DJ Magazine, commonly referred to as DJ Mag, is a monthly British publication that spotlights DJs and Electronic Dance Music (EDM). However, the magazine’s most valuable asset is a public vote of the top 100 DJs in the world. In 2015, the poll received over a million votes, making it the most significant music poll ever.
The tradition began in 1991 when the magazine’s in-house journalists chose the top 100 DJs of the year, and Danny Rampling became the first DJ to be selected as the top DJ. However, in 1997, the magazine allowed its readers to choose who they believed to be the best DJ in the world. That year, British DJ Carl Cox became the first person to win the Top 100 DJs Award by a public vote.
In the DJ Mag Top 100’s three decades, numerous artists have taken the crown. In 2021, David Guetta won the poll by the British magazine for the third time. Dutch DJs again took up most of the top 10 spots with entries from Martin Garrix, Armin van Buuren, Afrojack, Don Diablo, and Oliver Heldens. The 2021 Top 100 Djs online poll was the most successful, with 1.3 million EDM lovers voting online.
The Top 100 DJs run alongside the Alternative Top 100 DJs, powered by Beatport. This poll ranks musicians from the house, techno, drum & bass, and other derivatives that have recently been underrepresented in the main poll using the same vote data from Top 100 DJs and a genre filter from Beatport. For the past two years, the #1 alternative artist has been Belgian techno artist Charlotte de Witte.
Unicef has been the official charity partner of the Top 100 DJs for six years. As a result, more children worldwide receive vaccinations, education, and protection thanks to Unicef’s efforts in more than 190 countries than any other charity. Throughout the campaign of 2022, DJ Mag will assist with the organization’s essential work; further details regarding fundraising efforts will be released soon.
Additionally, DJ Mag and VirtualDJ have extended their partnership. VirtualDJ, the DJ software with the most downloads (over 100 million), has an illustrious history of technological advances that have molded digital DJing for the past 20 years. The voting procedure and results announcement on social media will also feature VirtualDJ. Furthermore, DJ Mag will publish a video series in which some of the top DJs in the world play mini-mixes on VirtualDJ.
DJCoin, DJ Mag’s official cryptocurrency, will be available for purchase at a 50% discount to all Top 100 DJs voters. The DJCoin platform is based on a particular smart contract that guarantees an increase in value as ownership rates rise; the more DJCoins bought, the higher the value will be. Each DJCoin costs £1 for early investors, but voters in Top 100 DJs will receive a code that allows them to purchase each DJCoin for just £0.50, with a minimum purchase of 2 DJC and no maximum purchase.
The DJ Mag Top 100 has featured various DJs throughout the years, and we have followed the development of both superstar DJs and musical trends. DJ Mag’s Top 100 has seen significant change, yet new artists continue to pour in, and public interest in the competition grows yearly.
Who will rank first this 2022? Well, the answer is all up to you. So prepare to vote for the DJ you like best in the annual DJ Mag Top 100. Which DJs are your favorites? We’re excited and curious, so don’t forget to vote here: vote.djmag.com until 23:59 BST on September 14th. For coverage of the poll, make sure to tune in to Nexus Radio!
