Born Ryan Best in Los Angeles, CA, the soon to be DJ MR. BEST fled to Philadelphia at a young age where he began a life long love affair with music. Having already been influenced by an eclectic blend of Rock & Roll, R&B, and Hip-Hop (The Beatles, The Doors, Earth, Wind and Fire, RUN D.M.C, Eric B & Rakim, Public Enemy, Tribe Called Quest, Wu Tang Clan, Notorious B.I.G, and Jay-Z), he was able to develop a well rounded appreciation for music, which became prevalent as he began
Born Ryan Best in Los Angeles, CA, the soon to be DJ MR. BEST fled to Philadelphia at a young age where he began a life long love affair with music. Having already been influenced by an eclectic blend of Rock & Roll, R&B, and Hip-Hop (The Beatles, The Doors, Earth, Wind and Fire, RUN D.M.C, Eric B & Rakim, Public Enemy, Tribe Called Quest, Wu Tang Clan, Notorious B.I.G, and Jay-Z), he was able to develop a well rounded appreciation for music, which became prevalent as he began collecting records at an young age. In addition, his parent’s musical backgrounds (his father was an accomplished musician/songwriter before he was born) gave him a passion that would carry him into his teens and early twenties as he acquired a unique thirst for music history, songwriting, and live performance, specifically the DJ. ??
After working several jobs in order to pay for a full set of DJ equipment in 1997, MR. BEST quickly learned the craft and began DJ’ing at local bars and lounges in the Philadelphia area. In no time he became an in-demand house party DJ at the several local colleges. After developing a name for himself in Philadelphia, MR. BEST decided to move back to Los Angeles in hopes of spreading his passion for DJ’ing to the West Coast. In December of 2003, MR. BEST got his first break after a small bar in Hollywood called The Dime hired him and as the only DJ at first. Soon the bar grew to be a hot spot attracting a diverse crowd of musicians, celebrities and local patrons alike. ??
MR. BEST‘s presence at the Dime led to numerous invitations to DJ in the Los Angeles event scene including after-parties for The Academy Awards, The Golden Globes, The Emmys, GQ Man of The Year Awards, as well as various movie and television events such as Grindhouse, After the Sunset, Seven Pounds, The Spirit, Lost, The Office just to name a few. When the biggest movie companies and magazines began hiring MR. BEST to entertain their guests, corporate clients such as Mercedes Benz and Viacom soon followed as well as celebrities such as Paris Hilton and Lauren Conrad.
In the spring of 2006, the owners of The Dime opened a new club in West Hollywood called Winston’s. MR. BEST was appropriately appointed the title of Resident DJ. With the success of Winston's soon came Crown Bar in May of 2008. After the opening, MR. BEST was then appointed the Music Director for all three bars/clubs. The clubs were an overnight success, and quickly became marquee venue's in Hollywood, leading MR. BEST to prominent features in high profile publications such as Vanity Fair, LA Confidential Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, and Us Weekly. He was also included in the cover story of Jive’s Records platinum recording artist Ciara in TeenVogue magazine where he provided the music for the shoot and worked on set with famed photographer Frederick Helwig.
In attempt to further diversify himself, MR. BEST has released two Mixed CDs, “3000 Miles & Counting” (2005) and THE GRAY KID & DJ MR. BEST “The PILGRIMAGE” (2006). These releases have led to a significant following outside the world of night clubs and VIP events.? Along with the cds MR. BEST teamed up with producing partner DJ Spider in April of 2008 to do official remixes for Jive Records, including tracks from Lil Mama (Shawty Get Loose), and Usher (Love In This Club) which later was made into a ring tone through an exclusive deal with Sony Erickson.
Taking it to the next level, MR. BEST stepped out of his comfort zone and made his television debut in a cameo role playing a club DJ in HBO’s hit television series Entourage in july of 2007 and was also casted as the prom DJ (speaking role) in the Polish Brothers movie “Stay Cool” coming out in Dec of 2009, and has made appearances on reality shows including "Meet the Barkers" & "The Hills".
Through it all, Mr. Best has become an example of homegrown talent that earned his place through hard work and determination as an in demand DJ throughout he country, and soon the world.
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Photos
Bunbury Music Festival :: Sunday, July 15
The third and final day of the inaugural Bunbury Music Festival, as captured by KP Photography and Sarah McDermott Photography.