Roger Sanchez

Roger Sanchez ranked among the pivotal producers who elevated Strictly Rhythm into America's leading house imprint throughout the early 1990s, later emerging as a prolific remixer, elite mainstream DJ, and internationally prominent house figure by the decade's close. Although he devoted greater attention to mix albums than to original studio projects released under his own name, Sanchez earned considerable esteem among both club audiences and discerning dance enthusiasts.

New York-born to parents of Dominican descent, Sanchez studied at Manhattan's School of Art & Design alongside future hip-hop icons such as Kurtis Mantronik. Deeply immersed in the graffiti and break-dancing culture of the early 1980s, he started DJing at age thirteen. While continuing to spin at prominent New York venues including the Tunnel during his architecture studies at the Pratt Institute, Sanchez abandoned college in 1987 to pursue music professionally. His club Ego Trip quickly gained momentum, with Sanchez mixtapes selling briskly along Broadway, prompting him to commit fully to the scene. In 1989 Gladys Pizarro of Strictly Rhythm Records reached out regarding possible production work, leading one year later to his debut single "Luv Dancin'" under the alias Underground Solution.

The record's raw underground rhythms energized New York's house community just as it shifted from the polished garage aesthetic toward a tougher style shaped by European trance and techno influences. Although he entered remixing unintentionally after critiquing a track that subsequently prompted an invitation to rework it, Sanchez mastered the craft and from 1991 onward delivered productions for Babyface, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Janet Jackson, Chic, M People, Basia, Incognito, and Soul II Soul.

Subsequent Sanchez projects, including the 1994 Latin dub-house track "Sumba Lumba" issued as Tribal Confusion, the 1995 hard-edged Strictly 4 the Underground EP released as Roger S, and the same year's "Release Yo Self" under the Transatlantic Soul moniker, reinforced his standing as one of Strictly Rhythm's foremost talents and a leading global producer. After his own One Records folded in 1995, Sanchez established the Narcotic imprint and partnered with Britain's Hard Times club to issue his debut full-length. The resulting mix album Hard Times: The Album showcased the S-Man demonstrating his DJ prowess with only two decks, a mixer, and a selection of records, complementing his already acclaimed studio output. He sustained this mix-album focus through contributions to the Mixmag Live! and United DJ's of America series as well as the Freeze compilation Roger S. Mega Mix. In 1997 Narcotic issued "Back" credited to S-Men, reflecting the dance supergroup Sanchez formed with Junior Sanchez and DJ Sneak. The following year brought S-Man Classics, a two-disc anthology pairing his standout remixes with his strongest original productions. Additional mix albums appeared over the next three years before his first proper production album, First Contact, arrived in 2001.

Sanchez introduced the Stealth label in 2002, which hosted his prolific stream of mixes alongside reissues and fresh material from himself and fellow artists. In 2003 he received a Grammy for Best Remixed Recording for his version of No Doubt's "Hella Good." His enduring terrestrial and online radio program Release Yourself earned an International Dance Music award for Best Podcast. Marking ten years of broadcasts, the mix collection Release Yourself: 10th Anniversary Edition appeared in 2011, the same year Sanchez collaborated with Far East Movement on the single "2gether." The 2013 singles "Troubleman" and "My Roots" accompanied the mix album Release Yourself 13.