Author: Jake Archer

The next guest to add to our Frequent Player Guest Mix series is Muxxa, French DJ and Radio Animator on ‘Le Mouv’.

Whilst creating the mix for Frequent Players, we managed to sit down with Muxxa and discovering how he got into the world of Djing and radio presenting.

Footpatrol: MUXXA merci de passer un peu de temps avec nous, est-ce que tu peux te présenter pour ceux qui ne te connaissent pas ? 

MUXXA: Alors il y a beaucoup de choses ahah. Pour faire très rapidement, Muxxa, DJ et animateur radio, je les mets vraiment au même plan parce que c’est deux activités que j’exerce on va dire à 50/50. Donc animateur radio sur Mouv’, radio hip hop du service public parce que faisant partie du groupe Radio France. C’est une radio que j’ai intégrée en 2015 à ses débuts, en tant qu’animateur uniquement, et très vite ils ont voulu intégrer des DJ et voyant que j’en connaissais beaucoup et que je l’étais moi-même depuis la fin des années 90, 97 exactement, ils m’ont proposé d’être celui qui reçoit les DJ et d’intégrer du mix à mes émissions. Donc DJ, animateur radio, un peu producteur aussi, je fais un petit peu de son de temps en temps quand j’ai le temps. D’ailleurs je viens de sortir un remix de Roddy Rich – The Box, qui est dispo sur mon SoundCloud.

FP: Est-ce que tu souviens de ce qui t’a donné envie de devenir DJ ? 

MUXXA: Ohh bah ouais ouais : Cut Killer comme nous tous quoi ! J’avais un pote qui achetait les CD de Hip Hop Soul Party, parce que je ne savais pas que Cut Killer faisait des mixtapes au tout début. Et très vite je me suis aperçu que le gars avait une émission sur Radio Nova le vendredi soir et donc qu’on pouvait l’écouter à la radio. J’écoutais déjà beaucoup de rap, mais tout ça m’a donné envie, je me suis dit c’est cool parce que la musique que t’aimes tu vas pouvoir la jouer toi-même en fait, la mixer, je trouvais ça mortel. Puis Cut Killer nous a tous foutu une baffe quand on l’a vu dans “la Haine”, c’est un peu bateau ce que je dis parce tout le monde dit ça mais c’est la vérité. Donc Cut Killer et puis Abdel et toutes les émissions de radio où on pouvait écouter des DJ, sur Beur FM, Fréquence Paris Pluriel, Générations… donc c’est tous ces gars là. 

Au tout début, je ne savais même pas ce qu’était une MK2 (NDLR : platine de référence pour les DJ) et donc comme tout DJ débutant, je me suis planté. Pour mon premier set-up j’avais racheté une platine de salon à mon voisin et une table de mixage pas du tout adaptée pour scratcher, et de l’autre côté j’avais un discman. Très vite tu comprends que t’as pas le bon matériel, mais que pour acheter le bon, il va falloir économiser. Quand j’ai vu que j’étais à fond dedans, que je commençais à acheter des disques et que ça me plaisait vraiment, mais que j’étais réellement limité par mon matos, j’ai mis tout ce que j’ai gagné pendant tout un été dans 2 MKII et une table Gemini à l’époque. Et tu vois les MK2 je les ai toujours, plus de 20 ans après, donc on peut estimer que c’était un bon investissement. En plus je les avais eues moins chère grâce à la tante d’un pote qui avait une réduction chez Darty. Quand elle a vu que je mettais une fortune dans ces trucs, elle n’a pas trop compris. Mais j’ai revu cette dame il n’y a pas longtemps et je lui ai rappelé que c’était grâce à elle que j’avais acheté mes premières platines et donc, en quelque sorte, que je fais ce métier aujourd’hui. Elle ne s’en souvenait pas, mais elle était touchée. 

FP: Est-ce que tu peux nous raconter un peu ton ton parcours justement de tes débuts en 97 à ton arrivée chez mouv ? 

MUXXA: J’ai longtemps été “bedroom DJ” comme on dit, parce qu’à l’époque on avait des modèles qui étaient tellement forts par rapport à notre niveau à nous. Cut killer, Abdel , tous ces gars là étaient bien trop loin ! Déjà ils avaient plein de sons ! Il faut savoir qu’à l’époque quand tu voulais du son, il fallait acheter le disque ou recevoir des promos. Mais quand t’étais pas connu ça n’existait pas. En plus ils allaient chercher toutes les nouveautés aux États-Unis, on ne pouvait pas faire ça nous. C’est donc longtemps resté une passion sans avoir la prétention d’aller jouer dans les clubs. Puis au fur et à mesure, dans mon lycée, on a commencé à savoir que j’avais des platines et des disques, donc on m’a proposé des anniversaires, des house parties, puis des plans club, mais ça restait un loisir. J’ai longtemps été dans le flou sur ce que je voulais faire dans la vie. J’ai fait des études en rapport avec le commerce, mais j’avais pas du tout envie d’en faire mon métier. Au retour de quelques mois à Londres, pour parfaire mon anglais, je me suis dit que je voulais faire un métier qui me plaise vraiment. Et ce qui me plaisait vraiment, c’était le son, la musique. J’ai donc fait une école qui forme aux métiers du son. J’ai découvert la radio durant un stage chez Radio Latina et en particulier le métier de producteur. Le producteur radio c’est celui qui fait l’habillage de la radio, les jingles, la promo, tout ce que t’entends entre la musique en gros. Donc à la fin de ma formation j’ai décidé de me tourner vers la radio et d’essayer de faire ce métier de producteur qui me plaisait bien. J’ai réussi à intégrer radio FG à Paris, une radio nationale mais avec un petit réseau. C’est une radio qui cartonnait à l’époque parce qu’ils mélangeaient à la fois électro et hip hop, il y avait plein de DJ qui étaient résidents, c’est comme ça en fait que j’en ai croisé beaucoup. J’arrive en 2005 et en 2011-2012, j’en avais marre de faire que de la prod, du coup  j’ai demandé à mon boss de faire autre chose. il m’a proposé de faire une démo animation. Il a kiffé la démo que j’ai faite et il m’a mis sur le week-end, enregistré. La semaine je faisais la prod, le week-end je faisais le samedi après-midi et le dimanche après-midi. La saison d’après comme ça se passait bien il m’a passé la semaine. Puis j’ai continué à faire les deux, donc un peu de production et une émission par jour. J’ai fait 3 saisons comme ça. Après 10 ans là-bas j’ai commencé à regarder un peu ce qui se faisait ailleurs et c’est là qu’est arrivé le projet Mouv’. Comme je le disais tout à l’heure, Mouv’ est la radio jeune du service public, de Radio France, qui cherchait justement à faire peau neuve pour mieux coller à sa mission de parler aux jeunes. Mon profil les a intéressés et ils ont eu envie de me confier le soir. J’ai donc commencé en février 2015 quand on a démarré le nouveau format. Depuis ça a un peu évolué, on a rajouté pas mal de trucs et puis on développe aussi beaucoup le digital.

FP: Aujourd’hui tu es donc à la fois DJ résident et animateur d’une émission quotidienne, ça ressemble à quoi une journée type ?

MUXXA: J’ai une émission qui commence à 13h et qui dure 3h. Là-dessus, j’ai 30 minutes de mix pour démarrer et qui s’appelle le warm up mix. Je le fais avec l’aide des auditeurs, je leur demande de m’envoyer leurs requests par Snapchat, j’ai un technicien en régie qui enregistre les messages qui arrivent et je viens à la moitié du mix, je fais une sélection des messages que j’ai envie de passer à l’antenne, je prends leur message et je leur balance le morceau qu’ils m’ont demandé. Donc le mix ne me demande pas trop de préparation.

MUXXA: Après pour le reste de la tranche, ça reste une émission musicale avec une programmation déjà établie par le programmateur. Je vais donc articuler les speaks que je vais faire en fonction : par exemple si c’est un morceau de Hatik je vais m’arranger pour parler de la série “Validé” qu’il y a en ce moment. L’idée, c’est aussi de donner des news, donc c’est un petit peu de préparation. Soit je prépare de chez moi le matin, soit j’arrive à la radio vers 10h30-11h00. Je regarde un peu les news, je fais le tour des réseaux, des blogs. A côté de ça j’enregistre mon émission du soir, ou celle du vendredi soir ou encore du contenu pour le digital. 

FP: Avec ce programme quotidien plutôt chargé, t’as encore le temps et l’envie de jouer en club ?

MUXXA: J’ai le temps mais l’avantage par rapport à plein de DJ c’est que je n’ai pas la pression pour trouver des bookings dans tous les sens. J’ai une activité qui me prend beaucoup de temps et qui m’assure un salaire à la radio. Pour parler très clairement, mes revenus fixes, c’est la radio qui me les assure. Et à côté de ça, les soirées c’est du bonus. Du coup, je peux me permettre de ne pas trop me mettre la pression avec le nombre de bookings par mois que je vais faire et surtout de choisir. Je fais vraiment au feeling, je prends les soirées que je kiffe. Je fais des trucs à Paris de temps en temps mais surtout en province, j’aime bien bouger. 

Ça fait du bien d’aller en club aussi. C’est vraiment un exercice différent du mix en radio parce qu’en radio il faut imaginer les gens puisque tu ne les as pas devant toi. Tu dois imaginer que les gens à telle heure, ils sont dans leur voiture ou à telle heure ils sont chez eux et faire ton mix en fonction de ça. Dans le club c’est plus concret parce que quand les gens n’accrochent pas, tu le vois tout de suite. J’essaie de trouver le temps en tout cas pour continuer le club parce que parce que je kiffe,  je kiffe autant la radio qu’aller mixer en club. 

