3lau

Justin David Blau
Justin David Blau
Born	Justin David Blau; January 9, 1991 (age 35); Syosset, New York, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Electronic dance music producer, DJ
Years active	2011–present
Known for	Performing as 3LAU, founder of Blume Records

Justin David Blau (born January 9, 1991), professionally recognized as 3LAU (stylized in uppercase and pronounced "Blau"), is an American electronic dance music producer and DJ.

Early life

Born in Syosset, New York, Justin Blau grew up in a creatively inclined household. From an early age, he developed skills in piano, guitar, and vocal performance. At the age of 13, he moved with his family to Las Vegas, where he attended The Meadows School before enrolling at Washington University in St. Louis.

Music career

3LAU’s sound is characterized by a fusion of electro house, dubstep, deep house, and progressive house elements. He is recognized for crafting melodic dance tracks and incorporating sampling into his live shows. His songwriting often seeks to motivate audiences to overcome feelings of uncertainty and disorientation.

2011–12: Initial releases

At 20 years old, Blau was introduced to electronic dance music during a visit to Sweden. Upon returning to college, he began creating mashups under the moniker 3LAU and uploaded them to YouTube by mid-2011. He gained early acclaim with bootlegs such as "Girls Who Save the World" and "All Night Long," and won a remix competition for Tiesto’s track "Work Hard, Play Hard." While still a student, his remixes achieved top 10 placements on both Beatport and Hype Machine charts.

2012–15: Singles and touring

In 2012, 3LAU concentrated on DJing and launched the 3LAU Your Mind tour. He released his second bootleg compilation, Dance Floor Filth, followed by Dance Floor Filth 2, which included his own productions. The Las Vegas Review-Journal referred to him as "one of America’s fastest-rising DJ-producers." In late 2013, he joined Carnage on the Night Riot tour for a brief stint, receiving praise for his energetic mashups and electro-house performances that resonated with younger crowds. During summer 2015, 3LAU embarked on his inaugural European tour with stops in Barcelona, Germany, and Ibiza, followed by his first Asian tour visiting cities like Bangkok, Jakarta, and Tokyo.

2016–17: Blume Records

In 2016, Blau founded Blume Records, an independent label designed to utilize streaming revenue for philanthropic purposes. Through this innovative approach, he sought to encourage similar charitable efforts within the music industry.

2018–19: Ultraviolet and OMF

On February 16, 2018, 3LAU released his debut studio album Ultraviolet via BLUME Records. The album featured singles such as "Touch," "On My Own," and "Star Crossed," collaborating with artists including Carly Paige and Said the Sky. Both the album and its lead single "Touch" reached number one on iTunes’ Electronic Chart. On June 21, 2018, he announced OMF (Our Music Festival), noted as the first blockchain-powered music festival; it took place in October in San Francisco with Zedd as the headliner.

In March 2021, commemorating three years since the release of Ultraviolet, 3LAU conducted a groundbreaking NFT auction that sold digital rights linked to the album for nearly $11 million over three days.

2025: Touring

In January 2025, 3LAU performed at Donald Trump’s second Inaugural Ball, which sparked criticism from media outlets and fellow artists such as Deadmau5 and Jai Wolf who viewed it as an endorsement of Trump.

Amid the controversy, Blau removed his social media presence and indicated plans for rebranding. On March 13, through a newly created account, he declared that he would retire the stage name 3LAU and continue performing under his birth name, Justin Blau.

Philanthropic Initiatives

In 2016, 3lau launched Blume, recognized as the pioneering nonprofit dance music label, channeling all earnings towards charitable causes. Through this initiative, he successfully generated more than $200,000 for Pencils of Promise, which facilitated the construction of a seven-classroom educational facility in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. These funds also supported programs focused on clean water access, educational advancement, and teacher training. By 2018, these efforts had resulted in the establishment of two schools.

