Skip to main content
 
  • Recording Academy
  • GRAMMYs
  • Membership
  • Advocacy
  • MusiCares
  • GRAMMY Museum
  • Latin GRAMMYs
GRAMMYs
  • Advocacy
  • Awards
  • Membership
  • GRAMMYs
  • News
  • Governance
  • Jobs
  • Press Room
  • Events
  • Login
  • MusiCares
  • GRAMMY Museum
  • Latin GRAMMYs
  • More
    • Governance
    • Jobs
    • Press Room
    • Events
    • MusiCares
    • GRAMMY Museum
    • Latin GRAMMYs

The GRAMMYs

  • Awards
  • News
  • Recording Academy
  • More
    • Awards
    • News
    • Recording Academy

Latin GRAMMYs

MusiCares

Advocacy

  • About
  • News
  • Issues & Policy
  • Act
  • Recording Academy
  • More
    • About
    • News
    • Issues & Policy
    • Act
    • Recording Academy

Membership

  • PRODUCERS & ENGINEERS WING
  • SONGWRITERS & COMPOSERS WING
  • GRAMMY U
  • More
    • PRODUCERS & ENGINEERS WING
    • SONGWRITERS & COMPOSERS WING
    • GRAMMY U
Log In Join
  • SUBSCRIBE

See All Results
Modal Open
Subscribe Now

Subscribe to Newsletters

Be the first to find out about GRAMMY nominees, winners, important news, and events. Privacy Policy
GRAMMY Museum
Membership

Join us on Social

  • Recording Academy
    • The Recording Academy: Facebook
    • The Recording Academy: Twitter
    • The Recording Academy: Instagram
    • The Recording Academy: YouTube
  • GRAMMYs
    • GRAMMYs: Facebook
    • GRAMMYs: Twitter
    • GRAMMYs: Instagram
    • GRAMMYs: YouTube
  • Latin GRAMMYs
    • Latin GRAMMYs: Facebook
    • Latin GRAMMYs: Twitter
    • Latin GRAMMYs: Instagram
    • Latin GRAMMYs: YouTube
  • GRAMMY Museum
    • GRAMMY Museum: Facebook
    • GRAMMY Museum: Twitter
    • GRAMMY Museum: Instagram
    • GRAMMY Museum: YouTube
  • MusiCares
    • MusiCares: Facebook
    • MusiCares: Twitter
    • MusiCares: Instagram
  • Advocacy
    • Advocacy: Facebook
    • Advocacy: Twitter
  • Membership
    • Membership: Facebook
    • Membership: Twitter
    • Membership: Instagram
    • Membership: Youtube

GRAMMYs

GRAMMYs

  • Awards
RP Boo smiles in front of Chicago skyline

RP Boo in Chicago

Photo: Will Glasspiegel

News
RP Boo On 'Established!' & Chicago Footwork rp-boo-interview-new-album-established-founding-chicago-frenetic-house-subgenre-footwork

RP Boo On New Album 'Established!' & The Founding Of Chicago’s Frenetic House Subgenre, Footwork

Facebook Twitter Email
Chicago DJ/producer RP Boo helped create the superfast dance music known as footwork—20 years later, he still sounds like no one else
Noah Berlatsky
GRAMMYs
Sep 17, 2021 - 1:20 pm

"I'm sticking with DJing, because that's about love!" Kavain Wayne Space, aka RP Boo, says from his Chicago home on the zoom call. He wears a sleeveless white t-shirt and his smile lights up the bare room.  As you'd maybe expect from a DJ, he talks with his hands, gesturing so emphatically it sometimes looks like he's going to reach back and knock the White Sox cap off the perch behind him.

RP Boo may not talk like an elder statesman, but he's got some grey in his pointed beard, and he's been around for a while. He's one of the pioneers of Chicago footwork or juke, a superfast dance music invented in the mid- and late-90s that is built around rapid fire beats and incessantly repeated tape loops. When RP Boo says, "that's about…that's about love!" he sounds a lot like his own music.

Footwork has had moments where it almost seemed about to break into the mainstream; Kanye West's remix of Kid Sister's 2007 "Pro Nails" was a brief sensation, and DJ Rashad's 2014 album Double Cup received wide praise. But RP Boo has never quite become a household name, though he's gotten more recognition since the release of his first album Legacy in 2013.

His fourth and most recent release, Established! (Planet MU) shows that sort-of success hasn't dimmed his weirdness or slowed down that 160 bpm. He recently spoke to GRAMMY.com about the roots of Chicago footwork, leaving his day job, and being a legend.

The first track on Established! ("All My Life") is based around this loop that repeats "All my life I've loved to dance." When did you start dancing and did that lead you to making music?

For me, I watched my uncle dance, and he just enjoyed it. And whatever dance he was doing, we didn't know, we just made fun of it.  And I got a cousin that I'd say about in '81—he would make these dances up, him and his friends. And it was catchy to me.

I used to try to break dance but couldn't figure it out. And about '85 or '86, that's when the house music in Chicago [started]. It was like, I like these dances. So I picked up this dancing, and got kind of good at it.

And once I learned how to DJ, I still loved dancing. Whatever your body wants to do when you're at a party, whether you know how to dance or not—it's not about you doing it correctly. To be jumping up the dance moves is to be a part of dancing with God.

Read: Record Store Recs: Chicago House Hero Marshall Jefferson On Representation In Dance Music

So when did you start DJing? Was it in the mid-90s or was it earlier than that?

I graduated from high school in 1991. And that's when I started buying my equipment. So as soon as I got out of high school, I just started to—I forget what type of turntables they were, but they had belt drives and they had a pitch on them. And I learned how to work those real fast. How to work the pitch, how to blend the tracks and how to fade the tracks out. How to know the note of records, where you want to come in at and where you want to cut out at. And it was less than a year and a half to mastery.

When you started, Chicago ghetto house was popular. And juke is basically Chicago ghetto house sped up. How did you all start playing this music faster?

It was a group I think, on the West Side. I guess they brain was somewhere else. So they had the DJ, whoever made this tape, instead of playing the vinyl on 33 they put it on 45. And they bashed the dance floor with it. So I guess they won the competition.

But word started getting around and people started imitating the trend, and DJs started  producing those 160 bpm [records].

The title of your album is Established! with an exclamation point. And I know that it's taken you a long time to get recognition. Do you still have a day job?

No! No.

I was working at a Lowe's Home Improvement store until 2013. That's when I ended up getting let go. And at that point, I think of December of 2012, I had just finished Legacy.

I never thought that I would ever be without a job. The store manager at Lowe's was a real good guy. And he says, "Well, corporate states that you could come back here but you can't be hired for six months."

As I was walking out, I said, "What am I going to do with the next six months?" And I said this out loud, "I think I'm going to start touring."

I was depressed. I stayed depressed—that was in late February. And in late April, I get a phone call from New York. And he says, "I heard you have an album coming out. If we'd known you had an album, we would have booked you to do a release party here in New York."

On the day of the release, I texted back and said I don't have the job [keeping me from touring anymore]. He says, "Can you be here in two weeks?" I was like, "Yeah!" I end up getting at least seven opportunities to play overseas within the first week.

"You just have to be prepared to let the world blossom and blossom with it. But you can't predict it." RP Boo

So you never had to go back to Lowe's.

No.

You just have to be prepared to let the world blossom and blossom with it. But you can't predict it.

Do you hear your music as an influence in a lot of what's out there now?

Oh yes. DJ Rashad [who died in 2014]—I was a great influence on him. And him on me.  And so Rashad was saying, "Hey, wait till you hear RP, this is the only guy that would change his style, multiple times. And as he changes it, that influences how other people listen. It's something about how his music just keeps changing."

I was listening to the track "All Over," which has the Phil Collins sample. How did that song come about? Did you have the sample first?

Yeah. Those are the songs I grew up to. In the '80s, we watched the videos, nobody paid attention. But that was the new wave of the future. And these are all the songs; I listened to Genesis, to the Phil Collins solo projects. And I found myself over time collecting them, I have them in my phone. So then I could drive and hear these songs.

I've had it in my archives for years. And I tried to play with it at least about nine years ago, and nothing worked. So I said, in due time I'll come back to it.

And one day I was going through my files just listening to music and I listened to [Phil Collins'] "I Don't Care Anymore."  And I looked at the BPM and said, [claps!] "Oh, this is right where I need to begin. And I played with it and let it run. And that's where I stopped it. [Makes a record scratch noise.] [Sings] "All over..ah..ah…all over."  And it worked. It worked out.

You have a song called, "Haters Increase the Heat" about overcoming detractors. But when I was listening to it, I thought, who can hate you?! [RP Boo gives a look.] They're out there?

