In exactly a month, the current world No.1 DJ/producer is all set to amaze partygoers and turn ravers around with his Malaysian debut. But David Guetta is not new to the electronic dance music (EDM) scene. As a matter of fact, over the past few years, his work has broken into the mainstream market, which has garnered him a huge following.
Often praised and said to be the man who successfully fused EDM with pop, David has performed in numerous shows around the world (he’ll soon add Kuala Lumpur to his list!) and headlined countless festivals. He continues globetrotting to send positive vibes with tracks that his fans can all sing along to, because they know the words by heart. David is, after all, the household name for EDM.
On Monday, our friends from Warner Music Malaysia invited us to have a quick chat with the man himself. David Guetta tells us all about EDM, “Nothing But The Beat 2.0“, how he deals with haters, and more. Check it:
Hi David! You’ve come a long and far away from when you first started out, right up till the day you were crown world No.1 DJ by DJ Mag in 2011. How do you think electronic dance music (EDM) has changed over the years?
“It’s a huge change and I’m proud to say that I’ve participated in that change a lot! Like every other of genre of music, it was born in the underground and over the years, it became trendy and popular. But that took a lot of effort. For many many years, DJs were not respected the way they are now. Our music was always seen as merely a sub-genre and was not taken seriously. We were never supported by the media or the radio stations but..right now? It’s the biggest music movement on the planet!”
We agree! It is the biggest music movement on the planet! We’re hoping that EDM continues to stay strong over the changing times..
“The fact that all of us in EDM are all together, that makes us strong, I think. The difference would be that..when I first started out, I played in really small room and no one could see me whenever I played in a club. And now I play in stadiums when I’m on stage, alongside other DJs. We are all together in this scene.”
You’ve worked with so many talented artistes to date – Flo Rida, The Black Eyed Peas, Taio Cruz, Nicki Minaj, and counting! Who do you see yourself working with in the future?
“This week, I’m releasing “Nothing But The Beat 2.0“. It’s a repacked version of 2011′s ‘Nothing But The Beat’ and there are quite a few new artistes featured in there such as, Taped Rai. He’s really amazing and we worked on this song called ‘Just One Last Time’. Also, next year, I’m releasing a really, really big record that will feature artistes such as Ludacris and Usher. But I’m always open to discovering new artistes.”
So, we’re really excited about the repacked version of your album! Tell us more about “Nothing But The Beat 2.0″.
“Yeah! Well, there are six new records. It was going to be only just one or two new records but there are just so many new..very big songs. There’s a song with Sia, she did Titanium with me previously – it’s called ‘She Wolf’ and it’s really amazing. I also have a new single in there called, ‘Just One Last Time’ with Taped Rai. Of course, there are also amazing artistes such as Ne-yo and Akon. To be honest, for me, it was like making a new album, really. So exciting!”
If you weren’t a DJ, what do you think you would you most likely be doing?
“I’m a DJ, I’m an artiste, I’m a producer. I’m even kind of a manager for other artistes so..I guess it would have to be something music-related otherwise I would be in big trouble. That’s bad news!”
We must say though, David, that you’re most well-known for your crossover to mainstream pop. It seems that there might be people who were unhappy – especially when you won DJ Mag’s World No.1 DJ. Now, how do you deal with the haters?
“Armin van Buuren’s fans were unhappy because they wanted Armin to win but I guess if Armin wins this year, maybe my fans won’t be happy, right? But really, it doesn’t matter because all of this hating is really childish. We’re not changing the world or finding a cure for cancer. It’s a little bit ridiculous to get so emotional about it. People should channel their energy into creating music instead of spending hours on the Internet writing..you know I can’t even imagine how people can spend hours on the Internet writing hate messages. It’s such negative energy! And I don’t really care.”
Last one for the road! What can people expect from your show in Malaysia on 12th October 2012?
“They can expect the biggest party, probably. Becaause that’s what I do! If people have a good time, I have a good time too. People are often surprised by my live sets because they know my songs by heart, they hear it often on the radio. But I’m a DJ so I tend to mix things up. Plus, it’s my first time in Malaysia! I love the feeling I get when I play in different countries like, I get nervous before I go on stage..but I love it!”
David Guetta? Nervous? He has got to be joking! Nevertheless, we’re excited to see you in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia soon! Thank you so much for speaking to us, David. Looking forward to the party already.
And thanks to the awesome Warner Music Malaysia for making this happen!