Winter Fantasy Artist Profile: deadmau5 (unhooked)

Producer, hitmaker and Winter Fantasy headliner deadmau5 (unhooked), has made a name for himself by going beyond his music productions and talent behind the decks and playing his own eclectic progressive and electro house music edits and originals on cutting edge computer technology. Outside of his efforts in the studio and behind the decks, deadmau5 keeps fans coming back for more with his sarcastic approach to comedy and not to mention that giant LED strobing mouse head in his performances. It comes as no surprise that deadmau5 continues to fill dance floors around the globe after all these years.

Born Joel Thomas Zimmerman in Niagara Falls, Canada, the phenomenon first became involved with music playing the piano at age 15 and simultaneously was also introduced to technology, making chip tunes from old computers. After a few years of being influenced with electronics and hardware, he started working in animation and web design. “I was playing MS Golf and Minesweeper. And getting blown away by the amazing effects that Corel Draw could provide. At the same time, my parents were sending me to piano classes. I went to a school for eight years in Niagara Falls, where I got a lot of classical music pounded into my head.”

In 1999, Zimmernman’s chip tunes finally grabbed the attention to Mötley Crüe drummer, Tommy Lee, which led to contributing in Lee’s rap metal album Methods Of Mayhem. After years of friendship and collaboration they released two electro-house singles, under the name W.T.F.? called “Chicken” and “Redic.” Though Zimmerman made his debut with Tommy Lee, his breakout year was when he entered the music world as a co-producer for the Niagara Falls radio show and released his first album in 2005 with Get Scraped.

Collaborating with Steve Duda under the alias B.S.O.D., deadmau5 earned his first #1 on Beatport with “This is the Hook.” By 2008, deadmau5 had three self-released albums and the breakout success of Random Album Title under his belt. And the hits just kept on coming. deadmau5’s collaboration with Kaskade for tracks “Move for Me” and “I Remember” reached #1 on Billboard’s Dance/Mix Show Airplay making mau5 the 1st Canadian to have three #1 tracks on that chart after also releasing the classic “Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff” (later with Rob Swire) on For Lack of a Better Name.

This year is closing out well for deadmau5 with banging single “Suckfest9001” being championed in clubs and festivals around the globe. Though his social media antics as of late may be grabbing peoples’ attention, as a musician, deadmau5’s passion for sound and technology is unmistakable. Treating us to a special Unhooked set at this years Winter Fantasy, get ready for the ultimate holiday treat as deadmau5 makes his way to Hidalgo’s State Farm Arena (outdoors) on Thursday, December 30th.

Don’t miss your chance to catch deadmau5 (unhooked) in Texas, buy your tickets today!

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