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Paul Mark Oakenfold (born 30 August 1963), formerly known mononymously as Oakenfold, is an English
record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...
,
remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...
er and
trance Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...
DJ. He has provided over 100 remixes for over 100 artists including U2,
Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...
,
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
,
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
,
Massive Attack Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol by Robert "3D" Del Naja, Adrian "Tricky" Thaws, Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. The debut Massive Attack album '' Blue Lines'' was releas ...
,
the Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...
, New Order,
the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
,
the Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...
and
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
. Oakenfold was voted the No. 1 DJ in the World twice in 1998 and 1999 by ''
DJ Magazine ''DJ Magazine'' (also known as ''DJ Mag'') is a British monthly magazine dedicated to electronic dance music and DJs. Founded in 1991, the magazine is adapted for distribution in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Lat ...
''.


Biography


Early life

Oakenfold was born on 30 August 1963 at
Mile End Hospital Mile End Hospital is a community hospital in the Mile End area of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in England. It is managed by Barts Health NHS Trust. History The hospital was established as the infirmary for the local workhouse in 1859. ...
. His father delivered the ''London Evening News''. He lived in
Highbury Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor house was situ ...
,
Greenhithe Greenhithe is a village in the Borough of Dartford in Kent, England, and the civil parish of Swanscombe and Greenhithe. It is located east of Dartford and west of Gravesend. Area In the past, Greenhithe's waterfront on the estuary of the ri ...
, then
Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...
, attending Archbishop Lanfranc School, then studied to be a chef for four years and worked at the
Army and Navy Club The Army and Navy Club in London is a private members club founded in 1837, also known informally as The Rag.


Early career: 1980–1984

Paul Oakenfold describes his early life as a "bedroom DJ" in a podcasted interview with
Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
's ''24 Hours'', stating he grew up listening to
the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
. Oakenfold's musical career began in the late 1970s, when he met Trevor Fung and began helping him DJ
soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in the African American community throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It has its roots in African-American gospel music and rhythm and blues. Soul music became po ...
in a
Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...
wine bar. Here in London, he also met Rumours where he played
Earth, Wind and Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million reco ...
and popular British bands. In 1981, 18-year-old Oakenfold and his friend Ian Paul moved to New York City. Oakenfold worked as a courier in West
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...
. During this time, hip-hop was overtaking dance music as the most popular sound in the area (see 1984 in music). Oakenfold and Fung used fake identification to sneak into various dance clubs, like Studio 54, where they met members of the band
Maze A maze is a path or collection of paths, typically from an entrance to a goal. The word is used to refer both to branching tour puzzles through which the solver must find a route, and to simpler non-branching ("unicursal") patterns that lea ...
,
Bobby Womack Robert Dwayne Womack (; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Starting in the early 1950s as the lead singer of his family musical group the Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing guit ...
and
Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...
, whom they also interviewed, claiming to be ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' and ''
Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...
'' journalists. Returning to London, Oakenfold began breaking into the mainstream, as an A&R man for Champion Records. At that time, he signed
DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince were an American hip hop duo from West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consisting of rapper Will Smith (the Fresh Prince) and disc jockey Jeff Townes (DJ Jazzy Jeff). Active full time from 1986 to 1994 and occasion ...
, as well as
Salt-n-Pepa Salt-N-Pepa (also stylized as Salt 'N' Pepa or Salt 'N Pepa) is an American hip-hop group formed in New York City in 1985, that comprised Salt (Cheryl James), Pepa (Sandra Denton), and DJ Spinderella (Deidra Roper). Their debut album, ''Hot, C ...
. Oakenfold appeared on the '' Blue Peter''
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
programme for children with a breakdancing crew. He became a promoter and British agent for the
Beastie Boys Beastie Boys were an American rap rock group from New York City, formed in 1978. The group was composed of Mike D, Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (voca ...
and
Run-D.M.C. Run-DMC (also spelled Run-D.M.C.) was an American hip hop group from Hollis, Queens, New York City, founded in 1983 by Joseph Simmons, Darryl McDaniels, and Jason Mizell. Run-DMC is regarded as one of the most influential acts in the history of ...
Since then, he appeared at The Project in
Streatham Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. Streatham was in Surrey ...
playing soul and
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
music.


Perfecto Records and fame: 1985–1991

In 1987, Oakenfold travelled to the island of
Ibiza Ibiza (natively and officially in ca, Eivissa, ) is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, in Spain. Its l ...
for a week to celebrate his birthday. Trevor Fung, Nicky Holloway, Ian Saint Paul,
Danny Rampling Danny Rampling (born 15 July 1961) is an English house music DJ and is widely credited as one of the original founders of the UK's rave/club scene. His long career began in the early 1980s playing hip-hop, soul and funk around numerous bars an ...
and Johnny Walker accompanied him. Oakenfold convinced the owner of a venue in England to host an "Ibiza Reunion" party after-hours. He had previously made an attempt, but it failed as the crowd was not prepared for the
acid house Acid house (also simply known as just "acid") is a subgenre of house music developed around the mid-1980s by DJs from Chicago. The style is defined primarily by the squelching sounds and basslines of the Roland TB-303 electronic bass synthesiz ...
style until 1987 when the party was successful. After that, the night became a classic and became one of the UK's major acid house nights, known as ''Spectrum'' at
Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...
in
Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...
. The party was best known for the "Theatre of Madness", as more than 1,500 people were present on Monday nights, until it went down; with the financial issues it changed its name to the "Land of Oz". Artists like Alex Paterson DJ'd in the VIP
chillout Chill-out (shortened as chill; also typeset as chillout or chill out) is a loosely defined form of popular music characterized by slow tempos and relaxed moods. The definition of "chill-out music" has evolved throughout the decades, and generally ...
area known as the "White Room", which gave Oakenfold more free time, and then he began producing music under the alias " Electra" in 1988. Members included Nick Divaris, John "Johnny" Rocca and Micky. As they continued releasing only four singles as the
Balearic beat Balearic beat, also known as Balearic house, Balearic, Ibiza house or Ibizan chillout, is an eclectic blend of DJ-led dance music that emerged in the mid-1980s. It later became the name of a more specific style of electronic dance music that wa ...
band Electra, in Full Frequency Range Recordings (
FFRR Records FFRR Records (sometimes credited as Full Frequency Range Recordings) is a dance music label previously run and founded by English DJ Pete Tong. Originally the dance music label of London Records, FFRR is currently a sublabel of Parlophone, ...
) founded and run by Radio 1's
Pete Tong Peter Michael Tong, (born 30 July 1960) is an English disc jockey who works for BBC Radio 1. He is the host of programmes such as ''Essential Mix'' and ''Essential Selection'' on the radio service, which can be heard through Internet radio stre ...
, the duo created a new alias under the name Perfecto. Also in 1988 he decided to create a place where new artists could develop their careers. At that moment,
Perfecto Records Perfecto Records is a British trance record label, founded by Paul Oakenfold in 1989. Perfecto was also a remix team consisting of Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne and in its later years, Osborne was replaced by Andy Gray. Perfecto Records h ...
was born. He collaborated with his friend
Steve Osborne Stephen John "Steve" Osborne (born 1963) is a British record producer, living in Bath, England. He has worked with a wide variety of musicians, including Suede, the B-52s, A-ha, New Order, Elbow, U2, Happy Mondays, Placebo, Gregory Porter, Do ...
on various projects. In 1990, he worked with
Terry Farley Terry Farley is a British DJ, remixer and producer from London, active since the mid-1980s. Career Farley started out going to clubs in the late 1970s and first visited Ibiza in 1982. He then started working as a DJ, performing at the same clubs ...
,
Andrew Weatherall Andrew James Weatherall (6 April 1963 – 17 February 2020) was an English musician, DJ, songwriter, producer and remixer. His career took him from being one of the key DJs in the acid house movement of the late 1980s to being a remixer of trac ...
and Osborne on two remixes for
Happy Mondays Happy Mondays are an English rock band formed in Salford in 1980. The original line-up was Shaun Ryder (vocals), his brother Paul Ryder (bass), Gary Whelan (drums), Paul Davis (keyboard), and Mark Day (guitar). Mark "Bez" Berry later joine ...
. The remixes of "Rave On" and "Hallelujah" were released on the ''Madchester Rave On'' EP, as well as "Step On", a cover version adapted from
John Kongos John Theodore Kongos (born 6 August 1945) is a South African-born singer and songwriter of Greek ancestry, best known for his 1971 Top 10 hit single "He's Gonna Step on You Again", on which Happy Mondays based their hit " Step On". His other big ...
' 1971 hit "He's Gonna Step on You". The song reached the top 5 position in the UK. He was invited as a guest DJ to Spike Island, a gig with
the Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...
. Pleased with the last single, the Happy Mondays gave Oakenfold and Osborne the opportunity to produce their third studio album, ''
Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches ''Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches'' is the third studio album by English rock band Happy Mondays, released on 5 November 1990 by Factory Records. DJ Paul Oakenfold and collaborator Steve Osbourne were previously enlisted by the band for remixe ...
''. The album entered the UK charts at number one with pre-sales of 150,000. The album was named ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
''s 1990 Album of the Year, and both Oakenfold and Osborne won the 1991
Brit Award The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...
for Best Producer. In 1991, they remixed
Massive Attack Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol by Robert "3D" Del Naja, Adrian "Tricky" Thaws, Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. The debut Massive Attack album '' Blue Lines'' was releas ...
's "Safe from Harm" as well as many others.


