Curtis Alan Jones (born April 26, 1968), better known by his stage name Green Velvet, is an American disc jockey, singer and record producer. He is also known as Cajmere, Geo Vogt, Half Pint, Curan Stone, and Gino Vittori.

Early life

Curtis Alan Jones was born on April 26, 1968, in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. He grew up listening to

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

, and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

. In the mid 1980s, he was introduced to

house music House is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 115–130 beats per minute. It was created by DJs and music producers from Chicago's underground ...

via the radio. He started making music with a "sixty-buck keyboard, a cheap four-track and a cheap drum machine". Jones graduated from the

University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

with a degree in

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of the operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials ...

. After attending the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, he moved back to Chicago in 1991.

Career

In 1991, Jones started releasing his music under the Cajmere moniker. In 1992, he founded a record label, Cajual Records. In that year, he released a collaborative single with

Dajae Karen Gordon, better known by her stage name Dajae (), is a female R&B and dance music singer born in Chicago, Illinois. Biography Dajae sang in various soul bands for over a decade prior to working with house music producer Cajmere, who feature ...

, titled "Brighter Days" that peaked at number 2 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot Dance Music/Club Play The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set lists to determine the mos ...

chart. In the same year, he released the

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

"Coffee Pot (It's Time for the Percolator)" also known as "Percolator”, which was recorded at the Playroom Recording Studio by Jerome Mark Mikulich. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' included it on its "20 Best Chicago House Records" list in 2014 while ''

Mixmag ''Mixmag'' is a British electronic dance and clubbing magazine published in London. Launched in 1983 as a print magazine, it has branched into dance events, including festivals and club nights. History The first issue of ''Mixmag'' was printe ...

'' included it on its "20 Best US Rave Anthems of the '90s" list in 2019. In 1993, he founded another label, Relief Records. In 1995, he released a single, "Flash", under the Green Velvet moniker. It reached number 1 on the ''Billboard''

Dance Club Songs The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set lists to determine the mos ...

chart. ''Billboard'' included it on the "10 Essential '90s Rave Jams" list in 2019. ''Mixmag'' included it on the "20 Best US Rave Anthems of the '90s" list in 2019. Green Velvet's debut studio

album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

, ''

Constant Chaos ''Constant Chaos'' is the debut studio album by Green Velvet. It was released on Music Man Records in 1999. Critical reception John Bush of AllMusic wrote, "Though none of the previous Green Velvet club favorites are reprised for his album, Cajm ...

'', was released in 1999. In 2000, he released a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

, ''

Green Velvet Curtis Alan Jones (born April 26, 1968), better known by his stage name Green Velvet, is an American disc jockey, singer and record producer. He is also known as Cajmere, Geo Vogt, Half Pint, Curan Stone, and Gino Vittori. Early life Curtis Ala ...

''. He released '' Whatever'' in 2001, '' Walk in Love'' in 2005, and ''Unshakable'' in 2013. In 2014, he teamed up with

Claude VonStroke Barclay Macbride Crenshaw (born July 7, 1971), who is known by the stage name Claude VonStroke, is an American house producer based in Los Angeles. He owned Dirtybird Records based in San Francisco. In July 2006 he released his debut album, ''Be ...

to form the side project Get Real. The duo's debut single, "Mind Yo Bizness" / "Snuffaluffagus", was released in 2016. The duo's second single, "Jolean", was released in 2019. In 2015, he released a collaborative album with

Carl Craig Carl Craig (born May 22, 1969) is an American electronic music producer, DJ, and founder of the record label Planet E Communications. He is known as a leading figure and pioneer in the second wave of Detroit techno artists during the late 1980 ...

, titled ''Unity''. ''

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, Lati ...

'' has described Green Velvet as "a stalwart figure in both

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 c ...

and

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

Personal life

In the mid

2000s File:2000s decade montage3.png, From top left, clockwise: The Twin Towers of the original World Trade Center (1973–2001), World Trade Center on fire and the Statue of Liberty on the left during the September 11 attacks, terrorist attacks on Sep ...

, Green Velvet revealed on

Myspace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

that he had become a

born-again Christian To be born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelical Christianity, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is d ...

, after his drink was (allegedly) spiked with GHB.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (1999) * '' Whatever'' (2001) * '' Walk in Love'' (2005) * ''Unshakable'' (2013) * ''Unity'' (2015)

Compilation albums

* '' The Nineties (1993 A.D. Through 1999 A.D.)'' (1999) * ''

'' (2000) * ''Lost & Found'' (2009) * ''It's Time'' (2010) * ''Too Underground for the Main Stage'' (2013)

DJ mixes

* ''The Future Sound of Chicago: Cajual Relief'' (1995) * ''Wheels of Steel Vol. 1'' (1997) * ''Techno Funk'' (2000) * ''Sessions'' (2006)

Extended plays

* ''Underground Goodies Vol. I'' (1991) * ''Underground Goodies Vol. II'' (1992) * ''Underground Goodies Vol. III'' (1992) * ''Underground Goodies Vol. IV'' (1992) * ''Dreaming'' (1992) * ''Underground Goodies'' (1993) * ''Let Me Be'' (1993) * ''Velvet Tracks'' (1993) * ''Underground Goodies Vol V'' (1994) * ''Underground Goodies Vol. VI'' (1994) * ''Destination Unknown'' (1997) * ''Chicago'' (2010) * ''New Gotham'' (2010) * ''The Chicago Jazz'' (2011) * ''Elevated Tracks'' (2011) * ''Go Dancing'' (2011) * ''Chicago Style'' (2011) * ''Playground'' (2011) * ''White Label'' (2012) * ''Black Label'' (2012) * ''Taste of Chi-Town'' (2012) * ''Jungle Love'' (2014) * ''It's All About Me'' (2014)

Singles

* "Keep Movin'" (1991) * "Brighter Days" (1992) * "Chit Chat" (1992) * "Percolator" (1992) * "Feelin' Kinda High" (1994) * "Flash" (1995) * "Get Up Off Me" (1995) * "H*rny" (1995) * "Only 4 U" (1996) * "The Stalker" (1996) * "Answering Machine" (1997) * "Lookin' for a Man" (1997) * "Feelin'" (1998) * "Nasty" (2001) * "

La La Land ''La La Land'' is a 2016 American musical romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Damien Chazelle. It stars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone as a struggling jazz pianist and an aspiring actress who meet and fall in love while pursuing ...

" (2001) * "Genedefekt" (2002) * "Coitus" (2002) * "Sometimes I Do" (2003) * "Midnight" (2004) * "I Need U" (2004) * "Nude" (2004) * "Come" (2004) * "Powered" (2004) * "House-Werk" (2004) * "Say U Will" (2005) * "The Bathroom" (2005) * "Temptation" (2005) * "No S*x" (2005) * "Cuz of You" (2005) * "Shake & Pop" (2006) * "Bigger than Prince" (2013) * "Suga" (2015) * "Mind Yo Bizness" / "Snuffaluffagus" (2016) * "Keep Pushin' (Harder)" (2017) * "Jolean" (2019) * "Fuzion" (2019) *"Unapologetic Raver" (2020) *"Critical" (2021) *"My Cheri" (2021)

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Velvet 1968 births Living people Singers from Chicago DJs from Chicago Record producers from Illinois American club DJs American electronic dance music DJs African-American DJs American dance musicians American electronic musicians American house musicians American techno musicians Grainger College of Engineering alumni 21st-century African-American male singers 21st-century American male singers 20th-century African-American male singers 20th-century American male singers 20th-century American singers Warner Records artists