Retiring Off the Mic, the One and Only DJ Sterling Golden

Boston is a melting pot of business, sports, art, and the highest of education. Then there is one who has radiated in music, fashion and nightlife, DJ Sterling Golden. Recently the iconic radio host retired from his illustrious career. After many appearances on the Sterlingtology Live morning show Scene&Style flipped the mic and got an opportunity to interview the renowned DJ.

Before we get down and dirty with the radio host, it’s an honor to look back on his famed career. Sterling has earned a name for himself with a tireless work ethic and unmistakable charisma all his own. A larger-than-life personality, this two-time Best DJ nominee (Boston Nightlife Awards) and two-time SMC Honors winner (2017, 2020) has earned the respect of his peers over the last decade as a Boston radio personality, live DJ, event planner, activist, published writer, podcaster, and founder of 320 Entertainment - a label specializing in promotions and event planning for up and coming recording artists, fashion designers and more.

Sterling's professional journey began in 2009, during the famed "indie sleaze" era, he would encounter longtime independent music promoter Anderson Lynne Mar, who would help pave the way for his entry into the business as a nightclub DJ. His greatest regional notoriety was in the world of independent radio. In this field, Sterling would go on to curate, host and produce several different shows from the long-running STERLINGTOLOGY LIVE morning show, award-winning interview series THE CHOP SESSION, spanning seven seasons. In 2022, Boston Free Radio would honor Sterling's years of radio excellence with the three-hour special GOLDEN AGE OF RADIO: A STERLING ANTHOLOGY.

Now, after a decade and a half Sterling Golden has announced his retirement. Despite this, no matter what life may bring in the future, you can be sure Sterling will continue to live day after day by a simple yet effective credo, "Whatever you do, do it with passion. It's what separates the greats from the ain'ts."

With all these accomplishments it is no wonder Sterling is already missed throughout many industries. Being on the Sterlingtology Live morning show was always a blessing. From kicking back to his playlist, getting in a bit of gossip, and Sterling always getting in his chat about his love for WWF wrestling! I was generally a guest on the show pre or post fashion week.

I thought why not open the in depth session with, “What was your most memorable fashion show?” Sterling replied, “The one that I would point to here is one that we did under unconventional circumstances. It happened during the height of the global pandemic. A virtual event that I curated titled EMBRACE, benefiting the old ONCE Somerville music venue, which was enduring great financial hardship. Part of that EMBRACE presentation included a fashion show featuring the work of Jaclyn Robichaud Doyle, under her Jack Attackk Clothing label.”

1. HOW DID YOU GET INTO THE RADIO BUSINESS?

So long before I was in the industry, I actually had an internship offered to me by a local hip-hop station in the New England area, JAM'N 94.5. I never went forward with it.I was given the wrong advice by an important adult figure in my life who I will not name here, to turn down that internship. I was told "Oh, radio's  not real work. Go get a regular job, bring money into the house and forget that whole radio vibe." Well, for the next 15 years I worked an endless series of odd jobs. I could never keep one because I didn't play well with others, or didn't take orders from others, so that became an ongoing theme in my life as I was trying to figure out what my calling was. Fast forward to the mid-2000s: I found myself in this horrible situation, a mentally abusive relationship where I turned to depression eating as a way of coping. At my lowest point, I weighed 320 pounds, and I looked like a badly made bed.I knew two things in that moment: I'm depressed.. and one day, I won't be. Eventually, I found the courage to walk away from that relationship. Around 2008,  I connected with one of the great nightlife promoters we had in New England, the late Anderson Mar. She helped me get my foot in the door of the nightlife industry. I started out as a nightclub DJ out here, and eventually I was contacted by a gentleman who ran an independent online radio station in the New England area. He suggested I give radio a try, which was interesting because that's where I wanted to start my professional journey in the first place. This turned out to be my gateway to the radio industry, and my first project was hosting and curating weekly radio show titled LEGACY RADIO - basically a promotional vehicle for my monthly LEGACY nightlife event in Allston,  Massachusetts. From that point, radio became the focal point of my career, the hat I was best known for rocking.

2. MOST MEMORABLE RADIO EXPERIENCE?

I'll keep it 100 with you, I can't name one particular show or series or guests that stand out as the most memorable of my career, because there were so many of them. So I'll take this one step further and name a few different guests that I deem as memorable to me. There's a few who immediately come to mind: first, John & Gabriel Shipton, the father and brother of the great journalist and WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange. They pulled up last year (2023) for an interview as part of The Chop Session series, to discuss an independent film titled Ithaka, about Julian's ongoing struggles as the world's most well-known political prisoner.

