DJ Sneak

Being a top house DJ in Chicago is like being the most popular prostitute in Nevada: The competition makes the feat all the more remarkable. Carlos Sosa moved to the Windy City in 1983 and earned the nickname “Sneak” as a graffiti-tagging artist. He worked parties and standard club gigs in the saturated scene, using his spinning skills to pay the bills. But in his off time, DJ Sneak started fusing jazzy melodies to the rhythms of his native Puerto Rico. His defining discs, You Can’t Hide From Your Bud (1996) and Buggin’ Da Beats (1997), elevated him from local DJ-for-hire to international festival attraction. Sneak adds freewheeling funk and disco-spiked soul to house’s trademark thump, alleviating the monotony that scares some listeners away from the genre without sacrificing its raw, pounding power. His recent release House of Om Presents: DJ Sneak demonstrates his mixing prowess. It’s a solid souvenir, but only a live show — his first in the Kansas City area — can really reveal how Sneak takes sound systems by storm.