A podcast about DJs, records and the lives built around them
Every DJ has a path. These are their stories.
Long-form conversations with DJs, producers, collectors and the people behind the culture — how they found music, where it took them, and what they learned on the way.
Guests including Cut Chemist, Greg Wilson, DJ Hype, Keb Darge, Rob da Bank, Mr Thing and DJ Nu-Mark
The latest episode
New episodes every other week. Listen here, on your podcast app, or watch on YouTube.
About the show
What Paths of Rhythm is about
I started this podcast because the best conversations I’ve ever had about music weren’t about the music at all. They were about the people: what they grew up with, the record that changed everything, the gig that nearly broke them, the moment they decided to keep going.
Paths of Rhythm — previously known as Once A DJ — is where I sit down with DJs and former DJs from across the spectrum: hip hop, funk, disco, house, drum & bass, jungle, jazz and everything in between. Some are household names in the culture, some are your favourite local resident, and some have quietly shaped a scene from behind the scenes as engineers, photographers, label owners and documentarians.
We go long. Most episodes run well over an hour, because the interesting bits are never in the first ten minutes. You’ll hear about digging, sacrifice, reinvention, burnout, the business side nobody warns you about, and the small decisions that end up shaping whole careers.
The journey, not the highlight reel
How people actually got from bedroom to booth, and what it cost them.
Records at the centre
Collectors, diggers and the culture around vinyl, from car boots to dollar bins to reissue labels.
Beyond the decks
Producers, engineers, photographers and writers who shaped the scenes DJs play in.
In their words
“What really sets you apart as a DJ, it’s your collection. If you have something no one else has, how can they compete with that?”
Supreme La Rock · Ep 78
“Failure is an essential part of success. I would not have been able to do any of these things unless I tried and failed eight, nine, ten times.”
J Period · Ep 75
“I saw a sea of masks of my face.”
Steve Davis · Ep 79
Listen wherever you like
Audio on every major podcast app, video on YouTube. Follow on your platform of choice so new episodes land automatically.
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About your host
I’m Adam Gow.
I’ve been DJing and collecting records for most of my adult life — funk, disco, house and hip hop mostly — and I play out as DJ Wax On around Derby and the East Midlands, where I also run the Paths of Rhythm vinyl nights.
By day I run Remote-CTRL, a podcast and creative production studio, which is how this show ended up sounding the way it does. I started Once A DJ because I wanted to hear the conversations DJs have with each other after the gig, when the stories come out. Nearly ninety episodes later, it’s become Paths of Rhythm, and the stories keep getting better.
If you’d like to be a guest, suggest one, or just say hello, I’d love to hear from you.
New episodes, straight to your inbox
One email when a new episode drops, occasionally a digging story or a heads-up on a gig. No spam, no daily nonsense — unsubscribe any time.
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Help keep the conversations going
Paths of Rhythm is independent and self-funded. Supporting it on Patreon helps cover hosting, travel to in-person interviews and the hours that go into each episode. Supporters get extended cuts, early access and the occasional bit of exclusive content.
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