The Life and Career of DJ Paul Oakenfold

DJ Beginnings

Paul Mark Oakenfold was born on August 30th, 1963 in London, England. He began mixing in his bedroom as a teenager and then moved on to play soul and groove tracks in small bars with a friend. Oakenfold also spent some time in New York working with record labels and then returned to England in the early ‘80s.

Trance, House and Ibiza

Once back home, he became a club promoter and an agent, and represented acts such as the Beastie Boys and Run D.M.C. He also continued to deejay. It was in the late 1980s that Oakenfold introduced his Balearic trance sound at a club in Ibiza. This gave him the chance to run several house music nights at numerous clubs. It also served to establish him as a producer and disc jockey.

Perfecto Records

Shortly thereafter, he founded the label Perfecto Records in order to develop the careers of new artists. Along with a few other DJs, Oakenfold began remixing and producing under the names Electra and Perfecto.

UK and International Success

The success he found working with UK artists helped bring dance music to the European mainstream in the 1990s. Oakenfold’s talents then caught the attention of a few major artists. The most notable of these was U2, who then subsequently took him on tour. He also spent some time recording with the dance music act Grace.

Ministry of Sound, Cream and Glastonbury

He soon began performing more and more as a DJ. Oakenfold launched London’s nightclub Ministry of Sound and later became a resident at the Liverpool nightclub Cream. After performing at the 1995 Glastonbury Festival, Oakenfold released the 1996 dance collection Perfecto Fluoro.

Diverse Genres

The next year, he compiled and mixed a double CD for the Global Underground series called Global Underground 004: Paul Oakenfold, Live in Oslo. The set displayed a variety of genres such as goa trance, progressive house, progressive trance and drum and bass.

Relocation to the U.S.

While continuing to DJ, Oakenfold released several more mix albums. Soon after relocating to the U.S. in 1999, he embarked on a massive tour and brought his trance sound along with him.

Movies and "Bunkka"

In 2001, Oakenfold produced the soundtrack to the thriller “Swordfish” and released the mix album A Voyage into Trance. The next year, he came out with his best-selling release to that point, the electronica album Bunkka. This was followed by successful remixes of songs such as the “James Bond Theme,” and Elvis Presley’s “Rubberneckin’.” His songs also appeared in assorted movies, television shows and video games during this time.

More Mix Albums

Following several compilations under the “Perfecto Presents” series, Oakenfold released the mix album Creamfields in 2004. Two years later, he supported Madonna on her “Confessions” tour and released the Grammy-nominated album A Lively Mind.

Film, TV and Other Projects and Las Vegas Residency

A best-of compilation entitled Greatest Hits & Remixes, Vol. 1 and a remix of the Britney Spears’ single “Gimme More” followed in 2007. The next year, he kept busy producing music for various film and television projects and joined Madonna for some dates on her “Sticky & Sweet Tour.” Oakenfold’s Las Vegas residency at Rain nightclub also began in 2008, and was dubbed “Paul Oakenfold Presents: Perfecto Las Vegas.”

Madonna and "Never Mind the Bollocks"

In 2009, Oakenfold worked with Madonna on her greatest hits compilation Celebration. The DJ spent the remainder of the decade producing and remixing for many popular artists, continuing his Las Vegas residency and working on his own material. In 2011, he released the double album Never Mind the Bollocks...Here’s Paul Oakenfold.

Trance

Thanks to his DJ and producing skills, Paul Oakenfold helped popularize dance music by bringing trance to the mainstream.