Def. It's more about people that have no clue about what you do or what you're going through. Rashad dealt with that.

And I was like, oh, you know what? Let me make some music. That's why I say, [rhythmically quoting his track] "Haters increase the heat. It's getting hot, it's getting hotter. Haters gonna keep making my tracks get hot."

In other words, I will take the negative and do something productive, and show you what you can do with the negative and make a spark.

Have you been able to continue working during COVID?

I was able to do a lot of direct streams and recorded streaming projects, direct from our festivals overseas, and two remix projects. So I was able to stay busy. [Sighs.] But I've missed the touring.

Meet Mother Nature, The Chicago Rap Duo That Teach & Live Self-Expression Through Their Miseducation Of HipHop Youth Workshops

Grammys Newsletter

Subscribe Now

GRAMMYs Newsletter

Be the first to find out about winners, nominees, and more from Music's Biggest Night.
Black Coffee

Black Coffee

Photo: Alari Teede

News
Black Coffee Talks New LP, 'Subconsciously' black-coffee-new-album-subconsciously-interview

Black Coffee On New Album, 'Subconsciously': "Music Is Life To Me And I Want You To Feel That With Every Beat And Melody"

Facebook Twitter Email
"That's what music should do, it should divide barriers and unite us under this one universal language," the South African DJ and producer says of his new album, 'Subconsciously'
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Feb 4, 2021 - 1:29 pm

If you have yet to immerse yourself in Black Coffee's captivating, atmospheric beats, now's a perfect time. The South African DJ and producer's emotive sixth album, and first in five years, Subconsciously, drops tomorrow, Fri., Feb. 5, on Ultra. To craft the enchanting soundscapes therein, Black Coffee tapped a diverse, talented group of collaborators, including vocalists Usher, Sabrina Claudio, Celeste and more, and fellow producers David Guetta, Diplo, DJ Angelo and Pharrell Williams (who also provides vocals on "10 Missed Calls").

Black Coffee has been big in the international house music scene since 2013. That year, he won bingo on the DJ bucket list, playing spots like Berghain in Berlin, Amsterdam Dance Event, Circoloco in Ibiza and his first Boiler Room set. In 2017, while he was busy bringing joy to dancefloors around the world, he made waves in the mainstream with his standout feature on Drake's More Life. "Get It Together" featuring Jorja Smith is a remake of Black Coffee's 2007 track "Superman," its pulsating beat traversing decades and borders.

The Drake spotlight led the talented producer to "Get It Together" in the studio with other heavy-hitters like Diddy, Akon, Usher and Pharrell and to where he is today. Subconsciously is a culmination of Black Coffee's two-plus decades refining and redefining his sound, limitless beyond borders and genres, yet rooted in his South African identity—he's never too big to work with fellow artists from his home country.

Ahead of his exciting new album, GRAMMY.com caught up with the "Wish You Were Here" artist over email to dive deeper into the project and its collaborators, as well as what representing South Africa means to him.

What does your new album Subconsciously represent to you? What was your creative vision for this project?

When jumping into this new project, I wanted to remind the world that we're not confined by genres. As an artist, that's a value I hold very close to me. I create music that I can connect with, that provokes a certain emotion.

That's what music should do, it should divide barriers and unite us under this one universal language—and that's exactly what I wanted to do with Subconsciously. My artistic touch will always be defined by my music, but I want to break barriers and convey a global message, not just on dancefloors. This album goes way beyond. 

Read: Record Store Recs: Producer Bongo ByTheWay Shares The Music Of His Mind

There are a lot great collabs on the project—how did you choose who to work with on this one?

There are different processes for making every song and so I didn't go into this album thinking that I had to work with a particular artist. As the music evolved, we played around with many different elements. Sometimes a particular voice just meshes well with the direction of my production and it works. Other times, we're pitched a vocal and I adapt my music to make it feel right. These different processes sort of create an equal playing field for collaborators. 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CHqDqcWJ18O

GRAMMYs

Content Not Available

What is your favorite part about working with other artists? And what do you feel like is one of the more challenging elements of collaborating?

Sometimes, you've put your heart and soul into a particular song and you feel there's nothing else that can be done, but then you add another creative on board and the song is elevated to a place that you couldn't have imagined before. Every vocalist, producer or writer can add a certain key element that changes the whole dynamic of the music and I think that's the real beauty in collaborating. I wouldn't say there are challenges, only creative motivation!

More Convos: Popcaan Talks 'FIXTAPE,' Working With Drake And The Globalization Of Dancehall And Reggae

When you released "LaLaLa" with Usher in 2019, had you already finished the album? For you, in what ways did this track feel like a shift into new sonic territory?

Back when I released this single, the album hadn't been 100 percent completed. The general tracklist had been outlined, but we were still going in and adding finishing touches to make it what it is today. The creative process and journey in making this album spanned over a couple of years.

For me, it wasn't necessarily a shift, but rather a gateway to spreading the joy of different sounds and reminding people that one particular musical way of thinking isn't superior to another. To me, if a song can evoke emotion and power, it's already done its job.

The music I am producing is oftentimes very different than the music that I DJ. I create music that you can blast on your car speakers or clean your home to. I create feel-good music that can universally bring us together. It's all about that feeling. 

"To me, if a song can evoke emotion and power, it's already done its job."

As a whole, Subconsciously is very captivating and immersive, and it definitely has a bit of a chilled out and moody vibe. How would you describe the mood and the feeling of it?

Every time I listen to Subconsciously, I have a new favorite song. That's what makes this album unique. There's something for every mood; it evokes a lot of emotion. You have the deeper sounds of "You Need Me" [featuring Maxine Ashley and Sun-El Musician] or "Ready For You" [featuring Celeste], upwards to the more poppy side of the spectrum with songs like "Never Gonna Forget" [featuring Diplo and Elderbrook].

What do you hope your fans will experience while listening to the album?

I hope that it brings anyone who's listening from anywhere in the world joy. That's what the music is all about for me. I've been working on and evolving my sound for pretty much my entire life. Music is life to me and I want you to feel that with every beat and melody. 

What does it mean to you to represent South Africa across the globe? What is a misconception people often have about your home country?

My South African roots are something extremely important to me. I want to bring South Africa to the world. The talent emerging from my country is growing by the day and being able to collaborate with outstanding artists like Sun-El Musician, Tellaman, Una Rams, Msaki and C-Tea, to name a few, means I'm taking the sounds of South Africa one step further on the global spectrum. It's such an honor to be able to carry the flag on a more global spectrum.

When people from outside the country or even further, the continent, think of South Africa, they have a very cut-and-paste conception, but it goes so far beyond that. My country is home to some of the most incredible musicians, artists and great minds, even beyond the obvious household names. Our culture is vibrant and booming and I'm so proud to call it home. 

Do you have your eyes on any rising African artists right now?

It's hard to pinpoint any one particular artist right now, as there is so much emerging talent. In the music world, there's Da Africa Deep, in the visual world, there's Ghariokwu Lemi, but these are just two of so many. I could go on for days and the scope is constantly changing and evolving.

Life On Planets Talks Astrology, Inclusivity On The Dancefloor & Why We Have To Be Like Martin Luther King Jr.

Grammys Newsletter

Subscribe Now

GRAMMYs Newsletter

Be the first to find out about winners, nominees, and more from Music's Biggest Night.
Charlotte de Witte

Charlotte de Witte

Photo: Marie Wynants

News
Charlotte De Witte On Rise, New Music & Sexism dj-charlotte-de-witte-talks-exploring-new-sounds-belgium-lockdown-her-rise-top-sexism

DJ Charlotte De Witte Talks Exploring New Sounds In Belgium Lockdown, Her Rise To The Top & Sexism In The Industry

Facebook Twitter Email
"I never would have dreamed of being where I am now. I mean, no one can fully grasp what has happened," the Belgian DJ/techno producer said
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Jan 27, 2021 - 4:34 pm

At 28 years old, Belgium-born DJ/producer Charlotte de Witte has firmly established her place as techno royalty. Soon after discovering her love of underground dance music at 16 years old, she began DJing local clubs. Just two years later, in 2011, she won a DJ competition to open the main stage at the massive Belgian dance festival, Tomorrowland. She's been on a roll ever since.

After taking over her home country, she swiftly made waves across Europe in 2016, including in dance club hotspots Berlin and Barcelona. That same year, she played her first stateside shows—in Brooklyn, of course. By 2017, she was one of the most buzzed-about new underground DJs in the U.S. scene and played both EDC Las Vegas and Detroit's iconic Movement Electronic Music Festival in 2018.

In addition to her in-demand tour schedule, she's released hard-hitting techno banger after banger, launched a label, showcased her effortless style in a collab with TOMBOY, and cultivated her ever-growing fanbase on media content (she currently has 1.7 million followers on Instagram).

