Dantiez, born and bred in Michigan, is the son of Techno pioneer Kevin Saunderson and singer / songwriter Ann Saunderson. From an early age, surrounded by such influential creatives, Dantiez knew music was the way for him. Inspired by his generation’s reaction to electronica, Dantiez completely immersed himself in production and DJing. 

Directly connected to Detroit’s rich musical heritage, he learnt from his dad and fellow Techno innovators: Derrick May and Juan Atkins, whilst drawing further inspiration from the likes of Marco Carola, Seth Troxler, Richie Hawtin and Dubfire. From this Dantiez honed his craft, with songs beginning to reflect all sides of his taste pallet: energetic, Detroit-infused, underground but with a Pop vibe that’s still rooted in Tech-House and Techno. 

These early explorations paid off. Dantiez secured tracks on esteemed labels, most notably: Defected, Toolroom, Nervous and of course KMS, the legendary label owned by his father, which Dantiez helped relaunch and now heads its A&R department. Alongside these production credentials, Dantiez was soon a busy touring DJ with many high-profile events under his belt, like Boiler Room and Movement Electronic Music Festival. Dantiez also earned his stripes as an in demand remixer, even asked to reinvent material by childhood heroes: Green Velvet and Carl Craig. 

This young man undoubtably knows what he wants and where he’s going, “Ultimately the sky’s the limit... I hope to keep travelling the world, sharing my music and good vibes with others”.

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At the age of 18 Damarii Saunderson was drafted, out of Northville High School, to play in the minor leagues for the Philadelphia Phillies. He was around 11 when he was first being scouted. However, he was to retire from ‘Baseball’ at around the age of 20 when he received a ‘slap’ tear injury to his throwing shoulder.It was an unfortunate injury, but at the same time it taught him a valuable life lesson and it took him straight into the path of music.Does this story have a ring to it? It should... As Damarii is the eldest son of Kevin Saunderson and Ann Saunderson and like Damarii, Kevin also retired from sport early to pursue his love of music.Fast forward to the end of 2012 (co-incidentally the same year that Dantiez [Damarii’s younger brother] also decided to pursue a career in music) and it would seem that both brothers were harbouring talents that their parents didn’t realise were hidden deep within them.For Damarii (the eldest of three brothers), it was after he retired from ‘baseball’ that he had the opportunity to go on a couple of trips with his Dad and he witnessed the emotion and happiness that the music brought to the people. This was to be one of the moments when he realised that he wanted to start making music himself. He says, it wasn’t a certain song that influenced him, but just the songs in general that his Dad played.“T he DJ’s that I look up to include; Derrick May and my Dad on the ‘Techno’ side (and of course many more),. Growing up, I listened to a lot of rap and hip hop, but I knew nothing about Electronic Dance Music until I was about 18. That said, I would describe the music I make as having influences of ‘Detroit Techno’. My Dad compares my style to a mixture of himself and Carl Craig, but that can change as I develop my production skills. My Mom and Dad have both inspired me to start making music. That said, my future goal is to simply take what they have done to the next level and I believe in myself to make that happen... Not an easy task, I know, but I'm up for the challenge ;)”...Damarii and his younger brother Dantiez , stepped into the world of producing at the same time and although they have two different sounds, it will certainly be interesting to see what could happen if these two forces come together....

A great Dj can  make music with music 
this is the goal!

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Platinum-selling recording artist, label boss, festival promoter, true innovator in the pantheon of popular music, cultural champion, cracking DJ: there’s a lot to be said about Kevin Saunderson.

His influence runs deep, through both adopted hometown of Detroit, and music culture as a whole: as one of the Belleville Three, the high school trio which also includes Juan Atkins and Derrick May, he irreparably changed the face of electronic music; with Inner City, he gave it some of its most memorable tunes. 

The genesis of today’s enormous techno scene can be retraced straight to Kevin, Derrick and Juan, as their formative experiments on rudimentary hardware sketched a blueprint for a genre that was yet to exist. By absorbing Kraftwerk, cutting-edge funk, local radio stalwart The Electrifying Mojo’s electicism, and all manner of new synthesiser and drum machine-led pop music, the Belleville Three broke new ground as musicians and DJs in the 80s. 

Saunderson’s comparatively late start as a producer – kicking off in ’87 under the moniker of Kreem, with E-Dancer and Reese two of the more well-known names to follow – inadvertently gifted him a headstart. With the eruption of house music a few hours down the I-94 in Chicago, Saunderson married Detroit’s raw sound to more tactile, pop-leaning sensibilities. Inner City was born, and global success followed.

Between “Big Fun”, “Good Life”, debut album Paradise and a number of follow-up singles, Inner City (Saunderson and vocalist Paris Grey) amassed 12 UK top 40 hits and over six million records sold worldwide during their peak. A dancefloor-dominating remix by Luciano in 2008, and a globetrotting reunion tour in 2012, underscores the longevity of Inner City’s classic sound. 

His nickname of ‘The Elevator’ is apt: for his role in transporting Detroit’s new sound to a wider audience; as anyone who has seen him perform live can attest, his high-energy, high-spirit and high-impact DJ sets; and for spending the past 35 years of his life progressing the culture he helped create. 

Operating in tandem to his golden run as a producer in the late 80s and early 90s, Saunderson’s own KMS record label – a remarkable 30 years strong in 2017 – has chronicled the early footsteps of R-Tyme, Blake Baxter, MK, Chez Damier, Derrick Carter, Bicep and even Saunderson’s son and regular DJ partner Dantiez more recently. 

A special 12” series in 2008 called History Elevate, released in tandem with fellow polymath Carl Craig’s Planet E label, brought contemporary names like Mathew Jonson, Simian Mobile Disco and Loco Dice into the fold, proving his nous for fostering relationships with each new wave to come through techno’s gates. 25th anniversary compilations and numerous reissues have followed suit. 

Saunderson has a behind-the-scenes role to play, too: he is intertwined with the history of Detroit’s flagship Movement (formerly Detroit Electronic Music Festival / Fuse-In). Having produced the event in the mid-2000s, the last handful of years have seen repeated invites from Movement to display his ORIGINS showcase at the festival, bringing acts like Delano Smith, Phuture and DJ Minx under his curatorial umbrella. 

And of course, with a stacked international touring schedule over the decades, playing in nearly every country and at nearly every festival or club worth mention, he has not stopped pushing the feeling of techno on and on. 

The Groove That Won’t Stop, indeed.

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