Van Paugam has been DJing, curating, and mixing Japanese City Pop for 10 years. He has worked with Japanese Record Labels to create official remixes of City Pop, hosted over 100 events dedicated to the genre around the world, including Japan, and is credited as a leading figure in the genre’s resurgence. He currently works for the Japanese Culture Center of Chicago, has served on the board of the Japanese Arts Foundation, and is committed to promoting Japanese arts within Chicago and beyond. His reverence for the genre goes past merely just playing records; he is heavily influenced by Japanese philosophy and zen practices, which is attributed to his respect and appreciation for the music.