Pioneering DJ and founder of The Loft David Mancuso has passed away
New York's "original disco DJ" has died at age 72
At age 72, iconic DJ and founder of The Loft, known as the "first underground dance party" in New York, David Mancuso has passed away.
Mancuso is credited for inspiring and helping give way to the rise of DJing as a respected and legitimate art form and championed the underground party scene in 1970 with his inaugural event called Love Saves The Day. The positivity he inspired on and around the dancefloor gave way to future discotheques like Paradise Garage and The Gallery.
Mancuso was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame in 2005 for his outstanding work as a DJ and is honored by many as not only an immensely impactful figure of New York's scene, but also as one of the pioneers of DJing and dance music culture as we know it today.
****Valerie Lee is Mixmag's US Digital Editor. Follow her on Twitter here****