FP: Sur Mouv’ tu n’es pas que DJ, tu es aussi animateur comme on l’a dit plus juste avant. Tu es notamment l’animateur de #EEBSP (Elle Est Bonne Sa Paire) sur la chaine YouTube de Mouv’. Tu peux nous parler de cette émission ? 

MUXXA: Ouais exactement ! Et ça c’est encore autre chose parce que pour le coup c’est un truc qui ne passe pas du tout à la radio. C’est un projet qui fait partie de tout le contenu digital. En fait sur la chaîne YouTube, il y a, à la fois du contenu de la radio tourné en vidéo, et du contenu qui est propre au digital, que tu ne vas pas du tout trouver en radio. #EEBSP en est l’exemple c’est une émission sur la culture sneakers. Dans l’équipe des chroniqueurs on a d’ailleurs Clems de chez Footpatrol Paris. L’idée c’était de faire un programme vraiment propre à YouTube, parce qu’il n’y a pas vraiment d’intérêt à faire une émission sur les baskets en radio, si t’as pas d’images à montrer c’est un petit peu frustrant. C’est un truc qu’on a mis en place avec Arnaud qui est le directeur du web. 

J’aime bien les baskets, mais je ne suis pas un collectionneur de ouf, je ne suis pas aussi calé que les chroniqueurs, mais j’adore ça depuis des années. Donc quand on m’a proposé de le faire je me suis dis “mortel” parce que je vais pouvoir parler d’un truc que je kiffe et je vais aussi pouvoir apprendre pas mal de choses. C’est un vrai kiff d’écouter les chroniqueurs parler, parce qu’évidemment je sais de quoi on parle, mais j’en apprends à chaque émission, ça c’est vraiment cool ! On a un truc, je pense, qui balance pas mal d’humeur. Je pense qu’on a réussi à faire un truc qui parle à la fois aux passionnés et à des gens qui n’y connaissent absolument rien. C’est bien expliqué, c’est toujours un petit truc historique et puis c’est toujours fait dans la bonne humeur. On a des personnages autour de la table, on a Sega qui est cool et qui a toujours des petit coups de gueule, Clems qui apporte une vision d’insider du business et Mylène qui est plus jeune, qui apporte un peu de fraîcheur et d’innocence donc c’est plutôt cool, c’est une super expérience. 

FP: Tu l’as dit, tu aimes les baskets. Ça évoque quoi pour toi justement les sneakers ? 

MUXXA: C’est une histoire de nostalgie avant tout je crois. C’est un truc qui a démarré au collège. Ça part d’une petite frustration parce qu’au collège, je voyais des paires que je trouvais magnifiques, mais je ne pouvais pas acheter ce que je voulais. Celle qui revient pour moi c’est la Jordan 6 infrared que je voyais aux pieds de certains gars. Je me disais “putain qu’est-ce qu’elle est belle cette paire !”.  Forcément un peu plus tard quand tu commences à gagner ta vie, je ne sais pas si c’est par vengeance, tu te dis “je l’ai pas eue à l’époque, je vais l’acheter !”.  C’est pour ça que je suis vachement plus sensible aux retros. On a fait un épisode avec Thomas Giorgetti sur l’année 1990 et j’ai plein de souvenirs qui sont revenus. Tous les modèles de cette époque sont des modèles légendaires. 

FP: Si tu devais retenir ta paire préférée tu prendrais laquelle ? 

MUXXA: La Jordan 6 ! Parce que c’est celle qui a déclenché le truc. En plus à cet âge-là, t’as tendance à te fier à ce qui est à la mode, et je me souviens que plein de gens disaient que c’était moche. C’est vrai qu’à l’époque c’était spécial, c’était un ovni un peu quand c’est arrivé. Mais sans me soucier de savoir si c’était à la mode, si ça allait l’être ou pas, ça a vraiment été un coup de cœur direct quand je l’ai vue et petite frustration parce que je n’ai pas pu l’avoir à l’époque. 

FP: Pour revenir à ton job en radio, est-ce que tu as un moment qui a marqué ta carrière ? 

MUXXA: Y’en a plein, mais on va dire que les meilleurs moments pour moi je pense que c’est à Mouv’, Parce que c’est une radio qui nous donne les moyens de taffer qui nous fait confiance. Quand je suis arrivé à Mouv’, j’ai découvert le fait de pouvoir faire des interviews ce que je n’avais jamais fait avant chez FG parce qu’il n’y avait que le boss qui pouvait en faire là-bas. 

Je vais citer un très bon moment : l’interview de Pitbull.  J’ai découvert un gars tellement bon délire ! Des fois tu vois des gars qui n’ont pas une énorme carrière mais qui se la racontent. Même si je ne suis pas un grand fan de sa musique, le gars a vendu des millions de disques, a tourné dans le monde entier, mais il est tellement détente ! Il était tellement bon délire que j’ai commencé, dans l’interview, à lui apprendre des gros mots en français, lui il m’en apprenait en espagnol. Et quand il est sorti de la radio, dans l’ascenseur il disait “Nique ta race” à tout le monde parce que je lui avais appris cette expression.  L’interview est toujours sur Youtube, je vous invite à aller la regarder, c’est assez drôle. Le mec est ultra simple donc très bon moment de radio.

Un autre bon moment de radio aussi, c’est Juice WRLD, il y a un petit peu plus d’un an et demi. Il était venu pour une interview et freestyle. Je m’étais renseigné et partout où il passait il faisait des des freestyles hyper longs, chez Tim Westwood il a fait 1h non-stop sur le même instru d’Eminem. Je voulais le faire poser que sur des instrus de rap français. Son attachée de presse était ok et lui était super chaud ! Il voulait faire 30 mn, mais je lui ai suggéré de faire 15 mn mais pendant lesquelles je changerais d’instru 6-7 fois. Il n’a même pas voulu écouter les instrus avant, il m’a dit “surprend moi !”. Le gars m’a fait un freestyle incroyable ! Il venait d’avoir 20 ans, les rappeurs de maintenant qui sont dans la trap, c’est pas du tout des kickers normalement et lui, il m’a fait halluciner parce qu’il s’adaptait en 10 secondes sur chaque instru que je lui balançais alors qu’il ne les avait jamais entendues. Il avait direct une mélodie et un couplet, pas de téléphone devant lui. Il avait cette faculté là. J’ai été content d’avoir été un des rares gars à l’avoir reçu pour freestyler. La vidéo est régulièrement reprise dès qu’on parle de Juice WRLD en freestyle. C’est souvent un extrait de chez nous ou un extrait du truc qu’il a fait chez Tim Westwood ou chez Funk Master Flex qui est repris. Donc c’est cool, tu te retrouves à côté de ces gens-là et d’avoir pu vivre le truc sachant que le mec a eu une carrière express, terminée de façon tragique.

FP: Tu nous as préparé un mix, est-ce que tu peux nous en parler un petit peu ?

MUXXA: Je kiffe le R’n’B ! On n’en a pas parlé, mais j’aime bien le sucre. D’ailleurs, tous les jeudis soir, j’ai mon mix, donc en tant que résident cette fois-ci, sur Mouv de 22h à 23h. Sur ce créneau, je fais un truc R’n’B, en fait j’élargis un peu, j’appelle ça sucrerie parce que je peux partir sur des trucs un peu Naija, ou Reggaeton, mais ça reste du sucre. Et du coup j’ai décidé de faire un mix Classic R’n’B avec les morceaux que je kiffe depuis une petite vingtaine d’années, en sortant des vrais gros classiques évidents, et des trucs un peu moins connus. J’avais pas envie de partir dans un truc avec des nouveautés, bien que l’actualité soit riche, avec notamment un son de PartyNextdoor, le projet de Tory Lanez… j’avais envie de rester dans la nostalgie. 

FP: Si on veut te suivre, t’écouter, connaître ton actu.. comment on fait ?

MUXXA: Déjà, je suis à la radio tous les jours de 13h à 16h et de 22h à 23h, du lundi au vendredi. J’ai aussi une heure de mix en plus, le samedi 13h à 14h00, juste après manger pour digérer.  Pour les réseaux, Instagram principalement parce que honnêtement Facebook de moins en moins, Twitter vraiment pas et Snapchat ça me saoule. Instagram (@muxxamouv) c’est là que je poste en général toute l’actu tout ce qui se passe de mon côté. 

FP: Un mot de la fin ? 

MUXXA: Paix et amour sur tous. Vivons heureux et vivement la fin du confinement ! 

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Foopatrol: MUXXA thanks for spending some time with us. Can you introduce yourself for the people who don’t know you ? 

MUXXA: So there are many things ! haha. To make it straight, I’m Muxxa, DJ and radio host. I put both activities on the same level, it’s really 50/50 on a daily basis. So radio host on Mouv’, hip hop radio from the public service, as belonging to the Radio France group. I joined this radio in 2015, when it started, as radio host only. And very soon they wanted to include DJ’s. As they realized I knew a lot of DJ’s and was one myself since the late 90s, 97 exactly, they offered me to be the host to DJ’s and to introduce some mix in my shows. So DJ, radio host, beatmaker a bit too, I try to make some tracks when I have time. By the way I just dropped a remix to Roddy Rich’s “The Box” that’s available on my SoundCould. 

