In many ways, Kevin Saunderson has been a harbinger of dance music’s future. Born in Brooklyn in 1964, he grew up in Belleville, MI, the Detroit suburb where he helped pioneer the techno genre in the mid to late '80s with Juan Atkins and Derrick May, all together known as the Belleville Three. Under various aliases (including his given name, Kreem, E-Dancer, and Reese), Saunderson spurred a movement across clubs, warehouses, and later festival stages with his futuristic, four-on-the-floor sound, led by synthesizers and drum machines. But he also showed the potential of mixing the underground with the mainstream. As one half of Inner City, Saunderson provided some of dance music’s earliest crossover moments with the 1988 singles “Big Fun” and “Good Life." With their thick club grooves and catchy vocal hooks, both topped the US dance charts—paving the way for EDM’s global takeover in the late 2000s.