André Tegeler (born 9 August 1973),
known by his stage name Moguai (stylised as MOGUAI), is a German music producer and DJ. In the early 1990s, he took the alias Moguai and began organising his own club nights and parties in Ruhrgebiet and Münsterland. He became one of the first techno DJs in Germany, sharing a platform with the likes of Paul van Dyk, Westbam and Sven Väth.
In more recent years, however, Moguai's sound has developed to include a combination of tech-house, progressive house, big beat and electro house. He has also worked in more mainstream areas of the music industry, producing for the likes of the Sugababes, Girls Aloud and 2Raumwohnung, which earned him double platinum and gold disc awards.
Early life and education

Tegeler was born in
Recklinghausen,
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhab ...
. He studied for his high school diploma at the Freiherr-von-Stein-Gymnasium in Recklinghausen, after which he completed a two-year apprenticeship in the family butcher business, making him the youngest journeyman butcher in North Rhine-Westphalia. He then went on to study law at the
Ruhr University
The Ruhr University Bochum (, ) is a public research university located in the southern hills of the central Ruhr area, Bochum, Germany. It was founded in 1962 as the first new public university in Germany after World War II. Instruction began in ...
in
Bochum, which is where he also embarked upon his career as a DJ and music producer.
Career
Music
In 1994, Tegeler, now trading under the name Moguai, teamed up with German producer Jürgen Driessen to release his debut EP, entitled ''Best Before End'', with Important Records. The following year, Moguai set up his own studio with Phil Fuldner, called PUNX Studios. Arguably the studio's greatest successes were Fuldner's ''The Final'' (1988), which became the theme tune for the cult manga series ''
Captain Future
Captain Future is a pulp science fiction hero — a space-traveling scientist and adventurer —originally published in his namesake pulp magazine from 1940 to 1944. The character was created by editors Mort Weisinger and Leo Margulies. The ma ...
'', and Moguai's ''Beatbox'', which was the first electronic instrumental track to hold 10 weeks in the German top 40.
At the same time, Moguai collaborated as a remixer with artists such as
Giorgio Moroder
Giovanni Giorgio Moroder (, ; born 26 April 1940) is an Italian composer, songwriter, and record producer. Dubbed the " Father of Disco", Moroder is credited with pioneering euro disco and electronic dance music. His work with synthesizers had ...
,
Yves Deruyter,
Timo Maas
Timo Maas (born July 27, 1969, Bückeburg, West Germany) is a German DJ/producer and remixer whose career in electronic music spans well over 30 years. His remix of Azzido Da Bass's single " Dooms Night" helped launch his career in 2000.
In ...
,
Planet Funk
Planet Funk is an Italian electronic band. The group is composed of Marco Baroni, Domenico "GG" Calipari, Alex Neri, Dan Black and formerly Sergio Della Monica who died in February 2018. In addition a number of guest vocalists joined the group, i ...
,
Cosmic Baby, BBE,
Fischerspooner
Fischerspooner were an electroclash duo and performance troupe formed in 1998 in Chicago after meeting in school. The name is a combination of the founders' last names, Warren Fischer and Casey Spooner.
Career
Originally a duo formed by classi ...
and
2raumwohnung
2raumwohnung (; meaning "2-Room Apartment") are a German electro-pop duo that was formed in 2000 in Berlin. Its two members are singer, Inga Humpe, and her life partner, Tommi Eckart. They reached the high point of their career to date with the ...
. In 2002 and 2006, respectively, he worked with British production house
Xenomania
Xenomania is an English songwriting and production team founded by Brian Higgins and based in Kent, England. Formed by Higgins with his Creative Director Miranda Cooper and Business Director Sarah Stennett of First Access Entertainment, Xenom ...
, specifically on their work for bands
Sugababes
Sugababes are a British girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011.
Formed in 1998 by All Saints manager Ron Tom, Sugababes releas ...
and
Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud were an pop girl group that was created through the ITV talent show '' Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The group comprised singers Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. The group achieved a ...
on ''
In the Middle'' (Sugababes) and ''
Something Kinda Ooh'' (Girls Aloud), respectively. Both of which were reworks of two of Moguai's previous singles ''U Know Y'' and ''Get On''. He would later receive credit on the song ''Come Back to Mine'' by Xenomania's in-house drummer and recording artist
Florrie
Florence Ellen Arnold (born 28 December 1988), better known as Florrie, is an English pop singer-songwriter, drummer and model. Closely associated with the Xenomania production house, since joining as their in-house drummer in 2008 she has pla ...
. He was awarded double platinum records for both of these projects. Similarly, in 2005, he teamed up with German electro-pop duo 2raumwohnung to create the single ''Sasha (Sex Secret)'' on the album ''Es wird Morgen'', which went Gold.
Since 2009, Moguai has released his music with
Mau5trap
Mau5trap (stylized as mau5trap; pronounced "mousetrap") is an independent record label, independent Canadian record label founded in 2007 by electronic music producer Deadmau5. The label was formerly a vanity label, hosting releases through labe ...
, run by Canadian superstar DJ
Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman (born January 5, 1981), known professionally as Deadmau5 (stylized as deadmau5; pronounced "dead-mouse"), is a Canadian electronic music producer and DJ. He mainly produces progressive house music, though he also produces ...
. His first EP release with this label was ''We Are Lyve'' (2010), which featured the singles ''Impereal'', ''Nyce'' and ''Blau''. Currently, the label represents the likes of Eekkoo, REZZ, and No Mana, but one of its first artists,
Skrillex
Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead sing ...
