Luis “DJ Disco Wiz” Cedeño

Born in the Bronx, DJ Disco Wiz says watching Kool Herc when he was thirteen set him off on his own career in hip-hop. “People were opinionated about my role as a predominantly Spanish person doing something that was perceived as black culture,” he told the Village Voice in 2009, the year his autobiography It’s Just Begun: The Epic Journey of DJ Disco Wiz, Hip Hop’s First Latino DJ came out. “Most Latinos were listening to disco and salsa then.” He added, “I’m a testament to the positive things that hip-hop can do to a life.”