Tours and nightclubs: 1992–2000

In 1992, when U2 released their song "
Even Better Than the Real Thing "Even Better Than the Real Thing" is a song by Irish rock band U2, and is the second track on their 1991 album, ''Achtung Baby''. It was released as the album's fourth single on 8 June 1992, and it reached number three in Ireland and Canada whi ...
", the Perfecto remix reached a higher charted position than the original song. In 1993 with the success of his last remix as Perfecto, he was hired by U2 to provide the warm-up sonics to their Zoo TV world tour, and replaced BP Fallon in the 1993 legs of Europe and Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, with more than fifty shows in Zooropa '93 and Zoomerang from 7 May to 10 December of the same year. Also in 1993, Oakenfold and Osborne's project
Grace Grace may refer to: Places United States * Grace, Idaho, a city * Grace (CTA station), Chicago Transit Authority's Howard Line, Illinois * Little Goose Creek (Kentucky), location of Grace post office * Grace, Carroll County, Missouri, an uninco ...
was formed as State of Grace and featuring vocals by Patti Low, though by the time Grace had charted a number of singles in the UK charts (around 1996), it had become a 'solo fronted project' with jazz singer
Dominique Atkins Dominique Atkins (born 29 April 1970) is a British jazz and dance singer from London. She has been a member of such groups as Grace and The Space Brothers, among others. Her hit singles include "Not Over Yet", "Skin On Skin", "If I Could Fly", "Do ...
as the lead vocalist. The project was dissolved in 1997 as Oakenfold was touring as a performance DJ more frequently and could not commit to recording, though a remixed version of "Not Over Yet" was issued under the 'Planet Perfecto featuring Grace' name in 1999. In September 1994 and again in 1998, he teamed up with
Steve Osborne Stephen John "Steve" Osborne (born 1963) is a British record producer, living in Bath, England. He has worked with a wide variety of musicians, including Suede, the B-52s, A-ha, New Order, Elbow, U2, Happy Mondays, Placebo, Gregory Porter, Do ...
and
Ben Hillier Ben Hillier is an English songwriter and pop-rock record producer who is part of the creative team 140 dB. He produced the notable albums ''Playing the Angel'', ''Sounds of the Universe'' and ''Delta Machine'' by Depeche Mode, ''Think Tank' ...
to remix
the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
song "
You Got Me Rocking "You Got Me Rocking" is a song by the English rock and roll band the Rolling Stones, on their 1994 album, ''Voodoo Lounge''. Begun early in 1993, "You Got Me Rocking" was initially a blues flavoured number; bootlegs have Jagger and Richards wor ...
" and
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...
's " Out of My Mind". He began producing his own tracks as well, continuing to remix songs from popular artists. He began using Goa music, something he discovered on the beaches of
Goa Goa () is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is located between the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north and Karnataka to the ...
in India, fusing it with similar-sounding European tracks to create his own distinct sound. He took this to the mainstream in 1994 and created a pair of two-hour sets for
BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
's ''
Essential Mix The ''Essential Mix'' is a weekly radio show on BBC Radio 1 currently broadcast between 0:00 and 2:00 a.m. UK time on Saturday morning. Originally broadcast on 30 October 1993, the ''Essential Mix'' features contemporary DJs and music produce ...
''; the first of these was broadcast in the early hours of Sunday 20 March 1994, with the second being '' The Goa Mix'' broadcast on Sunday 18 December 1994. His album ''
Perfecto Fluoro ''Perfecto Fluoro'' is the fifth DJ mix album by British electronic producer and disc jockey Paul Oakenfold, released in 1996 on Oakenfold's label Perfecto Records, then a subsidiary of Warner Music UK who are also credited. Recorded eighteen m ...
'' became the No. 1 essential dance collection of Boston Beat during 1996 with
Jamiroquai Jamiroquai () are an English funk and acid jazz band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in the ...
's ''
Travelling Without Moving ''Travelling Without Moving'' is the third studio album by English funk and acid jazz band Jamiroquai, released on 28 August 1996 in Japan, then on 9 September 1996 in the United Kingdom under Sony Soho Square. Front-man Jay Kay intended for t ...
''. On 9 June 1997, Oakenfold created '' Global Underground 004: Paul Oakenfold, Live in Oslo'' (GU004) which is a double mix CD in the ''
Global Underground Global Underground is a British record label and compilation series founded in 1996 by Andy Horsfield and James Todd. The label symbolised the international explosion of dance music during the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s and first manifesto for hi ...
'' series. Compiled and mixed by Oakenfold, it is the first work he created for GU. The mix was recorded live at Cosmopolite Club in
Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
, Norway, as part of the official launch of the
Quart Festival The Quart Festival was an annual popular music festival that took place in Kristiansand, Norway in the beginning of July, from 1991 to 2008. It was the most visited music festival in Norway. It was first named ''Qvadradurmusivalen'' in 1991, but ...
. It showcased Oakenfold's eclectic taste in music at the time, as the mix combines various forms of dance music. In 1997, Oakenfold mixed one disc of the double album ''Fantazia Presents the House Collection 6'', a UK
house music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...
compilation series. Oakenfold became Cream's resident DJ from 1997–1999. During this time, he began to concentrate on the release of ''
Tranceport Tranceport is a trance music DJ mix album series. The series debuted in November 1998 with Paul Oakenfold's '' Tranceport'', released on Kinetic Records. The album featured many trance songs that were receiving a lot of dance club play at the tim ...
'' in 1998. In 1998 and 1999, Oakenfold took the first place in ''
DJ Mag ''DJ Magazine'' (also known as ''DJ Mag'') is a British monthly magazine dedicated to electronic dance music and DJs. Founded in 1991, the magazine is adapted for distribution in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Lat ...
''s Top 100 DJs. With the two-year contract as a resident in
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
's Cream, it was in 1999 that he released ''
Resident. Two Years of Oakenfold at Cream. ''Resident. Two Years of Oakenfold at Cream.'' is a DJ mix album by Paul Oakenfold. Critical reception Jason Birchmeier of Allmusic rated the album four stars out of five, saying "Practically every track Oakenfold drops is an anthem, having be ...
'' on
Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...
.
Thrive Records Thrive Music is a United States-based record label founded in Los Angeles, California, by music industry entrepreneur, Ricardo Vinas. History Thrive Records was founded in 1997 by electronic music trailblazer Ricardo Vinas, as a joint venture ...
, the US distributor for early
Global Underground Global Underground is a British record label and compilation series founded in 1996 by Andy Horsfield and James Todd. The label symbolised the international explosion of dance music during the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s and first manifesto for hi ...
releases had a different numbering scheme for the ''Global Underground'' albums; due to this '' Global Underground 007: Paul Oakenfold, New York'' (GU007) was released as (GU002) in the United States only. The compilation was released on 25 May 1998, with the US release on 19 January 1999. This was the second production from Oakenfold with GU and it contained trance,
drum and bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...
, progressive house, progressive trance,
breakbeat Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and UK ...
and
downtempo Downtempo (or downbeat) is a broad label for electronic music that features an atmospheric sound and slower beats than would typically be found in dance music. Closely related to ambient music but with greater emphasis on rhythm, the style may ...
. This became his last work with GU. In 1999, he became the first DJ to play on the main stage at the
Glastonbury Festival Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contemp ...
for 90,000 people, which he considers his favorite gig. Also in that year, he moved to the United States where he went on tour. In 2000, he created fourteen tracks of jazz, soul, house and Goa based styles with Mitchell Oakenfold. Twenty-four FX and scratches loops and sounds were included too, each consisting of six seconds; the album cover says "Only for DJs and Producers" and was released on Music of Life. In March 2000, he teamed up with
Steve Osborne Stephen John "Steve" Osborne (born 1963) is a British record producer, living in Bath, England. He has worked with a wide variety of musicians, including Suede, the B-52s, A-ha, New Order, Elbow, U2, Happy Mondays, Placebo, Gregory Porter, Do ...
, Andy Gray and Bruno Ellingham to remix
Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...
's song "
Natural Blues "Natural Blues" is a song by American electronic musician Moby. It was released on March 6, 2000, as the fifth single from his fifth studio album, '' Play'' (1999). The song is built around vocals sampled from "Trouble So Hard" by American folk ...
". Sometime before July 2000, he teamed up with Andy Gray to write and produce the
theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...
for the
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
reality show '' Big Brother'' under the name
Elementfour Elementfour (variants Element Four and Element 4) was a music producing duo made up of DJ Paul Oakenfold and musician/composer Andy Gray. Sometime before July 2000, they collaborated in writing and producing the opening theme for the Channel ...
. The series started airing on 18 July 2000, with the theme later released as a single. The programme and theme moved over to Channel 5 from 18 August 2011 to 5 November 2018. In September 2000, he opened the new
Digital Radio Digital radio is the use of digital technology to transmit or receive across the radio spectrum. Digital transmission by radio waves includes digital broadcasting, and especially digital audio radio services. Types In digital broadcasting syst ...
station
Ministry of Sound Radio The Ministry of Sound Radio (MoS) began service as a United Kingdom, UK-based radio station operating since 1999. It was accessible on the Ministry of Sound website as streaming audio until March 2016. Current MoS radio's DJs include: DJ Bailey, ...
with a live mix from the famous London club. Oakenfold appeared in the intro scene of EA's ''Euro 2000'' video game, which featured him using his turntables to activate the video game and control various players. He also composed the game's soundtrack, which featured 7 tracks including a remix of the official anthem of the tournament.


