About Richie Hawtin (Created May 15, 2013)

Who is Richie Hawtin? How about the guy joining the tidal wave of electronic musicians making names for themselves across the pond and in the states? Though this English-Canadian talent was –oddly enough – responsible for putting Detroit on the dance music map.

What is it about Detroit that's so special to Hawtin? Even though he was born in Banbury, England and later moved to LaSalle, Ontario, he was just across the river from The Motor City. And when he began to DJ in clubs at 17, his mix of house music and techno was enough to rattle the underground scene in a way no one else had.

Known for his use of the Roland TB-303 bass machine, Hawtin also worked around the TR-909 drum machine. It's what got him his first record deal in 1993, and elevated him to star status in Europe. By May of 2000 he was also attracting upwards of 200,000 people at outdoor venues in the United States, playing the first Detroit Electronic Festival with a number of other techno masterminds.

Hawtin eventually spent a few years living and working in New York City, but later moved to Berlin, Germany. His hope was to experience the club scene, get his hands on some development software. By 2006, he was collaborating on a composition for the Winter Olympics opening ceremony and continued in his endeavors to entertain huge crowds around the world. That latest push including an Electronic Dance Music tour of North American universities in 2012 entitled "CNTRL: Beyond EDM."
With 20+ albums and DJ mix compilations to his credit, not to mention more than a dozen aliases, Hawtin remains hot the scene and leaving fans wondering what he'll do next.