William Sami Étienne Grigahcine (born 13 June 1986), known by his stage name DJ Snake, is a French-Algerian DJ and record producer. He was first credited with production work on several singles for other artists—including "Shut It Down" by Pitbull and "Applause" by Lady Gaga—before gaining widespread recognition for his 2013 debut single, "Turn Down for What" (with Lil Jon).[2][3][4]
In 2014, DJ Snake was named an "Artist to Watch" by FoxWeekly.[11] He and Dillon Francis were announced as alternating supporting artists for the summer Mothership Tour 2014 with Skrillex.[12] In March 2018, Billboard named DJ Snake number nine on their 2018 ranking of dance musicians, Billboard Dance 100.[13][14]
Early life
Grigahcine was born in Paris to Algerian parents[15] and grew up in Ermont,[16] a banlieue district outside Paris, which he describes as a ghetto,[17][18][19] though Ermont is not an economically-deprived suburb featuring low-income housing projects. He cites a scene with Cut Killer in the French film La Haine as well as hip-hop artists KRS-One and Cypress Hill as early influences. In his youth, Grigahcine produced graffiti art, earning him the moniker "Snake" because he was able to consistently evade the police. Of his name, Grigahcine says "When I started DJing, everyone called me 'Snake' in my city first, I was like 'DJ Snake, OK let's go for it.' The name sucks, but it's too late now."[18] He started DJing at age 14, and later producing at 19.[20] In his early career, Grigahcine performed at clubs including Le Bains Douches in Paris. In 2005, he met his manager Steve Goncalves, who encouraged Grigahcine to begin creating his own music.[18]
DJ Snake and Dillon Francis were alternating supporting artists on the Mothership Tour 2014 with Skrillex.[12] He performed at the 2015 Coachella Music Festival with guest appearances by AlunaGeorge and MØ, who did vocals on "Lean On" with Major Lazer. "Lean On" and DJ Snake's remix of AlunaGeorge's "You Know You Like It" were both top 10 Shazamed songs from Coachella 2015.[32][33]
In October 2015, DJ Snake and fellow electronic producer Tchami were injured in a car crash, causing them both to miss a scheduled stop at Toronto's Monster Mash festival.[34] In January 2016, Forbes named him one of their "30 Under 30 In Music" for the year.[35]
Standalone singles (2013–2015)
In December 2013, "Turn Down for What", DJ Snake's collaboration with Lil Jon, was released on Columbia Records.[36] The song was featured in a commercial for the Sol Republic DECK, a wireless speaker, which aired in October 2013.[37] "Turn Down for What" entered the top ten of the Billboard Dance/Electronic chart during the last week of December.[38] In January 2014, the single entered the top 5 on the Dance/Electronic chart and debuted No. 38 on the Billboard Hot 100.[39] The song was certified gold in February 2014 and platinum in March 2014.[40][41] The song reached the top ten of the Hot 100 in April 2014.[42] The music video for the single was released in March 2014.[43] "Turn Down for What" was nominated for MTV Video Music Awards for Best Direction, Best Art Direction, Best Visual Effects, and the MTV Clubland Award.[44]
In February 2014, DJ Snake and Dillon Francis released "Get Low" on their official SoundCloud and YouTube pages, as the lead single from Francis's debut studio album Money Sucks, Friends Rule. Both "Get Low" and "Turn Down for What" were featured on the Furious 7 motion picture soundtrack. Along with the exposure gained from commercials for Dodge and Taco Bell featuring the song, the inclusion of "Get Low" on the soundtrack helped the song re-enter the Billboard Hot Dance/Electronic chart while DJ Snake re-entered the Billboard Artist 100.[45]
In December 2014, DJ Snake's remix of the AlunaGeorge song "You Know You Like It" was released on Island Records.[46] "You Know You Like It" reached number one on Billboard'sDance/Mix Show Airplay chart and Rhythmic Songs chart in June 2015.[47][48] It peaked at 13 on the Billboard Hot 100.[49] In November 2015, the song received RIAA double-platinum certification.[50] For the remix, DJ Snake used a fusion of European dance music and hip hop beats. It took him about four hours to write. The collaboration was done via the Internet, with the vocals emailed to DJ Snake, who worked in Paris.[51]
In March 2015, "Lean On", DJ Snake's collaborative track with Major Lazer featuring MØ, was released on Mad Decent, as the lead single from Major Lazer's third studio album Peace Is the Mission.[52] It made it on Billboard'sRhythmic Songs,[53]Mainstream Top 40,[54]Latin Pop Songs,[55]Dance Club Songs,[56]Hot Dance/Electric Songs[57] and Adult Top 40[58] charts. It peaked at 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.[59] In June, Time magazine named it one of the "Best Songs of 2015 So Far"[60] In September 2015, "Lean On" was named Spotify's global song of the summer. In November 2015, the song surpassed 526 million Spotify plays, making it the service's most streamed song ever.[61] The video for "Lean On" was released in March 2015.[62] It was shot in India and directed by Tim Erem.[63]Amplify magazine named "Lean On" one of "The Best Videos of 2015".[64] In January 2016, the "Lean On" video reached 1 billion views on YouTube, and has since reached over 3 billion.[65][66]
Encore (2015–2017)
DJ Snake released his next single "Middle" on 16 October 2015. The song was released by Interscope Records, Mad Decent and Spinnin' Records. It features the vocals from English singer Bipolar Sunshine. The song's accompanying music video premiered on 16 March 2016 on DJ Snake's YouTube account on Vevo.
