Vladimir Ivkovic is a DJ. He is also much more, of course, but in his essence Ivkovic has a particularly unique talent for selecting records and weaving them into a broader — and often unusually compelling — narrative. Born and raised in Belgrade ( then part of Yugoslavia), he first approached DJing as a teenager in the mid-1980s. Since that time, he spent much of the next two decades honing his skills, organizing events such as Selected and Substance, which hosted a cross section of cutting-edge DJs, and finding his musical and spiritual home at al Salon des Amateurs in Dusseldorf — a venue that gradually proved extremely influential. He then ventured into curating Offen Music, a label he launched in 2015. Although the label’s output is almost impossible to categorize, the label’s open approach and embrace of offbeat sounds perfectly embodies Ivkovic’s artistic temperament. In recent years, this temperament has found more and more devoted followers around the world. In a nutshell, Ivkovic has become a staple on the European club and festival circuit: he has been invited to large-scale events such as Primavera Sound, Unsound, World Minimal Music, Strange Sounds from Beyond, Dekmantel, Flow, TodaysArt, Robot, Waking Life, Terraforma, Dancity, Positive Education and Elevate. Whether it’s broadcasting on the radio — on his program Lunatic Love Songs on Red Bull Radio — or dominating the dancefloor, Ivkovic applies a curatorial mindset and a deep love of music to all of his creative endeavors.