John Morales is a Bronx-born DJ, remixer and producer from the United States who begins his career in 1975 as a local DJ in the Bronx. He is widely recognised as one of the early pioneers of dance mixing and remixing, and he works on hit records for much of his career.

Career

Morales hones his skills in several settings before building his reputation in New York. He works as a disc jockey for the United States Air Force, where he plays two-hour sets at night, and later returns to New York and takes a day job while mixing music at night in a homemade studio. He also plays at the Stardust Ballroom in the Bronx, where he earns modest fees and continues developing his style through a punishing schedule of long night-time sets.

Remixing and production

To ease the demands of his workload, Morales begins mixing his recordings onto tape and later transfers some of these remixes to vinyl so that other DJs can play them. He becomes known in the industry as an innovator and risk-taker, and he works with new artists while experimenting with new ideas in dance music production.

Style and legacy

His work is associated with disco, boogie and disco-house, and his reputation rests on early influence in dance remixing as well as his long involvement in the creation of hit records. He remains identified with the Bronx scene that shapes his early career and the wider development of DJ culture and remix production.