Lo-fi artisan, hip-hop architect, and a quiet force in German music history.

Don Philippe, born Philippe A. Kayser, is a seasoned composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist whose career spans over four decades. A pioneer of German hip-hop and a long-standing figure in the lo-fi instrumental scene, Philippe has continuously evolved his craft — blending analog warmth with emotional depth and jazz-infused sensibilities.

Raised in Stuttgart by a French mother with a passion for literature and music and a German father working as a doctor, Philippe was immersed early in both artistic and intellectual influences. He began his professional journey in the 1980s as a drummer, later expanding into piano and guitar. His first international success came with Quelle Aventure, an acid jazz LP from his band NoSé, created alongside sound engineer Tom Krüger.

In the early ’90s, Philippe co-founded Agit Jazz, his first hip-hop collaboration with Max Herre. This laid the groundwork for one of Germany’s most influential hip-hop groups: Freundeskreis. Alongside DJ Friction, the trio released their breakthrough single A-N-N-A in 1997 under Four Music, achieving platinum status and cementing their place in German pop culture. Their critically acclaimed albums Die Quadratur des Kreises and Esperanto set new benchmarks for socially conscious, musically rich German hip-hop.

After Freundeskreis paused their activities, Philippe shifted focus to composing and producing. He contributed to film and theatre scores, including Cologne’s Theater51-Grad, and produced music for major German artists such as Thomas D (feat. Nina Hagen), Die Fantastischen Vier, Absolute Beginner, and Joy Denalane — notably co-producing her groundbreaking debut Mamani, hailed as the first true German-language soul album by a female artist.

Since 2005, Philippe has been based in Berlin, where he delved deeper into instrumental hip-hop. Under the alias Don Philippe, he has released over ten solo albums across independent labels, garnering a dedicated global following. His music merges the dusty textures of boom-bap with cinematic layers of jazz and soul, always guided by a minimalist, analog-inspired ethos.

His latest work, Velvet Breaks (out October 10, 2025 via Sonar Kollektiv), is a masterclass in subtle storytelling without words. Entirely instrumental, the album unfolds like a meditative journey through fragility, entropy, and poetic tension. Track titles such as “fibers displaced,” “a rupture,” and “velvet is broken” trace a conceptual arc of unraveling — held together by tape hiss, broken drums, and ghostly melodies. It’s a deeply personal and sonically rich album for late nights, long walks, and quiet reflection.

For fans of Nujabes, J Dilla, FloFilz, Wun Two, and Knowsum, Don Philippe offers more than nostalgia — he delivers timeless resonance.