From the local Lansing bar scene to sold out shows across the nation, Grant Kwiecinski, or more commonly known as GRiZ, has become one of the frontrunners of the electronic dance music (EDM) world.
GRiZ, a Southfield, Mich. native, attended MSU for a few years before dropping out to pursue a career in music. He started out DJing at fraternity and co-op parties, and he eventually started playing bigger shows at Mac’s Bar in Lansing.
“It started taking off from there,” GRiZ told electroniccurrent.com. “And posting on SoundCloud became, like, the next thing.”
SoundCloud is where GRiZ makes all of his music available to download for free. This is perhaps one of the biggest reasons why GRiZ is unique compared to many artists– all of his music is free.
“Now you know we don’t do this for the money, for the fame, for the power,” GRiZ said on stage at his Red Rocks Amphitheater show on Sept. 5, 2015. “We do s**t for the love. We do s**t for the people. And I would never ever change that down to my heart and very soul.”
Fueled by funk and soul with a modern electronic spin on it, GRiZ’s music allows for growth because he doesn’t commit himself to any one genre.
His live sets, which feature himself wielding the saxophone and accompanied guitarist, best friend and Michigan-native Muzzy Bearr, bring a distinctive edge to GRiZ not seen much with most electronic artists who solely depend on their electronic controllers and computers.
Last summer GRiZ put on two small impromptu shows: GRiZmas in July Part I and II. Part I was on July 15, 2015 at Bookie’s Rooftop in Detroit, and Part II was held at Mac’s Bar in Lansing. The shows had approximately a 200-person capacity, which led to a more intimate setting. In fact, Kwiecinski himself sold all 200 tickets himself at the Lansing venue.
Senior packaging major Kyle Robinson was one of the lucky 200 people to get a ticket for GRiZmas in July Part II.
“It was a lot of fun. Not a lot of people I knew were there and he played more of a DJ set,” Robinson said. “It was really cool to see him in such a small setting.”
Robinson has been listening to GRiZ since 2012 and believes that since then, the producer has “made a major step towards funk with the saxophone and sound in general.”
Not only is Kwiecinski a producer and musician, but he is also an entrepreneur who started his own record label, All Good Records.
Other producers who are signed with All Good Records include: Manic Focus of Saint Paul, Minn., The Floozies of Lawrence, Kan., The Geek x VRV of Paris, France, Muzzy Bearr of Detroit, Mich., Freddy Todd of Southfield, Mich. and Sunsquabi of Boulder, Colo. These artists also produce electro-funk music, each with their own unique twist.
Sophomore political science and psychology major Ian Paulsen has been listening to GRiZ for nearly two years now. He considers the first time he heard a GRiZ song, which happened to be “Better Than I’ve Ever Been”, a track on the artist’s sophomore album “Mad Liberation”, and eye-opening experience.
“All I can say is that he is making a difference– they all are,” Paulsen said. “People who make music, do it for more than the fame and money. They make music to help people like us: people that feel completely free with the headphones in and the dance moves flowing.”
GRiZ and the All Good Records family are playing a curated “All Good Records Jam” at Electric Forest Festival in Rothbury, Mich. on Saturday, June 25. GRiZ’s next upcoming shows include Camp Bisco on July 15, Lollapalooza on July 29, Red Rocks Amphitheater on Oct. 1 and Navy Pier on Nov. 12.
