Allan Peter Grigg

[b]Allan Grigg[/b] (b. 31 July 1972, Worcester, Massachusetts), primarily active under his stage moniker [b][url=/artist/541193]KoOoLkOjAk[/url][/b], is an American-Brazilian record producer, songwriter, composer, and painter/graffiti artist based in Los Angeles, California. Grigg had several other projects, including his short-lived Latin pop duo [b][url=/artist/3593878]Urban Legend[/url][/b] with [a=Jared Faber]/[a=J-Radical], and [b][a=Boombotz][/b], a remixing/production partnership with [a=Spike Jonze]'s brother, [a=Sam Spiegel] a.k.a. [a=Squeak E. Clean]. (Kool Kojak also regularly produced for [url=/artist/1361606]N.A.S.A[/url], Spiegel's primary band.)

Born and raised in Massachusetts, Grigg has Brazilian ancestry, descending from Cubatão, a city in São Paulo state. He began creating music as a teenager, co-founding [b][l=IYF Productions][/b] cassette label circa 1984 with the [a=Average White Boys] crew. In 1995, Grigg/Kojak relocated to New York City, active as a beat-maker and graffiti artist. He came to commercial breakthrough success in Brazil after co-writing and co-producing [a=Supla]'s 2001 album [i][m=1596147][/i] on [l=Abril Music]; Kojak also served as a musical director for Supla's live show at the third [l=Rock In Rio] festival the same year. In 2006, the producer returned to the United States, settling in his Massachusetts hometown. He joined [a=Dr. Luke]'s production team at [b][l=Prescription Songs][/b] in 2009, coming to worldwide acclaim after co-producing [a=Flo Rida]'s [i][m=172737][/i] featuring [url=/artist/1123409]Ke$ha[/url]. Circa 2018, Kool Kojak co-founded a new independent label and production company, [b][url=/label/2491330]TRIZM[/url][/b], with [a=Jenna Adler], who was [a=Doja Cat]'s booking agent at [url=/label/756955]CAA[/url]. They met while working on Doja's second album, [i][m=1692792][/i], on [l=RCA]/[l=Kemosabe Records], on which Kojak co-wrote and co-produced the opening track and the fourth single, "Cyber Sex."

In his 2017 interview for [i]Worcester Magazine[/i], Alan "Kool Kojak" Grigg shared some of his diverse artistic inspirations as music producer, visual artist, and sculptor: [a=Oscar Niemeyer], [url=/artist/79325]Basquiat[/url], [a=Os Gêmeos], [a=Rammellzee], [url=/artist/49346]Phase 2[/url], [a=Henri Matisse], [url=/artist/2237489]Mondrian[/url], [a=Yo Gabba Gabba!] cartoon monsters, [a=Dr. Seuss], [a=Eric Carle], [a=Mo Willems], [a=Stanley Kubrick], [a=Invisibl Skratch Piklz], [a=Imogen Heap], [a=DJ Scott La Rock], [a=Money Mark], [a84752], [a=Led Zeppelin]'s drummer [a=John Bonham], [a=The Cardigans], [a=Daft Punk], [a=Kendrick Lamar], [a=Gorillaz], and [a=Kool & The Gang].