Pioneer in America: 2000–2001

After his success in Europe, one of Oakenfold's first major events in America was
Fresno, California Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, makin ...
's Cyberfest on 22 July 2000. The 500 acre indoor and outdoor central California location had the biggest dance capacity ever in America. An estimated 80,000 dancers and music lovers from
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
,
Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...
,
Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, and
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
were welcomed that day. Cyberfest 2000, also known as the "Festival Of The Future" featured other DJs such as
Chemical Brothers The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons in Manchester in 1989. They were pioneers (along with the Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, the Crystal Method, and other acts) in bringing the big beat genre ...
, BT, and
Carl Cox Carl Cox (born 29 July 1962) is a British house and techno club DJ, as well as radio DJ and record producer. He is based in Hove, Sussex, England. Cox has won and been nominated for numerous awards. He has performed at numerous clubs and e ...
. Cyberfest 2000 paved the way for other major events in the area such as the Electric Daisy Carnival in Los Angeles in 2010. In 2001, Oakenfold took part in the first
Area Festival The Area Festival was a music festival founded by popular electronic musician Moby, who asserted that he was "in large part, inspired by the ethos of Lollapalooza", and wished to create a similarly "genuinely eclectic, interesting, alternative ...
tour. This tour featured
Incubus An incubus is a demon in male form in folklore that seeks to have sexual intercourse with sleeping women; the corresponding spirit in female form is called a succubus. In medieval Europe, union with an incubus was supposed by some to result in t ...
,
Carl Cox Carl Cox (born 29 July 1962) is a British house and techno club DJ, as well as radio DJ and record producer. He is based in Hove, Sussex, England. Cox has won and been nominated for numerous awards. He has performed at numerous clubs and e ...
,
the Orb The Orb are an English electronic music group founded in 1988 by Alex Paterson and Jimmy Cauty. Known for their psychedelic sound, the Orb developed a cult following among clubbers "coming down" from drug-induced highs. Their influential 19 ...
, OutKast, and
the Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...
. He later released a new
compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...
, '' Perfecto Presents: Ibiza''. 2001 also saw the release of the video game ''
Frequency Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit of time. It is also occasionally referred to as ''temporal frequency'' for clarity, and is distinct from ''angular frequency''. Frequency is measured in hertz (Hz) which is eq ...
'', for which Oakenfold produced one track, "See It".
Global Underground Global Underground is a British record label and compilation series founded in 1996 by Andy Horsfield and James Todd. The label symbolised the international explosion of dance music during the 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s and first manifesto for hi ...
sold over 150,000 copies of Oakenfold's previous ''Global Underground: New York''. A spokesperson for the label claimed that in the US, demand for UK dance music had been increasing in the past couple of years, and now made up over two-thirds of the label's sales. The Global Underground New York office opened in on Ninth Avenue in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
. The Mekka Electronic Music Festival, otherwise known as the "electronic
Lollapallooza Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual ...
" took place in ten cities in the United States and Canada during August and September, including
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
,
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
,
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
and
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
. The event featured Paul, Armand van Helden,
De La Soul De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative ...
,
LTJ Bukem Daniel Williamson (born 20 September 1967), better known as LTJ Bukem (), is a British drum and bass musician, producer and DJ. He and his record label Good Looking are most associated with the jazzy, atmospheric side of drum and bass music. ...
,
Josh Wink Joshua Winkelman (born April 20, 1970), better known by his stage name Josh Wink, is an American electronic dance music DJ, label owner, producer, and remixer. He is a native of Philadelphia, United States. A pioneering DJ in the American rav ...
,
Derrick Carter Derrick Carter (born October 21, 1969) is an American DJ, record producer and musician from Chicago, Illinois, United States. He is regarded as one of the bestRoni Size Ryan Owen Granville Williams (born 29 October 1969), better known by his stage name Roni Size, is an English DJ and record producer. He came to prominence in 1997 as the founder and frontman of Roni Size & Reprazent, a drum and bass collective. ...
, Deep Dish, BT,
The Crystal Method The Crystal Method is an American electronic music act formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, by Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland in the early 1990s. They were pioneers of the big beat genre and their music has appeared in numerous TV shows, films, video gam ...
,
Carl Craig Carl Craig (born May 22, 1969) is an American electronic music producer, DJ, and founder of the record label Planet E Communications. He is known as a leading figure and pioneer in the second wave of Detroit techno artists during the late 1980s ...
and
Überzone Timothy Wiles, known by the stage name Überzone, is an electronic musician originally from Anaheim, California. He has also been known as Q, named after the popular character in the James Bond series. Wiles is well known for concocting interes ...
. Oakenfold next moved to
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
to work on film soundtracks and to focus his DJing stateside. In 2001 he created the soundtrack for the film '' Swordfish'', '' Swordfish: The Album'' contained a transformation of "Planet Rock" into a seven-minute
breakbeat Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and UK ...
trance anthem. Most of the tracks are collaborations with Andy Gray, the remix of
N.E.R.D. N.E.R.D. (stylized as N⋆E⋆R⋆D and N.E.R.D, a backronym of No-one Ever Really Dies) is an American hip hop and rock band, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1999. Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo were signed by Teddy Riley to Virgin Reco ...
's "Lapdance" which gained total notability from other tracks. The soundtrack was produced under
Village Roadshow Village Roadshow Limited is an Australian company which operates cinemas and theme parks, and produces and distributes films. Before being acquired by private equity company BGH Capital, the company was listed on the Australian Securities Ex ...
and
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
and distributed through
London-Sire Records London-Sire Records was an American-based record label owned by Warner Music Group, created in August 1999 with the merging of Warner Music Group's struggling Sire Records Group and the US division of London Recordings, which WMG had acquired fr ...
. Oakenfold recorded a track with
Crazy Town Crazy Town (sometimes abbreviated as CXT) is an American rap rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1995 by Bret Mazur and Seth Binzer. Crazy Town is best known for their 2000 hit single "Butterfly", which reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' ...
vocalist
Shifty Shellshock Seth Brooks Binzer (born August 23, 1974), better known by his stage name Shifty Shellshock, is an American musician, best known for being a co-founder and front man of the rap rock band Crazy Town, known for their hit song "Butterfly". He has a ...
at the end of the year for his new album. In an interview with ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'', Shellshock said that the track known as " Starry Eyed Surprise" was created after the pair met at a Crazy Town show.


