Ryan Gary Raddon (born February 25, 1971), better known by his stage name Kaskade, is an American
DJ,
record producer
A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...
and
remixer. ''DJ Times'' voted Kaskade "America's Best DJ" in 2011 and 2013. ''
DJ Mag
''DJ Magazine'' (also known as ''DJ Mag'') is a British monthly magazine dedicated to electronic dance music and DJs. Founded in 1991, the magazine is adapted for distribution in the United Kingdom, the United States, Spain, France, Italy, Lat ...
'' named Kaskade fifty-first on its 2009 list of Top 100 DJs.
Early life
Born in Chicago,
Kaskade grew up in nearby
Northbrook and attended
Glenbrook North High School. As a teenager, he would shop for music at
Gramaphone Records on
Clark Street in Chicago. His brother,
Rich Raddon
Rich Raddon is an American entrepreneur who sold his first venture MOVIECLIPS to Fandango, and works in the media technology space. Currently, Raddon is the co-founder and co-CEO of ZEFR, a company that provides technology solutions for content o ...
, became an entrepreneur and film producer. He attended
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...
in
Provo, Utah from 1989 to 1990, working on his DJ skills in his dorm room.
At age 19, Raddon served a two-year full-time mission for
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ...
in Japan.
Following his mission, in 1992, he moved to
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...
to attend the
University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of D ...
, eventually graduating with a degree in communications.
While attending school, Kaskade and his close friend Jodi Call ran a record store in Salt Lake City called Mechanized.
Musical career
1995–2000: Early beginnings
In 1995, Raddon began DJing his first monthly Monday night party at a basement venue called Club Manhattan. He used this additional income to purchase studio essentials.
In May 2000, Raddon moved to San Francisco with his wife where he got a job working as an A&R assistant to John Elkins at
Om Records, a
house
A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air ...
and electronic label. To Raddon's benefit, San Francisco was an emerging site of a new
deep house
Deep house is a subgenre of house music that originated in the 1980s, initially fusing elements of Chicago house with the lush chords of 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music. Its origins are attributed to the early recordings of Larry Heard ...
movement.
While at OM records he continued DJing and producing music. Soon after, Raddon created his alter ego, Kaskade, which his wife worried would remind people of the dish detergent. He took his stage name from a nature book when he saw a picture of a waterfall and a co-worker agreed "cascade" was a good choice, but he then changed the spelling. He did not take his name from the
Cascade Range in the Pacific Northwest as fans sometimes cite.
After mixing the third volume in the Sounds of Om series, Ryan was offered a three-album deal for Kaskade. He kicked off the deal with a full-length house debut, It's You It's Me. Garnering critical acclaim, spawning several singles, and receiving a prestigious Dance Star nomination for Best New Artist, the release put Kaskade squarely on the dance music world's radar. Concentrating on his DJing skills, Kaskade started to experiment and develop his own sound.
2001–2006: Debut single
Kaskade released his first single "What I Say" on the label in 2001.
''
In the Moment'' saw Kaskade's first top 10 single with "Steppin' Out" reaching No. 5 on
Billboard Magazine
''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...
's
Hot Dance Club Play
Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as ...
chart and No. 6 on
Dance Radio Airplay
Dance/Mix Show Airplay (formerly Hot Dance Airplay) is a monitored electronic dance music radio chart that is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine.
History
The chart came about as a result of the small but influential impact of electronic d ...
.
The fourth single to be released from the album, "Everything", reached No. 1 on Billboard Magazine's Hot Dance Club Play.
Kaskade's fourth solo album ''
Love Mysterious'' was released in September 2006. The first single from the album, "Be Still", reached No. 4 on ''Billboard Magazines Hot Dance Club Play.
The single features vocalist
Sunsun
Sunsun is an American singer-songwriter and performer.
In September 2006, Sunsun debuted on DJ Kaskade's fourth solo album ''Love Mysterious'' as the vocalist for the album's first single, "Be Still", which reached No. 4 on ''Billboard Magazin ...
, and includes remixes by
Jay-J and
Robbie Rivera. Follow up single "Stars Align" hit number No. 8 on "Billboard Magazine" Hot Dance Airplay chart and just missed the top ten, No. 11, on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. His fourth single released from "Love Mysterious", "Sorry", was his third consecutive top ten hit on Billboard's Hot Dance Airplay Chart, at No. 9.
Dirty South provided a remix for "Sorry". The remix was nominated for a 2008 Grammy for Best Remixed Recording.
2006–2009: Ultra Records and deadmau5
In late 2006, Kaskade left
OM Records and signed with
Ultra Records.
Kaskade worked with Canadian electronic musician
deadmau5 to produce tracks on
Strobelite Seduction
''Strobelite Seduction'' is the fifth solo album by the house DJ Kaskade. It was released on May 20, 2008, by Ultra Records.
The first single from the album, "Move for Me", with the Canadian progressive house/trance musician Deadmau5 and the vo ...
, including the first single (released as an EP) "
Move for Me
"Move for Me" is a song by American DJ and record producer Kaskade and Canadian electronic music producer Deadmau5. It was released as the lead single from Kaskade's fifth studio album, '' Strobelite Seduction''. The single, which features vocals ...
". The single became his fifth top ten hit on Billboard's Hot Dance Airplay Chart, reaching the number one position in its September 6, 2008 issue. It also gave Kaskade his first number one single on this chart. The dance single has become a crossover hit, managing to reach number 71 on the Canadian Hot 100 as of February 14, 2009. "
I Remember", another collaboration with deadmau5, became his first UK hit, peaking inside the top 15 on the UK Singles Chart. The video-clip which accompanied "I Remember" was filmed in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, England. The single became his second chart topper on the Billboard dance chart. The follow-up single, "Angel on My Shoulder" with
Tamra Keenan, also found success on the dance chart, placing at number 5 on Billboard's Hot Dance Airplay Chart. His song "Step One Two" was the last single from the album, being released late in 2008.
2010–2015: Headlining UMF and Grammy nominations
In 2010, he added another number one Billboard Hot Dance Airplay track to his credit with "
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
", featuring Haley Gibby on vocals.
In March 2012, Kaskade headlined at
Ultra Music Festival in Miami, Florida, coming on before
Armin van Buuren
Armin Jozef Jacobus Daniël van Buuren ( , ; born 25 December 1976) is a Dutch DJ and record producer from Leiden, South Holland. Since 2001, he has hosted '' A State of Trance'' (ASOT), a weekly radio show, which is broadcast to nearly 40&n ...
Sunday night.
In April 2012, Kaskade took to Indio, California to play two weekends at
Coachella Valley Music Festival. In June 2012, the American House producer was one of the headlining acts at
Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas, Nevada. That same month, he started the "Freaks of Nature" summer tour in support of his released album
Fire & Ice.
In December 2013, Kaskade was nominated for two
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
s: the song "
Atmosphere
An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. ...
" for
Best Dance Recording and the album ''
Atmosphere
An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. ...
'' for
Best Dance/Electronica Album.
In 2014, Kaskade was listed as the No. 8 highest paid DJ in the world according to Forbes, earning $17 million.
In 2015, he was a guest star on
BYUtv
BYU TV (stylized as BYUtv) is a television channel, founded in 2000, which is owned and operated as a part of Brigham Young University (BYU). The channel, available through cable and satellite distributors in the United States, produces a numbe ...
's
Studio C
''Studio C '' is an American sketch comedy television show created by Matt Meese and Jared Shores. Produced by BYUtv, the show aims to be clean, family-oriented comedy for a national audience.
The show traces its roots to the Brigham Young Uni ...
. Additionally in 2015, he headlined Coachella alongside Drake for two weekends and, over the course of the two weekends, pulled in the two largest crowds the festival had ever seen.
2015–present: ''Automatic'', ''Kaskade Christmas'' and Kx5
On September 25, 2015, Kaskade released his album ''
Automatic
Automatic may refer to:
Music Bands
* Automatic (band), Australian rock band
* Automatic (American band), American rock band
* The Automatic, a Welsh alternative rock band
Albums
* ''Automatic'' (Jack Bruce album), a 1983 electronic rock ...
'' featuring collaborations with
CID,
Galantis
Galantis is a Swedish electronic dance music production, songwriting and DJ duo consisting of Christian Karlsson and Linus Eklöw. Karlsson is also known as Bloodshy as part of two other musical groups, a duo (Bloodshy & Avant) and a trio (Mi ...
,
John Dahlbäck and Two Nations.
On November 24, 2017, Kaskade released a
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
-themed album titled "Kaskade Christmas".
In 2022, Kaskade and
Deadmau5 announced a collaboration project named Kx5, marking the fourth time the producers have worked together. The first single from the project, "Escape", was released on March 11.
Other projects
On May 30, 2010, Kaskade became a resident DJ for daytime pool parties at the Encore Beach Club in Las Vegas, NV. The parties were entitled "Kaskade Sundays".
Personal life
Raddon is married and has three children. He is a member of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ...
.
Discography
* ''
It's You, It's Me
''It's You, It's Me'' is the debut studio album by American House music, house Disc jockey, DJ Kaskade. It was released on March 18, 2003, by Om Records, OM Records.
A deluxe edition of the album was released on March 28, 2013, before Kaskade's ...
'' (2003)
* ''
In the Moment'' (2004)
* ''
The Calm'' (2006)
* ''
Love Mysterious'' (2006)
* ''
Strobelite Seduction
''Strobelite Seduction'' is the fifth solo album by the house DJ Kaskade. It was released on May 20, 2008, by Ultra Records.
The first single from the album, "Move for Me", with the Canadian progressive house/trance musician Deadmau5 and the vo ...
'' (2008)
* ''
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
'' (2010)
* ''
Fire & Ice'' (2011)
* ''
Atmosphere
An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. ...
'' (2013)
* ''
Automatic
Automatic may refer to:
Music Bands
* Automatic (band), Australian rock band
* Automatic (American band), American rock band
* The Automatic, a Welsh alternative rock band
Albums
* ''Automatic'' (Jack Bruce album), a 1983 electronic rock ...
'' (2015)
* ''Kaskade Christmas'' (2017)
Official tours
* Urban Tour (2011)
* Freaks of Nature Tour (2012)
* United States Formula 1 Grand Prix Weekend (2012)
* It's You, It's Me Redux Tour (2013)
* Atmosphere Tour (2013)
* Redux Tour 001(2014)
* Automatic Tour (2015)
* Redux 002 (2017)
* Redux 003 (2019)
Awards and nominations
Grammy Awards
, -
, style="text-align:center;",
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...
, , ''
Fire & Ice'' , , style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2",
Best Dance/Electronica Album , ,
, -
, style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2",
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
, , ''
Atmosphere
An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. ...
'' , ,
, -
, "
Atmosphere
An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. ...
" , , style="text-align:center;",
Best Dance Recording , ,
, -
, style="text-align:center;",
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...
, , "Smile (Kaskade Edit)" , , style="text-align:center;" rowspan="1",
Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical , ,
, -
, style="text-align:center;",
2016 , , "Runaway (U & I) (Kaskade Remix)" , , style="text-align:center;" rowspan="1",
Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical , ,
, -
, style="text-align:center;",
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
, , "Only (Kaskade x Lipless Remix)" , , style="text-align:center;" rowspan="1",
Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical , ,
, -
, style="text-align:center;",
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
, , ''Stargazing (Kaskade Remix)'' , , style="text-align:center;" rowspan="1",
Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical , ,
America's Best DJ Award
See also
*
Om Records
*
List of number-one dance hits (United States)
This is a list of number-one dance hits as recorded by '' Billboard'' magazine's Dance Club Songs chart – a weekly national survey of popular songs in U.S. dance clubs. It began on October 26, 1974, under the title ''Disco Action'' chart. It i ...
*
List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
*
List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. dance airplay chart
References
External links
*
Artist Site at Ultra Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaskade
1971 births
20th-century American musicians
21st-century American musicians
Ableton Live users
American DJs
American male musicians
American electronic musicians
American house musicians
Latter Day Saints from Illinois
Brigham Young University alumni
Club DJs
Glenbrook North High School alumni
Living people
DJs from Chicago
Musicians from Chicago
People from Northbrook, Illinois
Progressive house musicians
Remixers
Ultra Records artists
University of Utah alumni
Electronic dance music DJs
Monstercat artists
Monstercat Silk artists