I also must show love for two of the dopest legends within New England hip-hop, my guys Termanology and Akrobatik. Greats of the community, with artistic reputations that span the globe. Their musical catalogs are unmatched. Both of these guys are two of the most transparent and passionate guests I've ever hosted on any show I've done. There's over 100 episodes of the old Chop Session series available to stream on Spotify, and to this day, whenever anyone asks me which episodes they should start with, I always point them to Term's episode and Akrobatik's episode. Both have amazing stories to tell,  two of the best interviews I ever held down.

Another one for you: Bruce Kulick. Iconic lead guitarist of KISS from 1984 to 1996. This one happened in 2016, as part of a radio special I co-produced honoring the memory and the work of the late Eric Carr who was the drummer of KISS for 11 years and sadly passed away in 1991, due to cancer-related complications. Bruce worked extensively with Eric, and he was kind enough to call in to share his memories of working with Eric, what he was like as a human being, and so on. I have great respect for Bruce, for taking the time out to do this interview - and to this day,  one of the most memorable days of my career because one of the musical entities that really inspired me growing up was KISS. To have a former band member call into my show, was a dope moment for real. It solidified that I made the right choice to do this as a career.

3. HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE WORLD OF FASHION?

To be honest, I  never had aspirations of getting involved in fashion. It's something that kind of happened by accident. That journey began over a decade ago, when I found myself pulling up to an old venue in Boston called Splash Ultra Lounge. If memory serves me correctly, Splash wasn't around for long, but in the time they were in business, there was a weekly Thursday night fashion event titled "Style Infusion," which presented local and international fashion designers on the rooftop of the venue. Through that experience I began to connect with some local models, designers, the promoter of the event and so on.

For the next few years,  outside of occasionally DJing or emceeing fashion events, I didn't really do much in that world. It was in 2016 when I really found myself immersed in our fashion community. It happened when I kicked off the old Sterlingtology Live morning radio show. I hosted a launch party at a local venue, and to my surprise, all these fabulous  local fashion luminaries pulled up to the event. I had not met any of them before. The next thing I know, I was making new connections in that field, and I found this  whole new circle of confidants, friends, and professional connections. I was truly honored to meet them all. From there, I became something of a regular at fashion events out here and even ended up hosting and producing several of my own.

4. MOST MEMORABLE FASHION SHOW?

Oh, damn. I have a lot of fashion shows I either emceed or curated, which I deem to be memorable. The one that I would point to here is one that we did under unconventional circumstances: it happened during the height of the global pandemic, for a virtual event that I curated titled EMBRACE, benefitting the old ONCE Somerville music venue, which was enduring great financial hardship. Part of that EMBRACE presentation  included a fashion show featuring the work of Jaclyn Robichaud Doyle, under her Jack Attackk Clothing label. As part of this event, Jaclyn and I worked on how to present her fashions in a virtual setting, since every act on the bill from live music performers to DJs fo fashion were working from their own respective closed sets. So up in northern New England, Jaclyn and her team worked on building a runway at an old warehouse  It turned out to be a super dope presentation presenting Jaclyn's signature alternative and inclusive fashion vibes. Jaclyn is one of the great designers I respect the most out here, such passion for what she does. She knows herself and she believes in her vision.

5. WHAT'S NEXT IN THE CARDS IN THE LIFE OF STERLING GOLDEN?

Well the honest answer to that question is, continuing to enjoy my retirement. Y'all, your man Sterling has been retired since January 1, 2024, and I'm greatly enjoying this new life of mine. It's well earned. I had a fabulous 15-year run in the industry wearing many hats. I got to live the life I always imagined for myself. I made lifelong connections, created dope memories I shall forever take with me, and I have left behind a lasting body of work that people can go back and revisit on Spotify. Today, my focus is on taking care of family, bonding with my loved ones, traveling, stacking my money, and staying the fuck out of the way. My heart is happy, my circle is small, my blessings are counted, and my life is peaceful.

I'm grateful for everything I got to experience in the industry. The rest of my life began this year, and I'm thankful to everyone who checks in to see how it's been going. To this day, there's so much for me to learn, unlearn and relearn. From this, I plan to continue making a better day for myself, every day going forward. Grateful is what I am. That's the vibe now, always, and forever.