''Bunkka'': 2002–2004

In 2002, '' Bunkka'' became his first official studio album when he signed to
Maverick Maverick, Maveric or Maverik may refer to: History * Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick Aviation * AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design * General Aviation Design Burea ...
. The name ''Bunkka'' came from
Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
's studio in the UK, where the album was recorded. An extended play was released featuring live versions of four songs under Peoplesound Records. It is also Oakenfold's best selling album to date, with sales largely exceeding 1,000,000 (1 million) copies worldwide. The album features vocals from Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell on "Time of Your Life" and
Shifty Shellshock Seth Brooks Binzer (born August 23, 1974), better known by his stage name Shifty Shellshock, is an American musician, best known for being a co-founder and front man of the rap rock band Crazy Town, known for their hit song "Butterfly". He has a ...
of Los Angeles rock and rap band
Crazy Town Crazy Town (sometimes abbreviated as CXT) is an American rap rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1995 by Bret Mazur and Seth Binzer. Crazy Town is best known for their 2000 hit single "Butterfly", which reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' ...
on " Starry Eyed Surprise";
Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be produc ...
on "Get Em Up"; and Tricky and
Nelly Furtado Nelly Kim Furtado (; ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Furtado has sold over 40 million records worldwide making her one of the most successful Canadian artists. She first gained fame with her trip hop-inspired deb ...
on "The Harder They Come". The album contains appearances by Asher D of
So Solid Crew So Solid Crew are a British UK garage and hip hop collective originating from the area on and surrounding the Winstanley and York Road Estates in Battersea, London which achieved wide success in the early 2000s. The group consisted of many m ...
on " Ready Steady Go", and Grant-Lee Philips, founder of the '90s Los Angeles rock band
Grant Lee Buffalo Grant Lee Buffalo was an American rock band based in Los Angeles, California, United States, consisting of Grant-Lee Phillips (vocals and guitar), Paul Kimble (bass) and Joey Peters (drums). All three were previously members of another Los Ange ...
is also included with
Carmen Rizzo Carmen Rizzo (born April 8, 1964) is an American record producer, mixer, programmer, DJ, remixer and recording artist, based in Los Angeles. The two-time Grammy nominee has worked with Seal, Coldplay, Paul Oakenfold, Alanis Morissette, Dido, Je ...
's version of his song "Motion". ''Bunkka'' also provided the start to three new artists, Carla Werner on the single " Southern Sun",
Tiff Lacey Tiffany "Tiff" Lacey (born 29 October 1965) is an English trance and electronic dance music (EDM) vocal singer, songwriter, author, and painter. She is the vocalist on several electronic music singles. Best known for her international singles ...
on "Hypnotised" and
Emiliana Torrini Emiliana is a feminine name of Italian origin. It can refer to: As a given name * Emiliana of Trasilla and Emiliana, Catholic saints * Emilíana Torrini Emilíana Torrini (born 16 May 1977) is an Icelandic singer and songwriter. She is bes ...
on "Hold Your Hand". Hunter S. Thompson's spoken words are provided on "Nixon's Spirit". Pakistani musician
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan ( pa, ; born Pervez Fateh Ali Khan; 13 October 1948 – 16 August 1997) was a Pakistani singer, songwriter, and music director. He was primarily a singer of qawwali — a form of Sufi music, Sufi devotional music. ...
's composition was adapted in an electronic version on the tracks "Zoo York". In 2002, ''Q'' magazine named Oakenfold in their list of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die". In 2002, Oakenfold revealed he had struggled with
dyslexia Dyslexia, also known until the 1960s as word blindness, is a disorder characterized by reading below the expected level for one's age. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, r ...
as a child and announced his intention to help dyslexic children. In 2002, Oakenfold remixed
David Arnold David Arnold (born 23 January 1962) is a British film composer whose credits include scoring five James Bond films, as well as ''Stargate'' (1994), '' Independence Day'' (1996), ''Godzilla'' (1998) and the television series ''Little Britain'' ...
's "
James Bond Theme The "James Bond Theme" is the main signature theme music of the James Bond films and has featured in every Eon Productions#James Bond series, Eon Productions Bond film since ''Dr. No (film), Dr. No'', released in 1962. Composed by Monty Norman ...
"; the song was released under
Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...
and was followed by the album's next two singles after "Starry Eyed Surprise", " Ready Steady Go" and " Southern Sun". "Southern Sun" with Carla Werner was first issued as a B-side of "Ready Steady Go" until it was included on
Tiësto Tijs Michiel Verwest (; born 17 January 1969), known professionally as Tiësto ( ), is a Dutch DJ and music producer from Breda. He was voted "the Greatest DJ of All Time" by '' Mix'' magazine in a 2010/2011 poll amongst fans. In 2013, he was ...
's '' In Search of Sunrise 3: Panama'' compilation with his own remix of the song. "Southern Sun" became a hit as it was then released as the A-side of "Ready Steady Go" in mid-2002. "Ready Steady Go" was featured in
Saab Saab or SAAB may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Saab Group, a Swedish aerospace and defence company, formerly known as SAAB, and later as Saab AB ** Datasaab, a former computer company, started as spin off from Saab AB * Saab Automobile, a fo ...
commercials, the 2003
EA Sports EA Sports is a division of Electronic Arts that develops and publishes sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to imitate real-life sports networks by calling themselves the "EA Sports Network" ...
game ''
Tiger Woods PGA Tour ''PGA Tour'' is a series of golf video games developed and published by Electronic Arts - and later their EA Sports sub-label - since 1990. The series primarily features courses featured on the U.S. PGA Tour, and other notable courses (such as t ...
'', the
THQ THQ Inc. was an American video game company based in Agoura Hills, California. It was founded in April 1990 by Jack Friedman, originally in Calabasas, and became a public company the following year through a reverse merger takeover. Initi ...
game ''
Juiced Juiced may refer to: * ''Juiced'' (video game), a racing video game ** Juiced (series), the subsequent series of games * ''Juiced'' (book), a book by Jose Canseco noted for revealing the extent of steroid use in baseball * '' Juiced.GS'', a maga ...
'', the pilot for the television program ''
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
'', and as the
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
theme song for 2006. It appears in the video game series ''
Dance Dance Revolution (''DDR'') is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, ''Dance Dance Revolution'' is the pioneering series of the rhythm and dance V ...
'' in ''DDR Ultramix'' for the
Xbox Xbox is a video gaming brand created and owned by Microsoft. The brand consists of five video game consoles, as well as applications (games), streaming services, an online service by the name of Xbox network, and the development arm by the na ...
, the '' Fastlane'' episode "Dogtown" and the ''
Alias Alias may refer to: * Pseudonym * Pen name * Nickname Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Alias'' (2013 film), a 2013 Canadian documentary film * ''Alias'' (TV series), an American action thriller series 2001–2006 * ''Alias the ...
'' episode "Snowman". "Ready Steady Go" was also listed as the number one song that makes you drive faster by UpVenue. Also in 2003, he remixed another hit soundtrack for 'Elvis Presley' which charted fairly well after his 2003 remix of "Rubberneckin'" made the top three in Australia and top five in the UK. This remix contributed to the Elvis phenomenon of the 21st century. In an earlier episode of ''
Radio Free Roscoe ''Radio Free Roscoe'' is a Canadian teen comedy-drama television series. The series was filmed in Toronto, Ontario, and produced by Decode Entertainment. It first aired on August 1, 2003, on Family Channel in Canada. It has also been dubbed in ...
