Mike Grant

At the end of the 1990s, Mike Grant re-emerged as one of the leading figures in Detroit's growing house scene after spending the majority of the decade and the late '80s pursuing other ambitions. When Grant's fresh Moods & Grooves label began raising more than a few eyebrows with its catalog of releases by many of Detroit's best house producers -- as well as many other soulful non-Detroit artists such as G Flame & Mr. G. and Brian Harden -- few knew that he had been a key figure in the Motor City's early- to mid-'80s electronic dance scene as a talented DJ. His musical career began at an early age, influenced by Detroit's fledgling music scene and his uncle, the general manager at a local R&B/dance radio station, WKWM. By 1980, the young Grant had joined a DJ collective known as Men of Music while becoming close friends with schoolmate Blake Baxter. Grant and Baxter began swapping DJ tactics and mix tapes, with Grant eventually joining Baxter's DJ...