Biz Martinez
From Talk Nightlife
Starting his career in the local nightlife scene as a promoter for some short-lived venues on South Beach, Biz soon progressed across the Macarthur Causeway in mid-2001 to the then-new Club Space in Downtown Miami. Catching the attention of owner/operator Louis Puig, Biz was tasked to push forward the evening/early morning outdoor terrace scene at the venue. Along with local DJ/Producer Roland, he developed the seminal Lunar Sessions party, which was the early counterpart to the already-legendary Sunrise Sessions party headed up by Ivano Bellini.
The Lunar Sessions rapidly became a local favorite, with a combination of Roland's eclectic, accessible track selection of house favorites and underground gems, as well as Biz's knack for hospitality and marketing the party to a broad base of nightlife denizens, from upscale players in the scene, to dedicated fans of the music.
As time progressed, Biz expanded the Lunar Sessions party into one of the defining events at Club Space, to the point where guest DJs at the venue were looking to end their main room sets early, and take to the turntables outdoors to greet the sunrise. DJs such as Steve Lawler, Sander Kleinenberg, and Sharam and Ali of Deep Dish would perform on a regular basis.
The Lunar Sessions lasted until December of 2004, when Biz and Roland, looking to expand their horizons, decided to take their event back to South Beach, and established a Saturday night residency at Amika, a club headed up by nightlife impresario Tony Guerra, and investor Ken Percy. Amika, which inhabited the former Shadow Lounge space owned by Dade Sokoloff and Bobby Brandt, was a venue targeted at the upscale local and tourist crowd on South Beach.
Though the Amika residency was short-lived, it was there that Biz, along with Kristine Hall and DJ/Producer Stephan Luke, bought to fruition the Sundance party, a Sunday night gathering of house music fans in an upscale environment. Though Roland was not involved in this event, Biz did remain loyal to "his" DJ, and helped to further build his career in the Miami scene.
With this in mind, Biz and Roland met with Dade Sokoloff in early 2005. By then, Sokoloff was the marketing director for Nocturnal, which was then the most expensive nightclub in South Florida. After years of delays, Nocturnal was finally slated to open in mid-2005, and required a signature event. Aware of the influence of Biz and Roland on the local scene, Sokoloff tasked them to develop a late night/morning event for Nocturnal's rooftop terrace. After a few intense weeks of planning, Biz and Roland presented Local Celebrity, which rapidly became the signature Saturday morning party in the Miami scene. Over the two years of it's existence, Biz reinforced his reputation as the "go-to-guy" in Miami for those seeking a comfortable, upscale experience with cutting-edge DJs and music.
While heading up Local Celebrity, Biz booked DJs such as Danny Tenaglia, Behrouz, Mark Knight, and many other luminaries of the dance music world. At it's peak, Local Celebrity was one of "the" places for locals and industry people alike to relax and unwind.
While Local Celebrity ran, Biz was not content to stand still. In late 2005, he accomplished a huge goal of his, in bringing Oscar G and Ralph Falcon, collectively known as Murk, together for an unprecedented residency at Mansion, on Sunday evenings. It was here that Biz solidified his friendship and business relationships with Danny Tenaglia and Behrouz, and as of 2008, is their sole event producer in the South Florida scene.
Mansion, being ran by The Opium Group, led to Biz being able to resurrect the Sundance party, which in 2007, established itself at The Opium Group's flagship venue, SET, on Sunday nights. As of this writing, Biz, through Sundance, has hosted events with cutting-edge talent such as Sultan, Sébastien Léger, Arno Cost, Norman Doray, Kaskade, Martjin ten Velden, Sasha, Danny Howells, Mark Knight and many others.
He was named one of South Florida Nightlife's Most Influential People by the Talk Nightlife web community in 2008.
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