FP: Do you remember what made you want to become a DJ ? 

MUXXA: Ohh yeah sure : Cut Killer ! Like all of us !

I had a friend who used to buy the Hip Hop Soul Party CD’s, because I didn’t know Cut Killer was doing mixtapes at the beginning. But very soon, I realized the guy had a show on Radio Nova on Friday nights. I was already listening to a lot of rap, but this made me want to do the same, I felt like it was very cool to play with the music you love, to mix it. Then I took a blast when I saw Cut Killer in the movie “la Haine” !  It might sound too easy, because everyboy says that, but it’s the truth ! 

So Cut Killer first and then Abdel and all the radio shows you could listen to on Beur FM, Fréquence Paris Pluriel, Générations… so all these guys.  

At the very beginning, I didn’t even know what was an MK2 (editor’s note : the reference turntable for DJ’s), so like any wannabe DJ, I messed up. For my first set-up I bought a living-room turntable from a neighbor and a mixer which was absolutely not made for scratching, and on the other side I had a discman. Very soon you realize you don’t have the right hardware, but to get the right one, you’ll have to save for a long time ! When it became obvious for me that I was deeply into it, buying records and loving it, but that I was constrained by my hardware, I put all my summer job money in two MK2 and a Gemini mixer. And I still have these MK2, more than 20 years later, so I guess it was a good investment. In addition, I had them slightly cheaper thanks to a friend’s aunt who had a discount at Darty. When she saw I spent mad money in these stuffs, she didn’t get it. But I met this woman again about a year ago and I reminded her that I bought my first turntables thanks to her, so it was somehow her who made me have this career. She didn’t remember it, but she was moved. 

FP: Can you tell us your story, from your beginnings in 97 to the moment you joined Mouv ? 

MUXXA: I’ve long been a bedroom DJ, because at the time, our models were way too good compared to us. Cut killer, Abdel , all these guys, were too far ahead ! First of all, they had so many records ! You need to know that, back in these days, if you wanted a track, you had to buy the record or receive the promo one. But when you were not famous, you could only dream about it. In addition, they went to the USA to pick the latest news, we couldn’t do it. So it was just a passion for a long time, not even aspiring to go to play in clubs. But then slowly, in my high school, people started to know I had some turntables and records, so I got birthday gigs offers, house parties, and then club opportunities, but it still was a hobby. For a long time, I had no idea what I wanted to do as a living. I made trade studies, but I didn’t want to work in that area. So, back from a few months in London to improve my English, I decided to have a job that I’d really enjoy. And what I really enjoyed was music. So I decided to attend a school that trains you to jobs in the field of sound. 

I discovered the radio during an internship at Radio Latina, and most specifically the job of producer. In radio, the producer is the guy who makes the covering of the radio, the jingles, the promo, roughly everything you can hear between the music. At the end of my training, I decided to move towards the radio and to try that job of producer that I really liked. I managed to join Radio FG in Paris, a national radio but with a small network. This radio was taking off at the time, because they mixed both Electro and Hip Hop. There were many resident DJ’s, this is how I met so many of them. I joined in 2005 and in 2011-2012, I was getting tired of doing production only, so I asked my boss to do something else. He suggested me to do a hosting demo. He loved it and put me on the week-ends as a host, with a recorded show. During the week, I did production and I hosted on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. The next season, as it all went well, my boss put me on the week. So I kept doing both production and hosting, with a daily show. It was like that for 3 years. After 10 years at Radio FG, I started looking at what was happening elsewhere and this is the moment the Mouv’ project popped up. Like I said earlier, Mouv’ is the “youth radio” from Radio France, which was trying to renew itself to fit better to its mission : speak to the youth. They were interested by my profile and decided to assign me on the evenings. So I started in 2015 and it has evolved since then, we have added quite a few things and we develop the digital a lot now.  

FP: Today, you’re both a DJ and radio host, what does a typical day look like for you ? 

MUXXA: I have a show that starts at 1 pm and lasts 3 hours. On it, I have 30 mn of mix at the beginning which is called the warm up mix. I do it with the help of our auditors , I ask them to send their request on Snapchat, I have a tech in the control room who records the incoming messages, and at the half of the mix, I select the messages that I liked the most and play the requested track. So this doesn’t require too much preparation. 

For the rest of the show, it’s a musical program, with a tracklist previously established by the programmer. So i will articulate my speaks around the tracklist : for example if there is a track from Hatik, I will talk about the series “Validé” (editor’s note : Hatik is French rapper and comedian who has the lead role in a new series called “Validé”). The idea is also to talk about news, so it requires some preparation. Either I do it from home in the morning, either I arrive at the radio around 10.30-11.00 am. I watch the news, browse on socials and blogs. Besides that, I record my evening show, or the Friday night one, or even some digital content.  

FP: With such a heavy daily program, do you still have time to play in clubs ? 

MUXXA: I have the time, but the good thing is I don’t have any pressure about the number of bookings I have, unlike most DJ’s. My daily job is time consuming and brings me my pay check. Besides that, parties, are extras. Then it’s much easier for me, I have no pressure and have the luxury to be able to choose my bookings. I do it like I feel, I accept bookings that I’m excited about. I do some things in Paris sometimes, but I mostly do it in provinces., I like to travel a bit. 

It feels good to go in the club too. It’s very different from mixing at the radio. In radio you need to imagine the people as they’re not in front of you. You have to project yourself : at this time of the day people are in their car, or at that time, they’re home, and adapt your mix according. In the club, it’s more concrete, because if people are not feeling your set, you see it immediately. I try to find the time to keep on playing in the club, because I love it ! I love it as much as being at the radio. 

FP: On Mouv’ you’re not only a DJ, you’re also a host, like we said earlier. You are notably the host of the #EEBSP show on the Mouv’s YouTube channel. Can you tell us more about it ? 

MUXXA: Absolutely ! This is another different thing as it’s not aired on the radio at all. It’s a project that is part of the digital content. Actually on the YouTube channel, there is both content from the radio shot in video, and content which is digital only. #EEBSP is the perfect example. It’s a talk show about sneakers culture. By the way, Clems from Footpatrol Paris is one of the columnists. The idea was to make a YouTube program, as it wouldn’t really make sense to speak about sneakers on radio, because if you don’t show anything it’s frustrating. This is something that we set up with Arnaud who’s the web manager of Mouv’. 

I love sneakers, but I’m not a crazy collector, I don’t know as much as the columnists, but I’ve loved it for years. So when I was offered to do this, I was immediately down for it, because I knew I would be able to speak about something that I love but also to learn many things. It’s so good to listen to the columnists, because even though I know what we’re talking about, I learn more with every show, and this is very cool ! I think we found the right tone, with lots of mood in it. I think we managed to talk to both connoisseurs and people who are absolutely not familiar with this culture. It’s well explained, there is always a cultural/historical aspect and it’s always filled with very good mood. We have real characters around the table, we have Sega who’s cool and always has something to yell about, Clems who brings a business insider point of view and Mylène who’s younger and brings some freshness and innocence, so it all works very well. It’s a great experience ! 

FP: You said it, you love sneakers. What does it raise for you ? 

MUXXA: I think it’s first and foremost a matter of nostalgia. It’s something that started in middle school. It came from a small frustration, because at the time, I could see pairs that were amazing but I couldn’t buy whatever I wanted. The one that stands out for me is the Air Jordan 6 infrared. When I saw it on some guy’s feet, I was like “damn these are so dope !”.  Necessarily, when you start earning your own money, I don’t know if it’s by revenge, but you’re like “I couldn’t have it back then, I’ma get it now !”.  This is the reason I’m way more sensitive to retros. We made an episode of #EEBSP with Thomas Giorgetti as special guest about the year 1990 and a lot of souvenirs came back. Models from this era are legendary.

FP: If you had to pick your favorite pair, which one would it be ? 

MUXXA: The Air Jordan 6 ! Because this is the one that started it all. In addition, at this age, you tend to follow what’s fashionable, and I remember lots of people were saying it was ugly. It’s true that, back then, it was special, a kind of UFO when it was released. But not paying attention to know whether it was fashionable, if it was to be fashionable or not, it was really love at first sight when I saw it. And of course some frustration as I couldn’t have it back then. 

FP: Back to your job at the radio, what was the best moment in your career ? 

MUXXA: There are plenty of them. But the best ones were definitely at Mouv’ as it’s a radio that gives us the means to work well and trusts us. When I arrived at Mouv’, I discovered the fact of being able to do interviews, as I had never done it at FG, only the boss did interviews over there. 

A very good moment : the Pitbull interview. I discovered such a good guy ! Sometimes you meet people who didn’t have a huge career, but they act like they’re divas. Even if I’m not a fan of his music, Pitbull has sold millions of records, has toured in the whole world, but he’s so nice and relaxed ! ! He was so much fun that, during the interview, I started teaching him French swear words and he was teaching me some in Spanish. Coming out if the radio, in the escalator he was saying  “Nique ta race” (“F*** you”, roughly) to everybody as it was something that I just taught him, and he was laughing out very loud. The interview is still on Youtube, you should go and check it, it’s very funny. This guys was very humble, so it was a good radio moment. 

