“The DJ New Wave:” DJ Mandy and the Rise of the Auteur DJ
Written by Lorenzo dela Cruz | November 16, 2025
Photos by Lorenzo dela Cruz
Photos by Lorenzo dela Cruz
Austin, TX - With the rise of the performative male epidemic, overconsumption, and the rapid influx of AI in everyday life, more than ever, Gen Z looks toward authenticity and auteurship in an era muddled with constant distractions and a lack of third spaces. One response to this has been the reemergence of DJing and a turn away from expensive stadium events toward more spontaneous, intimate, highly curated experiences. This can be seen on the highest level with Coachella and Lollapalooza lineups, filled with the likes of Knock2 and John Summit, all the way down to Boiler Rooms and house parties happening in living rooms around the country. Viral clips of transitions and mixes flood “For You” pages daily as DJs experiment with new transitions or try out new techniques.
The powerhouse of this movement is the DJs themselves — the sole auteurs of these experiences, many of whom find their rise on digital dance floors across YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, creating identity and vibes online before transitioning to larger and larger in-person events. Characters like these include DJ Mandy, part of a new wave of social media–centric artists taking hold of the creative zeitgeist.
DJ Mandy is the alter ego of Amanda Shultz, a former UC Berkeley student who first posted on TikTok in August 2023. Since then, she has amassed more than 800,000 followers and 22.1 million likes on the platform, performing at festivals including Outside Lands, Head in the Clouds, and Nocturnal Wonderland. Like many of her contemporaries, she has captured Gen Z’s attention through viral clips and catchy mixes. And like many young rising creatives, Mandy found success unexpectedly while balancing school and a part-time job.
Her rise centered on a journey to learn the ins and outs of DJing — a serial-content concept familiar to many. Users were able to witness the highs and lows, the real, unfiltered moments that built her skill set and style. The allure of this kind of vulnerability and authenticity is what continues to draw people to content like this.
One might see movements like this as Gen Z’s attempt to reclaim their lived experience, which in today’s world is heavily controlled and restricted by corporations looking to capitalize on art and culture for profit. In a world where life is defined by capitalism and its unquenchable thirst to commodify every aspect of existence, DJing has become a space for soft rebellion — a safe space for impulsive creativity and vibe generation. This reclamation occurs not only within the auteur but also within the audience bearing witness.
Photos by Lorenzo dela Cruz
“Bearing witness,” downplays an essential aspect of the viral Boiler Room clips that surface online — the crowd. A crucial character in the art of vibe creation is the one instilled with the vibe. In “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction,” Walter Benjamin writes that “the distracted mass absorbs the work of art,” while “a man who concentrates before a work of art is absorbed by it.” Think of comments like “the two guys on the right in sync is such a nice moment. love it,” or “People dancing ... no one on their phones ... no one jockeying to just stand behind the DJ ... I dig it!” Engagement like this emphasizes the communal aspect of the DJ experience — the curation of moments that account for the participation and “absorption” of those in attendance into the work of art itself.
At Austin’s Historic Scoot Inn, this phenomenon continued as UT Austin students showed out in droves, lining up at the barriers to see Mandy in the flesh. She brought a funk-house-jazzy infusion that got everyone grooving, featuring her original song “Funk U Want,” and playful mixes reminiscent of her TikTok videos — combining the “Pink Panther Theme” with “On My Mind” by Diplo and Sidepiece.
Everyone in attendance bore witness to living proof that content-based online communities can translate seamlessly into energetic in-person events — each like and comment becoming a fan waiting eagerly to experience the same performance in the flesh with a group of friends. This simple desire gets at the true purpose of art, and the beauty of what DJing and events like these represent: a collaboration between the artist and the spectator in forming a single focused, unified moment — a moment to simply enjoy.
