By Steven Adelman

What does the contemporary political right want the future to look like?

Format: Paperback/e-book

Language: English

1. Forthcoming spring 2027

About the Book

For decades, DJs stood in the shadows, shaping the energy of dance floors from behind their turntables. Today, they command festival main stages, attract millions of fans, and rank among the world’s biggest music celebrities. How did they get there?

In Off the Record, nightlife pioneer Steven Adelman chronicles the extraordinary rise of the Superstar DJ, drawing on more than thirty years of firsthand experience building some of America’s most influential nightclubs. From New York City’s legendary Limelight to Boston’s Avalon and the explosion of electronic dance music in Las Vegas, Adelman reveals the personalities, pivotal moments, and cultural shifts that transformed an underground movement into a multibillion-dollar industry.

Along the way, he takes readers behind the velvet ropes and into a world of groundbreaking performers, ambitious promoters, notorious nightlife personalities, and corporate power players. Through candid anecdotes, insider perspectives, and unexpected encounters, Adelman explores how technology, celebrity, and big business reshaped dance music and the culture surrounding it.

But Off the Record is more than a history of DJs and nightclubs. It is also a story about the tension between underground authenticity and commercial success, and the communities whose creativity and passion made dance music a worldwide phenomenon.

Entertaining, revealing, and deeply personal, Off the Record offers a front-row seat to the evolution of modern dance music and a compelling look at where the culture is headed next.

About the Author

Steven Adelman is a nightlife entrepreneur, author, and pioneer of electronic dance music culture whose career spans more than thirty years. Widely known as the co-founder of the Avalon nightclub brand, he has helped shape the American nightlife landscape and played an instrumental role in the rise of the Superstar DJ.

Adelman began his nightclub career in New York City, directing legendary venues including Roxy, Limelight, Tunnel, and Palladium. He later established Avalon in Boston and Hollywood, creating influential destinations for electronic dance music and helping launch the careers of artists including Moby, Skrillex, Steve Aoki, and The Chainsmokers. His projects have extended internationally, including Avalon at Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands.

Adelman holds a BA from Kalamazoo College and an MA in Economics from Boston College. He is an adjunct professor of economics and a nationally certified SCORE business mentor. His first book, Nocturnal Admissions, was published by Santa Monica Press in 2022.

About Flatpage

Flatpage Press is an independent publisher and editorial agency based in New York. We publish thought-provoking nonfiction and scholarship that contribute to important contemporary conversations.