Yesterland
DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive
DJ, the Ultimate Party Car,
turns Radiator Springs into
“the Ultimate Party Town!”
DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

“They don’t call me DJ for nothing!” boasts a blue subcompact as he pulls into the intersection of Radiator Springs’ Main Street, also known as Route 66, and Cross Street. DJ has a plethora of speakers, a custom paint job, and an impressive spoiler with winglets.


Waitresses and mechanics from Flo’s V8 Cafe nearby are impressed. They surround DJ, and soon DJ has them dancing. And then they have kids in the audience dancing—and perhaps a few adults too.

DJ’s music is perfect for the setting—songs such as “Dancing in the Street,” “Car Wash,” “Life is a Highway,” and “Route 66.”

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2013

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Werner Weiss, 2014

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Allen Huffman, 2018

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Allen Huffman, 2018

Quite a crowd by the end of the show

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Allen Huffman, 2018

Heading to a gig further down the road

DJ got the town dancing, but who is DJ anyway? The book Meet the Cars (Disney Book Group, 2017) provides a brief biography:

From an early age, DJ, whose full name is Devon Montegomery Johnston III, was interested in all kinds of music. He had a voracious appetite for collecting records and was a gifted student at the nationally renowned East Coast Music Conservatory. One evening at a friend's party, Devon met a gentleman by the name of Wingo. An expert in paint and body modification, Wingo designed a custom paint job for Devon and a wicked sound system to match. Now going by the name DJ, Devon revels in his treble but never loses touch with his bass!

Yes, DJ produces plenty of treble, plenty of bass—and plenty of volume.


DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive premiered as one of the opening day features of Cars Land at Disney California Adventure. The spectacular new land, based on Radiator Springs in the Disney-Pixar movie Cars (2006), had its official grand opening on June 15, 2012.

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Frame capture from Cars © 2006 Disney-Pixar

DJ as one of the Delinquent Road Hazards in the first Cars movie

At the beginning of the movie Cars, very sleepy Mack the truck is hauling Lightning McQueen to California through the night. DJ plays Kenny G’s “Songbird” to make Mack nod off. The other three Delinquent Road Hazards cause Mack to drive on the bumpy shoulder. One thing leads to another. The back of the truck opens and Lightning McQueen rolls out somewhere near the forgotten town of Radiator Springs.

DJ was a minor character in Cars, but, for his role in the park, he was the perfect character—essentially a flashy sound system on four wheels. But it was the dancers who really made the show with their talent and their ability to get kids to join in.

DJ’s final performance at Cars Land was January 6, 2019. It was a run of six and a half years—an impressive length of time of a street show. DJ did not drive off to the CarMax Quality Certified lot after his last trip backstage.

“Hey DJ! What are you going to do next?”

“I’m going to Walt Disney World!”

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Allen Huffman, 2019

Transplanted to Florida

Disney’s Hollywood Studios, to be more precise.

On March 31, 2019, DJ began a new gig called “DJ’s Ready! Set! Party Time!” Dance Party at the courtyard outside Sunset Showcase, near Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith, while Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy debuted inside.

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Allen Huffman, 2019

DJ showing his profile in Florida

DJ’s Dance ’n’ Drive at Disney California Adventure

Photo by Allen Huffman, 2019

“DJ’s Ready! Set! Party Time!” Dance Party

The idea is similar in Florida. It’s again a dance party for children, but the songs are different. The dancers are presented as Lightning McQueen’s pit crew. The setting is a concrete courtyard. DJ, instead of driving up and being in the center of things, is parked in the background under a canopy—as is Cruz Ramirez from Cars 3 under a separate canopy.

Somehow, DJ seemed happier at Cars Land at Disney California Adventure.


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Updated July 12, 2019.