'', "The Imposter", a 2005 series on
The N The N (standing for Noggin) was a nighttime programming block on the Noggin television channel, aimed at preteens and teenagers. It was launched on April 1, 2002, by Viacom and Sesame Workshop. Before the block's introduction, Noggin's daytim ...
, a character Travis Strong DJed to the song, acting as if it were his own. It has also been used in the
film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dial ...
of
Anthony Horowitz Anthony John Horowitz, (born 5 April 1955) is an English novelist and screenwriter specialising in mystery and suspense. His works for children and young adult readers include ''The Diamond Brothers'' series, the ''Alex Rider'' series, and ''T ...
's novel ''
Stormbreaker ''Stormbreaker'' is a young adult fiction, young adult action-adventure book written by British author Anthony Horowitz, and is the first novel in the Alex Rider, ''Alex Rider'' series. The book was released in the United Kingdom on the 4th of ...
'', '' The Bourne Identity'' and it was reproduced with
Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...
lyrics for the film ''
Collateral Collateral may refer to: Business and finance * Collateral (finance), a borrower's pledge of specific property to a lender, to secure repayment of a loan * Marketing collateral, in marketing and sales Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Collate ...
''. The song has also been used during the performances of extreme freestyle water ski jumpers, and later became the theme song for the TV show ''
TRL Italy ''Total Request Live'' is the Italian version of the American television program of the same name that originated in 1999. Originally broadcast weekdays at 2.00 p.m., its time slot was changed as it ran into its second season. It was broadcast at ...
'' from 2003 till 2005. The EP ''The Harder They Come'' was released on Perfecto and featured other works from Oakenfold and other artists. At the
Creamfields Creamfields is an electronic dance music festival series founded and organised by British club promoter Cream, with its UK edition taking place on August Bank Holiday weekend, with a number of international editions held across various territ ...
event in 2002 at Speke Airfield, DJs such as Oakenfold, Seb Fontaine and
Paul van Dyk Matthias Paul (; born 16 December 1971), known professionally as Paul van Dyk () is a German DJ, record producer and musician. One of the first true renowned DJs, van Dyk was the first artist to receive a Grammy Award nomination in the newly a ...
performed along with Dave Clarke,
Jon Carter Jon Carter (born 1970 in Essex, England) is an English electronic musician. He initially rose to prominence in the 1990s as a big beat DJ. However, as his career progressed both his productions and his DJ sets became known for including a vari ...
,
Richie Hawtin Richard "Richie" Hawtin (born June 4, 1970) is a British-Canadian electronic musician and DJ. He became involved with Detroit techno's second wave in the early 1990s, and has been a leading exponent of minimal techno since the mid-1990s. He becam ...
and
Felix Da Housecat Felix da Housecat (born Felix Stallings Jr., August 25, 1971) is an American DJ and record producer, mostly known for house music and electro. Felix is regarded as a member of the second wave of Chicago house Musical career Early life Stall ...
. The event also featured live appearances from
Basement Jaxx Basement Jaxx are an English electronic music duo consisting of Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe. The pair got their name from the regular club night they held in Brixton, London, UK. They first rose to popularity in the underground house scene ...
, All Saints,
Death in Vegas Death in Vegas are an English electronic music group, for which Richard Fearless serves as frontman. The band was formed in 1994 by Fearless and Steve Hellier and signed to Concrete Records under the name of Dead Elvis. Owing to an Irish record ...
and
Moloko Moloko () were an Irish-English electronic music duo formed in Sheffield, England, consisting of vocalist Róisín Murphy and producer Mark Brydon. Blending elements of electronica and dance music, they are best known for their UK top 10 sin ...
. In 2003, Oakenfold released the fourth single of his album, "Hypnotised" which became successful enough to be included on his next compilation from the ''Perfecto Presents...'' series, '' Perfecto Presents: Great Wall'' which also included the
Deepsky Deepsky is an electronic music act based in Los Angeles. Originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico, Deepsky was formed in 1995 by J. Scott G. and Jason Blum after the dissolution of their first band Q, active from 1992-1995. Its two founding membe ...
remix of the song as well as tracks like Motorcycle's "
As the Rush Comes "As the Rush Comes" is a song by American progressive group Motorcycle. Motorcycle was a collaboration between San Francisco-based trance duo Gabriel & Dresden with vocalist Jes. It was released as the group's first single in 2003 and was a num ...
",
Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct three-octave vocal range and eccentric persona, she has de ...
's "
Pagan Poetry "Pagan Poetry" is a song recorded by Icelandic singer Björk for her fourth studio album ''Vespertine'' (2001). It was released as the second single from the album on 5 November 2001, by One Little Indian Records. A moderate commercial success, ...
", UNKLE's remix of Ian Brown's " F.E.A.R." and Oakenfold's remix of
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
's song " Hollywood". In 2003, Oakenfold produced a remix of "
Pourvu qu'elles soient douces "" (English: "As Long as They're Soft/Gentle/or Sweet") is a 1988 synthpop song by the French artist Mylène Farmer. Third single from her second studio album '' Ainsi soit je...'', it was released on 12 September 1988. The long music video ver ...
", a 1988 hit by French singer
Mylène Farmer Mylène Jeanne Gautier (; born 12 September 1961), known professionally as Mylène Farmer (), is a Canadian-born French singer, songwriter, occasional actress, writer, and entrepreneur. Having sold more than 30 million records in France, she is ...
. With the event of
Creamfields Creamfields is an electronic dance music festival series founded and organised by British club promoter Cream, with its UK edition taking place on August Bank Holiday weekend, with a number of international editions held across various territ ...
that took place in 2004, Oakenfold released a compilation of songs he played during the event as well as tracks influenced by the environment and the vibe of deejays such as
Paul van Dyk Matthias Paul (; born 16 December 1971), known professionally as Paul van Dyk () is a German DJ, record producer and musician. One of the first true renowned DJs, van Dyk was the first artist to receive a Grammy Award nomination in the newly a ...
,
Armin van Buuren Armin Jozef Jacobus Daniël van Buuren ( , ; born 25 December 1976) is a Dutch DJ and record producer from Leiden, South Holland. Since 2001, he has hosted ''A State of Trance'' (ASOT), a weekly radio show, which is broadcast to nearly 40&nbs ...
,
Ferry Corsten Ferry Corsten (; born 4 December 1973) is a Dutch disc jockey, record producer and remixer from Rotterdam. He is well known for producing many pioneering trance tracks during the 1990s–2000s under his numerous aliases, including System F, Moon ...
,
Judge Jules Julius O'Riordan (born 1966), better known by his stage name Judge Jules, is a British dance music DJ, record producer and entertainment lawyer. He is known for his DJ activities, music production and long-running radio show which achieved glob ...
, Fergie,
Tall Paul "Tall Paul" is a song recorded by Annette Funicello and written by the Sherman Brothers, along with Bob Roberts. Background It marked the first time that a female singer reached a top ten slot with a rock and roll single. It also spotlighted An ...
, Eddie Halliwell, Chris Lawrence, Adam Sheridan, Shan, and Alex Kidd at the
Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...
/ Goodgreef and ''
Mixmag ''Mixmag'' is a British electronic dance and clubbing magazine published in London. Launched in 1983 as a print magazine, it has branched into dance events, including festivals and club nights. History The first issue of ''Mixmag'' was prin ...
'' Arena.


