Dennis Ferrer

Dennis Ferrer is a house and electronic music producer and DJ from New York, United States. He works across house, deep house, soulful house and funky house, with a strong emphasis on soulful and afro-house influenced production. His background also includes hip hop, R&B and dancehall.

Production and labels

Ferrer’s recorded work appears on a wide range of respected house labels in the United States and Europe. His releases include material for Sfere, Ibadan, Large, King Street, Basic Recordings, Madhouse and Chillifunk. He is also known as one of the leading remixers among deep house producers, and has contributed additional production to releases on Distant, Defected, Papa, King Street, Large and Slip N’ Slide.

Among the tracks associated with him are “Funu”, “Ko Ko”, “Reach 4 Freedom” and “Dem People Go”, alongside soulful releases such as “Wonderful People” and “Joy to the World”. His Soul Collective series on Large Records is also part of his catalogue. Other noted productions include “It’s A Beautiful Life”, a remix of S.U.M.O.’s “Stay”, “Sandcastles”, co-produced with Jerome Sydenham, and reworkings of D’Jaimin’s “Oule Oule” and Dubtribe Sound System’s “Nothing Is Impossible”.

Sfere Recordings and collaborators

Ferrer is one half of Sfere Recordings with Kerri Chandler. The label is founded in 1998 and takes its name from Chandler’s “Atmosphere” and Ferrer’s earlier techno alias, Aurasphere. Sfere focuses on soulful house with Brazilian, gospel and jazz influences, and places particular importance on songs. Ferrer’s work with Chandler follows a period in which he works with the New York label Synewave and then moves further into house production.

DJ career

As a DJ, Ferrer travels widely and plays across Europe, North America and parts of Asia and Africa. His performances include clubs and events in the UK, France, Scandinavia, the Benelux region, Russia, Greece, Italy, Japan, South-East Asia and cities across the United States and Canada. He also returns to South Africa for a Heineken-sponsored series of events alongside Pete Tong.

Style and influences

Ferrer’s music reflects influences from the soul and funk records of his youth, as well as early electronic music. Artists named as part of that background include T-Connection, DJ Rodgers, early Herbie Hancock, early Cameo and Confunkshun. His work develops from those influences into house production with a strong melodic and vocal focus.