On Friday the 2nd, music producer and DJ Felix Jaehn let his talent and love for music take over Electric Zoo’s Riverside Stage and left everyone with a smile on their faces!
Talented German native Felix Jaehn was invited to perform at this year’s Ezoo and absolutely KILLED his set. He drowned us music lovers in good vibes and made dancing not a want but a necessity. It is so impressive to see that someone so young compared to others in the business, have the mastery of skill that Felix possesses. His set flowed from one to the next so effortlessly, giving the audience exactly we they needed and not letting the energy drop by an instant. You might recognize his name from the mix that took over the radios all over the world, “Cheerleader”, or his reimagining of “Ain’t Nobody” feat. Jasmine Thompson.
We got the chance to sit down and talk to this talented and kind guy about his career and his process when working on his top-notch songs:
Have you ever considered moving to America?
Yeah definitely, I would love to live out here for a while. We are actually planning some more club shows right now for early next year, I’m going to be staying over here for a few weeks in a row so that’s gonna be nice. I’ll get to spend some time here and go to the studio. I might stay in NY or LA and go to all the clubs nationwide.
Now, we have to talk about “Cheerleader”, since it blew up so much and made you known worldwide.
The record label sent me over the song, it was originally a reggae song from 2012 and they were like “We need a remix, this isn’t going anywhere.” I was really open minded because at that time I was just uploading my music on sound cloud and a big record company asking me to do a remix was a big deal at that time. I listened to the song and I felt like it had great potential, the a cappella was really uplifting, the vibes were really positive, so I thought I would just give it a spin. I asked for the a cappella and then just started producing the track around it, it took me only like one or two weeks actually.
You also produced “Ain’t Nobody” with amazing singer Jasmine Thompson, how was working with her?
It was amazing! Actually we hadn’t met until we had already finished the song. It’s a cover so the song was already there. She did the vocals then I started working around that. We did it all via twitter, and skype, and email but it was a lot of fun. Obviously meeting her was really great. We had great times shooting the video and doing some performances. She’s amazing.
Who are your mentors at the moment?
It’s weird but I don’t have a proper mentors to be honest. Obviously I have some great supporters. Steve Aoki collabed with me recently and invited me to play in his Ushuaia show in Ibiza in two weeks so that’s gonna be fun. I don’t have one guy who’s properly mentoring me at the moment, which is kind of a shame but it’s working out.
Who are your musical heroes?
There are many great artists. I will always refer to Avicii because he was one of the first producers I really loved when I started DJing as a teenager. I love his approach to songwriting and his melodies are always amazing. I like that the melodies and the vocals are the focus and it’s not just about the big fat drop, it’s actually about the song and about the music. I really loved that, similar to Calvin Harris as well. Then production wise I think Skrillex and Diplo are just the best at the moment, I think everything they touch is just amazing. The percussions and the mixes, everything is just so spot on so yeah, I really really love their stuff.
What has been your favorite place to play so far?
It’s hard to say because there have been so many great shows. I really loved Miami earlier this week, I did Ultra, then Miami Music Week. I opened up for David Guetta, it was pretty cool. I love playing in South and Latin America all the time. I have done shows in Brazil and Mexico for example, I played in Monterrey for 60,000 people and it was simply amazing. The biggest audience I have played for was actually surreal, it was in Germany for the anniversary of the reunification. I played in Berlin in front of the Brandenburg Gate, the street leading to it is a huge street. They said there were about 750,000 people on the street. I was so honored to be able to play in such a special day.
Do you have any preference to play in festivals or clubs?
I really love both, I can’t choose. It’s like asking do you like your mom or your dad, you can’t really pick. Festivals are obviously amazing because, for example today is sunny, we are by the river, it’s going to be super cool, such an amazing vibe. You have big crowds, everyone with flags, posters, costumes and all that kind of stuff is really cool to dive into. Clubs are more intimate and the energy is a bit higher as well because is a closed room so it gets really pumping. Sometimes you have the booth right on the dance floor so you can even touch the people in the first row. At festivals you are super far away so it’s a very different feeling.
If you could play in any city or setting, where would you play?
Let me think… I would probably want to play on an airplane. I have never done that. I have played on a boat, I’ve played by the beach, big festivals and clubs but never on an airplane. That could be a fun experience!
What are some songs that you’ve been listening to a lot lately?
Let me check my spotify, I have my playlist. Every week I check out the new songs that come out. One of them is Jack U’s “Mind” ft. Kai, such an amazing song. Another is Hitimpulse’s “I’m in Love With The Coco” new release, it’s a really cool production. I just re-added Passenger’s “Let Her Go”, I used to listen to it a lot in 2012 and I just re-discovered it recently. Another one, it’s pretty old “Hailies Song” by Eminem. I also some tracks from DJ Snake’s new album and Kiiara’s “Gold”, ZHU’s “Hometown Girl”. Those are just a few.
Do you have any hidden talents that not a lot of people know about?
I do love to cook. I wouldn’t say I’m a perfect chef but I do love inviting friends over, having dinner together, cooking everything. It’s a little thing I like to do.
If you could switch places with anyone, living or dead for a week who would it be?
I could name any big super star but I don’t know if I would want to do that because they probably have a busier life than I do right now. I would probably like someone who’s having a really relaxed life, like my grandfather. He already experienced so much, he’s just sitting in his garden, looking back at a great life and relaxing.
The brand new single from FELIX, “Bonfire” [feat. Alma], is climbing the charts worldwide. “Bonfire” now has over 20M+ streams on Spotify!
