--- title: About │ JSTDRMN is a Toronto-based dance music collective description: JSTDRMN Collective is dedicated to helping aspiring musicians, DJs, and producers develop their skills and secure their first gigs and shows. --- [![](https://www.jstdrmn.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Untitled%20design%20(3)-4.png?width=2000&height=1000&name=Untitled%20design%20(3)-4.png)](https://www.jstdrmn.com?hsLang=en) - [☁️ ABOUT](https://www.jstdrmn.com/about) - [☁️ TEAM](https://www.jstdrmn.com/team) - [👀 UPDATES](https://www.jstdrmn.com/updates) - [👕STORE](https://www.jstdrmn.com/store) - [🚀 ARTISTS](https://www.jstdrmn.com/artists) - [🌟 HEADLINERS](https://www.jstdrmn.com/headliners) - [💜 COMMUNITY](https://www.jstdrmn.com/connect) - [🎉 SHOWCASES](https://www.jstdrmn.com/shows) - [🎵 Set Recordings](https://www.youtube.com/@JSTDRMN/videos) - [🌱 Dreamer Fund](https://www.jstdrmn.com/fund) - [📚 ACADEMY](https://www.jstdrmn.com/bootcamp) - [🎧 DJ Bootcamp](https://www.jstdrmn.com/dj) - [🎹 Production Bootcamp](https://www.jstdrmn.com/prod) - [🎨 Branding Bootcamp](https://www.jstdrmn.com/brand) - [🌱 Dreamer Fund](https://www.jstdrmn.com/fund) - [💿 LABEL](https://www.jstdrmn.com/music) - [🤝 MANAGEMENT](https://www.jstdrmn.com/mgmt) menu Search - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. # What is JSTDRMN? ## ☁️ Our Dream: Make Toronto a global EDM epicenter by fostering local talent from local spaces to global stages ## 🌈 We believe in Multigenreism Toronto is the most multicultural city in the world - over half foreign-born, with 250+ ethnic origins and 175+ languages spoken. We believe our music must reflect our city. JSTDRMN serves as the connective tissue between industry, venues, artists, communities, and creatives, and leverages this cultural fusion as a breeding ground for innovative genre blending, reinterpretation, and multigenreism. We help aspiring artists and creatives... 💜 ## Connect with Like-Minded Creatives who appreciates electronic music of all genres and learn from them 🚀 ## Improve Artist Skills & Knowledge by introducing new sounds, instruments, technology ✨ ## Build a Constellation of Communities of people who are eager to connect and discover each other ## Our Story JSTDRMN (pronounced Just Dreamin’) is a Toronto-based electronic music artist incubator and cultural ecosystem. Our mission is to establish Toronto as the premier global hub for electronic dance music by helping artists grow from local spaces to global stages. We facilitate multigenred community connection, hands-on education, professional live performance opportunities, and longer-term release and artist-development pathways. We built our foundation around accessibility, mentorship, and the belief that every artist deserves a stage, regardless of background or experience. Founded in 2020 as an online group of Toronto DJs, producers, and artists experimenting with livestreams during the pandemic, JSTDRMN began presenting in-person events in 2022. Our first event sold out with 177 attendees, demonstrating demand for a more accessible, community-led platform for emerging electronic artists. Over the last 4 years, we continued to set ourselves apart with our ability to identify, nurture, and showcase early-stage artists who are often overlooked by traditional venues or promoters, and have evolved from a grassroots collective into an integrated organization representing 300+ creatives across Toronto’s electronic music ecosystem, including DJs, producers, vocalists, photographers, and visual artists. This ecosystem-first approach has allowed us to build meaningful partnerships with leading Canadian organizations, including North By North East (NXNE), Universal Music Canada, Sleepless Studios, and we are an active participant in the City of Toronto’s Music Office Events to champion our community’s needs. The culmination of these partnerships has positioned us to serve as the connective tissue between emerging artists, established collectives, and the professional music industry. Furthermore, we are fostering the next generation of music leaders with our internship programs representing students from Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), George Brown College, Ontario College of Arts and Design (OCAD), and York University. Throughout the ecosystem growth and adapting to recent economic challenges, JSTDRMN’s mission remains the same: to foster Toronto talent from local spaces to global stages. Over time, our approach has matured; our systems are more resilient, our programming diversified, and our operations designed for long-term sustainability. What began as a dream shared by 8 artists has become a launchpad for a new generation of artists shaping the future of electronic music in Ontario. ### **The JSTDRMN Ecosystem** What differentiates JSTDRMN is the complete artist journey we offer. Our Community brings people in; Academy develops skills; Showcases create visible professional opportunities; and Label and Artist Development activity extend artists into releases, bookings, and longer-term growth. Each part strengthens the others by creating more role models, collaborators, and opportunities for the next generation of artists. JSTDRMN is Toronto-first, multigenre, and rooted in inclusive collaboration. We focus on practical “firsts”: a first track, first professional set, first brand, first meaningful network, or first release. This approach supports a more diverse and resilient Ontario music ecosystem while creating a sustainable business built on live events, education, community programming, and recorded music. Specifically: Our 💜 COMMUNITY 💜 is the entry point to our ecosystem. Through our monthly in-person community gatherings, coworking sessions, workshops, open decks, and social events, we create the trust and relationships that help artists find collaborators, opportunities, and a meaningful local network. We prioritize participation over passive membership and maintain a no-gatekeeping, no-VIP culture. To date, we’ve hosted 30 community events, including 7 in 2026. Notably, our June 2025 community event was held at Universal Music Canada’s headquarters, featuring senior speakers from A&R, artist management, and digital marketing. After meeting the community in person, artists are welcomed to our online Discord server, now representing 270+ vetted professionals across disciplines including DJs, producers, visual artists, photographers, and designers (who actively collaborate and exchange opportunities daily). The community is carefully managed through an application process and moderatoin that ensure participation aligns with our mission and values. Our 📚 ACADEMY 📚 turns interest into practical capability. Our small, in-person cohorts provide hands-on teaching, mentorship, direct feedback, and clear outcomes: a first professional set, completed track, mashup/edit, or completed artist brand and media kit. Our programming includes DJ, Mashup, Production, and Branding Bootcamps. To date, we have had 44 graduates from our 8 academy programs, and several graduates have gone on to secure paid bookings (including opening for international touring artists) or launch their own event brands, underscoring the program’s success. We have had 19 artists debut on stage, 7 original tracks released, and have recently established the Dreamer Fund, which has provided $1.2k in grants to reduce the financial burden for underrepresented learners, primarily those from female, BIPOC+/immigrant, or LGBTQ+ communities. Our 🎉 SHOWCASES 🎉 create accessible, concept-driven live experiences where emerging artists can perform in professional settings and audiences can discover Toronto talent. Our programming is multigenre, local-ONLY, and designed around memorable concepts rather than conventional club nights. To date, we have presented 23 showcases, featuring 300+ performers, 133 (40%) of which were debuts, attracted 5.8k+ attendees with our largest events reaching 650+ attendees. Two of these showcases were previously OMIF funded, receiving a total of $23k in grants. Many of the artists booked continue to grow with opener bookings for international touring DJs, self-hosted shows, and private bookings, demonstrating the success of our talent-finding model.  