And while 2020 meant much more time at home in Belgium than she's had in years, it was still a triumphant one for the powerhouse producer. In November, she was named DJ Mag's No. 1 Alternative DJ, and the following month she celebrated the one-year anniversary of her label/event brand, KNTXT.

GRAMMY.com recently caught up with de Witte to learn more about her journey to the top, what the 2020 slow down felt like for her, her experience with sexism in dance music, and more.

You were named DJ Mag's 2020 No. 1 Alternative DJ, what does that recognition feel like for you?

It's a pretty big milestone to hit, especially in the year that's as weird as 2020. It felt like a massive hug from the scene and from the people out there. [It felt like they said], "Hey, thanks for being connected and thanks for sharing the music." Carl Cox was always No. 1 since the beginning of this alternative list [in 2018]. So, to knock someone like Carl Cox off the throne is really massive. And I mean, there are so many incredibly talented people on there, so it's still pretty surreal actually when I think of it. It's incredible.

You're the first woman to get to the top of the list and while it does feel like things are shifting a bit, I'm curious what you think needs to happen within the dance industry to keep lifting up more women, and people of color, to the top?

Well, I'm a firm believer that the dancefloor and the dance scene should be a place of total freedom, a place where you can express yourself no matter your gender, your color, your beliefs, your sexuality—it doesn't matter, it should be a place of freedom. I think there's still a lot of work when it comes to equality and fighting for those rights. I think you can always do more things, and it's very important to keep an open mind and to keep an open conversation about these things.

I can speak a lot about gender inequality because obviously, I've been having these questions since I started DJing. I don't think there should be necessarily a 50-50 equal division on the lineup, but there should be equal opportunities and equal chances, and you should treat people the same. So I think there's still work to do, but it's getting better. You see more and more female DJs popping up as well and getting a lot of opportunities same as male DJs, but there's still a lot of work. It's important to keep an open mind and keep the conversation going, always.

"I'm a firm believer that the dancefloor and the dance scene should be a place of total freedom, a place where you can express yourself no matter your gender, your color, your beliefs, your sexuality… So I think there's still a lot of work when it comes to equality and fighting for those rights."

One thing I think about a lot is the term "female DJ." Do you have instances where people say, "You're my favorite female artist?" How do you deal with that? I'm sure that that can be pretty frustrating.

It is, it's incredibly frustrating. And it happens all the time. A very annoying thing that happens as well is, when people online tend to compare DJs, 99 percent of the cases, it is between two female DJs. And indeed, they refer to you as a female DJ or "DJane," that's also a word.

I've been DJing for 11 years now and it's bad to say that I sort of got used to it. Not that it doesn't give me the chills, I mean, if someone in my close surroundings would say something like that, I would probably say something about it, but I realized that this mindset is a very slow one to change in people. Also, people don't fully realize what they're doing with saying those things—that doesn't make it right—but there are much worse things you can say than referring to someone as a female DJ. I mean, there are a lot of other battles to fight.

Read: Aluna On New Album 'Renaissance' & Making Dance Music Inclusive Again

I remember you getting a lot of buzz in 2017, and, from the outside, it's seemed like you've had a steady, rapid rise since then. What has the journey to where you are today felt like for you?

It's always sort of fascinating to look back at it myself because indeed everything has been a massive rollercoaster from where I was 11 years ago. How I started, I never would have dreamed of being where I am now. I mean, no one can fully grasp what has happened. In the beginning, it was really the tiny clubs in a tiny area where I used to live and then just massively going with the flow and doing what [felt] right. And I think having a lot of luck and being surrounded with the right people and doing things at the right time together with the right kind of motivation and ambition that you need.

I think those aspects really made the difference and got [me to the next level] in Belgium, first of all. And then things just started heading off on a worldwide basis. And indeed, for the past three years, minus this year, I've been touring non-stop and I've been probably one of the DJs touring the most in the world. And it's incredible. So it's been a rollercoaster, but touring really made me happy as well. It gave me so much energy. It was extremely exhausting, but it shaped me so much as a human being.

What has it felt like to finally have some time at home and off the road to reflect on all of it?

Well, 2020 has been a bit strange. I was lucky to be with people that I really love, very close to me. I think without them, I would have fallen into a black hole. There is no doubt about that. Even now, mentally, it's not easy, but that really kept me going. Also, having the time to have a normal pattern in my life, a normal sleep cycle, healthy food, because you don't have to eat shitty airport food again, [has been good]. So I'm trying to be productive. And [I'm] resting a lot. I did realize that my body and my mind could both use the rest at the beginning of the lockdown, so we rested.

I think it's been a very interesting year to work towards the future, but it's confusing because no one really knows what it is—I don't want to [get] too philosophical or too depressing. But I think it's been a year to be productive and to really clear minds, and take the experiences from the past and try and shape the future.

KNTXT · KNTXT007 - Rave On Time EP

You released a couple of EPs in 2020—including Return To Nowhere and Rave On Time—and some remixes and singles. Did you work on those before or after lockdown?

I made them at the end of 2019, so everything was already scheduled. When everything happened, we were thinking of holding back the [label] release of Return To Nowhere and Rave On Time until a time where we could go to clubs and festivals again because they're made to be played at those places. But we just decided to go for it. It provides some music in these times.

I made the Bob Moses [and ZHU] remix in March and that one just got released [in December]. So that's the only thing that had a short time span [from when I made it], but all the others were made before. Now we've made some new music that's coming out in 2021, so hopefully we'll be out of lockdown.

Related: How Will Coronavirus Shift Electronic Music? Maceo Plex, Paul Van Dyk, Luttrell, Mikey Lion & DJ Manager Max Leader Weigh In

I talked to a couple of DJs at the beginning of lockdown. If you're used to making music for the dancefloor, it's like, "Well, what do I make now?" Some artists talked about not feeling motivated to make dance music when they didn't know when that space would return. I feel like any time good dance music comes out it is a good thing, we need that release of moving our bodies, wherever we are.

I get it. But it is strange to make dance music [in lockdown]. In the beginning, it was still OK because the memory of the dance festivals were still fresh. But after 10, 11 months, when I'm sitting in the studio, it's really tough to make something with a strong kick. I'm experimenting a bit towards more ambient stuff, which is nice as well, to have [during] this time of experimenting. I completely understand what they said, it feels so strange even listening to new music or trying to find new techno tracks. It started to be very strange. I think it makes sense. You're just so distant from it, but you have to keep it alive. [Laughs.]

To that point, what are you most looking forward to when you get to return to the dancefloor?

I think the entire experience. Stepping on to your flights—preferably without a mask by then—arriving at your country of destination, going to restaurants there, the conversations you have with the people there, the promoters, the club's hard-hitting bass—the volume, the loudness that we all haven't heard in such a long time—and the energy, the sweating, everything. I'm sure it will be very magical once it comes back because we will not take it for granted anymore. It will be a new era, we just have to be patient.

It's going to feel weird.

It is. And I think there's going to be so much energy on the floor and the explosion is going to be massive. Like every single show will be—it already was unique, but it will be incredibly unique and very intense. Hopefully, by then we can look back at it as a healthy reset because people don't take it for granted anymore. I think that is a good aspect. And people are also starting to realize the importance of having clubs and festivals around and nightlife culture—because nightlife culture has always been the ugly sister that no one wants to talk about. Everyone just regards it as drug-filled and dirty. And it is, but [it's not just that]—nightlife is really important. I think we still have a very long way to go [in order] to convey this message to people and for people in charge to realize that we matter a lot.

Recently in Germany, they declared that techno was music.

That was cool.

Now, German nightclubs can get the same funding and tax breaks that other venues do. We've seen the nightlife community come together to ask for relief funding for clubs because otherwise many are not going to survive. You're right, it matters and not just to "ravers," it's important to so many people, including those who work in it and keep those industries alive.

Exactly. There's so much more to it than what an unknowing person thinks. I think it's important that people are made aware of that. We still have a long way to go. I mean, why at the main stage [of a festival, do] you never really have DJs? You can have electronic music acts, but when you talk about a DJ, they are never fully considered a musician. That's a never-ending discussion. So, I think the fact that Germany did state that techno is music is a good start.

You just celebrated the one-year anniversary of your label, KNTXT. What was your goal when you were launching the label and what is your vision with it going forward?

Basically, to find a creative platform for my music, but also music from other artists—that was the main thing, to release good music. And to organize parties, that was also a very important part of it. We did a couple in New York, Milan, Barcelona, and London. They were going very well and we are going to start again as soon as we can.