''A Lively Mind'', ''Greatest Hits & Remixes, Vol. 1'' and side work: 2005–2007

In 2005, Oakenfold was contacted by the car manufacturer
Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...
to create a free promotional CD available from
aygo The Toyota Aygo is a city car (A-segment) marketed by Toyota mainly in the European market between 2005 and 2021 across two generations. The Aygo was first displayed at the Geneva International Motor Show#2005, 2005 Geneva International Motor Sh ...
.com to promote a new Toyota car. The CD contained only seven songs which he worked on with Ian Green; the album was entitled ''Feed Your Mind''. During Oakenfold's career he has remixed a variety of songs from
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
, like "
What It Feels Like for a Girl "What It Feels Like for a Girl" is a song recorded by American singer Madonna for her eighth studio album ''Music'' (2000). It was released as the third and final single from the album on April 16, 2001, by Maverick Records. Madonna and Guy Sigs ...
", " Hollywood", "
American Life ''American Life'' is the ninth studio album by American singer Madonna. It was released on April 21, 2003, by Maverick and Warner Bros. Records. The album, produced by the singer and Mirwais Ahmadzaï, features references to many parts of Ame ...
", " Sorry" and later in 2008 "
Give It 2 Me "Give It 2 Me" is a song by American singer and songwriter Madonna, featured on her 11th studio album ''Hard Candy''. It was released on June 24, 2008, by Warner Bros. Records as the second single from the album. The song was written by Madon ...
" from her album ''
Hard Candy A hard candy (American English), or boiled sweet (British English), is a sugar candy prepared from one or more sugar-based syrups that is heated to a temperature of 160 °C (320 °F) to make candy. Among the many hard candy varietie ...
'', Oakenfold went on tour with Madonna for two months opening her presentation in the
Confessions Tour The Confessions Tour was the seventh concert tour by American singer-songwriter Madonna, launched in support of her tenth studio album, ''Confessions on a Dance Floor'' (2005). The tour began in Inglewood on May 21, 2006, and ended in Tokyo on ...
, previously he had supported her in 2004 at
Slane Castle Slane Castle (Irish ''Cáisleán Bhaile Shláine'') is located in the village of Slane, within the Boyne Valley of County Meath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The castle has been the family seat of the Marquess Conyngham, Conyngham family since i ...
in Ireland. His sets lasted for an hour and a half, followed by Madonna's two-hour show. Oakenfold remixed the ''
Transformers ''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the Autobots and the Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms, suc ...
'' theme as the theme song for the TV series, ''
Transformers Cybertron ''Transformers: Cybertron'', known as in Japan, is an anime series which debuted on January 8, 2005. It is set in the Transformers Universes, ''Transformers'' universe. Produced by Aichi Television Broadcasting, We've, Tokyu Agency and Gonzo ...
''. He also contributed with his single "Beautiful Goal" for the
FIFA Football 2005 ''FIFA Football 2005'', also known as ''FIFA Soccer 2005'' in North America or simply ''FIFA 2005'', is a football simulation video game released in 2004. It was developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for the Pl ...
video game. His single "Ready Steady Go" was composed for the 2005 video game ''
Juiced Juiced may refer to: * ''Juiced'' (video game), a racing video game ** Juiced (series), the subsequent series of games * ''Juiced'' (book), a book by Jose Canseco noted for revealing the extent of steroid use in baseball * '' Juiced.GS'', a maga ...
''. His second studio album, '' A Lively Mind'' was released on 6 June 2006. Receiving unsuccessful reviews, the first single "
Faster Kill Pussycat "Faster Kill Pussycat" is the first single from British producer Oakenfold's second studio album, '' A Lively Mind'' (2006). The song features American actress Brittany Murphy's vocals and was co-written by singer-songwriter Kelli Ali (former v ...
", a collaboration with the actress
Brittany Murphy Brittany Anne Murphy-Monjack (; November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009) was an American actress and singer. Born in Atlanta, Murphy moved to Los Angeles as a teenager and pursued a career in acting. Her breakthrough role was as Tai Fras ...
, was released on 2 May 2006; the second single was "
Sex 'n' Money "Sex 'n' Money" is a song by DJ Oakenfold from his second solo artist release ''A Lively Mind'', featuring the vocals of Pharrell Williams. Music video The animated music video based on the fable of Cupid and Psyche, and directed by Christopher ...
". Both songs stand out from the rest, as most of the album has a more trance-like feel. Gregory Jeffries from
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
stated the album might have been in the nominated albums of dance music in 1997 but not in 2006, as the album has guitars with disco sounds that might be only appealing to trance addicts. In 2007, he played live at the
Boston Pops The Boston Pops Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symp ...
which created a piece of orchestral music with electronic music. The event took place in Miami for 10,000 people with a 75-piece orchestra, he wrote a piece of music which he described as "difficult". In 2007 he was nominated to 2
International Dance Music Awards The International Dance Music Awards or IDMAs is an annual awards ceremony held in Miami Beach, Florida, United States as a major part of the Winter Music Conference. The awards have been held every year since the conference's creation in 1985 e ...
(IDMA) at the
Winter Music Conference The Winter Music Conference (WMC) is a week-long electronic music conference, held every March in Miami Beach, Florida, United States since 1985. It is also known as the premiere platform for electronic dance music. The conference brings togethe ...
(WMC), ''Best Underground Dance Track'' for "Faster Kill Pussycat" and ''Best Full Length DJ Mix CD'' for " A Lively Mind". 2007 saw the publication of the first official biography of Paul Oakenfold, written by Richard Norris of The Grid and Beyond the Wizard's Sleeve fame. ''Paul Oakenfold: The Authorised Biography'' was published by
Bantam Press Bantam Press is an imprint of Transworld Publishers which is a British publishing division of Penguin Random House. It is based on Uxbridge Road in Ealing Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the ...
on 24 September 2007. Oakenfold is a self-professed supporter of
association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
clubs
Chelsea F.C. Chelsea Football Club is an English professional football club based in Fulham, West London. Founded in 1905, they play their home games at Stamford Bridge. The club competes in the Premier League, the top division of English football ...
and Los Angeles FC. It was thought that he played a zombie in the movie '' 28 Weeks Later'' however this is incorrect, he was offered the opportunity but turned it down. He also scored the soundtrack for the 2007 Japanese CGI anime film ''
Vexille is a 2007 Japanese CGI anime film, written, directed, and edited by Fumihiko Sori, and features the voices of Meisa Kuroki, Yasuko Matsuyuki, and Shosuke Tanihara. At the 60th Locarno International Film Festival, where ''Vexille'' made its wor ...
''. In October 2007 he released his '' Greatest Hits & Remixes, Vol. 1'' which features his best performance tracks. Oakenfold was a judge for the sixth and seventh annual Independent Music Awards. In October 2007 Oakenfold remixed
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
' number one hit "
Gimme More "Gimme More" is a song by American singer Britney Spears from her fifth studio album, '' Blackout'' (2007). It was released on August 31, 2007, by Jive Records, as the lead single from the album. "Gimme More" was recorded in 2006 during Spears' ...
", which became the lead remix off the release. Oakenfold has created more than one hundred remixes, and has sold over 5,000,000 (5 million)
long play The LP (from "long playing" or "long play") is an analog sound storage medium, a phonograph record format characterized by: a speed of  rpm; a 12- or 10-inch (30- or 25-cm) diameter; use of the "microgroove" groove specification; and a ...
s. He toured in British
universities A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
to promote his new album and
autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...
. The tribute album was released in November in the United Kingdom with a 2-CD set and a 3 CD version with the same number of songs. It was also released in the United States with only 20 tracks in one CD; it featured some remixes from the original version but it also included two new remixes which are:
Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with sales of over 88 million records. Timberlake is the recipient of numerous awards and ac ...
's " My Love" song and his remix of
Hans Zimmer Hans Florian Zimmer (; born 12 September 1957) is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Academy Awards, Oscars and four Grammy Awards, Grammys, and has been nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards, Emmys and a Tony Awar ...
's " Jack Theme Suite" which was used for the film '' Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End''. Exclusive 2008 remixes from Oakenfold were also included from
Mark Ronson Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. He is best known for his collaborations with artists such as Duran Duran, Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lady Gaga, Lily Allen, Robbi ...
's " Stop Me" song,
Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
's "
Everything in Its Right Place "Everything in Its Right Place" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, released on their fourth album, ''Kid A'' (2000). It features synthesiser, manipulated vocals, and lyrics inspired by the stress singer Thom Yorke experienced while ...
", Eisbaer from Grovezone, "
Missing Missing or The Missing may refer to: Film * ''Missing'' (1918 film), an American silent drama directed by James Young * ''Missing'' (1982 film), an American historical drama directed by Costa-Gavras * ''Missing'' (2007 film) (''Vermist''), a Bel ...
" by
Everything But The Girl Everything but the Girl (occasionally referred to as EBTG) are an English musical duo formed in Kingston upon Hull in 1982, consisting of lead singer and occasional guitarist Tracey Thorn and guitarist, keyboardist, producer and singer Ben Watt ...
and a remix of Paul's own "Southern Sun". Releases with Catalog#: ''UL 1602-2'' included a
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
of live show and documentary. The compilation consists of tracks which influenced his career and musical persona, with artists such as
The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...
,
Happy Mondays Happy Mondays are an English rock band formed in Salford in 1980. The original line-up was Shaun Ryder (vocals), his brother Paul Ryder (bass), Gary Whelan (drums), Paul Davis (keyboard), and Mark Day (guitar). Mark "Bez" Berry later joine ...
,
The Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...
,
Massive Attack Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol by Robert "3D" Del Naja, Adrian "Tricky" Thaws, Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. The debut Massive Attack album '' Blue Lines'' was releas ...
, U2,
Olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...
,
The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also referred to as simply Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band from Chicago. Formed in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, bassist D'arcy Wretzky, guitarist James Iha and drummer Jimmy Chamb ...
,
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
, and
Underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underwor ...
.


