Features
Destructo Lays Waste to North America
Erik Voake – Destructo
Hard Summer Festival, Los Angeles, Calif., Aug. 3, 2013
Some know him as DJ extraordinaire Destructo. We know him as Gary Richards, purveyor of festivals, concert promoter and cruise director. Either way, he’s hitting the road.
Destructo’s “Let’s Be Friends” kicks off at the Output in Brooklyn Jan. 19. The routing heads to the West Coast, then back to Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia, before wrapping at Portland, Ore.’s 45 East on March 3. Coming along for the ride are friends Fisher, Habstrakt, Walker & Royce, Will Clark, Deux, Dillon Nathaniel, Gerry Gonza, Golf Clap and others on various dates. The tour will feature special edits from Destructo’s Renegade and West Coast EPs as well as the latest “Hits Hard” tunes. Tickets go on sale Dec. 1.
The DJ/producer has worked with everyone from YG to Too $hort to Warren G, along with making a killer video featuring Problem.
He’s also a live events promoter who happens to be a cool dude (when he came through Pollstar’s home base of Fresno, Calif., he was asked to drop by the Sigma Nu frathouse and he totally did, spinning discs past midnight).
More than that, as founder of Hard Events, Gary Richards built the popular Hard Summer Music Festival then the annual Holy Ship cruise, which he launched with the promotional help of Tommy Lee.
Richards recently left Hard Events to become the president of LiveStyle, managing a portfolio of brands like React, Made Event/Electric Zoo, DDP and Beatport.