Besides that, we just want to be a creative place and connect music with other things. For instance, I'm a big foodie, so we are trying to see how we can connect music with food or chefs because a lot of chefs are also big techno fans. It's a very interesting platform to discover things from. And now we had the collaboration with the headphone brands AIAIAI . That was a very cool one. We had a fashion collaboration too. It's just a bit of putting out your arms towards the other creative industries. It's nice, it's very cool.

To celebrate the anniversary, you released a vinyl box set that includes the new track "Lighthouse." Can you tell us a bit more about the sonic elements and mood of the song, and what else you have in store for the White Label?

Well, "Lighthouse" is the first White Label release. White Label-wise, we still have to explore what direction we want to go with it. I think our main focus is to release EPs like we've been doing, but I think "Lighthouse" was a very nice addition to this collector's box set. I also made that track a while ago.

It's very dancefloor-oriented, it has an acid line in there. Fun fact: in "Lighthouse" you hear a voice saying some things; it's my voice saying the definition of context, and I reversed it. I like reversing things because it makes things sound less common or cheesy. The definition of context is in there. So, you're getting context on context, basically.

Reversing parts of audio is somewhat common in hip-hop—Kendrick Lamar used it a lot on DAMN. Producers will play a drum loop or something backward and it feels like you're like falling backward or dreaming.

Yeah. Some things just sound more interesting in reverse. And I have the feeling that, especially with vocals, it makes things a bit more alienating. If I would just have said the definition of context, it would be a bit lame.

More Dance Music: DJ Hot Since 82 Talks Healing Through Debut 'Recovery,' Boy George Collab & Nu Disco Meets 'Star Wars' Track

What do you think are the essential elements of a great techno banger?

It's always a tough one when they ask you to define music because I can give you a Wikipedia-type definition, but in the end it's also very much of an emotional experience and what is best for me, is slow for someone else. But I think techno is a very functional 4/4 beat. It's not necessarily happy, it's quite undeground and it can be quite repetitive and loopy and can be quite stripped. So it's not chaotic or not happy sounding. That's how I would describe it to an audience. It's not like EDM where you can put your hands up in the air. I mean, you can put your hands up in the air, but not because they tell you to.

"I am drawn to sort of the 'less is more' aspect of [techno]. You don't need a lot of very audible elements to give you a lot in return. It speaks to me in its emptiness, in a way."

What specific elements are you typically drawn to in a techno track?

I am drawn to sort of the "less is more" aspect of it. You don't need a lot of very audible elements to give you a lot in return. It speaks to me in its emptiness, in a way. It just gives space to a lot of the elements that you use. And that underground side, which is just more interesting to me because it makes me think about those things and wonder.

When did you first start listening to techno? And at what point did you know that you wanted to start producing music yourself?

I started going to these underground clubs where I went to school at the age of 16, 17. I think that's where I first got in touch with electronic music, but also the more underground side of it. Electro was quite big in Belgium back in the days, but it also started getting me in touch with techno music. So, my initial step into electronic music was electro, which you don't hear that often nowadays.

Gradually, by digging deeper into this world of electronic music, I found techno and I'm still there. I think I started producing a couple of years later. I also started DJing almost straight away because I fell in love with the music and I wanted to do something with it. Initially, it was just for me, like I was mixing tracks at home, to listen to on my iPod when I was going to school and never thought of putting them online.

But at some point, I did [put mixes online] and then things just started rolling. Music-making started a couple of years later because I felt a need to not only play other people's music but also to explore this world of beat making myself. Because it's a whole world and it's extremely fascinating to delve deeper.

You dove in, that's awesome.

Yeah, sort of. And I could—my parents were always supportive, they just let me do me. I mean, I wasn't harming anyone with it. They just saw that it made me happy, so they just let me be. It was cool—I was lucky as well. A crazy path.

What are your release plans for 2021?

I've been working on some stuff to release on my label, KNTXT, in 2021. Also, we have a remix that's coming out. I think a lot of people will release a lot of music in 2021 because everyone had so much time. I have stuff coming and I'm very happy with the results.

I really look forward to playing it on the dancefloor and seeing the reaction of the crowd. I've been playing some of the tracks on [live]streams [I've done] but having six cameras pointed at your face—even though millions of people are watching—can not compare with the crowd. So I really look forward to that moment.

Life On Planets Talks Astrology, Inclusivity On The Dancefloor & Why We Have To Be Like Martin Luther King Jr.

DJ/producer duo Gorgon City pose in front of a white brick wall

Gorgon City

Photo: Will Robson-Scott

News
Gorgon City Talk New Album 'Olympia' 2021-gorgon-city-talk-new-album-olympia-missing-dancefloor-crafting-singable-dance-bops

Gorgon City Talk New Album 'Olympia,' Missing The Dance Floor & Crafting Singable Dance Bops

Facebook Twitter Email
The beloved U.K. dance duo Gorgon City dives deep with GRAMMY.com about their third album, 'Olympia,' collabing with up-and-coming vocalists, their rapid rise and more
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Jul 7, 2021 - 2:12 pm

Just over eight years ago, U.K. DJ/producer duo Gorgon City (consisting of Kye Gibbon and Matt Robson-Scott) dropped "Real," an infectious, buoyant dance pop track that would set the tone for what was to come. Featuring singer/songwriter Yasmin, it was their first hit together (and as solo producers) and even got played on U.K. radio, encouraging them to stretch their songwriting skills and bring in more singer/songwriters into the studio.

It's a good thing they did, because that resulted in "Ready For Your Love" with MNEK a year later, an exuberant, affirming dance floor bop that reverberated around the world, solidifying their fanbase across the pond in the U.S. and beyond.

Now, nine and a half years after putting out their first EP, Gorgon City is back with their third full-length album, Olympia, an 18-track journey through moody club instrumentals and more collaborative dance pop-leaning gems.

Read on as the dynamic duo dive deep into the new album, their love of collabing with up-and-coming vocalists, their rapid rise and more.

Can you paint the picture of Olympia for me? What were your sonic and visual references and inspirations for this project?

Gibbon: It's definitely a wide-ranging, sort of all-encompassing album. The pandemic definitely had a big effect and inspiration on the album. I mean, a lot of the songwriting Matt and I did together before the pandemic, but then over the last year and a half, we added more songs, a lot of which we did remotely. So, we were firing the projects back and forth over the ocean while we were in lockdown. That was definitely something different for us, a different way of working.

And I think emotionally, [the pandemic] affected some of our songs, especially some of the less song-based ones, the more instrumental tracks. They have a bit of a melancholy, yearning feeling to them. And I think that was reflective of how we were feeling at the time, going through those emotional roller coasters that everyone was experiencing during the pandemic. I think that had a big effect on some of the music that's in the album.

Robson-Scott: Yeah, and even some of the more vocal tracks as well, the way we worked on them and the emotions that we put into them when we were finishing them off was during the lockdown. I think they might've sounded a bit different if lockdown hadn't happened — if we hadn't been in that zone. I feel like a lot of the tracks were kind of finished at the beginning of the pandemic, when me and Kye both had our home studios. I was in London, Kye was in Chicago, and we were throwing the projects back and forth. I feel like we had a lot of time and space at home to do that, to work on those tunes.

I definitely feel like the emotions were quite intense at that time because no one knew what was going on. The whole world was kind of falling apart and it was a weird, weird time. I think it gave us a lot of energy in kind of a different way. But we're really happy with the way the album turned out.

But yeah, it's been a mad year and a half, really.

When did you start working on it and then when did you finish it?

Gibbon: About two and a half years ago now. As we were saying, a lot of the songwriting was done before the pandemic, so we managed to be in the studio together for most of that. And then it was originally going to be probably a 12-track album and we had it pretty much ready to go, but we just didn't feel right releasing it yet. So, we kind of sat on it, and I think while we were sat on it, we had a lot of time to produce.

We ended up creating about six more tracks for the album and it felt right to include them on it, even though it's quite non-standard to have 18 tracks on an album. But we felt like we wanted to because we've got a lot of music, we've got a lot to say for ourselves, so we wanted to include it all in there.

And it sort of feels like perfect timing. A lot of it was serendipity that the album happens to be coming out while everything's reopening. And we're really excited, especially because a lot of the tracks have this sort of big room club feel. So that was one of the reasons why we waited so long, we wanted to wait until at least there were hints of the world reopening.

And a lot of being in lockdown gave us time to finally reflect on the last almost 10 years of touring because in all that time, we've never really sat down for more than about two weeks. So, to be finally taken away from it for a year and a half, really gave us time to reflect on our careers and just be like, wow, we've done some crazy stuff in our time.