Finally, our 💿 LABEL and ARTIST DEVELOPMENT 💿 extends artistry beyond a single performance. The JSTDRMN Label curates, distributes, and promotes music from artists within our ecosystem while preserving artist-led creative direction. The label launched in April 2025, with 18 tracks released featuring 24 artists and generating 20k+ total streams to date. We are currently planning a community-wide compilation for December 2026, where we plan to release another ~10 tracks to highlight the multigenreism that exists in Toronto. These tracks are distributed globally, with presence on global streaming platforms, including helping artists gain exposure in Asian markets with DSPs such as Tencent Music and Netease. Additionally, our label further develops artists by connecting them with creative directors, brand strategists, artist managers, agents, and advises artists on royalty collections (SOCAN, Panorama, etc) and track registration, helping artists financially benefit from their releases. ### **Let's Grow Together** - **Want to join the community?** [Apply here](https://share.hsforms.com/1lLxbs7QxSeCRNCIYXvAVlQpw10k) - Collab? email us:** [hello@jstdrmn.com](mailto:hello@jstdrmn.com)** - **Want to work with us?** Meet the Dream Team [here](https://www.jstdrmn.com/team?hsLang=en) ## Our Story (VERSION ONE) It started during the height of the pandemic in 2020. While the world hit pause, a group chat of DJs decided we weren't going to wait around. We were tired of the silence, so we pivoted to the screen—hosting livestreams that eventually raised **$2,800+** for social causes like [Stella’s Place](https://stellasplace.ca/). What began as a chaotic, DIY experiment during the lockdowns eventually became **JSTDRMN**.  Honestly? It wasn’t always a polished machine. In the early days, it was just a few of us—Leo, Jeremy, and Aaron—trying to figure out how to bridge the gap between a laptop screen and a real experience. When lockdowns lifted in 2022, we finally moved into the real world with our inaugural [Masquerave](https://www.instagram.com/jstdrmn/), which sold out to 177 attendees. That was the spark. We realized that if we wanted to build a community that lasted, we couldn’t just "dabble." We had to go all-in. **Building the Launchpad** We recognized a massive gap in Toronto: performance opportunities for aspiring artists were non-existent. We believe anyone with a dream should be enabled to pursue it. That shift in 2023 saw us hosting 7 live shows and featuring 30 local artists. To solve the structural issues of starting a career, we launched: Scaling the Vision Think of it like a rocket launch—our Dreamers are the rockets, and JSTDRMN is the platform. In 2024, we supported 40 artists, 58% of whom made their stage debut with us. We expanded our reach through partnerships with Chatime, Waterfront Night Market, and Sleepless Studios, and raised funds for the [Barbra Schlifer Memorial Clinic](https://www.schliferclinic.com/) during our *[Empowoment](https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipMU5wvHOfX_uROoN09iTKcHWPAPQveM9RY6JVw73CZMsKlXxVAxoCiENyircZIT6g?pli=1&key=TDFIUkRmN01GU2R4UmNKcnM2Z1lUc2RDNEpvcmhR)* event. From our massive [Lunar New Year Showcase](https://www.instagram.com/jstdrmn/) (790 attendees!) to our first  DJ Bootcamp graduates debuting at [The Reckoning](https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipN_63mTCl6pq2D5zRE6Boaso52Mo-cS2S6uRTu-oECPiGjDcFeg2TH0jIUsKIDqMA?key=MW44MUhKNTFfTUNnN0V1SVBHWVF1cjlpUFNEYXR3), we’ve outgrown that original WhatsApp group. We’ve since migrated our community to Discord to better serve our growing family of 180+ creatives. The Road Ahead We’re not some faceless company. We’re a collective that started with a simple idea among friends who wanted to hear more good music. For 2026, we’re doubling down with monthly EDM Community Connects, quarterly Bootcamps, and more showcases! We’re still figuring it out, one show at a time, but the mission is clear: - **Want to join the community?** [Apply here](https://share.hsforms.com/1lLxbs7QxSeCRNCIYXvAVlQpw10k) - **Want to work with us?** [See open roles here](https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd9qZ07OTR4bi2qU4aWjWfqEL4PljlpW9clKSnacik1TtY4hg/viewform)or email us at **hello@jstdrmn.com**.  Let’s redefine Toronto’s dance music landscape together. 💪     © 2026 JSTDRMN Inc. [mailto:hello@jstdrmn.com](mailto:hello@jstdrmn.com) Additional Links [📰 Press](https://www.jstdrmn.com/press?hsLang=en) [📚 Guides](https://www.jstdrmn.com/updates?hsLang=en)