Kiwi: “The long term goal is to make a full time career out of DJing, but its certainly not easy”
Daina Dubauskaitė 2014-01-09 12:31
It’s sometimes tricky to interview DJs that are still on the way to their highest career point, on the other hand, it’s always interesting to look back a few years later and see how they are doing. It’s worth watching Kiwi as he seems to have a clear vision about what he wants to do!
The South Londoner has been doing great in his hometown this past year. Together with playing alongside Erol Alkan and other household names he has also released a handful of EPs and signed nice deals with Needwant, Days Of Being Wild etc.
You can catch Kiwi playing in CAC café in Vilnius this Saturday (Jan 11th). Here are some questions and answers that will hopefully encourage you to. Kiwi’s top 5 tracks from last year below!
No more “Happy new years”, but how was your NYE party with Bugged Out! anyway? Do you always work on big nights like this?
I usually do have a gig or two over New Years, and they are usually some of my favourite gigs of the year, this year was no exception!
Do you believe in New Year resolutions? Have you made any music-related resolutions this year?
No music related ones, I just plan to get a little less fat
Is London more inspiring or more tiring for you? Is it your favourite city in the world?
That’s a good question. It’s both I guess, I think I have found the right balance now, and I can’t imagine living in any other city.
The cafe you’ll play in Vilnius is a rather small one. Which do you play more often - big/normal sized clubs or boutique venues?
I play a mixture. I love the small intimate gigs though. I can generally be a lot more experimental with the selection. Which is why I’m really excited for Saturday!
The name of the night is “Whypeopledance”. So, why do they dance?
It’s what makes us human, music and dancing are so integral to humanity.
Which came first for you - producing or DJing?
DJing came first. I have always made records to fit into my DJ sets. I’m first and foremost a DJ, the rest comes secondary.
What DJ inspired you to become one as well? Was it a certain party or more like an observation and admiration of the scene for some time? Or maybe you decided to become a DJ because everyone around you is..? This might be true in London!
It was the party DURRR, Erol Alkan, Rory Phillips and Jonjo all inspired me to take up the decks, three years later and I was a resident at the night I loved most. It was a dream come true.
When things got well for you, you got signed to labels and got more bookings etc, was the nightlife culture you embraced kind of what you’d expected? Maybe it was more simple, or more vain, or more beautiful..?
Interesting question, I’ve not really thought about it. It’s definitely different wherever you go, the atmosphere is always a little different, but essentially it’s the music where we share common ground.
Talking about the sound of Kiwi, do you feel surrounded by likeminded, or rather standing out among other musicians and DJs?
I don’t know if I have really established “a sound” as yet, I’m surrounded by DJs I love that inspire me and support me, I think there definitely is a “scene” of sorts I belong too.
Do you put up genre names for your music yourself, or do music critics and listeners do that? Were you ever surprised by their definitions?
Ha, no I have never selected a genre, I don’t really know where my music fits in that sense, its impossible for me to be like “yeah this one is deep house” or “yeah this one is techno” and I’m always surprised as to where I’m filed.
What do you think is a realistic lifespan of a clubber? Can a person get “too old” to go out? When is he still “too young”?
Hah, I dunno, I was clubbing when I was 14, and plan to be still clubbing when I’m a 114, in my box in the ground. Age doesn’t matter, clubbing is just about having fun. There should never be a cap on fun.
I just read in your twitter feed that remixing is harder for you than writing originals. Why is that so in your case?
I don’t know, its weird. When I start an original I can go anywhere or do anything with it so the process is much more free and easy. With remixes there’s much more to consider, as in where it fits with the original, is it respectful of the original, have I included enough of the original etc etc.
What mistakes did you do in the beginning, both production and promotional? Were there a lot of them?
Erm, I dunno if I’d consider anything I’ve done a mistake, it’s a learning curve of course. But I have no regrets.
How productive generally are you? Do you have a long queue of unreleased tracks ahead?
Super productive, and yes tons of new stuff, just got to work out what I want to do with them…
Is DJing a profession that can fully support a young person financially? I mean today when there is so much competition both DJ-wise and party wise! Do you have a day job as well?
I don’t have a day job as such. I do run a party called Orlando Boom, which helps a little bit. But I don’t need a lot to live on. The long-term goal is to make a full time career out of DJing, but its certainly not easy.
When was the last time you paid for an entrance to a party?
Ha good question! I think I paid to get into Horse Meat Disco a few weeks back. Sometimes it’s nice to pay.
Kiwi's TOP5 of 2013!
Ghost Culture – Red Smoke
One of Phantasy Sounds newest artists, and this is a stand out track for me, he has an album on the way, I was lucky enough to hear a preview the other day, and I can tell you its mind blowing.
Ashworth – Ingenue
A cover of Ingenue by Atoms for Peace, by my good friend and studio partner Ashworth. It’s a work of genius and amazing on the floor.
Joakim – Heartbeats
One of those records you can just listen to forever. Timeless.
Daniel Avery – Knowing you’ll be here
The whole album is spectacular, this one is one of the more melodic tracks I have found myself playing it a lot in sets.
Syclops – A Blink Of An Eye
This is a nod to the whole album really. Maurice Fulton’s crazy genius is a massive inspiration to me.
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WHYPEOPLEDANCE | KIWI @ Šmc kavinė 01.11
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Whypeopledance
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