And that kind of influenced us to make these big-sounding club records because we were so excited and so inspired by everything we've done in our career to get back out there and do it again. It definitely gave us the energy to create this album.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CQiSCS8jYxR/

GRAMMYs

Content Not Available

You finally had that moment of reflection. What was the biggest thing you learned in that downtime and the time off the road?

Robson-Scott: Oh, god. I realized that we've been taking it all for granted in a way. When you're touring and you never stop, you just...

Gibbon: It becomes normalized, doesn't it?

Robson-Scott: Yeah. And the energy and the adrenaline and the kind of madness that you get from the crazy shows and the crowds and everything is just this big whirlwind, a hurricane of traveling and DJing and hotels and airports. And you just get used to it.

Gibbon: You almost become numb to it. It's just like another day in the office. And I remember quite a few times over this lockdown period, I've gone back in my phone looking at the photos and videos of all the crowds we've played to from the last few years. I was blown away by it like, wow, I can't believe we did that. Before, I'd never go back and look at a video from a year ago because it just seemed so normal.

And having this break from it, you look back on it and you're like, wow, we were so lucky to be able to do this stuff. And it kind of makes you feel quite emotional, with all of the stuff we've managed to do. I think when we hopefully get back to it and go back to normal, I think we'll never take it for granted again. [Both chuckle.]

Robson-Scott: Yeah, when you're in it you're like, "Oh, I hate airports. I haven't slept in weeks. I haven't eaten a proper meal with a knife and fork for two weeks." And that's all you think about. About six months into being in lockdown, I was like, "All I want to do is be on an airplane again." Because you miss those little things about seeing other DJs on the road, seeing other people that you know in the industry, seeing friends. We're so used to bumping into people all the time and sharing our experiences with other DJs and other people that have been a big part of our journey as artists and losing all those parts of touring was tough.

I think everyone's gone through it and everyone's feeling that. Everyone wants to see each other again on the road, to be backstage telling jokes and sharing stories about road madness. And everyone wants to complain to each other about planes getting delayed and to have a little moan, you know what I mean?

It's going to be mad when everyone gets back together again in those festival backstage moments. It's going to be so much fun and everyone's going to be so hyped. And everyone's going to smash it because everyone's got so much new music. And everyone's going to be unleashing all these bangers and everyone's just going to be losing it. It's going to be great. I can't wait for that first big festival, family vibe where everyone's there DJing and just loving it.

And speaking of being on the road, you guys have your Olympia tour planned with some pretty big dance music venues, closing it out at Printworks in London, which is on my bucket list to check out. What are your top three cities to play in?

Gibbon: Yeah, the number one venue in the world for me is Printworks. We've only played it twice, but both times it's literally taken my breath away. And I don't really have that in other venues, maybe Red Rocks in Colorado where, when you're actually on stage, your breath is literally taken away by the sight of it and the vibes there. So yeah, to finish the tour at Printworks is just like the cherry on top of the cake for us. That's kind of the bucket list venue for us as well.

Robson-Scott: Yeah, for sure. We always have amazing crowds in L.A., and San Diego has always been a massive city for us. We're not really sure why, but it's sort of developed from the first live tour that we did of the States with the band. We had this incredible show at the House of Blues in San Diego and the energy and vibe were so electric. Since then, it's always been this amazing place for us. The crowd always goes absolutely insane. And then there's CRSSD Festival that's there [in San Diego] that we've played a few times and we're hopefully going to be going back there. For me, CRSSD is one of the best spaces to play as well.

Gibbon: Yeah, definitely.

Robson-Scott: CRSSD is up there in the top three. I would say Ibiza is the third place that is one of our spiritual homes. We've spent a lot of hours DJing there over the years and sort of half of our year is based there. Hopefully, it will come back soon as soon as possible. Ibiza is definitely an amazing place to play every year.

Where have you played in Ibiza?

Gibbon: Yeah, our first residency was at Space. Space was definitely one of my favorite clubs in the world, so that was amazing to be able to have a residency there. And then we moved to Amnesia, also one of my favorite clubs in the world. And most recently we had a residency — well we still do — with Defected, which is at Eden. When Ibiza comes back, we'll carry on our residency with Defected. Those guys are like family to us, we really love everything they do, so it's been amazing to have a residency with them. We're playing for their festival in Croatia as well this year.

I want to circle back to the album. I really love "You've Done Enough" with DRAMA. I was curious how that track came together?

Gibbon: That track started off actually a long time ago. Matt was in the studio with this guy, Motez, and they came up with the chord progression.

Robson-Scott: I don't even know how long ago that was. Three years ago?

Gibbon: Yeah, it must've been. We sat on that chord progression for a while and then we sent it to DRAMA. This was before I moved to Chicago [where DRAMA is based]. We completely changed the production after we got what they recorded on it, we went in and made the production clubbier, and a bit darker because we felt like the song needed it. It was sort of an upbeat, positive, instrumental before that.

We turned it into this big bassline club track. And we made the other track with DRAMA ["Nobody"] after I moved to Chicago, so we wrote that in the studio together. It was really amazing to see how they work; their songwriting process is different from anything we've ever seen before. They are really talented and unique as artists, so we're really lucky that we got to have two tracks with them on the album.

Keep Dancing: Cakes Da Killa's New 'Muvaland 2' EP Is A Joyride Back To '90s Ballroom

Across the album, you have a bunch of different collaborators, which is not uncommon for you guys, but I was wondering: How did you choose to bring everyone into the project? Did you work on the songs first and think about who would be good on it, or how did the collabs all come together?

Robson-Scott: It was mainly just the way that we've always kind of done it. We just get in the studio with a certain artist or songwriter and then we make the track with them then and there. So, most of the tracks develop sort of organically.

Gibbon: Yeah, we kind of work in the opposite way to most dance music producers. Instead of writing a track and sending it to a vocalist to write over, we like to start with the songwriting and then produce the track afterward. We normally sit in the studio, write the song from scratch together and then afterward produce it.

Robson-Scott: We've been working on it for quite a long time, we were doing sessions all over the world. We were doing sessions together in L.A. and London, and Kye was doing them in Chicago. We were sending stuff back and forth. It's quite an amalgamation of all different types of songwriting, in a way, because it's a body of work that was in a work in progress for two and a half years.

Gibbon: Yeah, and the way we found these vocalists is completely varied as well. There are people like Josh Barry, who we've worked with for years and who's part of our live band. And there're other vocalists that are friends of friends, like Jem Cooke, she's part of our wider group of friends.

And then there's Cami [Izquierdo], who we worked on with on "Body Language." We were on Instagram one day and she sent us a clip of her covering our old song, "Imagination." And we were so impressed with our voice, we actually just DMed her and were like, "Do you fancy writing a song together?" I think that was a first for us, actually finding someone who's just covered songs on Instagram. That was kind of cool to be able to do that, working with someone who's really fresh.

Robson-Scott: There are a few artists on there that are really fresh and really new and interesting. And quite a few of the artists on there are actually people who we got put in contact with through friends, just randomly, really. Like, "Oh yeah, I know this girl's got a really nice voice. She'd love to do a session" — a literally unheard-of artist who is building their project and then we've been blown away by the quality of it. We always love finding brand new unique sounding singers, whether it's someone from Instagram or whether it's a friend of a friend or whoever.

It can be anyone, they don't need to be in the industry for years, or a really high-end songwriter or a big pop top-liner or something. We don't really care about that. We're not like, "Oh, we need that person who writes hits." We're more into just doing what feels right for the record and what feels right on the day sonically and stuff. We've got some really cool singers on there.

You talked a bit about how this album is a bit more melancholic. I do feel that, but to me, there's just something about the Gorgon City sound, there's always an element of euphoria. Even if the lyrics are about heartbreak or whatever, I can see it in a gay club or any kind of setting that's joyful. Is that intentional?

Gibbon: I definitely agree with that. We are really proud that it does that to people and we love seeing people singing and, yeah, that sort of contrast between the lyrical content and how it makes people feel. It's always quite amusing to us, being at a club and all these people with massive smiles on their faces dancing around, singing about how much they hate someone, or some really serious dark heartbreak situation. They have smiles on their faces. It's always quite satisfying to watch that.

Robson-Scott: We get such a mix of the way people react to the music. Quite early on in Gorgon City, when "Ready For Your Love" was a massive tune, especially in the U.K., I think we were in Glasgow and there was literally a mosh pit of all these lads singing along "I'm ready for your love." They were smashing each other. [Laughs.] It was hilarious. They're singing really happy lyrics but they're moshing.

Gibbon: To the most sweet, innocent lyrics. [Laughs.]

Robson-Scott: We also get such a juxtaposition of emotions when we play it, it's interesting. But it's such an amazing feeling having people singing along to your music. Especially with the new DRAMA one, "You've Done Enough," the reactions that we're getting to that song have just been out of this world. But that's probably the best reaction we've had to a song ever — just on Spotify alone — even more than "Ready For Your Love." It's just been mind-blowing the kind of reactions we're getting to it.

