GRiZ

GRiZ is a Michigan-born electronic music producer and multi-instrumentalist who has attracted an enormous live following, regularly playing major festivals and selling out headlining tours. Referring to his music as “future funk,” GRiZ produces glitchy, energetic tracks with booming dubstep bass and elements of jazz, hip-hop, and soul. In concert, he leads a 15-piece live band and performs fierce improvised solos on his saxophone. Making his debut with 2011′s End of the World Party, his subsequent albums have become more ambitious and accessible, incorporating more live instruments as well as high profile guest rappers and singers. 2015′s Say It Loud featured Talib Kweli and Ivan Neville, while 2019′s Ride Waves included the likes of Snoop Dogg and Bootsy Collins. Moving in a more bass-heavy direction, he released several EPs and mixtapes, followed by the 2021 full-length Rainbow Brain.
Born Grant Kwiecinski in Southfield, Michigan in 1990, he began playing alto saxophone and piano as a youth and dropped out of Michigan State University in order to pursue a career as a musician. His debut album, End of the World Party, was released in 2011 by Mochipet’s Daly City label, and its sample-heavy downtempo tracks made a splash online. The saxophone-wielding musician began supporting popular touring electronic acts such as Bassnectar and Pretty Lights, leading to his own successful headlining tours. His self-released second album, Mad Liberation, appeared in 2012, followed by the more socially conscious Rebel Era in 2013. His fourth album, 2015′s Say It Loud, featured numerous guest vocalists (including Talib Kweli, Ivan Neville, and iDA HAWK) and an increased presence of live instrumentation, working toward more of a vintage funk sound while remaining contemporary.
GRiZ stuck with the organic funk approach for 2016′s Good Will Prevail, his fifth album. Featuring guest appearances from Eric Krasno, Big Gigantic, Muzzy Bear, and others, it was his first to chart in the Billboard 200. A remixed version of that album titled Good Will Continue arrived in the summer of 2017, followed in September by Chasing the Golden Hour, Pt. 2, a sequel to his 2015 mixtape of the same name. In April of 2019, GRiZ issued his star-studded sixth album Ride Waves, which featured help from Snoop Dogg, Wiz Khalifa, Bootsy Collins, and many more. He then began regularly issuing Bangers EPs, which emphasized the heavier, dubstep-influenced aspects of his sound. Mixtape Chasing the Golden Hour, Pt. 3 appeared in 2020. The 23-track Rainbow Brain, a tribute to his bass music inspirations, arrived in 2021. He collaborated with Subtronics for the single “Griztronics II (Another Level),” and 2022 brought tracks with CloZee (“Color of Your Soul”) and Big Gigantic (“Open Your Mind”). ~ Paul Simpson