From small DJs in cities playing at clubs to students in college, music has taken the party scene by storm. The college DJ scene has become a dynamic intersection of all music, culture and community, offering a platform for student creative expression and social connection. One student who has taken advantage of this unique platform is Ethan Mooshey. Born in Lake Tahoe, California, Mooshey is currently an accounting major and is in his junior year at the University of Oregon.
In recent years, house music and EDM have become more popular, especially since the pandemic. In 2023, revenues for 15 of the world’s largest music companies in the global electronic industry—including labels, publishers, DSPs, and the live sector—grew by 18%, reaching a combined total of $75.9 billion. This growth has not only inspired artists in the industry and companies relating to electronic music, but has also inspired young artists.
Mooshey was motivated to enter the creative side of music during his freshman year. An older brother in his fraternity let him play around with his DJ board.
“I remember asking him if I could take the board home and use it for a bit and see how it goes, so I took it home and started mixing. I didn’t stop for four hours and a few days later of messing around with it, I just texted him and asked to buy it off him. And from there, that was the first DJ controller that I owned,” Mooshey said.
Mooshey fell in love with deep jazzy house and started posting consistent sets on SoundCloud and YouTube, which created his drive to not only mix two songs together, but to start mixing his own songs. While early videos were purely produced, they helped Mooshey practice his mixing skills. He was able to come home from school, turn on his computer, find sounds or samples he liked and he eventually turned into his first song on SoundCloud called M2F.
“I really wanted to have some of my own music to play in my own sets…I also wanted to have a piece of art to my name and something that represents my style,” Mooshey said. “Releasing it on SoundCloud, and then playing it in the car, I was like, ‘wow, I did this,’ and I was really proud of that.”
From there, Mooshey created his own brand into a well-known producer around campus, Bosspitality.
This past summer immersed himself in a new culture when he traveled to Sweden. Mooshey said that even though it was overwhelming at first, he found his footing and made local friends in the house music community. This fostered his love for tech house music with jazzy elements. During this time he also learned from DJs like Kornél Kovács and Laurent Garnier, who he still draws inspiration from today. Moosheyalso opened McDonald Theater’s Up & Up Festival for the Croatian producer Matroda in mid-October.
“I didn’t even think I would ever get to where I am. I mean a thousand followers is relatively small in the scope of Instagram, but seeing that I grew from my first follower being my brother, to a thousand of my followers who come out to my shows and people who recognize me it’s a pretty great feeling and shows my dedication is starting to pay off,” Mooshey said.
Since growing in the music industry, Mooshey has also spent time promoting other DJs. This past summer, Mooshey and his friend started the brand Sonora, which promotes house shows for local DJs to perform. With different themed nights, such as house music or Latin style, Mooshey said he is striving to create a welcoming atmosphere for new connections to music and people.
Looking ahead, Mooshey said he hopes to expand his reach to the Portland area and contact promoters in Corvallis and Salem.
Along with his upcoming live sets, Mooshey also has his first EP on the horizon and is ecstatic to share new music with everyone.
“I’m going to continue this not only because I love it, but for you guys who love it as much as I do,” Mooshey said. For more information on Bosspitality, check out @bosspitality_ on Instagram, and stay tuned for that EP.
