If you follow the crackle of a funk 45, the hum of a circuit board or the sound of skates cutting into ice, you might find Paul Karatsinides at the center of it all.

Paul lives in Northville with his wife, Stephanie, and their three children: Joanna (9), Spiro (7), and Irene (4). Though Paul was born and raised in Grand Rapids, his roots pull strongly toward Metro Detroit.

“Most of my family is here, including my two younger brothers,” he said. “We wanted to be closer to them. We moved to Northville in 2015. The schools are exceptional and you have a small-town vibe with easy access to bigger cities nearby.”

A self-described lover of math, music, and machines, Paul holds degrees in electrical engineering and math from Michigan State University.

“I work at AMD,” he said. “My focus is on embedded systems – small computers inside devices like smartphones, gaming consoles, anything with a self-contained CPU.”

Paul’s curiosity started early.

“In the 1980s, my dad brought home a Commodore 64,” Paul said. “That was it for me. I still have a 1981 Vectrex console. From there, I became interested in math, especially discrete math, things like Boolean algebra, graph theory, algorithms, and number theory.”

Music, however, might be Paul’s main passion. A DJ since his teens, he began spinning records in the late mid-‘90s.

“I’ve been doing it ever since,” he said. “I have about 3,000 records. Mostly funk 45s, jazz, soul, rock, and hip-hop. Influences range widely from German rock band Can to electronic Kraftwerk to Wu-Tang Clan.”

Paul has a residency at Plymouth’s Red Ryder Lounge.

“The third Thursday every month, I spin funk 45s down there,” he said. “The analog unfolds in real time. Music has always been a part of my life. I learned classical piano, the Suzuki method. I also have a Fender Rhodes electric piano and a Moog synthesizer.”

After MSU, Paul moved to Washington, D.C., where he played in a funk band and got his Master of Science in electrical engineering from George Washington University. Travel continues to be important to the family.

“We love visiting Traverse City and Holland, and regularly visit Stephanie’s family in Salt Lake City, Utah,” he said. “My parents are Greek, so I’m especially fond of Thessaloniki and Northern Greece.”

Closer to home, Paul laces up his skates.

“Every Sunday, I play defense at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth,” he said. “When the skates come off, you’ll find our family outdoors at Maybury State Park or Hines Park.”

For Paul, life in Northville is proof that circuits and records, math and music, family and community, all belong in the same groove. Contact Paul at karatsin@gmail.com.