DJ Mark Pellegrini

Mark Pellegrini has been a fixture of the Melbourne dancefloor for four decades. His grandfather and father migrated from Abruzzo in the early 1950s, and the Italian music, food and traditions he grew up with have run through his whole career.

He started DJing as a teenager in 1986 on a suitcase turntable and a cassette deck, working house parties and clubs in Melbourne's northern suburbs before moving on to Heat, Alumbra, the Royal Melbourne Hotel, Trak, Cadillac Bar, Silvers, Dome, Chevron and Platform One. His sound is rooted in the disco, funk and house of the 80s and 90s — Prince, Stevie Wonder and Quincy Jones on one side, Patrick Cowley, Giorgio Moroder and Shep Pettibone on the other.

He has hosted more than 455 episodes of the Rocksteady Radio Show on Melbourne's KISS FM, including the underground house showcase Rocksteady Revolution, and has played the Melbourne Italian Festa for over ten years.