DJ Mateo Segade

Los Angeles-based house music DJ Mateo Segade continues to subvert audience expectations with a fun style that pairs queer anthems with progressive bangers, inspiring clubgoers to both dance and smile

Active under his current moniker since 2014 (although DJing under various pseudonyms since the mid-90s), American DJ/producer Mateo Segade has steadily garnered praise among audiences for his playful sets throughout North America and Europe. Residencies include Trixie Mattel’s SOLID PINK DISCO, House of Avalon’s Sugartank, The Boulet Brothers’ Queen Kong, Andres Rigal & Ollywood’s EVITA, Micky’s Hot Rod, Heart WeHo’s GLOSS!, Valhalla, as well as national events for Bearracuda, and pride festivals including DTLA Proud, Summetramp, and The Los Angeles Halloween Ball. Appreciated by partygoers for his versatility, Mateo is able to translate his sound to both the edgiest of underground clubbers in DTLA, and the poppiest mainstream revelers in West Hollywood, thanks to sets that range from disco to tech-house, pop to progressive techno. Mateo’s offbeat yet approachable style has earned him a place among LA’s most in-demand DJs among promoters and audiences alike.

He arrived on the LA scene as many lesser-known DJs do - by entering a DJ competition at Silverlake’s bustling Eagle LA, whereupon Mateo won first prize, since going on to become a rotating resident at The Eagle’s popular bi-monthly event, Meat Rack. The opportunities that followed throughout 2015 would eventually catch the eye of nightlife impresarios The Boulet Brothers, who - after several protracted auditions - would make the surprising decision to enlist the then-relatively-unknown DJ in a highly coveted role at their new weekly party, the legendary Queen Kong, for which Mateo had the privilege of serving as the Boulet’s resident DJ for the majority of the party’s 4-year run. Bookings would come much more quickly after that, eventually inking a deal with big-room men’s party, Bearracuda International, who routinely select Mateo to headline events across North America, having played signature sets for audiences in New Orleans, Vancouver BC, Atlanta, Denver, Portland, Seattle, and their annual Folsom San Francisco event alongside Horse Meat Disco.

In 2018, after a series of well-received events together, Mateo began working closely with ingenious pop culture, art, and fashion collective, The House of Avalon (among its members Drag Race Season 13 winner Symone, fashion designer Marko Monroe, and S12 icon Gigi Goode), eventually leading to both he and they shifting focus from their individual parties, Smiley and Snap! Out of It, respectively, in favor of a more ambitious collaborative effort, Sugartank - which is now in its fourth year. In addition to booking the talent, Mateo serves as the party’s resident DJ and designs the outrageous flyers for the popular monthly alongside Avalon’s own MC, Grant Vanderbilt.

In 2021, after being asked to spin for Katya’s private birthday party, Mateo met Trixie Mattel, who mentioned she also wanted to learn how to DJ. Having long been in search of a DJ partner, Mateo began showing Trixie the ropes - where to buy the best records, what gear to use, even writing her DJ rider - and the two have since spin back to back at several events including Lacefront Beard in Atlanta, and her own SOLID PINK DISCO event, together touring throughout Australia in April 2023.

Mateo’s passion for electronic dance music began in the late ’80s, upon hearing The Art of Noise’s groundbreaking album, In Visible Silence, and immediately becoming obsessed with the avant-guard outfit, relating closely to their mischievous aesthetic. Other musical inspirations came with the dawn of acid house and rave music, with artists like Acen, The KLF, The Prodigy, and dance labels like Moving Shadow, Production House, and Moonshine Music - the latter of which Mateo worked as their publicist, his very first job at 18, hired based off his effusive fan letters sent to the indie label.

Mateo resides in San Marcos, CA, where he lives with his partner of 16 years and their golden retriever, Gus.