Biography of Garrett David
Queen! in the basement of Smartbar
Queen! Sundays turned Garrett David into one of the compasses for Chicago house of his generation. In the basement of Smartbar, alongside Michael Serafini, he shaped a queer and open night that filled the void left by the Boom Boom Room: hosts like Byrd Bardot and JoJo-Baby, residencies shared with Derrick Carter and Frankie Knuckles, and a dance floor where vinyl and a sense of community ruled. At 19, he was already the youngest resident in the club's history; Chez Damier, passing through during that early stage, became a mentor and opened the door to Courtesy of Balance for him.
From Columbus to the Gramaphone counter
Before Chicago, he was DJing as a teenager at the Sweatin’ parties in Columbus, Ohio. He moved to the city of house the same week he finished high school, still using aliases, and landed at Dollar Disco before founding Queen!. Behind the counter at Gramaphone Records—where he became a house buyer—he sharpened his ear and his vinyl discipline. With Stripped & Chewed, he released The Queen! Tracks (2013), a tribute to those nights with echoes of Bardot Fever, and in 2019, the sequel with Javonntte. He also pushed Night Sea Journey with Colin Johnson and the Bell Boys project with Adam Rowe, while labels like Lobster Theremin, Distant Hawaii, Smallville, and Residual picked up a deep house, sometimes garage, sometimes techno-edged, always hypnotic and unwilling to rush.
Global Swing, Berlin, and the current pulse
In 2022, he founded Global Swing, the label with which he organized his club vision: The Dirty Work, Gary’s Dreamland, and later Come Closer, with art by Esoe and trusted distribution. Live, Live was released on the Spanish label MATE; Nu-Relix (Butter Side Up, 2025) condensed that mix of Chicago rigor and European fluidity. Based in Berlin and booked by Interwave, he remains linked to Queen! and has brought that same pulse to Djoon in Paris, The Lot Radio, themuddshow, and Circoloco Radio. The groove has not changed its priority: for the dance floor to be hypnotized without losing the joy of dancing.
