DJ Moxy Martinez on Creating and Curating Performances at the Columbus Arts Festival
By Nicholas Dekker, marketing, communications and events administrator for the Greater Columbus Arts Council
Moxy Martinez is a self-taught DJ and producer who has performed nationally and internationally since 2003. They’re making two appearances at for the 2025 Columbus Arts Festival: on Friday, June 6 accompanying the Fashion As Art runway show, and headlining the Big Local Arts Stage at 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 7. We chatted with them about their work, inspirations and how they’re approaching these two Festival performances.
Nick: How did you get started as a producer and DJ? What do you remember about first being intrigued by it?
Moxy: I remember first being intrigued by the notion of DJing from the club scene in the movie Blade, when I saw it for the first time at 19 years old – I wasn’t interested in the vampires at all, I wanted to be the DJ in that club who was totally in a zone and enjoying creating power on the dancefloor. Then, when I was 21 years old, I had a huge epiphany that I would be a DJ/producer for the rest of my life. That journey started at 25 years old when I purchased my first mixer and landed my first ever DJ residency.
Nick: What is your general process for creating/rehearsing/performing?
Moxy: General processes are dependent on what type of performance I’ll be doing. For the DJ set, I approach the process by doing a lot of walking and listening. That process helps me curate selections. When I have a solid group of tracks curated into a playlist, I’ll fire up my DJ mixer and I’ll practice groupings of tracks that flow and sound well together. For a live performance, the general process is a bit more involved. It’s mainly creating new sequences on my synthesizers which I will then manipulate in real time by using patch cords to reroute sound signals and electric pulses, creating a very unique and signature sound in my live sets.
Nick: What question do you get asked most often about your art, and how do you answer?
Moxy: The number one question I get is, “How did you learn to do all of this?” My answer is a combination of the fact that I’m 90% self-taught, that includes DJ and synthesizer work. The other 10% are tips and tricks I receive from friends and mentors who see ways that I can improve or change a workflow to better my sets and practices.
Nick: You’re performing twice at the Columbus Arts Festival: once for the Fashion As Art show and once on the Big Local Arts Stage. How are you approaching these performances differently?
Moxy: I am! And what an honor! What’s cool about this dual appearance is that they’re both completely different sides of what I do, showcasing my love of all things music performance. For the Fashion As Art runway show, I’ll be playing selections that are given to me by the designers. So the performance will be very technical and must be timed perfectly to align with someone else’s moving art as it’s being displayed down a runway. The live performance on the Big Local Arts Stage will be 100% my own compositions, performed with six synthesizers, and improvised within a framework of my own concepts and ideas.
Nick: What’s something about your art that you think might appeal to someone who’s never seen it before?
Moxy: I think the appeal of my art is the authenticity and uniqueness of what I do. I’m grateful to still be a working DJ going on 20 years because I keep my sounds fresh, relatable and very true to who I am as an individual, without compromising my artistic vision. With my synthesizer work, the appeal is the nature of the instruments themselves, and the incredible sounds they make. Modular synthesizers are a very niche, interesting corner of the music world. And it’s been my ongoing mission to bring synths and synth music to the forefront of the Columbus creative community.
Nick: Aside from your own music, what’s on your current playlist?
Moxy: My current playlist! What an awesome question! Here are just a small handful of who I listen to daily: Kali Uchis, SZA, J Dilla, DJ Shadow, Nicolas Jaar, Suzanne Ciani, Lisa Bella Donna, System Olympia, Floating Points, Patrick Cowley, Gina X, Blue Hawaii, HNNY, Ross From Friends, Lone, Machinedrum, Elkka, Logic1000, Channel Tres, Joy Orbison.
Nick: What are some of your favorite things about Columbus?
Moxy: I absolutely LOVE the Culture Pass program put on by the Columbus Metropolitan Library system, and BAM Thursdays at Columbus Museum of Art.
See DJ Moxy Martinez performing twice during the Columbus Arts Festival, June 6-8 on the downtown riverfront, first on Friday, June 6 accompanying the Fashion As Art runway show, and then headlining the Big Local Arts Stage at 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 7. All performances are free and open to the public.
This article is part of a bi-weekly column brought to you by the Greater Columbus Arts Council as part of the Art Makes Columbus campaign. Explore a calendar of events, public art database and artist stories at columbusmakesart.com. To learn more about GCAC grants visit gcac.org.