Review by Booklist Review
The son of Japanese immigrants, multitalented and world-famous DJ and record producer Aoki felt like an outsider until he discovered the power of music and learned to tap into its transcendent qualities. Michael Jackson turned his life around, but rap was his first crush, followed by hardcore, a subgenre of punk rock. The international renown of actor Bruce Lee meant, says Aoki, that there was a place in the world for us Asian kids. Aoki admits that he was never truly alone with his father, a former wrestler and the larger-than-life founder of the Benihana restaurant chain, until his father was on his deathbed. His traditional mother tried to raise him to follow the make-no-waves attitude of her native Japan, where nobody wants to stand out. This tug-and-pull formed the heart of his childhood and followed him into adulthood. After long immersions in all-night partying, Aoki emerged to find himself as an artist able to create a sense of belonging in a hostile world. A compelling memoir of cultural and self-discovery that led to phenomenal success.--June Sawyers Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
DJ and record producer Aoki writes of his life and music in this passionate, introspective memoir. The son of Hiroaki Aoki, a former wrestler and Benihana restaurant founder, Aoki inherited his father's love for showmanship and entrepreneurship, just as he possesses his mother's compassionate spirit. Growing up in 1980s Newport Beach, Calif., he became obsessed with music early in life, first through his older brother's record collection and then through his discovery of Michael Jackson. An outsider at school, Aoki turned to music, which gave him permission to "kick up some dust." He eventually began hosting house parties and started his own label, Dim Mak. Aoki wasn't planning on being a DJ, but his friend booked him at a Super Bowl after-party in 2006, "which kicked things off for me," followed by a meeting with L.A.'s DJ AM, who deeply influenced him; in 2012 Aoki released his debut studio record Wonderland, which was nominated for a Grammy. Eventually, he realized he was concerned more with the music he chose to play rather than considering the listening experience of his audience; in that moment, he began focusing on "connectivity" and creating in concert with others. In graceful prose, Aoki writes that the color blue came to define him, because it is the color of the water, which "we need to help all the seeds we plant in our lives to flow into something meaningful and purposeful." Aoki spins a smart, lively tale of the power of music to connect people with each other. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
For the millennial generation, DJ Steve Aoki has eclipsed the fame of his father, Japanese-born daredevil and restaurateur Rocky Aoki. But that was not always the case. Steve Aoki grew up in Newport Beach, CA, in one of three separate families sired by his father. As Aoki struggled to form his identity in his father's shadow, music helped him find his place. He started his record label Dim Mak while in college and began DJing around Los Angeles for $75 a gig. His Banana Split Sundae parties with the late DJ AM grew to attract the who's who of 2000s Hollywood, and Aoki is now one of the world's top EDM DJs. Aoki is not a gifted writer--perhaps this memoir was dictated to Paisner (coauthor, Rise and Grind; The Power of Broke)--and his conceit of tying major life events to the color blue gets old fast, but he makes up for that with heart. VERDICT Despite its flaws, this account of an artist's rise will touch readers who also discovered community and solace in music.--Amanda Westfall, Emmet O'Neal P.L., Mountain Brook, AL
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A trendsetter in the electronic dance music genre lays down a portrait of self-discovery in shades of blue.Growing up "the only Asian kid in a lily-white, same-seeming neighborhood [in] Newport Beach, California," Aoki, one of the world's most popular DJs, portrays himself as "the quintessential outsider." He was an equal mix of his larger-than-life, Benihana restaurant-founding father and his more reserved mother"a compassionate soul. A gentle spirit. An open mind." He spent his youth stirring restlessly in the sanctuary of music, devoting himself first to Michael Jackson and later to hardcore and punk, all of which would inform his future sound as a leader in the EDM scene. "[I] wasn't planning on becoming a DJ. Never even thought about it," he writes. "And so the story of how I went from an aspiring musician to a promoter to a record label executive' to where I am now is a lesson in resilience, resourcefulness." Detailing those lessons, Aoki moves through the years, from his earliest hardcore garage band memories and 1996 founding of Dim Mak Records to his first appearances at Coachella, when he was still searching for his voice. Eventually developing motifs such as "caking" audiences that came to embody his style, he matured as an artist and eventually achieved whirlwind notoriety that quickly spun into icon status among denizens of the EDM subculture. Throughout, the author shares candid self-assessments and revealing insights about major events in his life, including his divorce, his father's death, and his struggles with drinking. As he writes, "I didn't realize it at the time but my early shows had no essence to themno heartno personality. I couldn't put myself into what I was doing because I was hiding in the fog of being drunk.Connectivitythat became my thing. Should have been my thing all along."Part celebration, part poignant reflection, Aoki's life story is as rhythmic and textured as his music. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
