Kheops

Who is Kheops?

Éric Mazel better known by the stage name Khéops is a French DJ, and a member of the French hip hop group IAM. He has also a prolific solo career, and runs his own record label, Sad Hill Records, with Def Bond.

Mazel was born in Marseille on 4 May 1966. He has a Spanish mother, and his father is from Marseille. As a child, he lived with his grandparents in the northern districts of Marseille.

Mazel first started DJ'ing at the age of thirteen under the pseudonym Mister Crazy Mix. He later got a job as a DJ on Radio Sprint. In 1985, he met Akhenaton, who was then member of the group Lively Crew. The crew needed a DJ, and Mazel agreed to work with them. The group later changed its name to IAM, and Mazel adopted the stage name Khéops. IAM's first album, IAM Concept, was released in 1990.

In 1997, DJ Khéops released his first solo album, the compilation Sad Hill, which featured a host of French MC's and sold 150,000 copies. He got his own programme on the Skyrock radio station, Total Khéops, and formed the record label Sad Hill Records. His second, follow-up album, Sad Hill Impact, came out in 2000.