How would you guys describe the Gorgon City sound?

Gibbon: It's a big combination of everything we've picked up over the years. I mean, me and Matt both have a similar musical upbringing, from our teens where we were both heavily into drum & bass and jungle. And that was the quite dark, underground movement of the mid- to late-'90s. For me, that was pretty much all I listened to when I was a teenager. For both of our production styles, that's where the deep basslines and the big sub-bass comes from and the darker elements. How we produce our basslines definitely comes from us listening to drum & bass and jungle.

And just through us DJing and touring over the years, we've got to see so many different styles of dance music at all these different festivals we've played at. Whenever we're at festivals, we always take the time to walk around different stages, soaking it all in. So we've definitely picked up a lot of techno and deep house influences over the years and that's always sort of seeping into our production techniques.

Robson-Scott: Yeah. I think also lyrically, it's always about being sort of powerful and deep and emotional, but at the same time, dance floor-friendly. That's what our sound has developed into. I think when we first started working with singers, I don't know, we always knew that we were going to make it very subby and very bassy and the bassline was the prominent part of the track. But I think it definitely developed and became its own thing organically. We didn't really even plan it. It just sort of happened over a space of time, that we started making all these tunes. It was really weird.

And then now we're at this stage where we're three albums deep and the energy is still the same. It's still kind of, like you said, party-friendly, and crosses all boundaries and hopefully crosses all cultures. And, like you said, you could hear at a festival, you could hear it at an underground gay club in Detroit or Chicago or London. We try and make music that does cross those barriers and it's an amazing thing [when it does].

I think we always wanted the vocals to not be generic and cheesy. That was one of our main aims with the lyrics and the vocal side of things. We always wanted it to sound unique and sort of meaningful, not just random, generic bollocks on top of a house beat.

Gibbon: Generic bollocks. [Both laugh.]

Gorgon City is not generic bollocks.

Gibbon: That's the best compliment anyone's said to us.

Read: Love To Love Them, Baby: From Donna Summer To Dua Lipa, Meet The Women Singers Who Shaped (And Continue to Shape) Dance Music

When you think about the roots of dance music, disco, there was a whole band, and the lyrics were dope, with vocalists like Diana Ross and people who were sometimes bigger than the band or the producer. But you had to be able to dance to it. I definitely see that thread in your music. It's funny, I love music with lyrics, but I never really know the lyrics. For me, it's like about how the rhythm and how it makes me feel.

Robson-Scott: Yeah, that's the weird thing about dance music, it doesn't really matter about lyrics that much. You don't want it to be rubbish lyrics, but a lot of the time people don't care. They just want to have the vibe and the energy, you know? And if it sounds good, it doesn't really matter what they're saying some of the time.

Gibbon: Yeah, and I think whenever we're in songwriting sessions with people, we always love to explain the fact that we really love lyrics that are a bit, I don't know, ambiguous. And I think when you keep lyrics fairly ambiguous, people can take whatever meaning they want from the song. They can make their own version of what the lyrics mean to them, and it makes it so much more personable when the lyrics aren't so direct.

Robson-Scott: Yeah, definitely. [The collaborator] will say a line and we'll be like, "Why don't you change that one word so it completely transforms the meaning of that sentence?" We try and do that quite a lot, to make it more interesting.

On "You've Done Enough," there's that one line she says where Via Rosa sings, "It takes time to love yourself. " That's a mantra right there. It gives me chills listening to it.

Robson-Scott: I know, sometimes it takes a while to get those bits and to really listen to them properly. But when I first heard that, I was like, "Wow, that's deep. That's some deep sh*t right there." She's amazing. She's got an amazing quality to her voice and her lyrics are just amazing, really cool.

In your opinion, what do you think are the essential elements of a great dance track?

Gibbon: Again, for us, it's all about the bassline. We're just bassline addicts.

Robson-Scott: And the drums have to be strong, obviously.

Gibbon: Yeah, and I've always said, whether it's the actual writing of a track or performing a DJ set, I think with dance music it's all about suspense and release. And always keeping something back and not throwing everything at them at once; I think that's the reason why with house and techno, you can dance all night and all day long to it. It's because you're keeping something back and sort of teasing it in, and with techno music, you have this huge build-up. And then after about two minutes, it just suddenly drops back into the groove. We try and bring that into our production as well, keeping stuff fairly restrained.

What have you guys learned as artists since back in 2014, when you put out Sirens?

Gibbon: I think we've definitely developed as songwriters because the whole Sirens album was our first venture into actual songwriting, writing full songs rather than just instrumental club tracks. So back then, we were experimenting and learning. I think we've come a long way since then, and that has allowed us to experiment more with the structures of tracks.

And I think we've kind of demonstrated that on this album, it's not so straightforward in our structures. We've taken time with the tracks and a lot of the songs on the album are longer than our previous albums because we've enjoyed the production process and putting in a few more techniques that we've drawn from the years we've been playing in the clubs and soaking in house and techno. We've put a lot more of those influences on this album.

Robson-Scott: I think we've also developed when it comes to collaborating with other people as well. We feel a little bit more comfortable in the studio when it comes to being in that sort of scary moment when you first start writing with someone that you've never met before. When everyone's a little bit, not nervous, but getting thrown into a session with someone you never met before, and you've got pressure to create something good.

It's like, "Nice to meet you..."

Gibbon: "Now, tell us your deepest, darkest secrets."

Robson-Scott: "How are you feeling at the moment? How's your relationship?" It can get quite deep really quickly. Literally, you just shook someone's hand, maybe had a cup of tea, and then within 10 minutes...

Gibbon: "When was the last time when someone broke your heart?"

Robson-Scott: And they're like, "Well, it's actually happening right now." And then everyone starts having this deep and meaningful conversation, and then you start writing a song about it. Or you come up with an idea that is quite intense and everyone gives their own opinion and you can create songs like that.

I think we've become more experienced with that side of it. Because at first, it was a bit like, oh my God, how do we do this? We had literally never done it before, and suddenly we're in a studio with all these random people. It was tough at first, but we definitely feel more comfortable now. And it's nice because we know more about how to get the best out of who we're working with. Whereas at first, we probably didn't really understand what we were doing, we were just sort of experimenting.

5 Trans & Nonbinary Artists Reshaping Electronic Music: RUI HO, Kìzis, Octo Octa, Tygapaw & Ariel Zetina

Grammys Newsletter

Subscribe Now

GRAMMYs Newsletter

Be the first to find out about winners, nominees, and more from Music's Biggest Night.
Kaskade stands in front of a cloudy blue sky

Kaskade

Photo: Courtesy of artist

News
Kaskade On 'Reset' EP, Fortnite Show & NFTs kaskade-talks-new-reset-ep-executing-epic-fortnite-show-nfts-more

Kaskade Talks New 'Reset' EP, Executing Epic Fortnite Show, NFTs & More

Facebook Twitter Email
GRAMMY.com caught up with Kaskade in celebration of his latest EP, 'Reset,' featuring music from the Rocket League video game, and to learn more about the huge production that went into creating his March 26 Fortnite concert
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Mar 29, 2021 - 9:08 am

It's hard to imagine dance music and festivals without Kaskade. The beloved GRAMMY-nominated DJ/producer has been putting out melodic dancefloor bangers since 2001 and seems to have headlined almost every major music festival across the globe. Yet, somehow, none of it has gone to his head as he remains at the top 20 years into the game.

"The fact that other people wanted to hear my music, outside of that little, tiny world that I was in, just blew me away," he recently told GRAMMY.com over Zoom, from his studio in Santa Monica, California. "To this day, I am still so grateful for everything that transpired."

GRAMMY.com caught up with Kaskade in celebration of his latest project, the Reset EP, featuring four tracks that soundtrack the Rocket League video game, dropped on Monstercat on March 5. He also dived deep into the EP, the epic production that went into creating his March 26 Fortnite concert, and planning his foray into NFTs (non-fungible tokens). The "Atmosphere" producer also reflected on his journey to super stardom and said he looks forward to returning to the dancefloor.

Let's start with the new music. Your latest project, Reset, recently dropped on Monstercat. I'm curious what your vision for this EP was.

Vision. Wow, that's a big word. [Laughs.] I've known the Monstercat guys for—it seems like a really long time—probably three or four years. I was really intrigued with how, I don't know, progressive-minded the label was. So, I reached out and became friends with them. And then, maybe two years ago, they came to me and were like, "We want to do something [with you] in the gaming space. Are you interested in that?" And I'm like, "Absolutely." Oh, hey. [Motions behind at arcade games.] My studio's named Arkade and I have video games here. I'm like, "I love video games! Yeah, that would be super fun, and different." A different software company hired me about 20 years ago to remix some game stuff, but that was so long ago.

