Self-care doesn’t take a back seat when Aoki’s on the road—in fact, he suggests the opposite as he looks to meditation and “a nice cup of matcha” as essentials for his morning routine. “Personally, I think you are what you put into your body,” he explains. “The foods you eat, the rest you get, the workouts you complete – all of that combined has an effect on your mental and physical health.”

Outside of the obvious health benefits it provides (like his luscious locks), exercise is key to keeping up with the lifestyle he’s built. “It’s when you get to a new place and you take a moment to lay down or go get food that you start to lose that motivation that you had to work out. So you just have to get up and do it.”

As a globe-trotting digital nomad, Aoki draws inspiration for music from his ever-changing surroundings: “Constantly being on the road means I’m constantly inspired by the cultures and sounds around me. I record these sounds and the melodies they inspire as voice notes in my phone, and when I get a minute at home, I love getting into my studio and really diving into these ideas.” As for his creative process? “There is no one way for me,” he admits. “I’m lucky that I always feel inspired and ready to create. I guess I picked the right career. Or maybe it picked me?”

Aoki never fails to give his fans an unforgettable experience at his shows—from cake-throwing to blasting CO2 at his sets. “The idea for cake-throwing itself came from a music video that Autoerotique, an act on my label Dim Mak, made where cakes would explode in slow motion in people’s faces after blowing out the candles. The video really took off, and so I started throwing cakes at people to promote the video. To this day it’s an essential and in-demand part of my show,” he explains. His POV? “You have to think outside of the box if you want to stand out and succeed, and that’s what #TeamGalaxy is all about.”