Early and Personal Life
Goldstein was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to an Arab Jewish family. As a child, he was verbally abused by his father, whom Goldstein called "unbelievably cruel." His father abused drugs and alcohol and was sent to jail for committing bank fraud and later died due to complications from AIDS. Goldstein attended the elite Quaker school Friends' Central. Goldstein began taking drugs, so his mother placed him in a treatment center that specialized in “tough love".
When Goldstein was 20-years-old, he started deejaying, which he had been obsessed with since seeing Herbie Hancock do the song "Rockit" at the 1983 Grammy Awards. During his early 20s, Goldstein also battled a drug addiction, specifically to crack cocaine. At one point, he attempted suicide but was unsuccessful when the gun did not go off. Shortly thereafter, he became sober, began attending AA meetings and dedicated himself to working as a DJ. "By then, I was booking jobs at every major club and had started to gain a following," he told Glamour magazine. He lost more than 60 pounds with Laparoscopic surgery, and began Deejaying for celebrity parties and night clubs.
Goldstein began dating actress Nicole Richie in 2003 and announced their engagement in February 2005. However, the couple broke up in late 2006. "The one thing that stands out about Adam is that I can be myself," Richie said after the breakup. After his breakup with Richie, Goldstein dated singer-actress Mandy Moore. He was in a relationship with fashion model Hayley Wood at the time of his death. He was good friends with Steve Aoki, Jesse F. Keeler, Cory Kennedy, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Skillz, Samantha Ronson, John Mayer, Scott Caan, and Travis Barker.
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