5 Celebrities Turned DJ

From reality TV stars to award-winning actors, some celebrities continue to prove they’re multi-talented, turning their love of music into something more than just a hobby. We’re seeing this become a trend in the festival scene as more and more celebs take their place behind the decks. Check out these six below.

1. Elijah Wood

When he’s not saving Middle Earth, performing on Broadway, or organizing charity events, Elijah Wood is DJing with the group Wooden Wisdom. Elijah Wood, who played Frodo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, explains that DJing provides him with the creative outlet that acting often times can’t provide. He has always been a music lover and learned how to DJ over 15 years ago. Elijah Wood met Zach Cowie, a music supervisor for TV shows such as Master of None and movies such as Celeste & Jesse Forever, at a party where Wood noticed how similar their music tastes were. The two kept in touch and decided to co-DJ an event together under the name Wooden Wisdom. In 2016, Wooden Wisdom toured in San Fransisco, Miami, Denver, Brooklyn, and Chicago. Unlike other celebrities who DJ, Wood prefers the underground scene and tends to perform at small, local venues.

2. Idris Elba

Long before he was an award-winning actor, Idris Elba helped his uncle DJ weddings when he was only 14.  At age 15, he started his own DJing business with a few close friends and at age 19 became known as the rapper Big Driis. Inbetween his work at local nightclubs, he also started acting and at 23 he landed his first major television role. Since then, he has accumulated quite the resume with roles in Beasts of No Nation, Avengers, The Wire, Law and Order, and Star Trek. Last year, DJ Big Driis collaborated with Sean Paul on the track, “Boasty” and DJ’d the Royal Wedding. 2019 is going to be just as successful for DJ Big Driis with a performance at Coachella, EDC and a new Netflix original show, Turn Up Charlie, where he plays a one-hit wonder DJ.

3. Kristian Nairn

Nairn, who you might recognize from his role on Game of Thrones as Hodor, is a pretty big EDM fan. The 43-year-old actor from Northern Ireland is a progressive house DJ and has played alongside artists such as Steve Aoki and Fatboy Slim. Nairn’s character on Game of Thrones quickly became a fan favorite and in 2015, Nairn announced a Game of Thrones-themed concert called “Rave of Thrones.” With fans dressed up in elaborate cosplay and decorations inspired by the fictional world of Westeros, the event was so popular that he decided to continue the tour in North America and Europe.

4. Paris Hilton

Probably the most unexpected name on this list, Paris Hilton made her controversial DJ debut at a Brazilian music festival. The concert goers protested her appearance at the festival, but Hilton played anyway, staying true to her DGAF attitude. In 2012, she started dating DJ and producer Afrojack who helped her produce two of her tracks, but explained in an interview that he had no part of her DJ career. Hilton has gone on to play notorious Ibiza and Las Vegas spots and other large scale events.

5. Ansel Elgort (Ansolo)

The 25 year old actor, best known for his roles in The Fault in Our Stars, Divergent, and Baby Driver, has been producing electronic music since high school. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Ansel Elgort cites Skrillex and Avicii as inspiration for his interest in EDM and explains, “The whole thing… it’s more than just writing and performing. It’s engineering and producing. It’s magical. It’s something on your computer you can do all by yourself.” In 2015, Elgort, also known by his stage name, Ansolo, signed with Island Records and has performed at Electric Zoo and Ultra Music Festival. In 2017, Ansolo was featured on Logic’s third studio album with the track “Killing Spree.” Ansolo’s latest track “Supernova,” released last January, has over 5 million listens on Soundcloud.

Connect with Wooden Wisdom: Facebook | Soundcloud

Connect with Idris Elba: Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud

Connect with Kristian Nairn: Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud

Connect with Paris Hilton: Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud

Connect with Ansel Elgort: Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud