Just over two week ago, Deadmau5 hopped on Twitch.TV for a solid 4 hours to talk about his life as a producer, the industry, and to dole out advice to those want to make music. Love him or hate him, you have to appreciate the Q&A as this was one of the most interesting things a musician/producer has participated in. To my knowledge, there haven’t been any high-profile producers who really opened up about their past and their path to success, at least for this long. We’ve previously had a glimpse into his creative process, and a look at his success, but we have never really had four complete hours to get to know the man behind the mau5 mask. Joel Zimmerman got his artist name from a dead mouse in his computer, and now we were able to learn a little more of his true origins.
When you are starting out, you have to realize you want to make music for people….
“If i had to do this again, I would focus on being very offline — you do reach a point where you go online… but take your music, go offline, meet a DJ, go to a radio station… meet people.” It’s a million times more valuable than spamming a link…”
I thought this was particularly interesting due to the world-wide reach we all have at our fingertips. Anyone can launch a youtube/soundcloud/twitter/facebook and play the role of a superstar producer. However, that’s the problem. There is so much clutter in the world because there are so few barriers to entry now. This is a common economic device for any business with competition. The easier it is for people to enter into a market, the more competition there will be. What Deadmau5 is really saying here, is that up-and-coming producers need to find a way to get through the clutter and find a more out-of-the-box (in this case… more traditional) approach to being heard. There’s a strong emphasis on real connections and actual human interactions — actually taking the time to network and be with people who share a similar passion. Success is hard to achieve without help in some form. Taking the time and effort to build relationships and learn directly from others was important to Deadmau5 and will be to those trying to make it.
Not convinced? Deadmau5 gives another example of how this in-person effort ACTUALLY worked for someone else, Skrillex. Deadmau5 brought Skrillex to light, and all it took one small interaction for him to be heard.
“I didn’t invent Skrillex… Skrillex invented fuckin’ Skrillex…Sonny came in person to an event I was at and handed me Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites on a fuckin’ USB. I Took that back and milled over that and whatever… took him on tour, shared my info with him, now the kid is running laps around me.”
Skrillex had a head start in the music biz, but it he didn’t just become famous overnight. Skrillex worked hard at his craft and was prepared for an opportunity. He had his music on a flash drive ready to share with the right person at a the right time. The Roman philosopher Seneca had said, “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” Was Skrillex lucky? I suppose, but it took a lot of hard work for him to be, ‘lucky.’
Learn, practice, be different…
I really wanted to write out this whole segment/response because it’s really the highlight of this first hour. Deadmau5 completely hits the nail on the head encouraging people to do their own thing and find their own sound:
“Accumulating like a fucking sponge…That’s so important… to just take in information that’s important. not watching tutorials on, ‘how to make phat beats yo,’ and fucking watch…shitty fucking EDM artist.. on some fucking future music about ‘here’s how I put together a beat’….No fuck that, no you gotta do that shit. That’s how you learn, that how you make… you, you know what I mean? Not you some fucking clone…the clone of a clone… that’s really important — that’s something I can hear a fucking mile away especially when I’m out scouting, like who do I want on my label ya know? and same goes for everyone else.”
Plain and simple from a man with his own label. He explicitly states that everyone should strive to not be a musical clone of the other big acts out there. Yes this sounds obvious, but it’s an important point to hammer in. You grow up listening to your favorite artists and appreciate the success they’ve achieved. So what do you want to do? You want to make the kind of music they do — the music you like to hear. That’s great to acquire styles and methods from others, but at the end of the day your music has to be a reflection of you. It’s important in life to be your own person, it really is, and I’m glad this was a very direct message. Stand out, because the people that can help you succeed – the people that can bring you into the big leagues – they know fakes and copies when they hear it. Opportunities present themselves in many different ways, but it’s always reassuring to truly know that people who can change your life are out there looking for something different. They want your music to be a reflection of you and not someone else they’ve already heard.
Wanting Something More…
“I worked in a cannery fuckin’ peeling peaches and pears…which I will never eat to this day, I still will never eat another peach or another fucking pear. Every time I smell one, see one or whatever it drives me fucking bonkers because that job was horrible…I wouldn’t wish that job on fucking Garrix dude, it was bad.”
Talk about your roots…. Deadmau5 worked in a canning factory before he made it. He absolutely hated every second of this job and he used that loathing to push himself towards something more, scraping together enough money to get his own computer. Deadmau5 wanted something more and was willing to do what he could to make some changes in his life. If you wake up and you’re not happy with your current situation, use that as fuel to move towards something else. This is a good rule to follow in life as well; if you’re unhappy with something, maybe it’s time for a change.
Ready to Launch…
“I didn’t churn out a fucking tune in the first…6 years of my like… kinda hanging out and learning electronic music.”
Success takes time, a little bit of luck, and a whole lot of effort. Deadmau5 didn’t become famous overnight. This is something important to drive home. Yes there are young producers that are achieving big success, but that doesn’t happen to everyone. More than likely you will not create a world-changing song that will move mountains in your first go. Some people get lucky, some people are naturals, but for the rest there is so much work that has to go into your craft. Many of you may be pleasantly surprised while watching this Q&A. Deadmau5 is a very passionate speaker when he wants to be, and I recommend giving this a listen.
In closing:
“You’re not going to fucking get there, well I wasn’t at the time…because they didn’t have Fruity Loops and Wood Block samples…right? So… had to work at it… unfortunately“
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Watch the Q&A with the links below: