African-born, Oakland-based Guy Nado — aka DJ Ra-Soul, Digi-Soul, Killa Green Buds, Madd African, Politix of Dancing, San Frandisco Sound Outfit, and many more — has been producing and DJing killer disco-flavored house music in the Bay Area for decades. His first record as DJ Ra-Soul landed in 1993, with a steady stream to follow.

He quickly became known for deep, funky, hard-hitting house music, and was a key player in the developing West Coast scene. Recently, he went on hiatus — which is why some newer heads might not be familiar with him — but he’s back in action, producing psychedelic political house music with fellow Oaklander Don Crisp as Black In Time, and returning to the DJ circuit, recently playing As You Like It’s annual picnic in Golden Gate Park last Sunday, July 21.

For a couple years running, Dan Harris has thrown a small party in San Francisco called Blank. It's about as non-pretentious and unassuming as you can get. It showcases Bay Area DJs, not out-of-town headliners, and its focus is on the dancefloor — and dancing. (Each iteration of Blank, he respectfully asks attendees to keep their phones off the dancefloor.) 

Naturally, Harris is a DJ himself, too. He tends towards vintage disco and funky party jams, the kind of tunes that makes you put your arms up in the air with a smile on your face. More than disco makes him tick, though — which he shows off in the stylistic spread of DJs he books at Blank — and this latest mix for As You Like It's podcast series sees him exploring that range.

This Saturday, July 6, Harris joins a cast of talented locals (AYLI resident DJ Patrick and Vinyl Dreams' Infinite Jess) to support Detroit veteran Andrés, whose cut “New For U”might be one of the most successful deep house records of the 21st century. (It is, indeed, that good.) It’s all going down in the basement at Monarch. Snag tickets now and read on to learn more about what makes Harris tick.