Throwback time: Did you get down at Nasty's on a Monday? Relive the vibes at tribute show.

Sweaty crowds of West Campus kids, hip-hop heads, hippy dippy Austinites and townies filled a tiny dive bar on Monday nights for 21 years to listen to DJ sets. The bar was smoky, bras were on the ceiling and hip-hop played.

"This was a place where it didn't matter who you were or where you're from. That's where you went on Mondays," said DJ Mel, one of the DJs who performed on Monday nights at Nasty's. The DJ is bringing a night at Nasty's back this Saturday with a tribute party.

"Bring a towel. It’s gonna get hot and sweaty like back in the day," the event's description reads on Instagram.

Nasty's is now Back Lot, a dive bar located at 606 Maiden Lane off Guadalupe Street just south of the Triangle. But between 1996 and 2017, before the bar was sold, Nasty's was home to a weekly hip-hop dance night. DJ Mel heard about the event in 1996 from a friend who worked in advertising at the American-Statesman. A few months after it started, DJ Mel was DJing at Nasty's on Monday nights and loving every second of it.

"Wherever I was playing, I always made it a point to get back to Austin so I could be there on Mondays. It was one of those things where I can't miss a show. I cannot. I have to be there," he said.

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DJing on Monday nights made DJ Mel a well-rounded DJ, and it's where he made all his close friends. The night was rooted in hip-hop and turntablism, but they played everything, DJ Mel said. He could experiment on Monday nights and play whatever he wanted — the crowd was for it. They were a perfect mixture of folks, DJ Mel said.

When the owner of Nasty's sold the bar in 2017, DJ Mel created Early Dance Party in 2018. The idea was to create an event geared toward a more mature crowd who didn't want to be out until 4 a.m., he said.

"I was like, 'OK. I want to throw a party for everyone who's older, who has kids, who has a real job,'" DJ Mel said.

Enter Early Dance Party. Saturday's event runs 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. at ACL Live at 3Ten, 310 West Willie Nelson Blvd. Old school hip-hop, R&B, funk, soul, disco and more will be played during the party. The space is more elevated than a sticky dive bar, which was also important for DJ Mel.

"There's nothing wrong with going to a divey bar, but maybe what's cool with you when you're 20, it's not cool when you're 45," he said.

When DJ Mel shared the tribute night, he said the response was amazing.

"I thought that the reaction online would be tepid, but no. Everyone's like, 'Oh my god,' which is a testament to what (the event) kind meant to people," he said.

If you go

When: Saturday, May 11 at 7 p.m.

Where: ACL Live at 3Ten, 310 West Willie Nelson Blvd.

Tickets: Entry is $15 online and at the door. To purchase tickets and for more information, visit: acllive.com.