And so, the EP was a pretty collaborative effort in the fact that they were like, "Hey, we want it to fit in the game, and these are some of the different vibes." And so, I sat down and played Rocket League for the first time about eight months ago. I'll paint it as one of those silver linings of the pandemic. Typically, I'm doing 120, 150 shows a year, flipping out, and completely over-scheduled, and trying to find some kind of balance.

With more free time and more studio time, I've just been open to do things like this. Which I would have been, prior to this—I just think it would have been a lot harder to have that collaborative "What are you looking for?" element. And it would be harder to sit down and really sink my teeth into it and wrap my head around the game and give my take on what I think would work when you're playing the game.

It was like, "Okay, what's cool and energetic, fun and light? How can that fit with my sound? How can I cater my style to that?" Really, I just approached it that way. But certainly, the Monstercat people were all, "We love your classic sounding stuff." And "Miles To Go," to me, is quintessential me. This is about as me as I can sound, but with a fresh take on it, a 2021 vibe to it.

I want to talk a bit more about "Miles To Go," which I love. I feel like Ella Vos' voice sounds euphoric but also urgent. What was it like working with her?

Working with Ella was a dream. She's equally as cool and amazing as her voice sounds. I didn't know her before this project. And honestly, we met on the back side of it. It all kind of happened in the cloud, out in space.

True to the current state of affairs, it was a song that was sent to my manager. "Hey, this is something that Kaskade might be interested in. He likes this style of vocal." And when I heard it, I was like, "Holy cow! She killed the performance! I wish I wrote this song." It was just kind of a piano demo. And instantly, when I heard it, I had some ideas on how I wanted to produce it. But yeah, her voice was already recorded—beautiful, pristine.

I'd only heard her one time before that, on a song ["Exhale"] with R3HAB. And I loved her voice then, I was like, "Wow! Who is this?" So, it was a cool moment [when I got the demo]. And actually, I sat on the track for quite a bit, because I was like, "There's a message here." I was holding it for maybe a future album, or something that was part of a bigger picture.

And one of the life lessons I've taken away from this whole thing is, maybe I don't need to be holding on to those things. I produced it up, sent it over to Monstercat. I was like, "Is this right [for Rocket League]?" If we look at the tracks together, this is on one side and "Flip Reset" is on the other side. "Flip Reset" is more like banging, peak, kind of like you scored a goal in the game! "Miles To Go" is the most emotive out of the bunch. But that works. They didn't want one flavor.

And what are some of the sonic elements that you brought in to "Miles To Go" to give it that classic Kaskade sound?

Early on in my career, somewhere along the line, I decided that to set myself apart I wanted the electronic music I was making to be more about lyrics and melody. Even on my first album It's You, It's Me, it's almost 20 years old now, it's all about the songwriting. And that was my deal. I sat down and got in the studio with people who I thought were great songwriters and said, "I've been really testing my writing skills. I want to continue to push this boundary."

I feel like dance music shouldn't be only just sound design. I've always felt that something that resonates and goes beyond, and something you can leave a mark with, is where you take a cool message, these lyrics, and a strong melody, and marry that with something sonically interesting. It can be a global impact moment.

Dance music is always just where my head's at. Dance music's always been about sonics. That's where we came from. Drum machines, synthesis, "I'm going to put this in a box, and stretch it, tweak it and freak it out, and make it sound like nothing you've ever heard before." And you hear it, and you're like, "What is this? I want more."

A lot has changed over the years, because 20, 25 years ago when I got into it, nobody was really writing songs and pitching them to dance music producers, because we were such a tiny little niche. I think the biggest thing for me that's changed in the last five to seven years, with guys like David Guetta and Calvin Harris that were able to really crossover and conquer the pop charts, people were like, "Oh, that guy, Kaskade's called me before, maybe I should call him back?" Even though we were filling nightclubs and large venues, and playing massive festivals before that, I think it took a few guys from our world to clip through to let other songwriters and artists know our world was credible.

Watch: Up Close & Personal: David Guetta On “Let’s Love” Ft. Sia, Creating in The COVID-19 Era & More

I grew up listening to disco because of my dad—he loves Diana Ross and all the iconic female vocalists. And you were the first dance music I got into, back in college. Now, I definitely see the connection in your music to disco, especially as disco is the root of dance music.

100 percent. Let me take that one step further. When I really got into this initially, I grew up in suburban Chicago and most of those early house records were so—I mean, disco [had] just ended. In Chicago they're like, "No, we're still doing it. We're going to call it something different though, because people are burning disco records at Comiskey Park. Okay cool, we're doing this in a warehouse, let's call it house music." A lot of people argue how that happened, but I'm not here to be that guy. Those guys were so influenced by disco.

And when I came up, all of those first wave of producers, they were borrowing [disco] as inspiration, and sampling, all of that stuff. Now, we don't do that so much because it's illegal. But back then, there was a lot of stuff that wasn't figured out yet. There's so many of those early records that I look back to, I was a huge DJ Sneak fan growing up, and I am still. [Points to huge vinyl.] I've got probably 150 DJ Sneak records. He was cutting a lot of those old disco records up and making them sonically new.

When I first got into it, I was imitating that. When I moved to San Francisco is kind of when I had that mindset of, "Oh, I can write my own songs." By then, the power of the computer had got so great—first we had 10 seconds, then 12 seconds, then you could record lyrics inside your computer. That led to a creative boom in electronic music.

House OGs: Record Store Recs: Chicago House Hero Marshall Jefferson On Representation In Dance Music

What else did I want to talk about? Let's keep talking about disco.

Disco's good. You're lucky you grew up in a house with it. I got a little bit of disco. I got some Bee Gees, of course, but I got a lot of ABBA in my house, man. They're amazing. The first time I went to Stockholm, all I could think was like, "ABBA. Where did they live? Can I go to a bar where ABBA hung out?" My tour manager was like, "Just leave it already." And I'm like, "No, no, I'm not trying to be funny. I grew up listening to this stuff, it's a big deal for me."

I want to talk more about how you approached sound-tracking Rocket League. How was it different than when you're creating a song that will sound great at a festival or on the dancefloor?

Well, when I go into the studio—it's a pretty selfish thing—I write songs for me, mainly. I like writing, and creating, and sitting down and messing around with sounds. With the first remix I got hired to do ages ago, the A&R person was very particular like, "Hey, I really like this one song that you did, and I think it could fit stylistically with something like that because I want this to be played in nightclubs at one in the morning. How can you approach this?" I was like, "Oh, yeah. I can totally see that working."

It's that same mentality when I sat down to [work on Rocket League.] "What would I want to hear? What's going to work? How can I put my spin on this?" "Flip Reset," the song I did with WILL K, was the most obvious thing to me. It's something that's super energetic, fun, light, banging. So now, when you're in the lobby of the game and you're waiting to choose your car, it's banging and kind of hypes you up. "Closer" was more about just the vibe. It's the music in the background while you're playing, you want it vibey, cool, but still energetic. Honestly, I think that's why the gamers in general listen to so much dance music. I get messages all the time on Twitter and Instagram, usually people who ask me to post more sets because they've listened to them at least 20 times each and have them totally memorized. 

[For Rocket League,] I wanted it to range from banging, super energetic stuff, to vibey, and then some of my kind of classic, emotive stuff that will be memorable. The hope for me was, and it's cool it's working this way, is that people turn off the game and they're like, "Man, I love that one track. What was the name of it? Oh, 'Miles To Go,' let me put that on."Discovery now, it's happening through TikTok, these games and all these different platforms. The industry can barely keep up. It's cool to see the young upstarts and the real savvy people out there figuring out that they can connect to people in different ways and different platforms.

Watch Positive Vibes Only: Watch House Gospel Choir & Todd Terry Perform Joyous, Socially Distanced "Everything Is Love"

What's your relationship to video games? Obviously, I see the old-school arcade games behind you, but did you grow up playing them? Do you still play them?

I'm usually too busy, I don't get much gaming stuff in. But yes, I've got a PS4 and an Xbox at my house and every once in a while, I jump on there. But really, I still love the classics. I have some pinball machines in the other room. So, I love it all, I love gaming. But people are always like, "Dude, let me play you on Fortnite." I'm like, "You don't understand. I suck. I'm like 20 hours into that."

And speaking of Fortnite, your Fortnite concert happened on March 26. How did you prepare for that? And what do you see as a positive of being able to do a show in a virtual space?

