which supports medical and humanitarian research. He recently announced the release of his cross-genre EP called “5OKI,” which features musicians from all over the world. He wants to return to the world what he has received, and he sees music as one of the ways he can contribute.
Early Youth & Life
On November 30, 1977, in Miami, Florida, United States, he was born Steven Hiroyuki Aoki to Japanese parents Rocky Aoki and Chizuru Kobayashi. His father was a professional wrestler who subsequently founded the “Benihana” restaurant chain. Kana, his older sister, and Kevin, his older brother, are his siblings. Devon Aoki, his half-sister, is an actress and model.
He attended “Newport Harbor High School” and graduated in 1995. He was born and reared in Newport Beach, California. He played badminton for the school squad. He obtained two BAs from the “University of California, Santa Barbara,” one in sociology and the other in gender studies. He began playing chess when he was four years old and excelled in both high school and college.
He belonged to the “Revolutionary Anti-Imperialist League,” a covert Maoist group in the US, while he was a student. From his dorm room in the “Santa Barbara Student Housing Cooperative,” he also organized clandestine performances.
By the time he was 20 years old, he had started his own record company, Dim Mak, and was producing DIY records. His business distributed songs by musicians like “The Bloody Beetroots,” “Infected Mushroom,” and “Mystery Jets.”
Steve Aoki’s Career
With Blake Miller, Aoki formed the Los Angeles-based band “Moving Units” and began his work as a remixer. He was a member of a number of other bands, including “This Machine Kills,” with whom he issued an album via “Ebullition Records.”
In 2006, he joined the “Music Is Revolution Foundation,” founded by ‘MC5’ guitarist Michael Davis. The foundation is a nonprofit company that supports the teaching of music in public institutions. Pillowface and His Airplane Chronicles, his premiere mixtape, was made available in October 2008. Additionally, he was a part of “Essential Mix,” which BBC Radio 1 broadcasts in August 2008 and October 2012.
He continued to create remixes of different acts, which he popularized through his Twitter account and YouTube channel. In December 2009, his remix of the Drake, Lil Wayne, Eminem, and Kanye West single “Forever” reached the top of the Hype Machine chart.
He began traveling in 2010 and performed across the US and Canada with various musicians. He also performed in China and Japan, where he developed a sizable support base. He rose to fame for his on-stage acrobatic feats and engaging interactions with the crowd.
In March 2010, he and Zuper Blahq collaborated on the song “I’m in the Home,” which peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart, UK Dance Chart, and UK Indie Chart. The tune was also used in the films “Piranha” and the MTV reality series “Jersey Shore.”
In January 2012, he released his first solo record, “Wonderland,” which received a nomination for “Best Dance/Electronica Album” at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards. It’s the End of the World As We Know It, his debut album, came next.
In the 2013 America’s Best DJ competition, sponsored by DJ Times magazine and Pioneer DJ, he placed sixth with his song “A Light That Never Appears,” which was co-written with “Linkin Park.” He created a number of tracks during this time that was featured in numerous advertisements, TV programs, and motion pictures. For instance, “Get Me Outta Here” and “Back to Earth” were featured on the soundtrack for the film “Step Up: All In” and a “Scion” ad, respectively.
Another hit was his two-part record, “Neon Future” (Parts I and II). Parts I and II each reached the top spot on the chart for “US Dance/Electronic Album” in 2014 and 2015, respectively. As a result of his rising fame, “Relativity Productions” chose to release a documentary about his life called “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead,” which was shot while the two seasons of “Neon Future” were being produced.
In July 2017, he issued “Steve Aoki Presents Kolony,” his fourth studio album. Then, he worked with musicians from all over the globe, including the Korean group “BTS,” to produce a number of singles. He recently revealed the arrival of his five-track EP, titled “5OKI,” a cross-genre work that includes Quintino, Laidback Luke, Hardwell, and other international musicians. He once said that he wished to return to the world what he had received from it and that one of the ways he could contribute to world peace is through music.
Steve’s Bigger Productions
‘Wonderland’ (2012), ‘Neon Future I’ (2014), ‘Neon Future II’ (2015), and ‘Steve Aoki Presents Kolony’ are his four studio recordings (2017).
In a number of movies and TV shows, such as “Arrow: The Huntress Returns” (2013), “The Displacement of Sound” (2014), “I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead” (2015), “Point Break” (2015), “Why Him?” (2016), and “Bill Nye Saves the World,” he has played himself (2017).
Recognition & Accomplishments
He received the “Best Set of the Season” honor at the 2007 “Ibiza (DJ) Awards” ceremony, and then, for “Pillowface and His Airplane Chronicles,” he earned the “Best Mix Album of the Year” honor at the 2008 “Billboard Awards.”
For his record “Wonderland,” he received a “Grammy” nomination in 2013. He also received the “Chiuku Award” at the 2015 MTV Latin America Awards ceremony.
Steve’s Individual Existence
After five years of engagement, he wed Tiernan Cowling, his longtime Australian partner, in Hawaii in 2015.
He resides in Henderson, Nevada, and has his own clothing company named “The Dim Mak Collection” in addition to being a musician. He enjoys playing poker and has competed against well-known players like Joel Madden and Antonio Esfandiari. Two eateries are also co-owned by him.
He has participated in PETA’s anti-fur effort and has supported the organization since he was in his teen years. Additionally, he established the “Steve Aoki Charitable Fund,” which supports both medical and humanitarian studies.
Aoki, who freely confesses to being a terrible basketball player, appears as a celebrity in the video games “NBA 2K8” and “NBA 2K9,” despite the fact that he celebrity. In exchange for teaching Michael Phelps how to play the DJ, he got swimming instruction from the Olympic champion.
Estimated Net Worth
American electro house singer, DJ, record producer, music executive, Grammy-nominated artist, and owner of Dim Mak Records is Steve Aoki. The total wealth of Steve Aoki is $120 million. Aoki has held the title of highest-grossing dance artist in North America at different points in his career.