Austin 40 Under 40 Finalist for 2020
Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce 2020 A-List Tech & Innovation Awards
SXSW 2018 Interactive Innovation Awards Finalist
Teen Vogue
KVUE - DJ Lessons w DJ Cassandra
WSJ
Native Instruments
80 Young Professionals to Know - ABJ
Best Djs, Bands Entertainment - 365Blog Austin
Studio512 holiday playlist
WSJ
Teen Vogue
KXAN - 2020
Texas Performing Arts
Sightlines
Daily Texas - UT
KMFA - new music mixer + KMFA musicians finding a way best djs, bands entertainment - 365 blog austin
guide to getting married in austin - do512
love stories. Tv
bbatx
What the world needs now
ABC - KVUE - How Austin musicians are coping
80 Young Professionals to Know - ABJ
new york magazine the Cut
Junebug Weddings or this link
"ALWAYS ADVOCATING
FOR SOUND ON,
MOOD UP"
Sounds by Cassandra
was founded
by Cassie Shankman, aka DJ Cassandra.
Cassie is an Austin-based DJ/sound curator, composer/ producer, educator, and all-around creative. She grew up between Texas and London, and is a big believer in community
and collaboration.
ABOUT THE FOUNDER
She DJ’d events for global clients such as Goldman Sachs, NASCAR, Teen Vogue, Google, Bumble, Adidas, Facebook, Dell, NBC, SXSW, Virgin, Expedia, The Recording Academy, ACL Live, and Tito’s Vodka, and Soho House. She DJ'd AppleTV+ WeCrashed premiere party for Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto. DJ Cassandra is based in Austin, TX but has played from California to Colorado and Mexico. The weddings she's played have been featured in publications including New York Magazine’s The Cut and Junebug Weddings. DJ Cassandra has opened and closed for Blake Shelton, LP Giobbi, RUN DMC, Angel and Dren, Win Butler (DJ Windows98), Sol Rising, Midland, Charley Crockett, Goldfish, and a Sheryl Crow / Joe Ely ACL Hall of Fame event.
Cassie has been recognized for orchestration, composition, and music preparation work in award-winning films featuring directors and actors such as Terrence Malick, Martin Sheen, and Natalie Portman. She has worked closely with film composers namely Graham Reynolds and Hanan Townshend on a variety of projects, including orchestrating the music for a Dewar’s Scotch television commercial.
As a pianist, she’s played and recorded with musicians from indie-rock artist Ben Kweller to DEVO’s frontman Mark Mothersbaugh and jazz trombonist Wycliffe Gordon at
Lincoln Center.
She’s curated sounds for top local and global brands including (to name a few):
-
Athleta (Gap)
-
Hulu
-
Topo Chico
-
Outdoor Voices
-
Wanderlust Yoga
-
Lululemon
-
KXAN TV
She is the world’s leading Biomedical Music™ composer, designing and creating Biomedical Music™ integrated with biomedical devices for rehabilitation.
As an educator and consultant, Cassie works with TV/Film companies for music production and as a performance coach. Her work has been featured in shows like Facebook’s SKAM – Austin and Season 2 and 3 of Walker Texas Ranger.
She is a member of the Music Teachers National Association, voting member of the Recording Academy (Grammys), and multi-year mentor for The University of Texas at Austin’s Bridging Disciplines Program.
Cassie has spoken as an official SXSW panelist in 2022 and 2017, and honored as a SXSW 2018 Interactive Innovation Award finalist for her work with the Movement Tracks Project. Her music was featured in a research study published in the August 2020 edition of “Frontiers in Neurology – Movement Disorders.” In 2022 she spoke at SXSW with MusiCares, Headspace, and Berklee College of Music.
As a proponent for music education, Cassie is on the Recording Academy’s Texas Chapter Education committee, and also is a four-time featured speaker for Grammy Career Day. She is also on the Recording Academy's Texas Chapter Songwriter and Composer committee as well. She is also the co-founder for Picardy, an interactive web app focused on helping anyone develop music theory and musicianship skills, and teaches a select private studio of students.
In 2020 Cassie was named Austin’s 40-Under-40 Finalist and was one of the
first active DJ’s in the
United States to be appointed as a 2020-2022 Lululemon Ambassador. She is a graduate from The University of Texas with a degree in music composition and a secondary focus in
film studies.
Cassie is a music and
mental health advocate.
Do512
"One of Austin’s most sought-after DJs, CASSANDRA has experience DJing everything from corporate events to SoulCycle classes to weddings. Also a trained pianist and composer, this musical DJ makes the party come alive."
"When we first started planning our wedding we knew that good music would be a top priority for us. We were looking for someone who would be able to incorporate our music taste into something danceable and enjoyable for all. Finding a DJ who met that criteria was not an easy task but the moment we found Cassie online we knew that we could trust her with our vision. We initially met up for coffee that felt more like a catch-up with an old friend than a DJ vetting and ended up signing her up to do our wedding on the spot. Cassie really got us and understood exactly what we wanted for our dance party. She really helped us have a dance party that we will remember forever. After our wedding we had a ton of people tell us that the music was fantastic and very true to me and my husband's style which is a testament to what a fantastic DJ Cassie is.
If we ever have another large party, Cassie will be the first person we call. In addition to her DJ services, Cassie also helped us with day-of coordination. Cassie and her assistant Alison were literal godsends and made sure that everything ran smoothly despite some very big hiccups caused by other vendors. Both ladies were a dream to work with and really helped us feel at ease in the days leading up to the wedding and during the event. Again, I could not recommend Cassie enough!"
Alex + Ganna
(November 2019 Wedding Client)
Teen Vogue
“We turned up with DJ CASS&RA all night dancing to tunes like Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” and Ariana Grande’s “7 Rings”, and ended the night singing along to Beyoncé’s “Before I Let Go” cover aka this summer’s anthem. In between dancing, our guests munched on cotton candy (in 4 different flavors) outside and as they headed inside they stormed the candy bar...
Safe to say the majority of us left with a sugar rush, but all in celebration of Teen Vogue, right? No complaints here!”
"Cass is absolutely the best! I needed a DJ for our company holiday party and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. We have a mixed crowd (lots of different ages, backgrounds, etc.). DJ Cass played music we all loved. She also created a great atmosphere for the general party and got everyone dancing. Thank you DJ Cass for helping us have a lot of fun!"