''Pop Killer'' and film scores: 2008–2014

In 2008, he released the last single from his last studio album, ''Not Over''. This was a new version "
Not Over Yet "Not Over Yet" is a song by British dance act Grace. Originally released to clubs in 1993, under the band name State of Grace, it was re-released in 1995 as the first single from their only album, '' If I Could Fly'' (1996). It peaked at numbe ...
" which he produced while working with Osborne as
Grace Grace may refer to: Places United States * Grace, Idaho, a city * Grace (CTA station), Chicago Transit Authority's Howard Line, Illinois * Little Goose Creek (Kentucky), location of Grace post office * Grace, Carroll County, Missouri, an uninco ...
and in collaboration with
Ryan Tedder Ryan Tedder (born June 26, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. As well as being the lead vocalist of the pop rock band OneRepublic, he has an independent career as a songwriter and producer for various artists since th ...
from
OneRepublic OneRepublic is an American pop rock band formed in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 2002. It consists of lead vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Ryan Tedder, lead guitarist and violist Zach Filkins, rhythm guitarist Drew Brown, bassist and cellis ...
. The song was covered by
Klaxons Klaxons were an English rock band, based in London. Following the release of several 7-inch singles on different independent record labels, as well as the success of previous singles " Magick" and " Golden Skans", the band released their debu ...
as " It's Not Over Yet". In 2008, Oakenfold worked on
film scores A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to e ...
for various films and television programs such as ''
Californication Californication may refer to: *Californication (word) ''Californication'' is a portmanteau of California and fornication, appearing in ''Time'' on May 6, 1966 and written about on August 21, 1972, additionally seen on bumper stickers in the U.S. ...
'', '' The Heavy'', ''Fever'', '' The Bourne Identity'', and ''
Speed Racer ''Speed Racer'', also known as , is a Japanese media franchise about Auto racing, automobile racing. ''Mach GoGoGo'' was originally serialized in print in Shueisha's 1966 ''Shōnen Book''. It was released in tankōbon book form by Sun W ...
''. In mid-July Oakenfold ended his world tour promoting his greatest hits album. He also joined
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
again in her
Sticky & Sweet Tour The Sticky & Sweet Tour was the eighth concert tour by American singer Madonna, to promote her eleventh studio album, ''Hard Candy (Madonna album), Hard Candy'' (2008). It was Madonna's first major venture under a new ten-year 360 deal with Liv ...
in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...
,
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
and
São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...
. After touring, he began his residency in
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
on 30 August. In the fall of 2008, he started his first Resident DJ position in the United States. "Paul Oakenfold Presents: Perfecto Las Vegas" was conceptualized specifically for Rain Nightclub, the legendary nightclub and concert venue at the
Palms Casino Resort Palms Casino Resort is a hotel and casino located near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned and operated by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. It includes 703 rooms and a casino. It was originally owned by th ...
known for its special effects and international headliner acts. From July to August 2009, he again opened Madonna's concerts for the Sticky & Sweet Tour in Europe. In 2009 Paul's third studio album was announced to be actually named ''Pop Killer'', and not ''Decade of Dance'' as the article from ''The Sun'' stated. He also worked with Madonna on her third greatest hits collection, ''Celebration'', and her final release with
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
Records. The first single was released on 3 August 2009, it is also titled " Celebration" and was produced by Oakenfold. He also remixed a past demo "It's So Cool" from ''
American Life ''American Life'' is the ninth studio album by American singer Madonna. It was released on April 21, 2003, by Maverick and Warner Bros. Records. The album, produced by the singer and Mirwais Ahmadzaï, features references to many parts of Ame ...
'', and it is included as a bonus track on iTunes. Oakenfold remixed a song called "Firefly" from the
Matt Goss Matthew Weston Goss (born 29 September 1968) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He was the lead singer of 1980s pop group Bros, which also featured his twin brother Luke as the drummer. Goss as a solo artist has released five stu ...
album ''Gossy''. In 2010, Oakenfold returned to the US as a DJ at Rain Nightclub. In February 2012 Oakenfold headlined a huge one-off event for club brand Goodgreef at the famous Tall Trees venue in the UK. Later in the year, he performed alongside Californian band
Train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...
at the
Google I/O Google I/O (or simply I/O) is an annual developer conference held by Google in Mountain View, California. "I/O" stands for Input/Output, as well as the slogan "Innovation in the Open". The event's format is similar to Google Developer Day. Hi ...
June 2012 After Party at Moscone Center in
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
. In 2014, Oakenfold remixed A3's single "Come with Me". Oakenfold co-wrote a song for
Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...
's twenty-fifth studio album ''Closer to the Truth'': "
Woman's World ''Woman's World'' is an American supermarket weekly magazine with a circulation of 1.6 million readers. Printed on paper generally associated with tabloid publications and priced accordingly, it concentrates on short articles about subjects such a ...
". It was released on 18 June 2013 as the album's lead-single. Oakenfold remixed a song by British pop singer
Sophie Ellis-Bextor Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor (born 10 April 1979) is an English singer and songwriter. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded Ellis-Bextor went solo and ach ...
and up-and-coming new electronic project DedRekoning on their single "Only Child", released on 8 September 2014 through Oakenfold's label
Perfecto Records Perfecto Records is a British trance record label, founded by Paul Oakenfold in 1989. Perfecto was also a remix team consisting of Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne and in its later years, Osborne was replaced by Andy Gray. Perfecto Records h ...
.