Another good moment was with Juice WRLD, about a year and a half ago. He came for an interview and freestyle. I found out that everywhere he went, he made very long freestyles. With Tim Westwood, he made an hour straight on the same Eminem beat. I wanted him to rap on French rap beats. His press spokesperson was ok and he was hyped ! He wanted to do 30 mn, but I suggested him to do only 15 mn, but during that time I’d switch the beats 6-7 times. He didn’t even want to listen to the beats before, he told me “surprise me !”. The man did an incredible freestyle ! He just turned 20, and you know rappers from his generation, who are into trap music, are usually not great kickers, but he made me hallucinate ! He adapted to every track in a few seconds even though he never heard them. He had a melody and some bars right away, with no phone in front of him. He had that talent. I’m happy I’ve been one of the few to have him over for a freestyle. The video is often reposted when it comes to talk about  Juice WRLD in freestyle. It’s often an extract from our show, or from Tim Westwood’s  or Funk Master Flex’s which is used. It’s great to be amongst these legends and to have lived this moment, as he had a very short career which ended up tragically. 

FP: You prepared a mix for us, can you tell us about it ?

MUXXA: I love R’n’B ! We didn’t talk about it, but I love sugar. By the way, every Thursday night, I have a show, as resident this time, on Mouv’ from 10 to 11 pm. On that slot, I play R’n’B, but also open a bit. I called it sweets because I can go on some Naija or Reggaeton vibes, but it still is sugar. 

So I decided to do a Classic R’n’B mix with the tracks I’ve loved for 20 years, with huge classics but also some lesser known tracks. I didn’t want to play some news, even though some good things just came out, like the new PartyNextdoor, or the latest Tory Lanez project… I wanted to stay with nostalgia

FP: If we want to follow you, listen to your shows or tracks, know your agenda… How do we do ? 

MUXXA: First of all, I’m on the radio everyday from 1 to 4 pm and from 10 to 11 pm, from Monday to Friday. I also have an hour of mix on Saturdays, from 1 to 2 pm, right after lunch to digest. 

For socials, Instagram mainly because to be honest, Facebook less and less, Twitter really not and Snapchat bores me. Instagram (@muxxamouv) is where I post everything that happens on my end. 

FP: Any last word ? 

MUXXA: Peace and love on everybody. Let’s live happy and look forward the end of the lockdown ! 

Continuing with our in-depth ‘Concept to Reality’ series, we’d like to introduce you to Dean and Gabriella who head up the creative agency, Noi Due Creative.

Noi Due, which also means ‘Us Two’ which relates back to both Dean and Gabriella have managed to create a solid foundation of collaborations with brands by bringing a high level of engagement to their work.

Take a look below at some of their past work and when we digitally caught up with them to hear their journey so far and an in-depth approach to how they work.

Footpatrol: Hey Dean, how are you? Thank you for taking the time to talk to us today! For our audience can you give them a little insight into yourself and what it is you do?

Dean: Not a problem, thanks for having us. So, my name is Dean Tymon, myself and my partner Gabriella Piccolo founded Noi Due Creative which translates to ‘Us Two’ in italian. This relates to me and Gabriella starting the company together and also the alliance between us ‘the agency’ and you ‘the client’. Together we cover each element of the creative process, conceptualise, art direction, photography, styling, video, post production and implement 360 degree asset coverage.  

Founded in 2019 we are a relatively new agency but we have already worked on a wide range of projects with clients such as Maison Valentino – 7L Systems – The Odolls – Max George – Android Homme – Clints and collaborated with Tangent Design on multiple campaigns for Reebok & Merrell. 

FP: How did you go about starting the agency? And what difficulties did you have at the beginning?

Dean: Starting the agency was both the toughest yet most rewarding decision we have ever made, both working together in a creative studio we wanted freedom and ownership. In doing so there was a fear of both leaving a good secure job to start our own company with no investment. We had worked on many shoots together and knew that we could do it so after many talks we both decided to just go for it. I am a firm believer that if you never take that jump you will always regret it. 

Being based in Manchester we are seeing a lot of big brands moving up north which gives huge opportunities for collaborations. It’s very cliche but when starting out in any form of business it’s all about who you know, everyone needs that someone to open a door for that first opportunity to prove yourself. When you get that opportunity it’s about standing out with a unique selling point and delivering. Difficulties we have had is no investment to help us grow, but we don’t let that hold us back and we work very hard to reach out to new potential clients. 

FP : What were you doing prior? Was it a creative job? Freelance? Or something completely different? 

Dean: Both myself & Gabriella have been immersed in the creative industry throughout our careers. 

I was studying Advertisement Design in university, I made the decision to leave mid way through my first year and jumped straight into work with a designer role at a sports company, this was a huge learning curve for me, I was quickly told to forget the creative process I developed at University as speed to market and consumer targeting were crucial. In this role I was jack of all trades, marketing, web & print design, product & marketing photography. This gave me valuable understanding and experience in each element to the creative process. 

Myself and Tom Byram started a sneaker event in Manchester called 6ACRE, we put on the first sneaker event in Manchester, 3 events in total and built an amazing community of people, this was just as Manchester was starting to be recognised as a young talented creative city, most of the people involved and attended our event are now doing some amazing things within the city, it’s pretty special to be part of that era. 

I joined size? In 2012, In a memorable 7 years I went on to become Creative Lead, where I curated and produced footwear campaigns, for Nike, adidas, Puma, Reebok, Footpatrol. Marketing projects such as ‘size? Captures’. Designed and released the Puma R698 Sahara and traveled all over the world to places like Morocco, Iceland, Paris, Copenhagen & Los Angeles. Working on these projects in the JD creative studio alongside Gabriella gave us the foundation we needed to go out alone. 

Gabriella: I have also always been involved in the Creative Industry, from studying Fashion Design & Development at London College of Fashion I was always exposed to creative environments. Throughout my time at UAL I have worked with some amazing brands like McQ Alexander McQueen, Felicity Brown, Twenty8Twelve, L’Wren Scott & Courtney Love. After LCF I undertook creative roles at & Other Stories and Topshop, then decided to move back up to Manchester where I eventually took a job at JD Sports Creative Studio. In my time there I was a Stylist for The Hip Store amongst other fascias, here was where I met Dean so I guess the rest is history.   

FP: What we would like to know is how you get from concept to reality. Would you be able to choose ONE project that you have worked on and summarise into 5 steps the process from the client’s initial email to what the consumer sees?

Dean: The briefs and projects we receive are massively different due to time scale but all follow a certain structure.

One. The Brief – When receiving the brief me and Gabriella have a discussion about brand and what we can bring to the campaign, we divide the brief into four parts… product, concept, consumer and deliverables. 

Two. The Concept – This is where the dynamic of myself & Gabriella works really well, naturally we have very different creative processes. Gabriella’s mind will shoot off at 100mph straight towards amazing ideas, concepts, locations, models, styling. In some cases she has already nailed the idea within 10 minutes of getting the brief. I have a different outlook, I like to concentrate on how the ideas are elevated into a campaign where product and concept is going to take the customer on a journey, creating levels to the campaign deliverables within multiple platforms. 

Three. The Deck – We bring to the table all the ideas and discuss what best fits the product and budget, putting together a Creative Deck Part 1, this will include three initial concepts, each with its own unique idea and thought process. 

Four. The Conversation – Having completed Creative Deck Part 1 we like to sit with the client and talk through our concept deck, it’s very important for this to be a relaxed open conversation rather than a formal presentation, therefore the client can get involved and discuss any matters needed making it more of a collaboration. At the end of this chat we will have targeted one of the three concepts. We then go away and work on the complete Creative Deck Part 2 focusing on the finalised concept till both parties are happy. After this we get to work on creating and carrying out the shoot!

Five. The Delivery – After the shoot has taken place, the selection process begins, this is by far the most difficult part, at the end of each day we like to get the shots selected down to at least 10%. This will be passed over to the client for finals. The assets will then be retouched and treated ready for the designer to create the crops for print, social, emails, website. Whether it’s directing, shooting, styling, producing a campaign from start to finish is such a rewarding feeling. 

FP: Would you have any advice that you could share with our readers? 

Dean: Advise, one thing we should all aim toward is building  “A creative community, not a competition”  If someone’s struggling, help them out… Whether it’s an ID on a location, advise on a treatment, how to create a certain style. You never know, one day you might need someone to return the favour. 

And also, support people and their ventures, don’t be that guy hating on someone because they’re doing something good. It could be something as small as a shoutout on social media, showing some appreciation. The power of social circles, you never know who you could connect them with. 

FP: How you are coping with the current lockdown. Is there anything particular that’s keeping you going?

Dean: Lockdown is tough, When leaving my job to start a creative agency a global pandemic was not in the list of pro’s and con’s. For a new business it’s very difficult but we are using this time to prepare and be ready for when lockdown is lifted. Be proactive during this time, we are currently working on a second business ‘io e te’ a home, lifestyle and fashion concept brand. 

I have been finding a lot of peace in running and being in contact with friends and family, and Gabriella has taken up baking cookies amongst other things! We are all in a tragic situation but I do think there is some purity to come from all this. 

And finally as it was trainers that brought all us together originally – what would you say is your staple go to for the following:

Working out – Nike Flyknit Trainer Volt & Nike Mayfly Woven OG.

Casual every day – Converse Chuck 70s Parchment & Reebok Club C.

Impressing someone – Dr Martens x Undercover 1461 Beige.

Staying at home – TNF Nuptse Mule Slippers or Merrell Jungle Mock.

Thank you, stay safe!

#TEAMFP

Paying homage to an icon, to an OG, Jordan Brand are back with a new iteration of their iconic Air Jordan I High silhouette that pays tribute to the OG ‘Black Royal’ Colourway. This latest iteration known as ‘White Royal’, brings a slightly more bright take on that OG with white leather on the side panel which sits beneath the contrasting black swoosh.

