Larry Tee

Larry Tee (born October 12, 1959) is a Berlin-based DJ, club promoter, and music producer who coined the musical genre term electroclash and helped launch the careers of such artists as RuPaul, Scissor Sisters, Fischerspooner, Peaches, W.I.T., and Avenue D, and has written songs for and collaborated with Afrojack, Shontelle, Princess Superstar, Santigold, RuPaul, Sean Garrett, Steve Aoki, and Amanda Lepore. In January 2014 he launched his clothing line TZUJI at London Fashion Week. TZUJI, is grabbing attention by taking the easy-to-wear and flattering qualities of sportswear and bringing an exciting graphic edge to its prints and silhouettes. its already been worn by popular stars like Jimmy Fallin on the Tonight Show, Rihanna, Missy Elliott, Sean Kingston, and sold in top stores like The Dover Street Market in New York and VFILES as well as in Los Angeles, London, Berlin, Melbourne, and many more. After relocating and setting up production in Berlin in 2015, TZUJI is bringing the world of fashion together with music and Entertainment via appearances in festivals and on TV.
New York Press credited Tee as ‘a hipster before there were hipsters, a club kid before Michael Alig dismembered one and a man who made Williamsburg cool again’. Then New York Times cites Larry's club in Williamsburg as one of the reasons Williamsburg 'got it's groove back'. New York magazine celebrated Tee's electroclash credentials as well as his role in making RuPaul a star in the 1990s.

Career

Tee was born to two Canadian-born citizens in Seattle, Washington. He grew up in Seattle and then Marietta, Georgia. He moved to Atlanta in the early 1980s, where he became a part of the music scene and he hung out with personalities such as RuPaul, Michael Stipe (REM), Lady Bunny, and Lahoma Van Zandt at the Celebrity Club in Atlanta.

In 1986, Tee along with RuPaul and Lady Bunny and Lahoma Van Zandt moved to NYC and quickly became involved with the Club Kids scene with his epic party, Love Machine. He hosted nights at Michael Alig's infamous DISCO 2000, which is featured in the movie Party Monster. He also DJ'ed at the ROXY on a weekly basis.

During the 1990s, he became a prominent DJ by playing at highly regarded venues such as Palladium, Twilo, and the Roxy NYC. In 1992, Tee co-wrote the RuPaul's top 40-hit "Supermodel (You Better Work)".

In the early 2000s, while spinning at the Berliniamsburg party at the club Luxx, Tee created and trademarked the term "electroclash" and it became well known enough that it started to appear in the Oxford Dictionary. He coordinated and managed the 2001 Electroclash Festival, which featured Scissor Sisters, Fischerspooner, and Peaches, who all participated in the festival. He also created and managed the nouveau-music electro girl group, W.I.T.

In 2007, released with Andy Bell, the single Matthew, a homage to Matthew Shepard, killed for being gay.

In 2009 Tee released the iTunes top 20 dance album Club Badd, which featured songs by Perez Hilton, Princess Superstar (the Licky single was later re-written by Sean Garrett of Beyoncé/Usher fame and re-recorded by Shontelle), Jeffree Star, Roxy Cottontail, Herve, Bart B More, and Christopher Just. Licky also appeared on the Steve Aoki mix album with Santogold rapping on it and in the Russell Brand movie, "Get Him To the Greek". In 2010, Larry Tee released the single "Let's Make Nasty" featuring Roxy Cottontail and it was re-released in the UK in 2011. In 2010 Tee collaborated with celebrity blogger Perez Hilton and Amanda Lepore to produce Hilton's first music track. He has remixed artists like Sia, Iggy Azalia, Steve Aoki, REM, Lady Gaga, Roisin Murphy, Kele of Bloc Party and Cher.

In 2011, Tee moved to Shoreditch, London. He runs a weekly night in east London called Super Electric Party Machine at East Bloc every Friday Night and XOYO that has featured artists like Charli XCX, Brooke Candy, AME from Duke Dumonts #1 smash, Le1f, Ssion, and 2 Bears' Rolf.

In June 2015, Larry Tee moved to Berlin to run TZUJI from Germany and run KRANK parties in Berlin. TZUJI has since been featured on Jimmy Fallon on the Tonight Show, Rhianna, Missy Elliot, Sean Kingston and on show like X Factor in several countries. TZUJI has also been sold in shops like The Dover Street Market in New York, V Files, Asos Marketplace, and in Los Angeles (Flasher Melrose), London (Borderline Apparel), New York (La Petite Mort), and Berlin (Chaos-Labs).