Les Talusan
Activist on the Dancefloor
Les Talusan has helped cultivate some of D.C.’s most vital artistic spaces for Asian Americans, women of color, and queer communities. Beginning their career as a DJ, photographer, and organizer in nightclubs and underground parties, their work has ascended to arenas including the White House, the Kennedy Center, and museums across the District. This chapter traces the span of Talusan’s career of over 25 years bringing people together in the name of joy and music.
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
First Ladies DJ Collective
Talusan began their career in Manila, Philippines, where they DJ’d a weekly community event featuring non-mainstream music, art, fashion, and skating. Upon immigrating to D.C. in 1999 and taking on local DJ gigs, they noticed a lack of venues that offered the kind of eclectic music that they were passionate about. They eventually found a community in the First Ladies DJ Collective, an all-women group dedicated to creating dance spaces of inclusion, empowerment, and solidarity. Finding its home bases in the Black Cat in the U Street Corridor, Blue Room in Adams Morgan, and Galaxy Hut in Arlington, VA, First Ladies led to life-long friendships, and was Talusan’s first exposure to how D.C.’s cultures of politics and nightlife blend – inspiring them to seek more ways to intentionally collaborate with artists.
Girls Rock! DC
In 2007, Talusan became part of GirlsRock! DC, an organization that affords accessible music programs to girls and non-binary youth of color. Talusan helped run the DJ program while also serving as the DJ crew coach and camp band photographer, further establishing them as a multi-faceted community organizer. Hosting DJ workshops at local libraries and youth organizations across the DMV ignited a new-found passion for youth arts education, which was further fueled by their DJ gigs in public spaces where they were often approached by young people curious about their career path. Today, they continue this work on an international scale, most recently co-founding the Sampaguita Rock Camp for Filipina/x/o Girls in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA in 2022. In 2023, they also conducted a DJ workshop for women and gender-expansive people in Cebu City, Philippines, with local multimedia publishing group PAWN Records.
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
SAMASAMA
In the wake of the 2016 presidential election, Talusan recognized the need to create a safe space to celebrate AANHPI Heritage Month and encourage connection across cultures. They co-founded SAMASAMA, which stemmed from the concept of an art show and gathering that centered AAPI, queer, and other creatives of color. The first two art shows were co-curated with artist Sherry Meneses. In 2018, artist and entrepreneur Seda Nak stepped in as Les’ co-curator. SAMASAMA arrived amidst a rapid rise in local Asian American arts presence and has partnered with organizations such as the Kennedy Center and the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. In 2021, they started collaborating on events like Umpukan and Lumpia Disco with Vanessa Maneja and Elaine Benisano of Kam & 46, a local business specializing in Filipino and Hawaiian-inspired cuisine. While Talusan DJs and sometimes photographs the events, SAMASAMA is the first project where they are a chief organizer, focusing on building up the next generation of artists and creatives.
SAMASAMA co-founders Les Talusan (left) and Seda Nak (right).Courtesy of Les Talusan
SAMASAMA co-founders Les Talusan and Seda Nak.Courtesy of Les Talusan
SAMASAMA co-founders Les Talusan and Seda Nak.Courtesy of Les Talusan
Sulu DC
As Talusan’s reputation grew, they increasingly became the go-to DJ for D.C.’s Asian American organizations including the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF), and the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program. In 2009, local poets Jenny Lares, Regie Cabico, Alex Cena, and Simone Jacobson invited Talusan to be the resident DJ for Sulu DC, their newly-established Asian American arts showcase. Sulu DC put the District on the map for the closely-knit Asian American spoken word, performance, and music communities across the country, and quickly became a key stop for artists on their national tours. The event encouraged Talusan to share Asian and Asian American music, cultivate more relationships within the A/AAPI arts community, and to consider their role as a DJ in elevating the visibility of Asian American voices. Eddie Lee, an artist who regularly performed at Sulu DC, went on to become the Associate Director for the Obama Administration’s White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and invited Les to DJ a White House event – further demonstrating how D.C.’s grassroots community and political scene are often interwoven. Sulu DC helped Talusan recognize their identity as an Asian American, and over the years formed a deeper understanding of their role in evolving the local AAPI artistic community.
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Courtesy of Les Talusan
Taking the Piss
Taking The Piss was Talusan’s longest-running DJ residency. It was held at Marx Café in Mount Pleasant from 2002 to 2019. Mount Pleasant was a neighborhood which at one time considered a ban on live music and dancing at night. In their early years in D.C., Talusan made ends meet by DJing weddings and corporate events with strict setlist requests, and Taking The Piss was an escape that allowed them to experiment and grow their personal craft as a music curator, as well as create space for new and occasional DJs. A favorite among the local creative scene, it was here where Les formed relationships with some of D.C.’s most beloved artists and musicians including Dan Searing, and members of the indie rock band Velocity Girl.
Groove Collective party flyer designed by MISS CHELOVE, 1990s
D.C. is rich with stories of how music, art, and community organizing are interconnected. Sightlines features ephemera such as this flyer designed by MISS CHELOVE, who found her artistic voice in the local hip-hop scene.
