When the rise of techno music began to happen, there were three important people associated with the increase of popularity. These people included Juan Atkins, Kevin Saunderson, and Derrick May. May kept his spot as one of the original creators of techno although inactive within the techno world for many years. This is because of his use of extreme creativity whenever he did produce techno tracks.
Derrick may included many musical factors into his production of techno songs that included Chicago influences, copious amounts of percussion, and mixes from Djs like Ron Hardy. Through this creativity, he produced many classics like “Strings of Life”
May first became introduced to music through Atkins and Saunderson in which Atkins taught May how to Dj. He was able to do so by staying with Saunderson in Detroit, while his mother moved to Chicago. While Atkins and Saunderson were able to introduce May to music, May did not get introduced to the house scene until he visited his mother in Chicago while he was an adult. He loved this music so much that he stayed in Chicago for a year while also taking Saunderson to clubs to experience the house music scene. Eventually, once he moved back to Detroit he found a club with the Djs Ron Hardy and Frankie Knuckles who used synthesizers and mixers to play their music.
May originally did not start off making music, however, when his first track “Strings of Life” came out, it became a hit in London. This lead May to become one of the first American techno artists to tour in Europe. He was often recruited in Europe to remix songs, dj, and play music for dance acts that boosted his notoriety even when he wasn’t producing songs.