To enter the ONLINE raffle (UK Applicants only), CLICK HERE!

To enter, you’re required to sign up via the above form, this WON’T be available in-store to sign up on. 

Online raffle winners will receive a special code in which they’ll have a limited time to purchase their raffle win via a unique link. The raffle is limited to one entry per household! Multiple entries will be cancelled!

To end the week, we bring you our next Frequent Players Guest Mix thanks to none other than Jyoty. Originally born in Amsterdam, Jyoty now resides in the big smoke where over the last few years, Jyoty has managed to establish herself as the voice of Saturday mornings over on Rinse FM through her unique music selections and skills as an interviewer.

Continuing to push her Rinse FM show by discovering mountains of new music and further building connections with artists, Jyoty has now taken to the decks to create 008 in our Frequent Players Guest Mix series, take a listen below!

Footpatrol: Hey Jyoty, how are you? Thank you for getting involved in Frequent Players and providing us with a special guest mix! For some of the listeners who are not familiar with yourself are you able to give them a little insight into who you are and what you do?

Jyoty: Hey guys, thanks for asking me.. Very honoured! My name is Jyoty (for people who ask what my real name is.. It really is Jyoty haha), born and raised in Amsterdam and moved to London about 7 ½ years ago. 

Most people will know me for my weekly Rinse FM show for the last 4 years, but I’m actually a creative producer at LOUD (within Mixcloud). I also DJ and am an editor of The Move magazine.

FP: Where did your passion for music originate from and did you always know you wanted to make it your work? 

Jyoty: I’m just a fan in every sense of the word. I’m obsessed with listening to music at home, when I work out, I need to attend at least 1 gig a week, I love talking about it, seeing how it’s made, listening to people talk about how it’s made, the stories behind it etc. etc.

I definitely never wanted to ‘work’ in music and even 2 years ago would have told you that it’s just a hobby. I still kind of feel like a fraud because it feels surreal to me most of the time.

I actually always wanted to go into politics! So, I did my BA in Political Science, came to London to do my MA and went to work for Labour Party after that – hah. 

FP: I think I first met you with some friends a few years back when you were hosting a Boiler Room show for D.R.A.M which also included Tiffany Calver’s Boiler Room debut. Please can you shed some light into your Boiler Room story from managing the doors, hosting events to making your on-air debut. How did that feel? When you played Meleka – Go has to be one of my favourite moments! 

Jyoty: Aahh man – the good old days! I feel like I actually met you way before that, when I was still doing the guest list haha.

So basically, the story is that I was the door girl at The Nest (one of the best clubs in London around 2012) and could be found there every single weekend for 3 years straight. Because the lineups at The Nest were so diverse and forward thinking, most of the industry people, cool kids and music fans who were onto an act early on, used to come through that door and come through me.

Skinny was one of those people and one day he hit me up and said ‘hey we need someone to do the door for Boiler Room’. At that time I was literally living off of my door money so of course I was down.. What’s another evening outside of a club? 

I did that for them for all the London events for quite some time and in the meantime started hosting my Rinse Fm show. My show got bigger and bigger and I guess the people in the BR office took notice. But it wasn’t until Amanda Maxwell and Skinny actually internally pushed for me to host, that I actually got asked to do so and that D.R.A.M. event was the first one! This led to more London events and even a few in Amsterdam and New Delhi. 

To then make my debut on those notorious decks last summer and for my favourite time of year (carnival) was actually unreal. Especially cause I’ve only been DJ’ing for two years so I was so nervous and almost dreading it. It felt too soon, and I felt like I wasn’t worthy of such a big platform, but the response has been absolutely insane, so I’m forever grateful. Shoutout my brother Ahad who put me on the bill!

FP: It must have been amazing to make your debut in London surrounded by friends and family, but you’ve also travelled the world DJing shows and festivals all over! Do you have a favourite place outside of London where you have played?  

Jyoty: Yeah I’m a really lucky girl man. Last year I got to DJ around 5 continents and I am forever grateful for that. Hmmm.. this is a really tough one because I think my manager and I really know how to pick what bookings requests to say ‘yes’ to and that always leads to the best night/experience ever.

Just off the top of my head I’d say:

–  this tiny bar called Yours Truly in Cape Town (this was supposed to be the set after I did my ‘main gig’ and randomly turned into a party that spilled into the street and I made so many friends LOL)

– Peach in Glasgow (wildest crowd, best promoters and littest party of last year)

– Spicy Riddim for SaturdaySelects in Kuala Lumpur (I got to play b2b with my brother Jael from the Netherlands, we kept on playing until the spot basically got shut down and then continued the night/morning until about 9 AM)

I do have to say that Barcelona gets an honourable mention, for some reason that city really messes with me and shows me so much love, it’s nuts. 

FP: Alongside the festivals and clubs, you also have your residency show on Rinse FM where you have had some of the biggest artists from around the world on the show. Do you have a favourite moment from all the guest appearances?

Jyoty: Aahh man this one is so hard because when I look at the names I’ve had on my show over the last four years, I start laughing. Like who let me do this?! 

If I could pick one from the very early shows it HAS to be The Pharcyde. I cried that evening because these guys and their music helped me through some very tough teenage years. I couldn’t believe I was just sitting there, joking, chatting for hours and conversing like they were just my pals.

A recent one is for sure Robert Glasper. I got so nervous (which I never get for an interview) and had also pulled an all-nighter after a set in Hamburg and came straight off the plane.

He told me that ‘out of all of the interviews I’ve ever done.. That is a really great question’ and at that moment I wanted to drop my mic and tell Rinse I ain’t doing no shows no more haha!

FP: The show is also a platform to showcase new music and new talent. How do you keep up with what’s going on in the music world and constantly find this new music?

Jyoty: Oh for sure. I pride myself on the fact that I usually get artists before they blow up or play people’s music when they still only have a few hundred followers. 

I spend a lot of time searching the internet for new songs, through playlists and features on people’s projects. Usually every time I DJ in a city, I will ask the promoter to put me on to some local acts who they think I’d really like.

I deffo have to big up my listeners, they have become family of mine and send me a lot of artist suggestions via DMs and email – these are probably my favourites ‘cause my listeners (by now) really know my taste in music. 

I also tend to ask artists I interview and a lot of my friends too!

I also started doing an open mic on my IG live about 5 weeks ago and this has been great. I’ve been playing my top picks every week on my show.

FP: Showcasing new talent on radio is not the only way you strive give back and put people on though! You have hosted DJ workshops, taught women how to break into the industry, taken part in panel talks and much more. Why is passing knowledge and giving back to the community so important to you? 

Jyoty: Because people need to stop gatekeeping man!! I don’t understand this nonsense. I also don’t understand when brands or organisations want to charge money for ‘young people’ to come and listen to these ‘big names’ who all say the same uninspiring stuff anyway. 

If you really pay attention, they never really give you practical tips and always say something like ‘if you work hard enough and don’t give up, it will happen’ – no no no, it won’t. Stop lying. You were working your ass off for years but nothing kicked off until you got that major co-sign.

The game isn’t just fair like that and nothing is simply based on talent and hard work, it has a lot to do with marketing, who you know, timing, co-signs, likeability and more. 

I try to give away as many of my ‘tips and tricks’ I’ve picked up along the way because I wish someone told me when I was trying to get my foot in the door, you know? And I’ll give it to you for free.

Also, I don’t care about the next person ‘taking my spot’ because if they can, clearly I’m not good enough anymore and I need to step my game up.

FP: And when you are not doing all of the above you somehow make time for The Move Mag. A magazine you co-founded celebrating underground music, club culture, style and everything in between. Can you tell us a bit more about that?

Jyoty: I love that mag so much. We haven’t put anything out for AGES but we’re working on something cute and online during lockdown days. The Move is my mate Tom Armstrong’s baby and he brought me on-board before the first issue because he liked my passion for the industry and that I’m a bit nuts. Or a lot nuts. 

What started as a ‘what if..’ idea, quickly developed into a beautiful 100 page collector’s item and we’re now about 6 issues in. 

I love it. 

It’s print only, proper nice quality, the features are all top tier and nothing like any other (current) mags that are out there right now. We don’t do any project reviews, we don’t rate albums (because why would we when you can do that yourself) and everything is written from the perspective of ‘a lover of the culture’. 

Most of the stories we tell involving artists are about the social and cultural times their project was made in, so it’s super interesting even if you don’t mess with someone’s music. 

FP: For someone who is normally so active and on the move, what are you doing to keep active and inspired during lockdown?  

Jyoty: I work out six out of 7 days. Been doing @ciaralondon ‘s daily hour long workouts (these are no joke and I can actually see myself toning up) – I do 5 of these and once a week I do a workout in the park. Then I try to go for nice walks around London. I’m attempting to run but this… let’s not even get into that.

I’ve been reading a lot more as well, I forgot how much I loved reading. But now instead of just picking up Plato, Kant or Descartes.. I’ve also picked up novels! This is almost new territory for me so really fun.

My number one thing during lockdown is that I have fallen in love with listening to music again. I’ve been listening to music ‘for work’ for the last however many years and didn’t really ‘enjoy’ the act of listening to tunes.

But now? Oh my days, the 80s and 90s R&B and soul playlists in the shower go off! And lying down on my bed, staring at the ceiling whilst listening to old Lupe, Tribe, Nas, Mos Def has been really therapeutic for me. I feel like a teenager again and it’s bringing me pure joy and peace of mind. 

FP: What other DJs, artists are you currently listening to help with your quarantine? 

Jyoty: To name a few: Josey Rebelle, Lefto, Shy One, Dreamcast, Noia, Shaka Lion, K-Meta and Virginie!

FP: Jyoty, thank you for your time today. Please keep safe and keep inspiring others! Please can you just close out by letting people know what they can expect in the mix and where they can keep up with what you’re doing? 

Jyoty: Thank YOU! Actually, really enjoyed these specific questions! Okay, here comes the self-promo..

People know me from being either very soul-heavy on my radio show or club-heavy in my dj sets so I figured I’d give something in the middle. I never really mix hiphop continuously (’cause it’s hard) so I thought I’d give you some of the hiphop tunes that are repeat in my room during lockdown. Hope you have a few ‘oooh remember this one’ moments during the mix.

Keep up with anything I do on Instagram I’d say (I still don’t get Twitter): @jyotyWatch. (shorter) versions of my radio interviews on Youtube. Listen back to all my Rinse FM shows and a handful of other mixes on SoundCloud, My Red Light Radio, The Lot Radio and other misc radio shows and mixes on Mixcloud.

Thank you,

#TEAMFP 

This week, we’ve turned our attention to Hotel Creative. Hotel are a multi-disciplined creative agency that specialise in bringing brands ideas to life. Over the last 10 years, they’ve played a big part behind the scenes at some of our biggest launches.

To get a better understanding of how they create their work, we sat down with Hotel Creative founder Mitch to find out what goes on behind the scenes!

Footpatrol: Hey Mitch how are you? Thank you for taking the time to talk to us today! We have worked together in the past and know all about you but for our audience can you give them a little insight into yourself and what it is you do?

Mitch: Hi FP, thank you for inviting me to do this. I am well and sane (I think) hahaha. I have 3 dogs and a lovely garden, so they are helping my sanity in this weird time. I think we have technically worked together for almost 10 years now. A decade, WOW time flies…. as for me, I am the Founder and Creative Director of a company called Hotel Creative. We are a design agency based in London (but work globally) behind the scenes to help elevate brands. We are a team of Creatives, 3D Designers and Project Managers. We help brands launch products. Our aim is to create amazing experiences for consumers, hopefully entertaining them while they learn a deeper story behind the product itself.

FP: How did you go about starting the agency? And what difficulties did you have at the beginning?

Mitch: We started the agency in 2010, and to be honest Nike supported us from day one. They wanted us to do this and gave us our first job on our first day of business. It was scary how quick it all happened. The difficulties we had in the beginning were always the boring stuff; Admin, Tax, Money, DULL. We shared offices with the amazing 125 Magazine at the beginning until we could afford to get our own place. We had amazing contacts that believed in us and gave us credit to allow us to use their production and print services in our early days which massively helped us as a young agency. We have always tried to be stealth, designing and working during the day then installing behind the scenes over night when the stores are closed to make the brands and products look the best they possibly can be. (As you know when we’ve done installations in your place LATE!!!!! Haha).

FP: What were you doing prior? Was it a creative job? Freelance? Or something completely different? 

Mitch: I have always been in the creative industry since graduating from university. I went to uni in Leeds at the College of Art & Design and I studied BA (hons) in Visual Communication. I loved it. It was Graphic Design but much more concept based, the course was perfect for me and is now super relevant to what we do now. ‘Pure’ Graphic Design was changing then and closer to what it is now. I’m much more into the big idea than I am into the pure design. Obviously I want it to look great, but I care more for the big idea. I actually started out in the music industry, thinking it was going to be the dream, but I entered as that industry was changing to digital music, but it just wasn’t for me. Then I worked in the drinks industry which also wasn’t for me but I needed to survive and I learned so much. There I worked with some amazing people (one I still work with today at Hotel) we worked on some amazing brands like Coca Cola / Powerade / Bacardi-Martini and I built my portfolio over time to get my next job. Not every job will be your dream job. But while you’re there learn what you can, soak it up, as it’ll only be beneficial to you in your future career. Even it’s a bad experience you will learn so much of what not to do in the future. I found that’s a good way to learn; be scarred so you never do it again Hahaha.

FP: What we would like to know is how you get from concept to reality. Would you be able to choose ONE project that you have worked on and summarise into 5 steps the process from the client’s initial email to what the consumer sees?

Mitch: Well that’s a complicated question to answer, but I will do my best as every project is different and has its own issues and different people involved. What I would say is that it’s BEST when there’s less people involved and you are working directly with BIG decision makers. We have no issues as a team coming up with killer creative and it’s our job to justify and sell that into our clients and the brands saying that this is the best way to go or the right thing to do. We are fortunate enough to work with great people & great product, so it’s not hard to sell and most of the time it sells out fast. So we need to create a DEEPER connection. What do the consumers leave with? What do they learn? What do they see? What do they experience?

The 5 Steps: (I will try my best)

1. Understand the brief / the ask. What are we all trying to do together? Sell products of course – that’s a given. But what more do we want to give the consumer? What do we want them to leave with? Learning something new? A deeper knowledge of something old? Seeing something they have never seen before? Understanding the original inspiration behind the design and why the product was developed in the first place? Ultimately our aim is always to make a meaningful connection between brand and consumer. That is way more valuable than the profit margin on a pair of shoes.

2. Innovation: Always try to do something new. Find new inspirations, yes everything has been done 10x over, but we always try to be innovative and push outside of the obvious ‘design’ approach, be inspired by what’s been done before but flip it to something new. We take inspiration from other worlds; Cultural History, Fine Art, Cinema & TV, Music, Dance, Fashion, Performance etc. Give the consumer something new that they haven’t experienced before.

3. Design: Always to the best of your ability. Time and money are always the key factors, but manage your effort vs time and budget and you can still achieve good quality work. We also always try to over deliver; give the client something unexpected, something new and beyond the limitations of their original brief.

4. Production: Work with people that understand you, get your style and taste levels and want to be part of the journey. You can’t just design it then dump it on production to deliver. You need to work together. Otherwise who is going to do the quality control and make sure it’s up to our standards?

5. Installation: Being there and making sure that everything is up to the standard it needs to be, and always document it. Photograph it, no matter how big or small, always take pictures of the installation as you’ll never know when you need it in 10 years time. Maybe for your book, or retrospective at the V&A in 20 years time when you’re mega famous or dead. Ha

Final point / my summary: Ultimately you need to have great people around you & you can’t always do it alone. It’s great to have that ability to do so. But it’s better to question things with others, ask others for help and get them to push you further than you can go yourself. Be agile & evolve with the times. No matter what happens on the project, you have to make the output the best it can possibly be in the time and money. In these weird times now we are having to evolve the way we work. But out of situations like this comes a whole new way of thinking and level of creativity. You have seen the memes, the live DJ battles, the lip-syncs, the parodies, the dances, the empowerment videos, the challenges, the cooking classes, the workouts on social media. This is creativity out of adversity and if you look back through history that is the time when major things happen. When people need escapism, new movements start. The world moves forwards and the brands need to catch up.

FP: Would you have any advice that you could share with our readers? 

Mitch: My professional advice is always to anyone that comes to see me, why are you different? What is your unique selling point? Why should I work with you or the brand want to work with you? What can you bring to the party? We have had some great talent come through the studio and not been able to employ them or start them there and then. That doesn’t mean we didn’t love them. Don’t let that dishearten you in any way. You’ll get knock backs. I get them every day. It’s how you deal with them that counts. It’s all about timing and if there’s work at that moment in time. I like having different types of people in the studio. At Hotel, NONE are alike. Each team member has different skill sets and brings different things to the party and that’s what we want and need. As a punchline, always Be Real, Be You, everyone else is taken. If it’s right and meant to be it’ll work itself out.

My personal advice is you can never know enough people, EVER. There are so many talented people that go on to great things at different times in their lives. I have been fortunate to meet so many people at parties / launches / events through this industry. I have employed people from FP that have gone on to be fantastic designers and doing global huge campaigns and installations for Nike. The point is go out (after quarantine) see people, support launches, see the product, touch the product, smell the product. Go to your favourite stores, support them, meet the team, whatever city or country you are in. I always try and pop in the store and have a catch up with the FP gang and you never know who you’re going bump into. I do the same in other cities, whether that be in Paris, Amsterdam, NYC, LA, Shanghai wherever work takes me. I have met the most talented people just from being at stores, launches or even just shopping, we then have worked together at a later date. I bumped into Gary Warnett (R.I.P) multiple times outside FP just me and him. Talking about dogs, not even shoes. Even though now I would love to tell him I bought all of DAME DASH Nike Air Force 2’s. He’d FLIP, he loved that shoe. As do I. So underrated, compared to how big the AF1 is. 

So there, the point is there are so many talented people out there at different stages in their careers. Support each other, ‘show love’ share or ‘drop knowledge’ as Gary would say, educate and elevate people, help each other and BE NICE. I think isolation has hit home that we need each other more than just virtually.

FP: How are you coping with the current lockdown. Is there anything particular that’s keeping you going?

Mitch: Fortunately, we have been working, but my intentions are to focus on ‘betterment’ looking after my mind, my body, my team’s minds and my team’s bodies. I am working on some behind the scenes things at Hotel and taking some design & project management workshops internally with my team to inspire them with some guest speakers. We have just done our first ZOOM virtual workshop as a morale boost with @heyniek Niek Pulles from Nike at WHQ, who we’ve been working with on Nike I.S.P.A. It was so good, hilarious actually and he’s such a great personality that it was a superb morale boost for the team to create an experiment together.

