DJ Justin Paul Bridges Music and Education Through Student Internship Programs

Music Creator, Producer and Record Label Owner and His Mission To Uplift New Artists and Professionals.

Justin Paul | Photo: Courtesy

Music and education go hand in hand for internationally recognized DJ Justin Paul, who’s opened up internships for aspiring student artists and music professionals. He’s already begun mentoring UCSB students and is looking to continue this educational outreach.

Paul describes himself as a DJ specializing in nu-disco, deep house and tech house, but that doesn’t limit his skills or expertise. He’s performed sets across the world, ranging from big stage festivals, pool parties, or even more private spaces. But this all comes back to being an educator, whether through sharing music as a performer, or being a mentor to aspiring artists.

“For me as a DJ and as a record producer, music is about atmosphere and energy,” he said. He’d been surrounded by music from a young age and in his teenage years, got the chance to help out his cousin, who happened to be a DJ. Before he started his undergraduate years, he was already performing sets and starting to branch out by trying new sound mixes and blends.

Since then, Paul has continued to grow his audience through different performances around the world, and working with various different artists both as a DJ but also as the founder of record labels including Playloop Records and the electronic label Underground Sol.

“As a DJ you have great power and energy,” Paul said. “Your goal is to make people have an amazing time, but you also are trying to educate your audience.”

All while making music and working with a number of artists, Paul is also a lecturer at UCLA’s Herb Albert School of Music, where he has been teaching a class called “DJ as Performer.” The course seeks to have students think about how to incorporate different instruments, vocals and other musical elements into a set. It also goes through a history of DJing, music production and the music industry. He also teaches at CSU Dominguez Hills.

Part of Paul’s commitment to music education also extends to supporting young artists and aspiring professionals in the music industry. He offers a number of internship opportunities, which are currently open to applications for the 2025 academic year. They include internship opportunities in “Fashion & Music Industry Relations,” “Music Marketing & PR,” “Artist & DJ Bookings,” and “Music Supervision & Radio Promo.”

Each internship opportunity allows for students to work with a professional, be it a DJ or musical artist, to give them a real taste of what it’s like to work in the music industry. The artists that interns get to work with are part of Underground Sol, which is under the parent record label company Underground Sun. At the end of the program, students produce a case study project that reflects on what they have accomplished through the internship.

“Our goal is to create opportunities where you see [students] can really roll up their sleeves,” Paul said. For him, it’s important to give students opportunities that they’re passionate about to immerse themselves in new opportunities and begin to build their portfolios that can go far beyond their time in college. Students participate in research and regular meetings to share their experiences with one another and build connections.

“Every artist and music business professional that’s coming up really needs to own their home market,” he said. “Be successful in your home market before you really try to branch out.” Paul acknowledged that the Santa Barbara community is one of those small community places to get a start.

His experience both as a music curator, record label owner, and everything in between has given him a wide understanding of different aspects of the music industry, a gap that he’s working to bridge through these various educational opportunities. He acknowledged that the industry can be tough to break into let alone navigate, thus his mission is to give smaller artists and music professionals an opportunity to step in and be a part of the music industry.

“Music has a lot of magic in it and sometimes that process can literally take years,” he said. Everything he does is for a mission, whether it be spreading his love of music to new and different communities, working with artists in the industry to create something unique, or even spending time with students in and out of the classroom to build their skill sets.

At the moment, Paul is currently mentoring a couple UCSB students, but hopes to continue expanding these programs to support more young artists and professionals.

For more information about Justin Paul and his music, visit justinpaul.com.