mikey lion is a dj and producer from san diego and the most visible face of desert hearts, the crew he helped start. his ra biography has him behind the decks at thirteen, scratching hip hop records after school, then switching to house the day after he saw daft punk at coachella at seventeen. he also put in a stretch of long dj sessions at sala razzmatazz in barcelona before any of the desert hearts story began.

I don't really think of it like I'm running one of the biggest brands in America because to me it still feels like we're just getting started.

mikey lion to magnetic magazine, 20 october 2021

the crew formed at burning man in 2011, when he joined up with his brother porkchop, longtime friends marbs and deep jesus, and lee reynolds. the first desert hearts ran in november 2012 as a two hundred person renegade gathering in the mojave desert. the brand describes itself as a tribute to house, techno and love, and it runs two labels, Desert Hearts Records from 2014 and the heavier Desert Hearts Black.

his own records mostly land on the house label and mostly credit the crew alongside him. Good Times came out 3 may 2024. the California ep followed on 29 april 2026 with marbs and lee reynolds, two tracks, california and dancing feet. A Place For Us, made with marbs, landed 30 july 2026.

the run into summer 2026 was festival work. dirtybird campout x northern nights at cooks valley campground on 17 july 2026, love long beach festival at shoreline aquatic park on 18 july 2026, and groove & bass festival in quebec city on 23 july 2026. as of 2 august 2026 his ra page lists nothing after that, so there are no confirmed bookings to point at.