Kenny Dope

Born Kenny Gonzales in Brooklyn, New York on July 6, 1970, the renowned DJ, remixer, and producer is better known as Kenny Dope Gonzalez and Kenny Dope. Whether he was working under his own name, pseudonyms like The Bucketheads, or as a member of Grammy-nominated production duo Masters at Work (with Little Louie Vega), Kenny ‘Dope’ Gonzalez left his mark on the evolution of house music by incorporating Latin influences. He began his musical career in 1985 by organizing block parties in Brooklyn. He released his first album, Court’s In Session (1988), as a member of the group KAOS. By 1990, he was an extremely prolific artist, releasing numerous singles over the next few years under his own name as well as various pseudonyms including House Syndicate, Total Ka-Os, The Madd Racket, Liquid Dope, The Untouchables, and Power House. Kenny Dope Gonzalez teamed up with Little Louie Vega and formed the house production duo Masters at Work. Scoring hits with 1993’ “I Can’t Get No Sleep” (Number 1 on Billboard’s Dance Club chart) and “Work” (1991). In 1994, he released “Whew,”, his first single as The Bucketheads. The next single, “The Bomb! (These Sounds Fall into My Mind),” was an international hit, reaching Number 5 in the UK and Number 49 in the US. Kenny Dope Gonzales continued working on many projects of his own as well as collaborating with artists such as Todd Terry, BeBe Winans, Jody Watley, Patti Austin, Shirley Bassey and George Benson. In 1997, Kenny Dope Gonzalez and Vega formed Nuyorican Soul, a short-lived musical concept that combined Latin music, jazz, and house. Using musicians from the Salsoul Orchestra as well as Roy Ayers, George Benson, Tito Puente, Vincent Montana, Jr., and singer Jocelyn Brown, they recorded their self-titled debut album, released in 1997. The album included the hit singles "Runaway" (featuring India), “You Can Do It” (featuring George Benson) and “It's Alright I Feel It!” (featuring Jocelyn Brown). While still active as a producer, remixer, and DJ into the 2000s, Kenny Dope Gonzalez moved away from working under pseudonyms and releases most of his work under his own name.