Gottwald attended the
Manhattan School of Music for two years. He was the lead guitarist in the
Saturday Night Live Band from 1996 to 2007. He produced tracks and remixes for various artists including
Arrested Development and
Nappy Roots. He released the
12" single "Wet Lapse", under the name Kasz, for
Rawkus Records, and remixed the theme from the film
Mortal Kombat. While deejaying at a house party, Gottwald met producer
Max Martin and subsequently gave Martin a tour of New York clubs when Martin arrived in the city. Subsequent songs by
Pink, "
Who Knew" and "
U + Ur Hand" reached the top ten in the US. He would go on to co-produce a number one for
Avril Lavigne with the song "
Girlfriend" as well as seven other songs on Lavigne's album. He also achieved a UK number one with the 2007 song "
About You Now" for the
Sugababes. Gottwald contributed two songs to
Katy Perry's second album,
One of the Boys in 2008. US
Billboard number one, "
I Kissed a Girl" and "
Hot n Cold", as well as three songs to
Britney Spears' 2008 album,
Circus, In 2010, Gottwald was named Songwriter of the Year at the
ASCAP Pop Music Awards and received 10 ASCAP Pop Music Awards for the year as the songwriter and publisher. Gottwald's co-production for Katy Perry's "
California Gurls" At the start of 2011,
Advertising Age called Gottwald "the year's most successful producer and songwriter in terms of chart longevity." In 2011 Gottwald co-executive produced
Britney Spears' seventh studio album
Femme Fatale alongside
Max Martin. On the week ending March 3, 2012, Gottwald's co-production for Katy Perry's "
Part of Me" became the 20th song to debut atop the
Billboard Hot 100. He also produced Perry's single "
Wide Awake", which peaked at number 2 on the
Billboard Hot 100, whilst topping the US
Pop Songs chart. In October 2014, Kesha filed
a lawsuit against Gottwald, claiming sexual assault and battery, sexual harassment, gender violence, civil harassment, violation of California's laws against unfair business practices, infliction of emotional distress (both intentional and negligent), and negligent retention and supervision. Gottwald responded by filing a countersuit alleging that Kesha's lawsuit was an attempt by Kesha, her mother, and her new management firm to extort him into releasing her from her contract. In June 2023, one month before the case was scheduled for trial, Kesha and Gottwald released a joint statement saying the case had reached a settlement. Both parties wished each other well, although Gottwald still denied the allegations while Kesha continued to say she could not remember everything of that night. After the lawsuit, Gottwald has maintained a low public profile. , he was no longer listed on the official
Sony Music website and later that month it was announced that he was no longer the CEO of
Kemosabe Records. That same year, Gottwald adopted the pseudonym Made in China. He has since produced songs for artists such as
Trey Songz,
Ne-Yo, and
Big Boi. In 2017, Gottwald began songwriting and producing for German singer-songwriter
Kim Petras. He also produced five songs on
Doja Cat's second album
Hot Pink (2019), including its number one single "
Say So". In 2021, Gottwald launched Amigo Records as an imprint of
Republic Records. Its roster includes Petras, Big Boss Vette, and
Joy Oladokun. The same year, he wrote and produced "
Big Energy" by
Latto which won Song of the Year at the
2022 BET Hip Hop Awards. In 2022, he produced the number one song "
Super Freaky Girl" by
Nicki Minaj. In 2023, he collaborated with Doja Cat and others. He won the ASCAP Pop Music Award for Songwriter of the Year in May. ==Lawsuit==