Las Vegas Mixtape v45: Eclectic Vegas: Dark, Rhythmic, and Fragrant

Track #2 (of 5): The DJ Museum @Filipino Town

A museum with a very big beat. (Image: Vegas 411)

Vegas prides itself on having truly unique museums like the Las Vegas Showgirl Museum, the Atomic Museum, and the Punk Rock Museum.  Notably, the city is now home to the DJ Museum, which celebrates the history of turntable culture. It opened this past October in newly designated Filipino Town (not far from the convention center).  If you’re driving north on Maryland Pkwy, look to the left and you’ll see a large mural—painted alongside a driveway that leads to a free rooftop parking lot—with the words, all capped: “LET THE RHYTHM TAKE YOU.”

Owner Sam Maxion—a Filipino American also known as DJ/producer “Slammin Sam”—proudly describes this shrine to big beats as “the only DJ museum in America.” It’s an impressive, massive space with high ceilings and multiple rooms including the main exhibit area, an interactive music room, and gift shop. The artifacts here come from Maxion’s own collection, alongside memorabilia that continue to be donated weekly by an array of DJs. 

The museum lovingly preserves DJ culture. (Image: Vegas 411)

Wandering through the space, you’ll see rare turntables and early mixing consoles—“all DJ-related gear and relics from the 1900s through today,” notes Maxion—plus collectors’ vinyl, influential magazine covers (including ones from Urb and DJ Times), rave flyers from around the globe, old T-shirts, and more.  I was glad to see a framed photo of pioneering DJ Nicky Sarano, who helped kickstart disco in the very early ‘70s in NYC. 

Owner DJ Slammin Sam is more than ready to serve the community. (Image: Vegas 411)

“It’s time for DJs to shine in a museum,” says Maxion, who grew up in the Bay Area, moved to Vegas in 2019, and currently DJs at Aliante Hotel/Casino (“I spin everything, open format”). Given the number of superstar DJs who perform on the Strip and the annual EDC festival, it makes perfect sense that the DJ Museum is here in Vegas. 

The museum also serves as a community space that can be rented for parties, weddings, and more. It includes a huge graffiti-adorned “chamber lounge” for folks to dance in an environment that’s reminiscent of early trend-setting underground dance events