RB Exclusive Interview: Gio Lucca Talks Origins, ISO, & Decadence Arizona

Gio Lucca has never been interested in taking the straight path. The Phoenix-based producer has built his name on a foundation of analog grit, community mentorship, and a refusal to be boxed into a single sound. Ahead of his set at Decadence Arizona: The Portal of I11usions, we sat down to discuss his label ISO, the art of crate digging, and why the best grooves are always a little imperfect.

Gio’s artist name is a quiet family portrait. “I just felt like I wanted to pay homage to my family,” he explains, noting that “Gio Lucca” is an amalgamation of his parents’ and sister’s initials. Growing up in Peru, music was woven into the fabric of public life. “It’s a very culturally rich country, every few months they have parades with live music and dancing. Growing up, my parents involved me in that. I’ve just always been part of the culture of music over there,” he says. That exposure fueled his early interest in the saxophone and guitar, but the sound that eventually pulled him behind the decks arrived almost by accident.

“I owe my sister a lot for giving me my first listen to electronic music,” Gio admits. She played Above & Beyond’s “Walter White” during a drive when he was 15, and the unfamiliar textures lodged in his mind.

From there, it was a steady, inevitable drift. “We bought a DDJ-200 and split it because we were broke college kids,” he laughs. Those college basement parties sharpened his ability to pace a room, but during the pandemic, his intentions sharpened. He took a Repopulate Mars workshop and leaned heavier into production. “If I could go back to when I first started, I would reach out to my favorite artists… try to see if you can find a good mentor,” he reflects.

Today, those connections are fundamental to how he operates. He mentors up-and-coming producers, trades mixes with friends like Braydon Terzo and Casey Zanni, and fields messages from artists who reach out to say they love his work. For Gio, those moments outweigh streaming stats. “When something like that happens… it’s the most validating thing,” he says, describing the thrill of a peer playing his track or asking to collaborate on a project.

Listening to Gio’s music, the through line is rhythm and a touch of nostalgia. While he describes his sound simply as “funky, like very, very groovy,” that shorthand belies his process. “I think my style is just ever growing with with my preference,” he says. “There are times where I draw inspiration from the 80s or old school funk… it just depends on my listening mood.” Gio’s signature touch often begins with digging. “When I was in New York, I picked up two records that I’m really stoked to sample,” he says, detailing the satisfaction of finding a drum break no one else has touched. “I enjoy using analog stuff in my tracks and digging for unique samples or even obscure, corny cassette tapes.”

It’s these odd, imperfect sounds, warm drums and fractured vocals, that make his music feel alive. He admires artists like Mochakk or Michael Bibi who bring varied catalogs to their sets, ranging between raw percussive energy and nostalgic warmth. Gio refuses to be boxed in as only an opener or peak time act. “I want to be an artist who plays different stages,” he says. “I don’t want to be locked into just one.”

That refusal to be categorized extends to his label, ISO. “Having a label kind of made sense to me. It’s the next step as an artist, being able to develop my personal sound and at one point open it up and help other artists as well.” Founded not as an ego exercise but as a hub for people he trusts, the name is both literal and metaphorical. It’s a nod to photography, scientific notation, and the artist’s restless search for community. “In Search Of,” Gio explains, captures the imprint’s ethos: a place to develop music and pull other artists up with him. With releases like “Cocaine Cool” and “BOWNCE” already performing well, the label is fulfilling its mission. “In search of something, that curiosity and adventure… that feel that us artists have.”

Touring has been a lesson in patience and perspective. While he finishes tracks in the studio where he can “hear how the sound comes from my room and my headphones,” he has learned to produce on planes and at airport gates, sketching ideas between flights. His eyes are set on the future, like touring Europe, South America, and most importantly, Peru. “A big goal of mine is to be able to tour back home because a lot of my family is there,” he says.

Phoenix, where Gio has been building his base, taught him persistence. Arriving without local connections, he leaned on showing up: supporting other DJs, talking to promoters, and sending mixes. “Breaking through was definitely hard… promoters have their go-to residents. It’s about becoming a recognizable face,” he says of cracking the local lineups. While the city’s tight-knit scene can be difficult to penetrate, open deck nights and supportive peers eventually opened doors. Now, Gio pays it forward, offering advice and feedback to Arizona producers who reach out.

Offstage, Gio Lucca’s focus remains on detail and perspective. He collects vintage cameras, and will often hand out disposables to his crowd to capture shows from a different point of view. At home, he maintains an elaborate fish tank, a small ecosystem of shrimp, snails, and at one point a miniature puffer fish. He treats the aquatic hobby like a blend of engineering and patient observation, similar to his work in the studio. “We’ll sit there for a couple of minutes each day and just watch those things just freaking swim,” he says. It’s a fitting image for an artist who studies subtle movement and listens for the tiny components that make a larger system groove.

When asked what message he wants to send to the Phoenix crowd before his set, Gio pauses. He prefers to let the music speak. While he is eager to share his sound with new attendees, his focus is on the local support he’s built. “People here have been asking me, ‘When are you playing again?’ I’m excited to play for the ones who’ve been waiting,” he says. Catch Gio Lucca when he brings his uniquely crafted sound to the Conservatory stage at Decadence Arizona: The Portal of I11usions.

Connect with Gio Lucca: Facebook | Instagram | X | Spotify | SoundCloud