Page 21 - We Rave You Magazine | October 2023

COVER INTERVIEW > DAVID GUETTA: DANCE MUSIC’S CHAMELEON
“For us DJs it needs to be about
the music and of course, having an
additional layer is fantastic, but if it’s
becoming the main focus, there’s a
little bit of danger.”
20 we rave you.com
I’m very lucky that I’m so passionate about music. It is my job and my hobby at
the same time, but I always need to go from one project to the other. I don’t know
how other people work, though It’s perhaps not the best to do what I do instead of
focusing on one thing. I feel like if I’m obsessing on just one record though, I lose
my passion. Sometimes I work and make an idea, and then I find myself doing
something else. I will come back to the idea to try and finish it, but I find that going to
a different place helps me be more objective. Sometimes when you spend so many
hours on one track you lose objectivity. It’s actually interesting, because when you
play something bad for a very large amount of time you start to like it, and your ears
can get used to anything. Sometimes I think stepping out and coming back allows
me to be more objective or realise things like “this is actually not that good and I
should change this,” and because I love music so much, I would produce a different
genre and come back to that instead of doing something else to unwind.
Recently, the emphasis on visuals in shows is one that has been a gripping topic in
the industry, and a lot of it has to do with the boom in popularity of Anyma on social
media. This is something that Guetta has been thinking a lot about, even focusing
more closely on 3D visuals in his new live show concept, MONOLITH.
How do you feel about the recent emphasis on the visuals and show production?
Do you think it’s something that every artist needs to be considering?
It honestly depends. In the case of Tale Of Us they had the talent to be stars but
because the music is not so easy to understand and to be accessed by the masses,
they needed to do something to go to the next level. Because they are smart and
ambitious, they did this, and I believe that this was an incredible move. I’ve been
following them for many years, because I love the music, and when I see where
they were two years ago, or even one year ago, versus now, it’s crazy to see. The
difference it made, and why, was simply because of social media. If you do crazy
visuals people are filming it and posting it on their socials. All in a second, Tale Of
Us was everywhere, and that’s thanks to the visuals. I think in that case, that was an
excellent move.
Now, the problem with that is it brings in a different crowd. So who are the new
people? When I released ‘I’m Good (Blue)’ the new people were the ones who heard
that record on the radio or on TikTok. It’s the same way that the visuals brought in
new people for Tale Of Us. They’re not necessarily people that are day one techno
fans. Sure, they’re going to go and scream, they’re going to be enthusiastic, but
can they really understand the culture that is behind this musically? This is also an
experience I’ve had and it’s very interesting. The way I play in Ibiza is calculated. I
play at sunset in June, then come mid July, I completely change my set. I play all my
commercial hits from July to the end of August, and then from September, I change
my set again because I know that month brings in a different crowd. The limit that
I see in the visuals is that a lot of people come just so that they can say they were
there on social media. Are they coming to dance though? Are they coming to party?
Do they really understand what it’s about? It raises a lot of different questions, and
it’s the same way that I don’t want to rely on my hits. I think DJs that are bringing this
level of show also need to be careful not to rely on their visuals.
For us DJs it needs to be about the music and of course, having an additional layer
is fantastic, but if it’s becoming the main focus, there’s a little bit of danger. I believe
that to be a good DJ, you need to have fun when you play. You don’t want to have
a crowd of people that are too static, and this is why I work a lot on my visuals. We
have the new MONOLITH content that we did for Ushuaïa, and we also took it on tour,
and I believe it’s really spectacular. While creating it I’m always wanting to keep a
balance with moments where I start using the 3D visuals to connect with the crowd,
because I don’t want to create an experience where it feels like people are at the
cinema to watch a show, as it becomes a different experience.
PC: ADRIAN FONT oct 2023 21