Codemaster, Kidsmart, Houseproud People, Smooth & Simmonds, Retro Emotion, Private Funk, Bakers Dozen, Active X-traX & Urban Influence series.

Chris is a London born DJ / Producer & Percussionist and comes from a musical family background going back as far as 1978. His half brother Leroy Williams and uncle Jeffery Guishard were major players in the British Funk Scene with their chart-topping band Hi-Tension, the first British Funk band to be signed to a major label. At an early age Chris was taken to studios, rehearsals and live gigs etc, and was given a full insight into the music industry as it was happening, and this was where it all began.

Chris would work after school and saved money to hire studios to record compositions with friends while learning to play the trumpet and drums he formed a group called TLC with Antonio Raggafunk Soundman (producer for Don-e) and Ronnie Wilson (writer/producer for 90s pop band Eternal). The band eventually split to pursue other ventures, Chris continued learning drums and percussion but dropped the trumpet, and continued to write songs, then went on to record demos for himself and learn how to produce music.

In the late 80’s Chris would be found at the decks of Time Radio in London spinning Soul, Jazz, Funk, Hip- Hop and Rare Grooves doing the graveyard shift 3-6am Mon – Thurs before a full days work as a precision mechanical engineer for a company that made masks for fighter pilots. Time Radio slowly faded away with hassle from the radio authorities, and stations like Medina and Girls FM came about which specialised in House & Hip Hop and this is where he met is first production partner Jack Smooth and started Wax Factory Productions.

Six months later they had both left work and were driving around the country selling our own productions, out of the boot of the car. This was one of the first UK independent dance labels back in 1990 which gave them the opportunity to meet & engineer for the likes of Carl Cox, Colin Dale, Rocky (Xpress 2), Rugged Vinyl and a host more of Dj/Producers of the 90s. As hard as they were working back then there still wasn’t enough money between them to live so they started individual labels, and so Chris’ first label was called Baby Blue Records but it wasn’t what he wanted it to be, although he enjoyed the scene.

After 11 releases on Baby Blue Chris rested the label because he knew he was not being honest with himself as regards to what was being produced for the label, it was the time of rave tunes and didn’t want to do that anymore, his heart was into more meaningful music, so he decided to have a look around the rest of the world at what was going on.

It was hard for Chris to think that other DJ’s around the world were playing his productions but it was happening and that’s how he met Detroit’s Mike Huckaby through a mutual friend. After a few phone calls Chris visited Detroit in the winter of 1993, and on the strength of Chris and Mike’s collaboration, The Chris Simmonds Project was released on Jon Aquaviva & Richie Hawtin’s Definitive Records.

Being totally inspired, Chris returned to London and became Head of Music at Cross Section Records in 1994 founded by his late wife Lorraine who passed in 2007 to cancer. After a long break and a departure from music, Chris has now been working tirelessly behind the scenes at different levels. Chris has been writing new music constantly in all the genres he enjoys, collaborating with new talented and established artists, producers, remixing, and when possible travelling to promote the Cross Section sound worldwide.

“I always wanted a platform that the supporters of my music have a central point online to discover, buy and discuss our productions and I have the freedom to release a track online the same day it was completed, just simply do it without any time constraints, which is a first for me. I’m really looking forward to the new experience.”