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Felix Da Housecat |
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Felix Stallings a.k.a. Felix Da Housecat was born in Detroit in 1971 and raised in Park Forrest, outside Chicago, Felix, his earliest influence was his father, who is a saxophonist who turned him on to classic soul and '70s funk of artists like Stevie Wonder and Earth, Wind and Fire. His next major musical epiphany came about when Purple Rain dropped and he became the keyboard player for Shades of Blue; a band that covered Prince and the Revolution songs. His parents discouraged his growing club lifestyle, however, and after high-school graduation Felix left the scene entirely to attend Alabama State College. After few years, he lost all interest in house music, though his girlfriend got him back into it. After calling DJ Pierre, Felix began producing and mixing again. By 1992, he had a hit with the single "Thee Dawn" on Guerilla Records. His popularity soared in Europe, and the following years with songs like: ‘By Dawn's Early Light’ and ‘Thee Industry Made Me Do It’ reestablished his reputation. Not long after Felix formed Radikal Fear Records, the label became one of the top house imprints in the world, thanks to releases from Armando, Mike Dunn, and DJ Sneak as well as Felix himself. During 1995, he released his debut full length Alone in the Dark on Deep Distraxion label. Hot with its heels came the label collection Radikal Fear: The Chicago All Stars and a Housecat DJ album titled Clashbackk Compilation Mix. One year later, Felix Stallings appeared busy; in addition to his first album as Aphrohead, he also released another Maddkatt Courtship LP, the highly praised I Know Elektrikboy. The year 2001 saw the release of ‘Kittenz and Thee Glitz’, a highly praised LP that helped him gain mainstream exposure through articles in glossy magazines around the world; not to mention remix works for the likes of Kylie Minogue and Madonna. With the next line up of ‘Devin Dazzle and the Neon Fever’ album, it did not arrive until well over two years later, but Felix put together a pair of mix albums: in 2002 ‘Excursions’and in 2003 ‘A Bugged Out Mix’ during the intervening years. Over the course of 20 years his determination and willingness to reinvent himself have led him to a point that has now included remix work for artists such as Madonna, Garbage, New Order and Giorgio Moroder and a Grammy nomination; to DJ gigs at the world's most prestigious music festivals. |
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