That's a good question. I think the challenge for me [is doing shorter sets]. Even festivals are hard for me. You have 67 minutes of performance time. I came from the club world, and I'm used to playing two, three, four or five hours, and I feel really comfortable in that space.

What's cool about the whole virtual thing, especially when it's such a whole production like this, is that it can be quite planned. I'm totally winging it a lot of my concerts. That's one of the things that's cool about electronic music, because you can go one night and listen to me and feel, "My gosh! We were on the same wavelength." I mean, obviously, I strive for that every single night. But some nights go better than others. But the virtual space was cool because it was so thought out. It's like, "Here's your time allotment. This is what we need to deliver."

For the production of my shows, I'm very much a part of that process. And not that we get it right every time, we try to. For this, we're doing something much more rehearsed. We filmed the set, my goodness, over four days ... I'm going to say, conservatively, I did the set at least 30 times. And that is no exaggeration. I was so sore at the end of it because I was jumping around. On the second day, they were like, "Bro, are you all right on energy? You need a Red Bull or something?" I was so sore, because they kept being, "You got to bring the energy man, we're doing some close-up shots now." I can only spaz out so much. It's like I did two months' worth of touring in four days.

That's crazy. Did you work with a VR team? Or how did you collaborate on the visuals and all that stuff?

It's insane. Listen, we sent all my visuals in advance, and then I sent them a wish list of songs I wanted to play. We paired it down, got the visuals to sync up. And they started programming, a team of 50 people, when I showed up to film. This is massive undertaking. Honestly, I felt like I was preparing to go on the road for a year-and-a-half on a global tour. It was huge. And they had prepped for six or eight weeks before I showed up to perform.

The guys that  produced it and put it together are incredibly talented. It's wild. It was way beyond the scope of what I understood until I showed up there. During the streams that I've been doing during quarantine, I'm in my kitchen like, "Hey, I'm baking banana bread and playing some records. Tune in." That was the extent of my streaming. I did one at the Grand Canyon, that was awesome, and obviously, that took a small staff of people to execute that. But we were using the beauty of the surroundings to drop people's jaw.

This thing is very much a tech miracle. It feels like a festival. They had the camera on a boom, going over my shoulder, and then out into this virtual audience. Everything else [was] animated, except for me. It's like I [was] actually inside the game. 

Speaking of crazy things slightly beyond my imagination, you've Tweeted about working on putting out some NFTs [non-fungible tokens]. I'm curious what you see as the future for artists putting out NFTs and using that as a way to connect with their fans, and also as another revenue source.

I think it's exciting. [I'm always excited about] any kind of new platform or technology. Honestly, over the last 12 weeks, me and pretty much, I don't know, the rest of the art world, is reading, having discussions, watching YouTube videos, just trying to understand the space more.

For me, it's an opportunity for people to get my art in a different format, or see it in a different way, and potentially bring it to a new audience. I see it as a new opportunity to connect with my fans that have been around for so long, or even people that are just meeting me for the first time. I think on the music side, it's so new, we're kind of discovering the problems as we go along. I'm collaborating with a [visual] artist—and I'm not going to give any more than that away in this interview—because, to me, to be really effective, there needs to be a visual element to the music.

As far as the revenue, I mean, I am super fortunate to be in a position where, I'm in this part of my career, and I didn't spend all of my money. Although the pandemic sucked for many reasons, and I'm sure we all have our list of reasons why it sucked, for me, the short list of reasons why it was kind of cool is I got to slow down. I'm not looking to NFTs as part of some new gold rush. I think a lot of people are just head-over-heels like, "Oh, my gosh, money! I've got to get some of this money." 

It is kind of crazy how, a few weeks ago, all of a sudden the news was Kings of Leon has an NFT album and Grimes is doing an NFT, and then everybody's jumping on board.

I'm buddies with deadmau5, I follow him on his platforms, and chat from time to time, and he's up to his chin in this stuff. He put something [about NFTs] up, I think it was November of last year, and that was really when I was like, "Oh, wow!" Joel [Zimmerman, a.k.a deadmau5] is really ahead of the curve, and I really like what he does in the tech space. That's when I started getting into it. And I was already starting my run into this space, when boom, it happened.

It will be interesting to see how it evolves. I've been curious to see how blockchain can serve people and gets outside of its sort of techie, privileged bubble. NFTs are definitely a cool opportunity. And you know, people love merch, and I sort of see it as a new age of that even.

Yeah, for sure. I think it's going to get there. Right now, NFTs seem super high-end—and that's one of the things I'm trying to achieve with my drop, is make sure I have a number of items that are actually entry level. People that might be curious of NFT, and have a little bit of Bitcoin, or want to dip their toe into it, that there'll be something accessible for them.

I'm thinking more like, what's this next wave? Looking at it like merch, or something. Somebody can own my piece of art that's authenticated. I have fans I've met that are like, "I've been to 100 shows," so for somebody like that. And in my merch store, occasionally I would do prints from the photographer that's followed me around for a long time, Mark Owens, and offer something like that. It's interesting to stretch out that space. And I see this as a similar way, just in a digital medium.

That’s the spirit...until then we will have to start training for this - can you imagine how epic it’s going to feel to finally get these shows?!? https://t.co/6FgEtfPY7s

— Kaskade (@kaskade) March 10, 2021

You recently scheduled your Redux shows to 2022, which is crazy. What are you most looking forward to, about returning to shows IRL?

Oh man. Human connection. I miss it. It's been a challenge to make music in this black hole. I've been very spoiled in my career, even at the very beginning.  I'd make something and then I could go test it out at the club that night or the next night. To have that instant feedback is very inspiring creatively. It helped shape a lot of my early records.

Independent artists, and people in my space, we're not testing our music out out by pitching it to radio. I'm not writing radio records. Our space is in the nightclubs and at the festivals. And to just take that completely out of the equation, it's like, "Hold up. Does this even work anymore?" Fortunately, I get messages from fans like, "Oh, my gosh! I love this mix." And there's still some of that there, but nothing beats the real deal, in person, at a show.

Going back to the beginning, back in 2003, when you put out It's You It's Me, did you have any idea that you'd be where you are now?

[I had] Absolutely no inclination at all, no plan. I never had a clue. I was completely naïve, kind of dumb, young. If I would have tried to have planned any of this, I'm sure I would have screwed it up. There's no method to the madness.

I speak to youth groups from time to time, and they're always like, "Well, how'd you blow up?" And I'm like, "I have no idea. I can sit here and give you my two cents, but it's pointless because whatever I did is going to be completely different for you, if you're trying to go into this space." What I always tell them is I had zero expectations. I mean really, for me, it was like, if I could pay my rent in San Francisco, or even come really close and I'm buying Top Ramen, honestly, the world is my oyster. I am living.

To this day, I am still so grateful for everything that transpired. And not to say that I didn't work for it, I toured endlessly for the last 20 years, and just about killed myself out there on the road. Because I believed in the music and believed that somebody might be out there that likes it. I was always making an effort to connect with and build an audience. My endgame was just to be able to live, pay my rent, and take care of my family. 

And here you are now.

Now I'm sitting in this freaking ridiculous studio in Santa Monica, California. I went surfing this morning, and I have a pretty incredible life, all off of doing what I love. Honestly, as crappy as COVID-19 is, I'm not a guy that should be complaining. I don't have a complaint in the world. If you hear me complaining one day, just come up and whack me across the head or something.

Selena Gomez Talks Embracing Her Mexican Heritage on ‘Revelación,’ Greatest Hits & Using Her Social Media Platform for Good

Top
Logo
  • Recording Academy
    • About
    • DEI
    • Governance
    • Press Room
    • Jobs
  • GRAMMYs
    • Awards
    • News
    • Videos
    • Events
    • Store
  • Latin GRAMMYs
    • Awards
    • News
    • Photos
    • Videos
    • Cultural Foundation
    • Members
    • Press
  • GRAMMY Museum
    • COLLECTION:live
    • Museum Tickets
    • Exhibits
    • Education
    • Support
    • Programs
    • Donate
  • MusiCares
    • About
    • Get Help
    • Support
    • News
    • Events
  • Advocacy
    • About
    • News
    • Issues & Policy
    • Act
  • Membership
    • Chapters
    • Producers & Engineers Wing
    • Songwriters & Composers Wing
    • GRAMMY U
    • Events
    • Join
Logo

© 2022 - Recording Academy. All rights reserved.

  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Copyright Notice
  • Contact Us

Some of the content on this site expresses viewpoints and opinions that are not those of the Recording Academy and its Affiliates. Responsibility for the accuracy of information provided in stories not written by or specifically prepared for the Academy and its Affiliates lies with the story's original source or writer. Content on this site does not reflect an endorsement or recommendation of any artist or music by the Recording Academy and its Affiliates.