, won three Grammys in 2012, helping secure the great reputation the label enjoys today.
In March 2011, he joined forces with Mau5trap and
Beatport
Beatport is an American electronic music-oriented online music store owned by LiveStyle. The company is based in Denver, Los Angeles, and Berlin. Beatport is oriented primarily towards DJs, selling full songs as well as resources that can be us ...
to produce an hour-long
progressive house
Progressive house is a subgenre of house music. The progressive house style emerged in the early 1990s. It initially developed in the United Kingdom as a natural progression of American and European house music of the late 1980s.Gerard, Morgan; ...
mix, ''Lyve from Beta'', recorded at the Beta Club in
Denver, Colorado
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...
, and edited using
Ableton Live
Ableton Live is a digital audio workstation for macOS and Windows developed by the German company Ableton. In contrast to many other software sequencers, Ableton Live is designed to be an instrument for live performances as well as a tool ...
software. The set is made up entirely of his own tracks, making it one of the few albums that combines both live and pre-recorded DJing by the same artist. The success of this album earned him a great deal more international acclaim, with artists such as
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
,
Beyoncé,
Fatboy Slim
Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook, 31 July 1963), also known by his stage name Fatboy Slim, is an English musician, DJ, and record producer who helped to popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. In the 1980s, Cook was the bassist f ...
,
Underworld
The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underworld ...
,
Afrojack
Nick Leonardus van de Wall (; born 9 September 1987), better known as Afrojack, is a Dutch DJ, music producer and remixer from Spijkenisse, South Holland. In 2007, he founded the record label Wall Recordings; his debut album '' Forget the World' ...
and
Felix da Housecat
Felix da Housecat (born Felix Stallings Jr., August 25, 1971) is an American DJ and record producer, mostly known for house music and electro. Felix is regarded as a member of the second wave of Chicago house
Musical career Early life
Stall ...
approaching him for collaborations and remixes. In January 2012, he released ''Mpire'', again on Mau5trap, collaborating with
Kosheen
Kosheen are a British electronic music group based in Bristol, United Kingdom. The group consist of singer-songwriter Sian Evans, songwriter-producer Markee Ledge and producer-songwriter Darren Decoder. The name Kosheen derives from the name ...
, Fiona Cutler,
Polina Goudieva and
Tommy Trash
Thomas Olsen, better known by his stage name Tommy Trash, (born 15 November 1979) is an Australian DJ, record producer, and remixer. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California and signed to Ministry of Sound Australia.
Biography Early ...
.
Radio
Since 2000, Moguai has been a radio DJ and presenter at Radio 1Live (West German Broadcasting) on the 1Live DJ segment, which runs every Saturday from 22:00 pm to 01:00 am. The show also features guest DJs, and in the past has included the likes of
Avicii
Tim Bergling (; 8 September 1989 – 20 April 2018), known professionally as Avicii (, ), was a Swedish DJ, remixer and music producer. At the age of 16, Bergling began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first rec ...
,
Tiesto,
Paul van Dyk
Matthias Paul (; born 16 December 1971), known professionally as Paul van Dyk () is a German DJ, record producer and musician. One of the first true renowned DJs, van Dyk was the first artist to receive a Grammy Award nomination in the newly a ...
,
Steve Aoki
Steven Hiroyuki Aoki (, ; born November 30, 1977), best known as Steve Aoki, is an American DJ, record producer, music programmer, and record executive. ,
Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike
Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike are a Belgian–Greek DJ duo composed of brothers Dimitri Thivaios and Michael Thivaios. They were ranked No. 1 on ''DJ Mag''s Top 100 DJs list in 2015 and 2019, and were ranked No. 2 in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2020 ...
and Turntablerocker. The final hour of the show belongs to the 1Live residents, which include Andhim, AKA AKA,
Claptone,
Wankelmut
Jacob Dilßner (born 17 July 1987), better known by his stage name Wankelmut, is a German electronic music DJ and record producer based in Berlin. He rose to fame internationally through the remix hit " One Day / Reckoning Song (Wankelmut Remix)". ...
and many more.
In 2007, Moguai was made a resident DJ at German radio station MDR Sputnik, where he plays every third Saturday of the month. In 2008, he launched his own monthly radio podcast on Digitally Imported Radio called ''Punx Up the Volume''. It can also be heard on the radio in the UK, the US, Australia, Russia and Brazil. In 2009, he launched an eponymous two-hour radio show every fourth Thursday with German radio station Sunshine Live.
Television
As host
MTV
* ''Chillout Zone''
* ''Party Zone''
* ''Select''
* ''In Touch''
VIVA
* 5-hour live moderation of
Nature One
Nature One is one of the largest European open air electronic music festivals, featuring many renowned DJs from Germany and all over the world. In significance it is not as big as Mayday nor as old, having started three years later than the ...
, 2001
* Guest moderator of
Mayday
Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications.
It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organi ...
, 2001
* ''Clubrotation''
* ''Berlin House''
Discography
;Studio albums
* ''
We Ar Lyve
In Modern English, ''we'' is a plural, first-person pronoun.
Morphology
In Standard Modern English, ''we'' has six distinct shapes for five word forms:
* ''we'': the nominative (subjective) form
* ''us'' and ': the accusative (objective ...
'' (2010)
* ''Mpire'' (2012)
* ''Colors'' (2021)
References
{{Authority control
Living people
German DJs
German record producers
German house musicians
Mau5trap artists
People from Recklinghausen
Progressive house musicians
Electronic dance music DJs
1973 births