That's Ms. Diva DJ to you: DJ Irene is a dyke at the top of her game, but it's been a long climb getting there. (music).

Often billed as "America's number 1 female DJ," Los Angeles-based Irene Gutierrez prefers the term "diva DJ." "Yeah, I'm a little diva," she chuckles with her trademark infectious burst of laughter. "I can be a little bitch. Dramatic like a drag queen." One listen to DJ Irene's latest high-octane mix disc, Phonosynthesis (Surge Records), confirms that love of drama through the record's 70 minutes of pounding house, breakbeat, drum and bass, and progressive trance, which take the listener on an aural roller coaster of frenzied crescendos and heart-stopping breakdowns. "I can't help myself," says the openly gay dance maven, laughing about her over-the-top public persona. "But [my audience] loves it. It's all about having a good time."

Underneath her larger-than-life, DJ-as-rock-star image, however, Gutierrez is one of the most down-to-earth, hard-working DJs around, the proud mother of a 23-year-old son, and still somewhat incredulous about the path her life has taken. "I never imagined making this a career," she admits humbly, thinking back over her years as a professional DJ, in which she's produced 12 mix CDs that have sold nearly 300,000 units globally--amazing numbers for any DJ or electronic artist.

Though she cagily avoids admitting her age, Gutierrez lets slip that she's been spinning since 1978, having picked up the hobby in college while pursuing a commercial photography degree. She started spinning as a way to pay her bills after being hit by a car on the job while working for United Parcel Service. "God knows how stubborn I am, you literally have to knock me off my ass," she says, laughing.

The fast-lane club life eventually caught up to her, though, landing her homeless and addicted to drugs at her lowest point. "I know if I kept going that way, partying, I would have already been dead," she says. She credits getting sober as the turning point in her career: "My son was going to be going to college, and I knew he needed me financially. So that made a big difference. Soon as I got sober and made my first CD, things changed."

It's been a slow, steady climb to superstar DJ status ever since. For 13 years she paid her dues as the resident DJ at Los Angeles's Arena, honing her turntable skills and developing her hard, energetic style. Now she's a jet-setting jock, playing the biggest clubs, circuit parties, and raves all over the world, constantly on tour. "The pace is just fight for me, what I'm doing now," she says. "I don't know how long it'll last, but I'll take it for as long as it does."

When asked whether such a fast-paced career leaves any time for a relationship, Gutierrez gets coy, saying on the record that she is single. "You really need one hell of a person to understand my business," she says. "It is so much more demanding than the average job. Having somebody who can be understanding and compassionate, who believes in you and really knows what you're doing--well, they don't come around all the time."

Still basking in the glow of last year's circuit favorite and number 1 Billboard dance hit, "You're the Worst Thing for Me" by Pusaka--a collaboration with Chris Cox and Thea Austin--Gutierrez has added many prestigious gigs, awards, and nominations to her resume in 2002. She kicked off the New Year performing with Paul Oakenfold, spun the exclusive Grammy Awards after-party in February, and in March won an International Dance Music Award at the Winter Music Conference for her work with Pusaka. Most recently she was nominated in the Best DJ-Selector category of the high-profile L.A. Weekly Music Awards.

"Some of us were made to take chances," she says, summarizing her success story. "I suffered. I really did. But most of my dreams and goals that I've had, I've accomplished. And I thank God. I'm just fortunate. I'm just having a good time."

Coble edits Dance Music Authority magazine.