DØØNE never sets foot in the studio with a clear path in mind. Every session sees him explore countless creative avenues until the sounds coming out of his speakers resonate on a primal level. Aimless as it may seem, his approach is getting him somewhere. After making a name for himself in clubs throughout his homebase of Ohio, he’s begun landing bookings in major markets throughout the US. Music has been in Donald’s blood for generations. He didn’t know this growing up — but somehow, he had an idea. Donald was born and raised in North Carolina, bouncing from one impoverished home to another throughout his childhood. Music gave him a means of tuning out the noise. At first, he listened to all different kinds of it passively. By his early teenage years, though, he had started teaching himself to play on a keyboard. When Donald finally met his biological father as an adult, he felt reaffirmed by the discovery that professional musicianship ran in his family. His grandfather had produced records for country artists, his father was a singer, and his great-aunt was even married to George Jones. After that, Donald understood himself better.. His true calling couldn’t have been more obvious. Life had other plans, and Donald spent a decade serving in the military. While this prevented him from pursuing music in earnest, he always made sure to set aside time to learn instruments or tinker around with production software. When his ten years of service drew to a close, Donald was faced with a decision: serve ten more and retire early, or go all in on music when he still had his youth. This time, he followed his heart. Not long afterward, Donald attended Movement Music Festival in Detroit for the first time. Experiencing techno in its birthplace with like minds filled him with a newfound sense of purpose. It gave him a framework by which he could start to imagine how his own recorded music might sound. But it was shortly before Donald launched the DØØNE project in 2021 that he found his voice as a creative. Everything up to that time, haphazard as it may have seemed, helped him understand what it meant to be authentically and unapologetically himself. Finally, it was time to execute. DØØNE has performed at Cincinatti clubs like Tulua, Twenties, and MECCA OTR, not to mention clandestine after hours gatherings in and around Columbus. In March 2025, DØØNE performed his first out-of-state gig, showcasing his ethereal sound at Beacon Nightclub in Denver. More and more momentum builds with every one of his DJ sets. That’s because DØØNE embraces not only his own individuality, but that of everyone on the dance floor. He longs to create safe spaces in which members of his community can freely express themselves, the walls around them trembling with frequencies that give rise to synchronized chaos. This is his gift to the scene he loves. He knows it well — it’s the same one that changed his life. DØØNE doesn’t want you to sound like him. He doesn’t want you to sound like anyone but yourself. He believes that in order for electronic music to evolve, we must all push it forward together.