Early Days: From an early age, Amir’s ears were filled with the warm and colorful sounds of jazz, gospel, soul, and disco coming from his parents’ stereo. As a young man, he made the leap from this soulful home and dove head-first into the world of hip-hop the first chance he got. But instead of the clean break he had anticipated, he discovered so much of his parents’ classics sampled in the music of his peers. Intrigued, Amir found himself tracing ties through the music — first with light curiosity, soon, tirelessly. This came to be his passion: to map the sonic lineage of hip-hop. Kon & Amir: Amir has been a man on a mission ever since. He has braved strange and dangerous locations in pursuit of the rarest wax; dealt with the shadiest characters and collectors in over 100 cities across the globe; and has had his knowledge called upon by some of the biggest names in hip-hop. It was kismet that Amir would meet fellow crate digger and kindred spirit Kon in 1996; instantaneously becoming fast friends and collaborators. Beginning with the esteemed underground On Track mixtape series, Kon & Amir have since released twelve compilations, including three volumes of Off Track, the follow-up to the On Track series. Kon & Amir’s expertise have been sought by Shady Records, Pete Rock, Diamond D, and Capitol Records, to name but a few. Aside from his work in this partnership, Amir’s own client list has included the likes of Dilla, Madlib, Common, Mandrill, The Mizell Brothers, Duke Jones, Lyman Woodard, and Dennis Coffey. Label Maker: It was also during the 90s that Amir began working at record labels. Starting out in an entry-level position at Fat Beats, Amir quickly rose through the ranks to become VP of Sales. Since then, Amir has worked as an A&R for Rapster/!K7 Records; Sales Manager for ABB Records, and Label Manager of Wax Poetics Records. Having amassed a great wealth of experience and know-how over the years, Amir founded 180 Proof Records in 2010, and has released four albums on the self-made label to date. No Days Off: Today, Amir continues to work and create, not only as a label owner and manager, but also as a prominent tastemaker and curator. Recent projects include the curation and production of the Strata Records exhibit for the Scion IQ Museum and the reissue of the two ultra-rare Newban albums on BBE (Barely Breaking Even) — a project Amir brought to the label back in 2012. And, of course, djing continues to be an intrinsic part of his repertoire. As half of Kon & Amir and on his own, Amir tours the world playing out to a global network of the most fanatical of fans and provides them with deep, rich, alternative sonic experiences.