On 2 June 2016, the single "Talk" was released.[67] DJ Snake had hinted the possibility of releasing new music via Twitter a few days before the single's release. It features vocals from George Maple's song "Talk Talk" that was released in December 2014.[68] The track infuses tropical house sounds and was released by Interscope Records and made available for purchase on iTunes on 10 June 2016.[69][70] The music video for the song was released on DJ Snake's YouTube account on 11 July 2016. In July 2016, he announced the release of his debut studio album, titled Encore, released on 5 August 2016. "Middle" and "Talk" serve as singles from the album.
On 5 August 2016, with the release of Encore, DJ Snake released the album's third single, "Let Me Love You", featuring the vocals of Canadian singer Justin Bieber. On 2 January 2017, DJ Snake started promoting the album's fourth single "The Half", featuring Jeremih, Young Thug and Swizz Beatz.[71] In fall 2017, DJ Snake performed at the Arc de Triomphe to promote Paris' bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Carte Blanche (2018–present)
On 23 February 2018, his single "Magenta Riddim" was released. In late August 2018, DJ Snake announced via his social media platforms that he would be releasing a new song later that year. The following month, he confirmed the song would be called "Taki Taki" and it would feature Selena Gomez, Cardi B and Ozuna. The track was released on 28 September 2018.
DJ Snake is a Vegas resident DJ at Zouk Nightclub and AYU Dayclub at Resorts World. Aaron Musicaro in conjunction with Jared Garcia [74] worked together to get this partnership as a resident DJ.[75]
In September 2024, DJ Snake unveiled a new chapter in his career under the alias "The Outlaw" during the Lost Lands festival in the United States. This festival, known for its bass music and founded by Excision, provided the perfect stage for DJ Snake to reveal a new artistic identity, characterized by darker and heavier sounds like dubstep and hard techno.
Under this new alias, DJ Snake adopted a radically different look. Wearing a black hood and abandoning his iconic sunglasses, he took on a more enigmatic approach. The logo for "The Outlaw," designed by DOZAMENART, features black and blood-red colors, reinforcing the dark and violent aspect of the project. The logo includes a snake and a knife, symbolizing his connection to DJ Snake's roots.
This performance marked an unexpected artistic shift. With "The Outlaw," DJ Snake appears to be exploring new horizons, moving away from the vocal-driven sounds that made him famous and embracing a rawer, more intense musical style. Although this project is still in its early stages, the public’s enthusiasm—especially following the creation of the Instagram account dedicated to "The Outlaw"—suggests that this alter ego could become a new artistic direction for the DJ.
As he prepares to perform at the Stade de France in May 2025 for what has been announced as his "Final Show," this new alias might indicate a desire for renewal, perhaps even marking a new era in DJ Snake's career.
Other ventures
Pardon My French's Logo
Pardon My French
DJ Snake is currently part of the Pardon My French team, a collective of four French DJs composed of Tchami, Mercer, Malaa and himself. Throughout the year 2016 and into early 2017, DJ Snake was part of the Pardon My French Tour with Tchami and Mercer.
For his special venue at the Accor Hotel Arena (Paris), in 2018 DJ Snake had an exclusive collaboration between his own trademark Pardon My French and the denim brand Levi's. It was composed by the emblematic Levi's trucker jacket sprayed with the DJ's brand. The very limited edition was available as a world exclusive at the Champs-Elysées Levis flagship the day of the venue (24 February 2018) and encountered a huge success.
Premiere Classe Records
Premiere Classe's logo
In March 2018, he established his own record label named Premiere Classe.[77]
^"DJ Snake pays homage to Algerian roots in latest release". 3 June 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2022. The Grammy-nominated producer, whose real name is William Sami Étienne Grigahcine, was born in Paris to Algerian parents and grew up in Ermont, a district outside of the capital.
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