Outside of work, I have my painting to finish off my Art Deco Hotel in Miami, I’m STILL painting and I have a new one to start. I’ve also been gardening lots, looking after my bonsai’s and working on installing a Japanese Garden in a section of my garden (I’ve been reading lots of Japanese Garden books). I also need to get fit (which I’m trying). I normally play football, as you know from when we have our Hotel F.C. vs Team FP matches, but instead I’ve been skipping for fitness at home. And also playing loads of Fifa. Ha (does that count as fitness?) I miss sport so much. So Fifa is filling that football void. 

FP: And finally as it was trainers that brought all us together originally – what would you say is your staple go to for the following:

Hahahahahaha yes back to footwear. I actually need to sort out my footwear archive, that is on my quarantine plan. I bought so many racks from Costco (chrome ones with the wheels) and got someone to sort out all the box styles to match on the same racks, so Nike Sportwear boxes together, Air Force 1 boxes together, Jordans, Nike Lab, etc. so there is some order!!!! But I need to log it. I want to do it Mariah Carey stylee and put polaroid’s on the outside of boxes so I can send people in to the archive to get stuff rather than always me. Ha. It’s happening trust me.

Working out – In quarantine I’ve been skipping everyday actually, I want to master it and I’ve been wearing the Nike Alpha Savage designed by the talented footwear designer Leon Witherow @Prestology I’ve also actually started running again, and I bought the new Nike ZoomX Vaporfly NEXT% and they are just insane. I am not a huge running fan unless I’m chasing a football, but these make it so much easier. The hardest part is getting hold of them. As they are SO FAST, literally, to run in and to sell out.

Casual every day – I think in quarantine / Walking the dogs / SURVIVING I’ve only been wearing Nike I.S.P.A.’s hahahahaha, how perfect is THAT. Improvise. Scavenge. Protect. Adapt: There has never been a more relevant time for this incredible collection of footwear and I think they are so amazing. We’ve actually seen some of the future things coming up from the design team @team_team_team_team_team_team Gang. They are INSANE. In the future these shoes will be so iconic, as they are so advanced. It reminds me of when the Air Max 1, 90, 93, 95, 97 originally came out. Society wasn’t ready for them, people STILL think the silver bullets 97s are too crazy in 2020. Hahahahaha. Imagine what that was like in 1997!!!!!!

Impressing someone – This changes daily, and according to who I’m trying to impress, or currently who we have on video conference calls, as we are locked in. First of all anything animal print. Haha. As you know I love leopard after my last FP interview. Currently it’s the new Nike Duck Camo 90’s (SO GOOD) we did so much great work for that launch, but wasn’t allowed to happened unfortunately due to the current climate. Oh and the Baby Pink OG 90s. Also the F&F UNDFTD 90s are on my bloody desk at work, which I regret not bringing home Ha. I LOVED the Size? 2020 95’s they are INCREDIBLE!!!! The Greedy II 95s (NEED THEM). And…. The best for last… the Baby Pink 95s (I’m in LOVE WITH THEM) God I’m on a 90 / 95 vibe currently then without noticing.

Staying at home – My house shoes are 2 pairs actually… they are Birkenstock’s, (same as Tom Breaks, as I read in his interview, haha) not just any Birkenstocks though, they are RICK OWENS Birkenstock’s. I have the black furry pair and the grey ones. The actual best Hahahahahaha, and they are also my gardening shoes. It’s hot currently. So no socks, but I am fully into warm socks and Birkenstocks when its cooler and I’m home. There you go.

Thank you, stay safe! (& sane)

#TEAMFP

For our latest Footpatrol Meets, we enlisted the help of professional photographer and proud N7 resident, Mark Whitfield. Mark has been a friend of ours at Footpatrol for as long as we can remember and has become known for his Nike Air Force 1 collection.

With over 150 to his name, in amongst this vast collection sits a number of bespoke which were created using Nike’s Bespoke programme in New York. Being a professional photographer, Mark has gone to town to create some detailed shots of these special one of ones and given a brief description for each edition.

If you were creating your own bespoke AF1, what would yours look like? Head on back to the Instagram post and let us know in the comments! We look forward to seeing what you’d choose.

Pair 1: English Gent

The ‘English Gent’ pair uses a waterproof wool. Chutney laces x stitching and pivot points, perforated glove leather interior and brown croc on the swoosh, heel and tongue tab. These took over 6 months to make as it was the first time ever that nike were asked to have a gum midsole on an ice outsole. These are the two softest runners and are really difficult to connect.
I was told that after my pair was completed, Nike made a rule that ice and gum were no longer an option together.

Pair 2: Luxury

Black and brown croc with X stitching, 3M heel tab and strip with orange pivot points, orange top eyelets and finished with cork insoles.

Pair 3: Harris Tweed

I bought this tweed from the isle of lewis in the outer hebrides and flew to NYC with it in hand and had it made into the pair you see below. I again used an ice outsole and carried across the orange pivot points with N7 embroidery on heel tab.

Pair 4: Beauty and the Beast

Some sort of scaley alien type material which i can’t recall the name of was teamed with a liberty print. The usual ice outsoles and orange N7 stitching with cork insoles and orange eyelets.

Pair 5: Darth Vader’s Slippers

Charcoal cashmere is met with one grey cashmere swoosh, leather deubres and cork insoles both with N7 lasered into them. N7 on heel and tongue tabs in orange with pivot points in red on the left shoe and green on the right. This pair also used a Pendleton wool lining which was actually called Pendleton N7. So an all cashmere shoes with a wool lining, oh and not forgetting a leather midsole.

When i made pair 5, I said that i wanted to have something on them which had never been done before, in fact i did three things which until that time had never been done on the bespoke programme.

1. leather deubres.
2. one odd swoosh.
3. pivot points in different colours on each shoe.

The different pivot points were in memory of my grandad who was a sailor, red for port and green to represent starboard. Obviously these things have been repeated and bettered since, but i was the first for those three options.

Pair 6: Digi Camo

I made them the same day i made the harris tweed pair, they are entirely made from a maharam digi camo fabric. in a way a boring pair but i just love that material. same deal as the harris tweed with black mid. ice out. orange n7 on heel. orange pivot points. cork insoles.

A famed silhouette within this on going collaboration, Nike have once again enlisted the help of Fear of God founder and designer, Jerry Lorenzo for another take on there Air Fear of God 1.

The whole point of this sneaker is to push the boundaries of what luxury sneakers will look like in the future, using today’s proven performance technology.

Often displayed in a various two tone colourways, this latest iteration is taken back to basics with a stealth like, ‘Triple Black’ Colourway allowing the various materials and chunky laces to break the darkness of the silhouette.

To enter the ONLINE raffle (UK applicants only), CLICK HERE!

To enter, you’re required to sign up via the above form, this WON’T be available in-store to sign up on. 

Online raffle winners will receive a special code in which they’ll have a limited time to purchase their raffle win via a unique link. The raffle is limited to one entry per household! Multiple entries will be cancelled!

The next guest to add to our Frequent Player Guest Mix series is none other than DJ Stresh, French champion of Red Bull 3Style and vice champion of France of DMC in 2016. Good reading and good listening!

Before taking to the decks, we manage to grab some words from Stresh.

Footpatrol: Salut DJ Stresh, merci de nous accorder un peu de ton temps. Pour ceux qui ne te connaissent pas, est-ce que tu peux te présenter ? 

DJ Stresh: Salut, je suis donc DJ Stresh, originaire de Paris, à la fois DJ et beatmaker. J’ai remporté l’édition 2016 du Red Bull 3Style en France et j’ai été vice-champion de France DMC la même année. J’ai également accompagné pas mal de rappeurs sur scène (Youssoupha, Ali, Rocé…) 

FP: Est-ce que tu te souviens du moment où tu t’es dit “je veux devenir DJ” ? 

DJ Stresh: Ouais, ça a été très jeune. J’ai commencé par la danse. Puis j’avais un ami, avec qui je m’entraînais au break, qui avait un grand frère DJ dont il me passait les cassettes. J’allais chez lui, je regardais le matos et ça a commencé à m’intéresser. Puis je me suis mis à faire, un peu comme tout le monde, des mixes avec le poste cassettes vers l’âge de 12 ans. Ensuite, j’ai vraiment appris à mixer vers 13 ans grâce à un atelier d’initiation à la MJC où j’ai appris à caler les disques. Puis il m’a fallu du temps pour acheter mon matériel parce que ça coûtait cher à l’époque ! J’ai acheté ma première platine à 15 ans, puis ensuite premier taf, t’achètes tout le reste, tu t’entraînes et c’est parti ! 

FP: Il y avait des artistes qui t’ont inspiré à l’époque et/ou qui t’inspirent aujourd’hui ? 

DJ Stresh: Bien sûr ! Et c’est souvent les mêmes aujourd’hui qu’à l’époque. Après forcément en cherchant un peu tu en découvres toujours plus. Mais j’ai grandi avec la génération Cut Killer, Q-Bert, les Skratch Piklz, les Beat Junkies, Jazzy Jeff… D’ailleurs je n’ai découvert qu’en 1993 que Jazzy Jeffe était DJ, quand est sorti “Boom, Shake the Room” avec the Fresh Prince (Will Smith), parce que je le connaissais de la série “Le Prince de Bel Air” et je pensais que c’était juste un personnage : Jazz. 

