We caught up with the defining DJ to talk about his label's successes, a look back at some of the more memorable moments and what he thinks the electronic culture can do differently moving forward.

Dreaming about becoming a multi-national rock star showered in repetitive zeros through a bank account is a really stupid goal. It’s practically impossible to break into the already bastardized industry, and it’s even less likely once you’re there that you’ll be able to get anywhere near the top — a position held by elites and mega-personalities.

But Paul Oakenfold — the godfather of trance and arguably the biggest cross-genre producer in the world — has held his reign as electronic music’s top pioneer for more than 20 years along with his iconic Perfecto record imprint. This year marks the label’s 25th anniversary, an impressive accomplishment for just about anything in today’s ADD and throwaway culture.

And with the celebration comes a two-disc compilation, out now, aptly titled 25 Years Of Perfecto Records — featuring music from “key producers that helped define the label’s sound including: BT, Grace, Tiesto, Man With No Name” and many more, including Oakenfold.

We caught up with the defining DJ to talk about his label's successes, a look back at some of the more memorable moments and what he thinks the electronic culture can do differently moving forward. See him live in Colorado tomorrow, June 25, at BETA nightclub.

Well, by god, two-and-a-half decades with the success of everything Perfecto is no easy feat, especially in the music industry …

"I mean, I didn’t set off to try and get on with it, I never felt we would last this long. You don’t sit down and think about it on that respect. We’re the longest lasting label in electronic music — and we’ve had our ups and downs like any business. We’ve documented it, we’ve put together a mix that’s out now that’s doing well and we’re now moving forward and looking towards the future and signing new acts."

That’s just it, when you start you never think about how long it’s going to last, what do you think the main driving success has been for all of its ups?

"Obviously the staff has great motivation, and are a real big part of it … A&R, signing the right artists … developing the right artists, and supporting the community, have all been factors in the success of the label"

Do you think some of it can be chalked up to timing too?

"I think timing plays an important part of anything to be honest; you learn that over a period of time. You learn when’s a good time to release a record, when’s a good time to sign an artist, those kinds of things play into it."

There’s a ton of things that have happened in twenty-five years, but what are some of the standout things for you?

"I think some of the big, big moments were — the record label has always been more than a label, we’ve always felt that we were a strong defining brand in electronic music — and what I mean by that … we have gone on to do residencies in Ibiza, we were doing that as a label and bringing artists through. We were very much a part in 2009, the birth of electronic music in Las Vegas with a three-year residency of Perfecto. The current radio show, Planet Perfecto, has 22 million listeners worldwide. We had one of the biggest electronic compilations on Perfecto … we’ve had many, many things out of the box, not just in respect to just releasing records."

Is there anything out there you haven’t done yet that you’d like to?

"As a label we’re all about signing new up and coming talent and working alongside that talent — that’s a big part of it."

Speaking of the new cats coming out, what do you think about the current culture of electronic music?

"I think it’s pretty good! There’s some great DJs coming out of it … wonderful producers. We’re in a very healthy moment."

Did you ever see the culture of it blowing up to the level we’re seeing now?

"I think we knew it was coming; you could see it was on the horizon. The numbers were getting bigger. The real change was when America jumped on board, once America jumps on board then everything changed. (That’s) always the way …"

Is there anything the current culture is doing wrong, do you see any missteps?

"I don’t look at it that way; I don’t look at it and see if they’re doing anything wrong. What I’m looking at is — where’s the bands? It’s very DJ driven. I think it would be really good for us to have electronic bands. In England we had, for instance, Chemical Brothers, Underworld, The Prodigy, Faithless — these are all bands that came out of electronic music. We don’t have them in this current generation, that’s what I’m interested in looking for."

Do you have an idea of where it’s going to go in the next 5, 10, 15 years?

"House music is getting very, very popular and EDM is starting to fall away. House music is getting popular, so we’ll see."

You’re likely in a position now that you don’t have to tour as much as before, yet you’re still on the road constantly — is there something about it you just can’t get away from?

"I do really enjoy it, and I’m very lucky I can still be doing it. It’s great to pick and choose what you want to do; I’m very fortunate."