Nick Samaro has been immersed in the music scene since he was born in a small town called Plantation, Florida, which is located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. His whole family is full of music lovers, from Motown, R&B, Hip Hop, Disco, and even Country; he was exposed to it all. Most notably, his father, Mario Samaro was a very well-known DJ, popular up and down the East Coast with his mainstay in South Florida.
In the late 80s and 90s, Mario had several residencies playing the popular genres of the time: Disco, R&B, Rock, and Hip Hop. One of his residencies was at a nightclub in Fort Lauderdale called Joseph’s, which was owned by Joe Cataldo and the infamous John Gotti. The club hosted many large events, including several parking lot parties. Mario had multiple DJ partners, but most notably was DJ Laz. Mario and his partner Laz would play at the parking lot parties while Nick sat on the stairs watching. Nick was still very young then, so Laz’s nephew, the now famous rapper Pitbull kept an eye on him.
During this time, Mario regularly played underground raves in Europe and brought that underground techno and house music sound home to Florida, where he would play it at his gigs. Nick also fell in love with the sound and was just starting elementary school when he learned to DJ. It was bonding with his dad, who taught Nick how to set up and take down all the equipment and then the foundations of spinning vinyl on Technic 1200s before moving onto more modern equipment like CDJs.
Nick's parents eventually divorced and moved from Florida to Indiana. He ended up in Bloomington with his mom, and his dad settled in Indianapolis soon thereafter. Still, in elementary, Nick started playing school dances, birthday parties, and bar mitzvahs and collected his first official check when he was nine years old. From then on, he was known as DJ Samaro.
Samaro continued playing events as he entered high school at Bloomington South and college at IU Bloomington. His talents were quickly noticed in the Bloomington scene, and he was asked to be a resident DJ at The Bluebird, Kilroy’s Sports, Kilroy’s, and Dunkirk, which hosted large acts like Afrojack, Skrillex, and The Chainsmokers, where Samaro would regularly serve as the opening act.
Nick was involved in volunteering at events from start to finish, a foot soldier doing his time with setup and tear down. He knew that the grind was all part of becoming well-rounded in the scene. His dedication got him noticed again, and the founder of BCEC, Deuce Thevenow that ran a festival called Glowfest, asked him to be Grounds Manager for the Deadmau5 Meowington’s Tour.
Nick loved all his opportunities in Bloomington, but his residency at Dunnkirk holds a special place because that is where he met his future wife, Cristina. Cristina was working as a bartender, and her bar was on the balcony that overlooked the stage, so that was where Nick’s break time was set up so he could watch everything that was going on because they were both working while at Dunkirk. It wasn’t until the company Holiday Party that they had their first real conversation and hit it off.
At the same time, Nick was playing his residencies in Bloomington and developing his new relationship with Cristina, and he was making regular trips to Indianapolis to build a connection with the house music scene and its well-known promoters, John Larner and Slater Hogan. John and Slater had already started the Keepin’ It Deep (KID) company, and their events were the city’s link to electronic and house music. Samaro became the head of the KID street team in Bloomington to help expand the brand in that area. He led the team doing promotions across campus for the large acts the company brought in, such as RL Grime, Flosstradamus, Valentino Khan, and others, and was allowed to open for many of those acts as well.
Eventually, Nick and Cristina decided to take a leap and move to Coral Springs, Florida, which was exciting for Nick due to his connections with the area. Being 20 years later, all the spots his dad had played at were already closed, but Nick started playing gigs regularly in Fort Lauderdale and Miami. They stayed in Florida for three years until the lack of seasons and being so far from family brought them back to Indianapolis.
Once Nick got settled back in Indianapolis, he reached out to John and Slater again to ask what he could do to be reintegrated into the scene. Nick thought it was important to work his way back up and offered equipment and volunteering at shows as a way to prove his heart was in the right place. John and Slater eventually partnered with Brandy Allen-Harveth, who owned a bar named Social and offered Nick a weekly house music night to manage. Nick always wanted to help grow the community as much as possible. Hence, his idea for the Thursday night event was to give the local talent some of their first shots and more opportunities to play house music out live. All he asks in return is their support by showing up at a few events where they are not playing and a 30 - 60 minute mix to ensure they will be a good fit. Each DJ that plays gets an hour and a half to showcase their style.
Social was quickly gaining popularity and started hosting larger acts, so John, Slater, and Brandy decided to open a larger venue in 2018, now known as The Patron Saint.
The support from the community was immediately felt at the new venue and the Thursday night events continued with an official name: Proper. The idea behind the name was to pay homage to the foundations of house music, understand and appreciate and know where it has all come from, and give room to the new styles as well. Proper still hosts 4 DJs every Thursday, with Samaro playing on of the slots each week to showcase his talents.
Nick’s favorite part about Proper is the community and relationships he has built. There are so many veteran DJs and new DJs in the area that he is able to keep a healthy rotation coming through. The night has continued to prove itself as a favorite among the Indianapolis crowd and even has out-of-state talent seeking spots to play. Nick says the way the community supports each other and builds each other up has been incredible.
The next Proper show is on Thursday, August 18th, and it is a special release party for the new record label Lazer Metal that Nick started with his friends and DJs Spencer Jackson (Lemi Vice), Alex Edgecomb (Cool Hand Lex), and Jacob Massey (Mass Appeal). Lemi Vice, Cool Hand Lex, Phil Austrom, and Samaro will perform for the release party. The new label focuses on electronic music as a whole with a strong foothold in house and its elements. The label is only two months old but already has a release out by Dark $, a duo comprised of Cool Hand Lex and Lemi Vice.
You can also catch Samaro open for Mason Maynard alongside Slater Hogan on August 25 at The Patron Saint. To keep up on everything else Samaro is doing, you can follow him on Instagram or Facebook or you can join the Proper group on Facebook. If you are interested in listening to Samaro's mixes, they can be found on Mixcloud and Soundcloud.