Sven Väth (DE)

About

Also known as: Svan Väth, Sven Vaeth, Sven Vath

Few DJs have shaped the floor quite like Sven Väth. The Frankfurt fixture turned heads early when his group OFF released "Electrica Salsa" in 1986, a track that sold a million copies and briefly made him a genuine pop star, sharing stages with Vanessa Paradis and Axel Bauer. That pop chapter gave way to something deeper: Väth helped build the techno scene from the ground up, co founding Frankfurt's legendary Omen club in 1988 and the Eye Q label in 1991, which put out "Accident in Paradise," later named one of Mixmag's 50 greatest dance albums ever. Known to fans as Papa Sven, he runs Cocoon, the booking agency, record label, and events empire that has launched careers for artists like Loco Dice, Roman Flügel, and Guy Gerber. His Amnesia residency on Ibiza ran for 18 years, and he plays exclusively on two decks and a mixer, vinyl only. His longest set clocked in at 30 hours.