Bobbie Merveille (born 1983) better known by her
stage name
A stage name or professional name is a pseudonym used by performers, authors, and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. The equivalent concept among writers is called a ''nom de plume'' (pen name). Some performers ...
s DJ Heavygrinder and Marie Vaunt is an American
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...
.
Biography
Merveille was born in
Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...
to a French father and a
Japanese mother.
She was raised in Japan's
Kanagawa Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Kanagawa Prefecture is the List of Japanese prefectures by population, second-most populous prefecture of Japan at 9,221,129 (1 April 2022) and third-dens ...
, where she lived until the age of 14. While in her teens, her parents decided that she would receive education in the United States.
She soon got involved in the art of DJing after returning to the US.
In regards to this period, DJ Heavygrinder stated:
The genres of music she plays are
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 ...
,
electronica
Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that came to prominence in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mos ...
,
indie, and
trance
Trance is a state of semi-consciousness in which a person is not self-aware and is either altogether unresponsive to external stimuli (but nevertheless capable of pursuing and realizing an aim) or is selectively responsive in following the dir ...
. Her musical mentors and strongest influences include
Cannibal Corpse
Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band formed in Buffalo, New York, in 1988, now based in Tampa, Florida.
The band has released sixteen studio albums, two box sets, four video albums, and two live albums. The band has had little radio ...
,
Pantera
Pantera () is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Arlington, Texas in 1981 by the Abbott brothers (guitarist Dimebag Darrell and drummer Vinnie Paul), and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, an ...
,
Deicide
Deicide is the killing (or the killer) of a god. The concept may be used for any act of killing a god, including a life-death-rebirth deity who is killed and then resurrected.
Etymology
The term deicide was coined in the 17th century from ...
,
Justice
In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...
,
Gackt
, better known as Gackt (stylized in all caps), is a Japanese singer-songwriter, musician, record producer and actor.
Born in Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawa to a Ryukyuan people, Ryukyuan family, Gackt learned the piano at a young age and was rai ...
,
L'Arc-en-Ciel
, stylized as L'Arc〜en〜Ciel and abbreviated as Laruku, is a Japanese rock band formed in Osaka in 1991 by bassist Tetsuya and vocalist Hyde. Following the departure of original members Hiro and Pero, guitarist Ken and drummer Sakura were ...
,
The Prodigy
The Prodigy are an English electronic music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboardist, and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured
Rapping, MC and vocalist Maxim (musician), Maxim, dancer and occasi ...
,
Jamiroquai
Jamiroquai ( ) are an English acid jazz and funk band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in th ...
,
Ryuichi Sakamoto
was a Music of Japan, Japanese musician, composer, keyboardist, record producer, singer and actor. He pursued a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the Synthesizer, synth-based band Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO). With his ...
, and
Daft Punk
Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. They achieved popularity in the late 1990s as part of the French house movement, combining house music, funk, disco, tech ...
.
Although she worked as an actress during her years in Japan, she has very little or no interest in acting.
DJ Heavygrinder also performed at AnimeMatsuri in
Houston, Texas
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
in March 2011, as well as March 2014.
Discography
Albums
* ''Eternity'' (2008)
EPs
* ''Setsuna'' (2016)
* ''Shadow Chaser'' (2013)
Singles
* ''Sway'' (2012)
* ''Lovesick Hypocrite'' (2013)
* ''Disguise'' (2013)
* ''Superstar'' (2013)
* ''The Riot'' (2013)
* ''Warning Destruction'' (2014)
* ''Black Is A Color'' (2014)
* ''Save You'' (2014)
* ''Break Free'' (2016)
Collaborations & remixes
Personal life
She currently resides in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
and is married to fellow producer and DJ, Katfyr.
References
External links
*
*
DJ Heavygrinderon The Belmont Sessions
DJ Heavygrinderat
Discogs
Discogs ( ; short for " discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''T ...
DJ Heavy Grinder Interview at Crash.tv.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heavygrinder, DJ
1983 births
Female models from Washington (state)
American club DJs
American dubstep musicians
Electro house musicians
American electronic musicians
American musicians of Japanese descent
American women DJs
21st-century Japanese actresses
American people of French descent
DJs from Los Angeles
Musicians from Seattle
Living people
American electronic dance music DJs
Rock DJs
21st-century American women musicians