Kris Vanderheyden, known by his stage name as Insider, is a Belgian techno and electronicmusic producer. Kris is considered one of the leading pioneers of the Belgian originated technoelectronic dance music scene. He was born of a French mother and a Belgian father, a trumpet player who was a Latin music lover and owner of an enormous record collection with artists spanning from James Brown to Donna Summer and genres from Classical and Jazz to Zydeco. While growing up, Kris spent most of his childhood with his grandmother and an uncle who was a fan of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and The Sex Pistols. This mixture of musical genres came to influence Kris’ music career later in life. At the age of 16, Kris took a position at a local record store in HalleBelgium called Eddy's Records where he became even more consumed with music. After saving enough money from his job, he bought his first synthesizer, a Roland W30 and started to compose his very own music in his bedroom. Music Man Records: After recording some early demos, Music Man Records offered Kris a recording contract. The initial release went well but it was his next release under his INSIDER moniker which became his first real breakthrough. According to Kris, “I went to the owner of Music Man and said, “If you give me a sizable advance to purchase more recording equipment, I will give you a hit record”. Hessel contacted Frank de Wulf to ask him for advice and he replied, “Do It”. One week later, my song “Destiny” was born”. Because “Destiny” was such a big hit and so ahead of its time, Kris was able to tour the world. He performed at the most prestigious events like Mayday and Dorian Grey across Europe. Kris also became the first Belgian artist to headline at New York City's famed The Limelight Club for controversial party promoter Lord Michael's Future Shock event. Bonzai Records: In 1994, Kris signed a deal with Bonzai Records where he recorded a string of hits. Kris’ most famous released from that period are Boots On The Run as INSIDER and Noxius under the Tyrome moniker. To date, most of these songs are played on a regular basis by new and rising DJ's all over the world. During that same period, Kris wrote Sugar Is Sweeter and The Prophet, racking up gigantic sales numbers and which ranked 11 and 19 on the UK Singles Chart respectively UK Pop Chart. This success extended his reputation as a music producer unparalleled. The Armand Van Helden remix of Sugar Is Sweeter made it to #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs Chart. The Prophet was a big underground hit as well. Late 1990's: Kris singed a non-exclusive deal with NEWS Records where he released INSIDER's The Swarm, yet another big club hit. 2000's to present: Kris continued to perform around the world and in 2003, he moved to Minneapolis to join long time hero Dr. Fink from Prince and The Revolution. Together, they collaborated on an album at the esteemed Paisley Park recording facility with Prince alumni and saxophonist Eric Leeds. The last few years have seen Kris divide his time between Belgium, France and the United States, teaming up with a number of established music producers and mixers like GRAMMY award nominated producer Greg Cohen on mixing, production and writing work for various major-label artists. Most recently, Kris again scored a couple of coveted #1 positions on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Song Chart with his remix production work on Janet JacksonMade For Now and New Wave legends Blondie’s Fun. Throughout the last two decades and presently, Kris continues to headline major summer and fall festivals most notably, Tomorrowland as INSIDER and Tyrome, among other related projects. His latest track Dark Purple was picked up by legendary DJ's Sam Paganini and Charlotte de Witte who played it throughout the summer of 2019 on all major festivals such as Awakenings, Drumcode and Kappa Future Festival.
