Martin Solveig

Though he grew up singing in the church choir and studying classical music, by age 13 French DJ Martin Solveig (born Martin Picandet) had his first pair of turntables and was showing off his skills to his friends. At 18, while working in a local record store, he further discovered the complexity of electronic music, and shortly thereafter was spinning at some of the most prestigious clubs in Paris. In 2001, Solveig worked with Bob Sinclar on Africanism, contributing his track "Edony" to the album. The single went on to be a hit, and after graduating from college, the DJ decided to release a full-length record. Sur la Terre -- which came out in 2002 on his own label, Mixture, and was made using both live and electronic instrumentation -- was also inspired by African rhythms, leading to a remix of Malian singer Salif Keita's song "Malan." In 2004 Solveig decided to move toward American funk and rock, releasing "Rocking Music," sung by Jay Sebag, followed by another full-length, Hedonist, in 2005. A third album, C'est la Vie, was issued in 2008, but it was only with his fourth effort, 2011's aptly titled Smash, that he finally broke through into the mainstream. Home to a number of singles featuring Dragonette, Smash included Solveig's chart-topping hit song "Hello" with the Canadian band, the success of which attracted the interest of Madonna. The singer chose him to work on her album MDNA, and the pair developed a mutual respect and a close working relationship in the studio. Post-MDNA, Solveig continued collaborating, releasing The Night Out EP in 2012; the 2013 single "Hey Now" with the Cataracs, and "Blow" featuring Laidback Luke in 2014. In 2015, Solveig returned with "Intoxicated" with the production duo GTA, as well as the house music-infused "+1," with vocals by Sam White. "Do It Right" with Tkay Maidza and "Places" with Ina Wroldsen arrived the next year, with the Alma-featuring "All Stars" landing in 2017. The following year, he issued "My Love." ~ Marisa Brown & Neil Z. Yeung