Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman (born January 5, 1981), known professionally as deadmau5 (pronounced "dead-mouse"), is a Canadian electronic music producer and DJ. He mainly produces progressive house and electro house music, though he also produces and DJs other genres of electronic music, including techno under the alias Testpilot. Zimmerman has received six Grammy Award nominations for his work.
Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman
- Halcyon441
- Karma K
- Testpilot[1]
January 5, 1981
Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
- Music producer
- DJ
1998–present
- Kx5
- REZZMAU5
He has worked with other DJs and producers, such as Kaskade, Wolfgang Gartner, Rob Swire, and Chris Lake. He has also collaborated with Steve Duda under the group name BSOD (Better Sounding On Drugs) and was part of the group named WTF? with Duda, Tommy Lee and DJ Aero. In 2007, he founded his own record label, Mau5trap. Deadmau5 is currently one of the highest-paid electronic music producers in the world,[2] and is a masked music artist similar to Marshmello and Daft Punk.[3]
In 2000, an early 12" single produced on vinyl titled "I Don't Want No Other" was released by Zimmerman and Derek Caesar, under the group name Dred and Karma.[4] A 2006 compilation album titled Deadmau5 Circa 1998–2002 was self-released under the alias Halcyon441.[5] His debut studio album, Get Scraped, was released in 2005, with follow-up Vexillology in 2006. His breakthrough, Random Album Title, was released in 2008 and was certified gold in Canada, and silver in the United Kingdom. The album includes seminal release "Faxing Berlin", "Not Exactly", and moderate chart hit "I Remember" (with Kaskade). In 2009, his fourth studio album For Lack of a Better Name was released to critical acclaim, featuring Rob Swire collaboration "Ghosts 'n' Stuff", "Hi Friend", and the critically acclaimed "Strobe". His fifth studio album, 4×4=12, released in late 2010, supported by singles "Some Chords", "Animal Rights", "Sofi Needs a Ladder", and "Raise Your Weapon".
In 2012, Zimmerman released singles "The Veldt" and "Professional Griefers" (featuring Gerard Way) to commercial success. These singles were featured on his sixth studio album, Album Title Goes Here. Following his departure from long-time label Ultra Records, Zimmerman released his seventh studio album, While(1<2), through Astralwerks and Virgin EMI in 2014. The album's release was supported by its four singles; "Avaritia", "Seeya", "Infra Turbo Pigcart Racer", and "Phantoms Can't Hang". After a brief hiatus, Zimmerman's eighth studio album, W:/2016Album/, was released in late 2016, with singles "Snowcone" and "Let Go". He subsequently composed the score for the 2019 action film Polar, and released the singles "Satrn", "Coasted", "Fall" the same year. In 2020, "Pomegranate" and "Bridged by a Lightwave" were released ahead of his ninth album.
Early life
Zimmerman was born on January 5, 1981[6] in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.[7] His mother, Nancy (née Johnson), is a visual artist, and his father, Rodney Thomas "Rod" Zimmerman, is a General Motors plant worker.[8][9] He has two siblings, Jennifer (older) and Chris (younger).[8] His ancestry includes German, Swiss, and English heritage.[9][10] He received his first keyboard for Christmas when he was a teenager.[8][11] His music career began in the late 1990s, with a chiptune and demoscene movements-influenced sound with the Impulse Tracker.[12] Zimmerman graduated from Westlane Secondary School in Niagara Falls. He then worked with an online music licensing company and as a programmer. He adopted the name Deadmau5, which referred to a dead mouse he found in his computer; the unique spelling was a result of a maximum character limitation.[13]
Career
1998–2006: Get Scraped and self-released compilations
Zimmerman released his debut studio album, titled Get Scraped on July 26, 2005. The tracks "Just Before 8bit", "Nice Try, Kiddo" and "Uploading and Downloading" from Project 56 were edited and expanded upon in Get Scraped under the names "8bit", "Try Again", and "Unspecial Effects", respectively. Tracks "Bored of Canada", "Intelstat" and "I Forget" reappear on this album as is, as well as "The Oshawa Connection" from Deadmau5 Circa 1998–2002.
Three self-released compilations, Project 56, Deadmau5 Circa 1998–2002, and A Little Oblique, were finished in 2006, with Project 56 seeing an official release two years later.
Video game appearances
Zimmerman is a playable avatar in DJ Hero 2, a video game released in October 2010.[78][79][80] The game featured several tracks by the artist, including a mix of "Ghosts 'n' Stuff" with Lady Gaga's "Just Dance".[81] He is also featured as a secret unlockable character in the 2014 video game Goat Simulator as "deadgoa7".[82] His music has been included in other video game titles, including a custom soundtrack for Dota 2.[83]
In the mobile app Family Guy: The Quest for Stuff by TinyCo, Deadmau5 was available for purchase as a playable character during the "PeterPalooza".[84]
Virtual versions of his helmet are also an available accessory as a topper and antenna in Rocket League.[85]
In the 2020 video game Fuser, "Ghosts 'n' Stuff" is featured as a mixable song.[86]
Deadmau5’s Minecraft account has ears that are linked to his username, which cannot normally be created using the game’s “skins.”[87]
Etymology
Zimmerman's father claims that when his son was in his early teens, he was chatting with a friend on his computer, which then abruptly shut off. According to Zimmerman's father, he said that it had a smell of burnt wire and had a strange odor. Zimmerman started to dismantle his computer and happened to find a dead mouse. Zimmerman then became known as the "dead mouse guy" among friends. He tried to change his name to "Deadmouse" in an online chat room, but it was too long, so he shortened it to "Deadmau5". "Maus" is the German word for "mouse" and is pronounced the same as in English; the ending character 5 instead of an 's' is a form of leet.[11]
Zimmerman created the original logo—called "mau5head"—while learning how to use 3D modelling software.[103] The logo appears in many different colors and designs, and has been shown on the cover art of most of Zimmerman's albums. He was given the idea to wear a helmet based on the logo by one of his friends, Jay Gordon of the industrial metal band Orgy.[104] In an interview with CBC Television, Zimmerman said that he wants his logo to be an "icon". Fans often attend Deadmau5 concerts sporting their own copy or alteration of the mau5head.
He created his website and began uploading songs to SectionZ and producing under the alias "Deadmau5" in 2002.[105]
Controversies
DirtyCircuit
In 2008, an artist called DirtyCircuit claimed to have been threatened with legal action after using a sample called "LP_Faxing Berlin C_128bpm"[106] that came bundled with FL Studio, and to which Zimmerman claimed copyright.[107] The sample was a direct clip of a full bar of the song. Zimmerman provided a "Demo Track" which came bundled with FL Studio, along with several loop samples. The case caused slight discomfort among the users of FL Studio,[108] and some have pointed out potential inconsistencies in the EULA of the software.[106] Subsequent versions, after FL Studio 8, no longer contained those loop samples.