Zedd
Anton Zaslavski (Russian: Антон Заславский;[a] born 2 September 1989), known professionally as Zedd (/zɛd/), is a German record producer.
For other uses, see Zedd (disambiguation).
Zedd
Anton Zaslavski
2 September 1989
Saratov, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union (present-day Russia)
Kaiserslautern, Germany
2002–present
Zedd grew up and began his musical journey in Kaiserslautern, Germany.[1] His stage name, Zedd, was derived from zed, the English pronunciation, barring American English, for the first letter of his surname, Z.[2] In 2012, he released "Clarity" (featuring Foxes), which propelled him to mainstream success, reaching the 8th position on the Billboard Hot 100 and earning him a Grammy for Best Dance Recording at the 56th Grammy Awards.[3] Later in 2012, he released his debut studio album, Clarity, with hit single "Stay the Night" (featuring Hayley Williams) appearing on the 2013 deluxe edition of the album.
In 2015, his second studio album, True Colors, was released, supported by its lead single, "I Want You to Know", featuring Selena Gomez. Subsequent well-known songs include "Stay" with Alessia Cara, peaking at number 7; "The Middle" with Maren Morris and Grey; and, as a featured artist, "Break Free" with Ariana Grande, peaking at number 4 in the US.
Early life[edit]
Anton Zaslavski[4] was born on 2 September 1989 in Saratov, Soviet Russia, to a Jewish family.[5] He grew up in Dansenberg, Kaiserslautern, Germany,[6] after his family moved there when Anton was three years old.[7] He reportedly is a classically trained musician, the son of two musicians. His father, Igor Zaslavski, is a guitarist and schoolteacher, and his mother is a piano teacher.[7][8] He began playing the piano at the age of four and drums at twelve years old.[9][10] He has an older brother, Arkadi, and a younger half-brother, Daniel.[8] In 2002, Zaslavski began playing for the German deathcore band Dioramic, signed by Lifeforce Records. Zaslavski's interest in producing electronic music was piqued after hearing Cross by the French electronic duo Justice.[11]
Personal life[edit]
Zedd briefly dated singer and actress Selena Gomez in 2015. He revealed that he hated the media attention surrounding it.[72]
Zedd is a fan of the German football club 1. FC Kaiserslautern.[73]
Zedd speaks Russian, German and English, as well as basic French.