David Guetta

Background

Pierre David Guetta was born in Paris, France on November 7, 1967. His father, a sociologist, was from a Moroccan Jewish family and his mother is of Belgian descent. He has two half-siblings from both parents’ previous marriages — Bernard and Nathalie from his father’s side and Dominique and Joelle from his mother’s side. Guetta was married to Cathy Lobe, a nightclub manager, for 22 years from 1992 to 2014. They have a son, Tim Elvis Eric, and a daughter, Angie.

Guetta initially played popular songs as a D.J. in the ‘80s. He discovered house music on the French radio in 1987 and soon after began to host his own club nights. In 1990, he released a hip-hop collaboration titled ‘Nation Rap’ with French rapper Sidney Duteil. He continued to play at popular French clubs and released a second collaboration in 1994 titled ‘Up & Away’ with American house vocalist Robert Owens. That same year, Guetta began to manage Le Palace nightclub. In 2001, he founded Gum Productions with Joachim Garraud and released his first single titled ‘Just a Little More Love.’ The next year, Guetta released his first album by the same name. This was followed by his second and third albums, “Guetta Blaster” (2004) and “Pop Life” (2007). His fourth album — titled “One Love”, released in 2009 — featured hit singles like ‘When Love Takes Over,’ ‘Gettin’ Over You,’ ‘Sexy Bitch’ and ‘Memories.’ With this success, he cemented himself in mainstream music and became one of the most popular D.J.s on international charts. He continued to churn out hits with follow-up albums “Nothing but the Beat” (2011) and “7” (2018). These albums included hit collaborations with Sia, J Balvin, Jason Derulo, G-Eazy, Nicki Minaj, and many more artists. Around the same time, Guetta created an alias “Jack Back” that produces music similar to Guetta’s original underground E.D.M. style. He was appointed the music ambassador for the U.E.F.A. Euro 2016, providing the official tournament song ‘This One’s For You’ featuring vocals from Zara Larsson. Apart from his studio albums, he has released 11 compilation albums, three extended plays, 90 singles, and 42 music videos. He’s written and produced singles for popular artists like The Black Eyes Peas, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, and Rihanna, and remixed chart hits for artists like Kylie Minogue, Bob Sinclair, Charlie Puth, Bebe Rexha, and Bad Bunny. In 2019, he started a movement called “Future Rave” involving a new style of E.D.M. with fellow producer MORTEN. The next year they released an E.P. titled “New Rave” which fans could enjoy at home during the pandemic.

Upon entering “D.J. Magazine’s” top 100 D.J.s list in 2005, Guetta has won the top position three times and currently still occupies the top spot. He has been nominated for multiple prestigious music awards and has won at least 30 awards including an American Music Award, Billboard Music Award, Grammy Award, Teen Choice Award, three M.T.V. Europe Music Awards, and 11 International Dance Music Awards. His concerts are one of the most eagerly anticipated in the world and his music is popular across the globe.