Las Vegas-based performer Justin Blau, aka 3LAU, is an in-demand DJ and electronic music producer known for his electro-, dubstep-, and house-influenced style. Initially producing mashups during the early 2010s, he soon concentrated on original songwriting, and his emotionally charged dance tracks are meant to uplift listeners and help them overcome feelings of being lost. He has toured throughout the world and performed at major festivals like Electric Zoo and Lollapalooza, and he’s collaborated with producers such as Botnek, Audien, and Bright Lights, releasing material on dance labels including Dim Mak, Armada, Anjunabeats, and Astralwerks. Well known for his charity work, he is also the founder of the non-profit label Blume, and he donated the profits of his 2018 full-length Ultraviolet to cancer research. He has continued his prolific run of singles with emotional floor-fillers such as 2021′s “Everything” (with Funkin Matt and Frawley) and 2022′s “Too Late For Love.”
Born in Syossett, New York in 1991, Blau grew up in a creative family and began singing and playing guitar and piano in his youth. At age 13, he moved with his family to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he continued playing music. It wasn’t until traveling in Sweden in 2011 that he discovered electronic dance music. By the end of the year, he had adopted the stage name 3LAU and begun mixing his own tracks, uploading mash-ups to YouTube. Also that year, he debuted the first volume of his Dance Floor Filth series and had his material spun by several prominent DJs, including Porter Robinson and Bob Sinclair. Interest in 3LAU’s talents spread quickly, and he was soon commissioned for a bevy of official remixes, including one for Zedd’s “Spectrum.”
In April 2014 he released “Vikings,” a collaboration with Botnek on the Dim Mak label. More singles followed, including 2014′s “We Came to Bang” (featuring Luciana), 2015′s “Alive Again” (featuring Emma Hewitt), 2016′s “Is It Love” (featuring Yeah Boy), and more. He then paired with Said the Sky and Neonheart for 2016′s “Fire.” Led by the 2017 singles “On My Own,” “Walk Away,” and “Star Crossed,” 3LAU’s full-length debut, Ultraviolet, arrived in February 2018. Single “Touch” with Carly Paige became a modest hit, and the collection received the Remixed treatment later that year. 3LAU teamed with Paige again in 2019 for the bright single “Would You Understand.” Other tracks that appeared throughout the year included “Better with You” (with Justin Caruso and Iselin) and “Tokyo” (featuring Xira). 3LAU and Shaun Frank worked with Grabbitz on the early 2020 single “At Night,” and solo single “Apocalyptic” surfaced later in the year. “Everything,” co-produced by Funkin Matt and sung by Frawley, appeared in 2021, as did “Worst Case” with Cxloe. Another standalone single, “Too Late For Love,” arrived in October 2022. ~ Matt Collar & Paul Simpson