DJ Karsten Sollors serves The Shady Brunch this Sunday

Canadian-born, Chicago-based DJ Karsten Sollors delivers the House Music vibes for The Shady Brunch, presented by the Organized Grime Crew, this Sunday at Le Nocturne Chicago. 

Sollors, 37, who lives in Lakeview East and is married to Brian Rody, has been DJing for 20-plus years – and it's been his main job for eight years. 

Earlier this year, Sollors launched his own record label, Sollors Systems. 

SOLLORS SYSTEMS:

“Everything with the label has been really wild,” he said. “I'm so grateful (for) the response so far. I already have over 25 artists signed to the label and more demos coming in every day. The first EP I put out was my own track, with a remix by Midwest hitmakers Gettoblaster and it reached the No. 1 spot on Traxsource.”

In April, Sollors Systems released the very first EP from a new Chicago-based project, Basura Boyz, with their tune 'Lie Machine,' which reached No. 6 on the house releases chart on Beatport. 

“I've just finished working on our first 10-track various artists compilation, featuring extremely talented producers from around the globe,” he said.

SPACE RIDERS, VOL. 1 – The first compilation series for Sollors Systems, featuring a stacked lineup.

“We have Eyes Everywhere, Lex & Wood, Glovibes, KC Wray, Basura Boys, Caleb Dent, Dre Mendez, Blu 9, Sam Steele, Brady Prince, Manomic, BROTEIN and also a tune from myself on there,” Sollors said.

The compilation will be out June 25th. 

“I wanted it to come out in June to showcase a diverse cast of talented individuals from all walks of life. I will continue doing these, and making sure they're not only inclusive, but also feature the wealth of talent coming from established artists and new comers whom I believe in,” Sollors said.

SOLLORS SYSTEMS MERCH & MORE

“This has truly been a labor of love and very rewarding,” Sollors said. “I've put out two drops of merch so far. The first was gold and silver rings I designed and manufactured, which had amazing response. The second drop was luxury streetwear, quality crewneck sweaters – 2 designs and 4 color (options). One of the designs actually sold out in 12 hours. The feedback has been melting my heart. I'm actually just putting the finishing touches on the next drop, which will be a collection of t-shirts.”

LIVE STREAMS

A bi-monthly Sollors Systems livestream presented by Sollors on Farris Wheel Recordings TV has launched. “I will be doing regular appearances, as well as featuring all the artists on the label,” he said. “This month we have Lex & Wood and myself on June 12th, then Caleb Dent B2B Dre Mendez, Sam Steele, KC Wray and myself on June 19^th,” he said. “It's been really cool to put these together, to share the music with friends from around the world who might not be able to attend shows just yet.

“Livestreams (were not) on my radar before last year. They can be a lot of work, but I think they are going to play a part in the performance space going forward. I am looking forward to seeing how we can level up the human connection with these types of modalities. They definitely served a great purpose throughout the pandemic.”

NEW TRACK

Sollors just released a track on Farris Wheel Recordings titled 'Leopard Skin Dress,' which is a collaboration with Montreal-based Lex & Wood and currently sits in the Top 100 charts on beatport.

LITTLE-KNOWN FACTS: "I spent three months living with a family of shamans deep in the jungle of Peru ... I modelled for Dolce and Gabbana, Vivienne Westwood and Prada in Milan; and shot a Uniqlo worldwide campaign before I was working as a DJ full-time."

LGBT COMMUNITY "I DJ at many Pride festivals around North America, and with my music, I try to bring people together. On any given day or night while I'm DJing, the type of music I play is universally understood and has the power to heal and uplift. I do my best to incorporate that energy into my music."

FINDING LOVE: Sollors and Rody met ... on Facebook. "(We) were immediately enamored with each other. I had been living in Vancouver, Canada and Brian in Chicago. After three months of constant Skype/FaceTime, we both flew to Sedona, Arizona to spend a week together. After that, we visited each other every two weeks until I moved to Chicago six months later. That was 3 years ago"

MARRIAGE: Sollors and Rody were married September 25, 2016, in a small area of Lincoln Park called The Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool. It was a small ceremony, (with only) 40 people – close friends and family. It was a special moment in time."

EVEN MORE SOLLORS

DJ Karsten Sollors is at @karstensollors and @sollorssystems on all social channels.