Who We Are
Jeffthechef
Jeff aka Jeffthechef, was born in a small town in California, and spent most of his formative years all along the west coast. Initially raised near the bay area, he moved around a lot spending time in Portland, Seattle, LA and eventually landed on the island of Oahu where he has been based since 2011.
Although he has worked professionally as a chef throughout his life, (hence the name), music was always his passion and part of his DNA.
As a producer/DJ/multi instrumentalist, his musical journey began around the age of 14 when he took up guitar and formed a band , playing in the local Portland music scene in the early 2000s. Eventually he made his way to LA where he expanded his skills to include DJing and producing, aquiring a formal education, collaborating with other artists and building his network. Ultimatley he settled in Hawaii where he has worked professionally as DJ and in studios as an engineer/producer since 2011. Through shared love of the art form of DJing, he connected with Zegen and eventually Ken and GroovXchange was formed.
The collective focus is showcasing thier deep, diverse, musical talents through hosting events and the release of original music. It’s about using music as a vehicle to cultivate a quality experience that has a positive impact on the lives it touches.
Zegen
Zegen is big on minimalism.
Zegen treasures aesthetics & simplicity. He’s into building ( as a carpenter ) and music ( dj’ng & production ) and that’s about it.
He’s hard to satisfy when it comes to the quality of ” things ” in life, and the people in it.
His neighbor hired him at age 21 to join a flooring job, which is how he got into construction then was able to learn a myriad of other tasks that have to do with building things. Developing and honing his skills, he has truly, from the bottom of his heart.. appreciated the finer things that life has to offer.
Ken
Ken is a Japanese American born in the 80’s in Kyoto, Japan. His parents are both Japanese, and dreamed of a life in America for their children. Ken grew up in the Detroit metro area since age 4 and has lived most of his life in mainland America. He fell in love with hair and the beauty industry. Like many, he did not have it easy growing up and eventually found music to run to.
At first, it was more of a place to go instead of playing with friends. He started with punk, post hardcore, and metal music, then into hip hop and rap in the 90’s, and is very bad at singing but likes Karaoke ( a big part of Japanese nightlife ). Ken started going to raves at Detroit Hart Plaza for DEMF around age 16 where he fell in love with techno.
