Mousse T.
Gourmet de Funk
Peppermint Jam

Here’s a man you may well call a superstar. Not many international DJs and producers can boast a career as successful as that of Mustafa Gündogdu, born in Hagen (Germany) in 1966, and better known to the public as Mousse T.

 

Mousse T. owns and runs the extremely successful Peppermint Jam label, which has gained worldwide recognition. He is an outstanding DJ and trend scout. His work includes remixes and productions for the international pop scene - from Michael Jackson to the Backstreet Boys, Simply Red, Gloria Estefan, Quincy Jones, Toni Braxton... And then he has written mega hits like “Horny” or “Sex Bomb” (the latter recently sparked off “Tiger” Tom Jones’ comeback). No wonder that more and more pop and rock legends, like P-Funk bass player Bootsy Collins, are placing their musical fate in Mousse T. ’s hands. Mustafa is a brilliant songwriter and an ace on the mixing desk. Maybe this is why he was the first European to be nominated for a Grammy award in the “Best Remixer” category.

 

When Mousse T. opened his first recording studio in Hanover in 1990, nobody guessed that this man was about to write music history - not even Mousse himself. Back then he played keyboards in a local band called Fun Key B. In 1992, he met the owners of the renowned Peppermint Park Studios in Hanover. Mousse added a new dance streak to the company’s repertoire. A year later, he founded the Peppermint Jam Records label together with his business partner Errol Rennalls and the Peppermint Park owners. At the same time, Mousse T. was starting to make a name as a DJ across the country. By 1996, when fellow producers and DJs Boris Dlugosch and Michi Lange joined the Peppermint Jam team, the label was already safely on the road to success. By this time, Mousse T. had already done remixes for Ziggy Marley, Mezzoforte, Randy Crawford and others - and when Boris Dlugosch’s first single enormous hit “Keep Pushin’” (co-produced by Mousse T.) was released on Peppermint Jam, it was obvious that the label’s releases were guaranteed instant club classics. Mousse T. and Peppermint Jam were on the right track...

 

In late 1998 came the exceptionally successful single “Horny”. It went straight up all major international charts and thus established Mousse T. as a solo artist. “Horny” exemplified the sheer power of the next generation of Peppermint Jam productions: with growing success and precision, these tracks mark the synthesis of fine House vibes, a real dance kick and absolute chart compatibility.

 

Another brilliant example is Moloko’s smash hit “Sing It Back” - the Peppermint Jam remixes stormed the charts world-wide and were in demand in all the clubs. What characterizes the output of Peppermint Jam and Mousse T. best is obviously a unique blend of refined musical taste and high commercial potential.

 

Inspired by the amazing success of “Horny” and “Sex Bomb” (one of the best selling singles of the year 2000), Mousse T. started working with zest on his first solo album, Gourmet De Funk, which is now due for release on June 10, 2003 in the US. At the same time, Peppermint Jam is going one step further by becoming both a label and production company with a new, impressive studio complex on the Expo grounds in Hanover. Fresh producer and DJ talent like Can7 and Torso, complete album productions for artists like Bootsy Collins, and a growing international presence - Mousse T. and Peppermint Jam have come a long way.

 

Although it looks as though the Hanover hit factory has achieved quite a bit, this doesn’t mean they’re going to sit back and relax. Those who know Mousse T., however, would not expect him to sit back on his laurels. Gourmet De Funk shows that the successes so far were just the beginning. The extraordinary diversity of music on the album made it tough to pick out the first single. In the end, “Fire” got the shot. The vocals for the track were done by Emma Lanford, an old associate of Mousse T. whose other credits include the “Mousse T. vs. Hot `N Juicy” project back in 1998.

 

The new album sees Mousse T. at his best; incorporating an astonishing range of styles, its fourteen tracks bring all the artist’s trademarks together. The coolness oozing from the title track, for example, could be taken straight from the soundtrack of movies like Get Shorty or Jackie Brown. "Toscana" - as the name suggests - takes us on a grand tour inspired by impressions of Italy’s Tuscany region. "C-Movie" takes porno-style soundtracks to new depths. “Negril Blues”, on the other hand, is a reggae track with club appeal. An abundance of renowned guest artists makes Gourmet De Funk a landmark recording. Roland Gift and his fellow Fine Young Cannibals were recruited by Mousse T. for a new version of their classic hit “Johnny”, while “Tiger” Tom Jones is honored with a jazzed-up rendition of “Sex Bomb”. Indeed, the entire album reflects Mousse T. ’s affinity for jazz, with more than shades of Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters on “Libra” as well as the latest interpretation of his own global hit “Horny” - surprises galore in store!

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For more information please contact Susan Mainzer at 323-466-5141 or email susan@greengalactic.com.