Zeds Dead – The Pioneering Duo

Zeds Dead, widely recognized as pioneers of the modern North American bass scene by DJ Mag, are an EDM group who blend hip-hop attitude with genre-bending energy to produce frenetic electronic dance music sets. Dylan “DC” Mamid and Zachary “Hooks” Rapp-Rovan, two members who make up Zeds Dead have amassed hundreds of millions across multiple platforms since its establishment.

They embark upon their second decade with their imprint Deadbeats and an ever-evolving network of artists.

Founded by Mamid and Rapp-Rovan

Dylan Mamid and Zachary Rapp-Rovan make up genre-defying duo Zeds Dead, an innovative music production duo whose sound blends aggressive dubstep, drum’n’bass, hip hop, and electronic music into one soundscape. First gaining attention through mixtapes and their weekly podcast, Bassmentality, this Toronto-based artist duo released their electro-powered debut single ‘Journey of a Lifetime” themselves for self release in October 2009.

They later took inspiration for their name from Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction (“Zed is dead, baby”) and began building momentum as DJs and producers.

Northern Lights was their highly-anticipated debut full-length artist album that marked a creative highpoint of their artistic journey. It included collaborations with artists like Twin Shadow, Diplo, Dragonette, Weezer’s Rivers Cuomo, NGHTMRE and Jadakiss and showcased an eclectic range of sounds and styles. Additionally, this release served as the launchpad for Deadbeats Records as an independent lifestyle and events brand that continues to thrive today.

Northern Lights

DC and Hooks’ drive for musical discovery has been at the core of their journey as a duo. Drawing their name from Quentin Tarantino’s genre-bending film Pulp Fiction, DC and Hooks create music that defies classification or stylistic labels.

Last time they visited Tampa, this duo kept the weekend-long EDM party going at the Ritz with their signature blend of house, hip-hop, glitch and drum and bass music. Northern Lights marks their artistic breakthrough and is their latest release.

Twin Shadow, Pusha T and Weezer’s Rivers Cuomo make guest appearances. Furthermore, it serves as an introduction for their Deadbeats imprint, cultivating dance music crossover superstars such as DNMO, PEEKABOO and 1788-L – in addition to smaller venues seating 300-1,500 people where this album will tour.

Catching Z’s

Dylan Mamid and Zachary Rapp-Rovan, more popularly known as Zeds Dead to their fans, are an eclectic duo known for fusing aggressive dubstep, throttling drum’n’bass, and bass heavy hip hop music into one cohesive style. Over their career they have released numerous chart-topping singles, headlined major festivals worldwide, collaborated with an array of artists, and produced chart topping singles.

Bassmentality was founded by this duo as one of Toronto’s first weekly club nights and showcased emerging sounds and artists from global underground culture.

Deadbeats Records has quickly become one of dance music‘s leading independent labels, and its success has enabled the pair to broaden their creative footprint through Altered States, their experimental division. Their latest mixtape showcases their softer side with soul-stirring melodies, hypnotic vocals, transfixing tempos, sweeping 808s and masterful downtempo production; an exploration into soundscapes that transport listeners into different spaces while awakening dreams and altering states of consciousness.

Altered States

After the success of Northern Lights, Altered States marks another important step for this duo’s creative vision and career journey. This venture offers further exploration of their creative direction as they delve into chill/downtempo music genre.

This film explores not only Judeo-Christian doctrines of hell but also ancient indigenous spirituality and genetic memory. Unfortunately its tone can vary considerably but remains entertaining and thought provoking.

After nearly a decade of crafting their distinctive sound, Toronto-based group, Toronto Dead have become festival stage headliners and headlining to sold out crowds worldwide. Their tireless quest for sonic exploration remains their main asset and core of their sound; with Catching Z’s and Altered States they look set to cement themselves further in dance music history – featuring “Levitate”, an energetic house composition by Zeds Dead & Norwegian producer Funkin Matt from their latest project Catching Z’s and Altered States that features Zeds Dead and Norwegian producer Funkin Matt collaborate on producing.