When a 15-year-old won the DMC’s World DJ Championship in 1997, the EDM world took notice.
But as this young man continued his career, audiences everywhere found themselves even more impressed by his energetic flavor and mastery of the decks.
After knocking the world flat in contest after contest, A-Trak, or Alain Macklovitch, joined big brother David Macklovitch, of the Montreal-based band Chromeo, in running their record label Audio Research in 1997.
In 2004, Macklovitch was recruited as Kanye West’s personal tour DJ, and the two have worked closely since. A-Trak produced scratches for West’s second and third studio albums and was a strong influence on the overall sound of Graduation.
Alain Macklovitch then left Audio Research to start Fool’s Gold Records in 2007 with Nick Catchdubs and released his forthcoming works therein.
In 2009, A-Trak joined forces with Armand Van Helden to form the duo Duck Sauce, and the two of them danced their way into popularity to the soundtrack of their album aNYway including the hugely popular New York anthem “Barbara Streisand.”
Today, A-trak is one of the most well-respected DJs in the game, holding under his belt collaborations with everyone from Lupe Fiasco to MSTRKRFT. As a scratcher, he is still considered an outright leader in his field.
