DJ Slugo

Thomas Kendricks, known as DJ Slugo, grew up in Chicago's Robert Taylor Homes and began building a reputation as a teenager, playing his first set at a high school dance in 1983. Introduced to Dance Mania Records by DJ Deeon, he became a founding member of the label alongside co-conspirators Paul Johnson and Deeon, helping originate the raw, stripped-down sound of ghetto house with tracks like "Wouldn't You Like to Be a Hoe Too" and "Where the Rats."

In 1995 he launched his own label, Subterranean Playhouse, and later released a series of Chicago Juke DVDs documenting the local scene. Daft Punk referenced his track "DJ's on the Low" by name on "Teachers," and his work has been featured on HBO's Ballers and Fox's Star, alongside remixes for Nina Kraviz and Missy Elliott and a spoken-word collaboration with Nicolas Jaar, "Ghetto," drawing on his experience growing up in public housing.