Albums

Title	Details	Highest chart rankings
Title	Details	iTunes Electronic	Billboard Dance/Electronic
Ultraviolet	Release date: February 16, 2018 Label: Blume Music Format: Streaming	1	7

Singles

List of singles with release dates and record labels
Title	Artist	Release date	Label
"Escape"	3lau and Paris and Simo featuring Bright Lights	June 24, 2013	Revealed Recordings
"How You Love Me"	3lau featuring Bright Lights	March 18, 2014	Island Records
"Vikings"	Botnek and 3lau	April 8, 2014	Dim Mak Records
"Somehow"	Dash Berlin and 3lau featuring Bright Lights	August 29, 2014	Mainstage Music
"We Came to Bang"	3lau featuring Luciana	November 28, 2014	Musical Freedom
"The Night"	3lau and Nom De Strip featuring Estelle	January 12, 2015	Revealed Recordings
"Alive Again"	3lau featuring Emma Hewitt	July 6, 2015	Armada Music
"Runaway"	Bright Lights featuring 3lau	October 16, 2015	Dim Mak Records
"Is It Love"	3lau featuring Yeah Boy	March 29, 2016	Blume Music
"Fire"	3lau and Said The Sky featuring Neonheart	October 25, 2016
"You Want More"	3lau featuring MAX	November 25, 2016
"On My Mind"	3lau featuring Yeah Boy	March 31, 2017
"Hot Water"	Audien and 3lau featuring Victoria Zaro	June 16, 2017	Astralwerks
"Star Crossed"	3lau	September 8, 2017	Blume Music
"Walk Away"	3lau featuring Luna Aura	December 1, 2017
"On My Own"	3lau featuring Nevve	February 1, 2018
"Touch"	3lau featuring Carly Paige	February 16, 2018
"Dirty Neon"	3lau and Zaxx featuring Olivera	May 25, 2018
"Punk Right Now"	HYO and 3lau	November 13, 2018	SM Entertainment
"Game Time"	3lau featuring Ninja	November 30, 2018	Astralwerks
"Would You Understand"	3lau featuring Carly Paige	January 4, 2019	Blume Music
"Better With You"	3lau and Justin Caruso featuring Iselin	March 1, 2019	Armada Music
"Down for Life"	3lau and Bright Lights	June 21, 2019	Blume Music
"Falling"	3lau and Dmno	August 23, 2019
"Miss Me More"	3lau	September 12, 2019
"Tokyo"	3lau featuring Xira	December 6, 2019	Anjunabeats
"At Night"	3lau and Shaun Frank featuring Grabbitz	January 14, 2020	Blume Music
"Apocalyptic"	3lau	August 28, 2020	Stmpd Rcrds
"Everything"	3lau and Funkin Matt featuring Frawley	January 22, 2021	Blume Music
"Worst Case"	3LAU featuring Cxloe	October 8, 2021
"Too Late for Love"	3lau	November 25, 2022
"Easy"	3lau featuring XIRA	October 20, 2023	Anjunabeats

Remixes

Zedd – "Spectrum" (3lau Remix by 3lau)
James Egbert – "Back to New" (remixed by 3lau)
Kap Slap – "E.T. Feels Starry Eyed" (3lau's remix)
Adele – "Set Fire to the Rain" (bootleg version by 3lau)
Tiësto – "Red Lights" (Acoustic rendition by 3lau)
Blinders featuring Charles – "Always" (Mixed by 3lau)
Jessie J, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj – "Bang Bang" (3lau Remix)
Shawn Mendes – "Stitches" (remixed by 3lau)
Anitta and Alesso – Is That for Me (3lau Remix)
Justin Bieber – "Sorry" (3lau Remix)
The Chainsmokers – "Don't Let Me Down" (remix by 3lau)
Ariana Grande – "Into You" (3lau Remix)
Katy Perry – "Bon Appétit" (3lau Remix)
3lau and Audien – "Hot Water" (Drum and Bass remix by 3lau)
Rihanna – Desperado (remixed by 3lau)
Alesso – Is That for Me (3lau Remix)
3lau – "Star Crossed" (Drum and Bass version by 3lau)
3lau – "On My Own" (Electro remix by 3lau)
San Holo — "Lost Lately" (remix by 3lau)

External links