2015–present

Since May 2015, Paul is heading the department of DJs and EDM vocalists at Isina, a worldwide talent search and development mentorship program. On September 25, 2020, Oakenfold launched the English-language electronic single, "The Perfect Song" featuring Mexican pop icon Fey, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of her career. His album ''Shine On'' is set to be released in 2022. Oakenfold is the opening act for the
Pet Shop Boys The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo i ...
and New Order Unity Tour in September and October 2022.


Discography

;Studio albums * '' Bunkka'' (2002) * '' A Lively Mind'' (2006) * ''
Trance Mission Trance Mission is a world fusion ensemble co-founded in San Francisco by American clarinetist and composer Beth Custer and British-born didgeridoo player Stephen Kent in 1992, with Canadian musician Kenneth Newby and American percussionist J ...
'' (2014) * '' Shine On'' (2022)


Filmography

* 2002 ''
The Rules of Attraction ''The Rules of Attraction'' is a satirical black comedy novel by Bret Easton Ellis published in 1987. The novel follows a handful of rowdy and often sexually promiscuous, spoiled bohemian students at a liberal arts college in 1980s New Hampsh ...
'' (Himself) * 2003 ''Dancestar USA 2003'' (Himself) * 2003 ''No Cover'' (Guest) * 2003 ''
MTV Europe Music Awards 2003 The 2003 MTV Europe Music Awards were held in Western Harbour in Edinburgh, Scotland. The awards ceremony was held in a 6,000-capacity big top arena constructed specifically for the main event. On the night, Justin Timberlake notably received a ...
'' (Himself) * 2004 '' The Club'' (Himself) * 2007 ''Post Military Trip'' (Guest) * 2012 ''Dark Hearts (2012)'' (Dj) * 2016 ''Sundown (2016)'' (Himself) * 2022 ''
Who Killed the KLF? ''Who Killed the KLF?'' is a 2021 documentary film by Chris Atkins about The KLF. The unauthorised documentary includes reconstructions of the band's dramatic gestures, played by actors. KLF members Jimmy Cauty and Bill Drummond refused to tak ...
'' (Himself)


Awards and nominations


BMI Awards

The
BMI Awards The BMI Film & TV Awards are accolades presented annually by Broadcast Music, Inc., honoring songwriters, composers, and music publishers in various genres. Based in the United States, the awards include the BMI Christian Awards, BMI Country Award ...
are annual award ceremonies for songwriters in various genres organized by
Broadcast Music, Inc Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is a performance rights organization in the United States. It collects blanket license fees from businesses that use music, entitling those businesses to play or sync any songs from BMI's repertoire of over 20.6 mill ...
. Oakenfold won the Film Award for Music the 2001
movie A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
Swordfish. , - , 2002 , Paul Oakenfold , The BMI Film Music Award, for Swordfish , , -


DJ Awards

The
DJ Awards DJ Awards is a celebration of electronic music, and aims to recognise and honour DJs and individuals who have influenced electronic dance music worldwide. Held annually in Ibiza at the end of the summer season, DJ Awards has retained the same et ...
organizes the annual
electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...
DJ awards event it is the only international ceremony for DJs and also the oldest, the awards are held once a year at Pacha club in
Ibiza Ibiza (natively and officially in ca, Eivissa, ) is a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. It is from the city of Valencia. It is the third largest of the Balearic Islands, in Spain. Its l ...
Spain it is one of the most important accolades an artist can win or be honoured by. Oakenfold has won the ''Best Trance DJ Award'' two times, and received eleven nominations. He won the ''Best Techno DJ Award'' one time, and he honored with an "Outstanding Contribution Award" in 2004. , - , 1999 , rowspan="13", Paul Oakenfold , Best Techno DJ , rowspan="2" , - , 2000 , rowspan="2", Best Trance DJ , - , 2001 , , - , 2004 , Outstanding Contribution , rowspan="2" , - , 2004 , rowspan="9", Best Trance DJ , - , 2005 , rowspan="8" , - , 2006 , - , 2008 , - , 2009 , - , 2010 , - , 2011 , - , 2012 , - , 2013


DJ Magazine Award

Artists are nominated to the
DJ Magazine ''DJ Magazine'' (also known as ''DJ Mag'') is a British monthly magazine dedicated to electronic dance music and DJs. Founded in 1991, the magazine is adapted for distribution in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Lat ...
, The Top 100 list each year the public votes to decide who they rank as the World's No 1 DJ at the end of the poll. Oakenfold has been named Worlds Best DJ two times. , - , 1997 , rowspan="18", Paul Oakenfold , World's Top 100 DJs , , - , 1998 , World's Top 100 DJs , rowspan="2" , - , 1999 , World's Top 100 DJs , - , 2000 , World's Top 100 DJs , , - , 2001 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 5 , - , 2002 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 6 , - , 2003 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 8 , - , 2004 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 9 , - , 2005 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 11 , - , 2006 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 14 , - , 2007 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 12 , - , 2008 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 14 , - , 2009 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 23 , - , 2010 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 51 , - , 2011 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 69 , - , 2012 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 69 , - , 2013 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", 92 , - , 2014 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", Exit (134) , - , colspan="4" , - , 2017 , rowspan="3", Paul Oakenfold , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", Out (138) , - , 2018 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", Out (129) , - , 2019 , World's Top 100 DJs , style="text-align:center;", Out (105) , -


Grammy Awards

The
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
(originally called Gramophone Award), or Grammy, is an honor awarded by
The Recording Academy The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous for its Grammy A ...
to recognize outstanding achievement in the mainly English-language
music industry The music industry consists of the individuals and organizations that earn money by writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling recorded music and sheet music, presenting concerts, as well as the organizations that aid, train, ...
. The annual presentation ceremony features performances by prominent artists, and the presentation of those awards that have a more popular interest. It shares recognition of the music industry as that of the other as performance awards such as the
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
s (television), the
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...
s (stage performance), and the
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
s (motion pictures) Oakenfold has received three Grammy nominations.


IDMA Awards

The
IDMA The International Dance Music Awards or IDMAs is an annual awards ceremony held in Miami Beach, Florida, United States as a major part of the Winter Music Conference. The awards have been held every year since the conference's creation in 1985 ...
is a major event which is part of the Winter Music Conference (WMC) a weeklong electronic music conference, held every March since 1985 in Miami Beach, Florida, United States. Oakenfold has been nominated one time. , - , 2007 , Paul Oakenfold
for "Faster Kill Pussycat"
shared with Brittany Murphy. , Best Underground Dance Track ,


World Music Awards

The
World Music Awards The World Music Awards is an international award show founded in 1989 under the patronage of Albert II, Prince of Monaco and co-founder/executive producer John Martinotti. The event is based in Monte Carlo. Awards are presented to the world's ...
is an international awards show founded in 1989 under the high patronage of
Albert II, Prince of Monaco Albert II – Website of the Palace of Monaco (Albert Alexandre Louis Pierre Grimaldi; born 14 March 1958) is Prince of Monaco, since 2005. Albert was born at the Prince's Palace of Monaco, and he is the second child and only son of Prince Rai ...
and is based in
Monte-Carlo Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
. Awards are presented to the world's best-selling artists in the various categories and to the best-selling artists from each major territory. Oakenfold has received two nominations. , - ,
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
, rowspan="2", Paul Oakenfold , Worlds Best Selling DJ
for "Faster Kill Pussycat"
shared with Brittany Murphy , rowspan="2" , - , 2012 , World's Best Electronic Dance Music Artist
for "Faster Kill Pussycat"
shared with Brittany Murphy , -


References


External links

*
Oakenfold Mixes
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Oakenfold, Paul 1963 births Living people DJs from London Club DJs English trance musicians English electronic musicians English dance musicians English house musicians English expatriates in Spain English record producers Remixers People from Greenhithe People from Ibiza Musicians from Kent People with dyslexia Electronic dance music DJs Planet Perfecto members Maverick Records artists Warner Records artists