FP: Tu as plein de casquettes aujourd’hui : DJ de soirée, DJ de compétition, DJ de scène, Beatmaker, un peu Inventeur avec le développement de Phase, Responsable de DJ City France… Tu peux nous parler un peu de chaque expérience ? 

DJ Stresh: En fait quand j’étais jeune, les DJ que je regardais, les Cut Killer, les Funk Master Flex… c’était des DJ qui faisaient plein de choses à la fois : de la production, qui étaient des DJ techniques ET de soirée. C’était pas forcément une évidence à l’époque et donc de cette façon ils étaient fédérateurs. 

Je ne me suis jamais fermé de portes quant à la musique et au DJing et la pluralité des activités qui en découlent. Parce qu’en étant DJ, tu peux aussi bien mixer en soirée, mais aussi faire des productions, monter ton propre label, etc… J’ai toujours aimé la musique, donc toutes les opportunités que je peux avoir pour travailler avec la musique et faire de nouvelles choses sont toujours les bienvenues. 

FP: Il ya quand même deux casquettes qui ne sont pas de la musique directement : le développement de Phase et la gestion de DJ City France. Tu peux nous en dire plus ? 

DJ Stresh: Pour faire simple, Phase est un objet connecté qui permet aux DJ de jouer leurs vinyles sans utiliser le bras et le diamant de la platine. 

J’étais en contact avec MWM depuis un moment, puisque j’avais participé à la vidéo promo du Mix Fader. J’allais souvent dans leurs bureaux. Et l’expérience DJ de scène m’a fait prendre conscience que l’utilisation de platines vinyles en live est remplie de galères : le rumble (NDLR : vibrations dues aux basses qui impactent les platines), le matériel trop vieux et mal ou pas révisé qui fait que ça ne fonctionne pas comme tu le voudrais… En fait il y a trop de facteurs à gérer pour que ta performance soit bonne. Et je regardais les gars qui jouent sur des controlers, sur Ableton ou sur des platines CD, qui arrivent juste avec leur clé ou leur câble USB et ça fonctionne direct ! Je me disais donc que c’était dommage qu’en voulant utiliser des platines vinyles, tu sois confronté à tant de galères indépendantes de ta volonté et qui ont un véritable impact sur ta performance. On pense souvent que c’est le DJ qui s’est loupé, mais en fait c’est le matériel qui est capricieux. Et donc je me suis dit que ce serait bien d’avoir une cellule sans fil, sans bras, qui serait directement connectée à un boitier et à l’ordinateur pour le signal numérique. Et les seuls gens que je connais, qui sont capables d’avoir la technologie et l’ingénierie pour le faire c’est MWM parce qu’avec Mix fader ils avaient déjà réussi. Je leur ai donc soumis l’idée, en leur demandant si c’est faisable. Au même moment, ils développaient leur signal radio et ce sont dit “pourquoi pas !”. De là, un prototype a été fait, jusqu’à la commercialisation l’année dernière. 

FP: Et finalement d’entre toutes ces casquettes, laquelle tu préfères ? 

DJ Stresh: Ce serait celle de base, celle de DJ passionné, qui va chercher du son, mixer, s’entraîner chez lui, puisque c’est comme ça qu’on a tous commencé en fait. Et tu fais tout ça pour mixer en soirée, pour faire danser les gens et avoir une réaction. 

FP: En 2016 tu as été vice-champion de France DMC et champion de France Red Bull 3Style. Tu es allé disputer la finale monde du 3Style au Chili. Raconte nous un peu ces expériences. 

DJ Stresh: Le Red Bull 3Style est une compétition de DJ qui a 10 ans aujourd’hui, dont la première édition avait eu lieu en France et avait été remportée par un Français, Aleqs Notal, qui s’appelait Karve à l’époque. 

J’ai commencé à mixer en 1998, entre 98 et 2016, il s’est quand même passé beaucoup de temps ! J’avais déjà fait quelques battles, mais rien de national. Et je vois l’annonce sur Facebook qui dit qu’il reste encore quelques jours pour s’inscrire. Je me dis “allez tente ta chance, t’as jamais fait de battle national”. Parce qu’à l’époque t’avais la pression sur les battles, notamment le DMC, t’avais du niveau en France ! On avait des légendes : Pone, Crazy B, Netik, Trouble… des gros gros gros DJ ! Donc c’est difficile de faire sa place ! Je sais qu’on est beaucoup de DJ qui n’ont pas voulu oser. 

Du coup je me suis dit que je n’avais rien à perdre, si je gagnais tant mieux, si je ne gagnais pas, c’était toujours une bonne expérience à prendre. Mais j’étais curieux ! Donc j’ai envoyé ma démo et j’ai été sélectionné. Puis j’ai remporté la finale nationale. 

Pour la finale mondiale, c’était autre chose ! T’as le poids du pays en fait. T’as encore deux sets à préparer, un pour le tour de qualification et un pour la finale si tu passes. Manque de chance pour moi, le futur vainqueur était dans ma poule de qualification, donc je n’ai pas pu accéder à la finale. 

Mais ça reste une super expérience ! J’ai rencontré énormément de monde, ça m’a offert beaucoup d’opportunités et de visibilité pour la suite. Je suis DJ depuis longtemps, je l’ai été pour des artistes et groupes, mais cette compétition te met en avant en tant que DJ à part entière et en tant que personne. 

FP: Il y a quelque temps, tu as partagé un statut sur tes réseaux qui disait “j’ai arrêté de faire des beats/instrus, pour faire de la musique…”. Tu peux préciser le fond de ta pensée ? 

DJ Stresh: Je me répète un peu, mais j’ai été DJ pour pas mal de groupes et de rappeurs, et quand j’ai commencé à produire des beats, c’était pour les proposer à des rappeurs. Quand j’ai écrit ce statut, je voulais pointer du doigt que, souvent dans l’inconscient collectif, le beatmaker travaille pour un MC, mais il y a cet aspect “consommable” ou “support”. Ce côté “usine”, et je pense que ça parlera à pas mal de beatmakers, est parfois ingrat parce que tu n’as pas de reconnaissance. Par exemple, tu peux parfois envoyer 5-10 prods à un artiste, il peut maquetter dessus, mais à la fin son album sort et ton son n’est pas dessus, mais à aucun moment tu n’as été tenu au courant. C’est des expériences qui sont arrivées à tout le monde dans l’univers de la musique. 

Mais au-delà de ça, faire des prods, c’est l’aspect beatmaker, qui compose tout seul, et faire de la musique, c’est plus combiner le savoir des musiciens. Je suis aujourd’hui plus dans cette optique, je veux produire mais sans me limiter à ce que je sais faire. Si j’ai des musiciens autour de moi qui peuvent m’aider à arranger, produire et structurer un morceau, et inviter des artistes à collaborer, ce sera différent de la démarche habituelle, c’est ce qui fait la différence entre un beatmaker et un producteur. J’ai d’ailleurs toujours fait appel à des musiciens sur la plupart des morceaux que j’ai produit ! Ca peut être, à la fin, de la musique instrumentale comme on peut le voir ces dernières années avec par exemple Kaytranada, TroyBoi ou tout ce que fait Soulection. C’est un truc qui avait été délaissé, mais je trouve que c’est bien de vouloir faire ça pour la musique. Le message en gros est “Arrêtons d’être uniquement les faire-valoir d’autres artistes et faisons vivre notre propre musique par elle-même !”. 

FP: Est-ce que tu as des pépites actuelles à partager avec nous ? Des sons ou albums que tu aimes en ce moment. 

DJ Stresh: J’ai beaucoup aimé le dernier album de Kaytranada. J’aime bien aussi la scène des Pays-Bas : Jarreau Vandal, Jaël… 

En fait j’ai tellement de trucs en tête que j’ai du mal à te donner des noms ! Dreamville aussi j’aime beaucoup et notamment Lute et J.I.D. 

FP: On va s’éloigner un peu de la musique. Il me semble que tu n’es pas complètement insensible aux sneakers et aux fringues, je me trompe ? 

DJ Stresh: Tu ne te trompes pas du tout !! C’est même une faiblesse ! Je n’estime pas être un gros collectionneur mais clairement j’aime bien les paires et les sappes. Pour moi musique, sneakers et mode sont des éléments qui s’entre-mêlent, c’est des cultures qui ont été liées très tôt. Certains styles, certaines marques ou certains modèles de sneakers font partie de la culture, et donc de mon quotidien. J’ai été imprégné des marques que j’ai pu voir dans les années 90, comme Jordan, Ralph 

Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, FUBU, Fila… ce qui m’a amené à m’intéresser à la mode et donc à accumuler pas mal de paires et de fringues. On a tous grandit en voyant des paires qu’on voulait qu’on ne pouvait pas avoir. 

FP: Justement tu as une paire préférée ? 

DJ Stresh: Non, j’aime trop les sneakers ! Je ne peux pas t’en citer qu’une ! 

En revanche je peux te parler de la première paire que j’ai voulu très fort ! 

C’est la Air Jordan XIII. Quand elle est sortie, j’ai le souvenir que beaucoup de monde l’avait. C’était la paire qui était sur la pochette de l’album de Busta Flex. Je me demandais ce que c’était parce que ce modèle est très discret niveau branding. Il y a juste le logo sur la languette et sur la bulle holographique sur le côté. La paire était plutôt futuriste à l’époque mais je la trouvais mortelle. 

FP: Retour à la musique ! Parle nous un peu du mix que tu nous as préparé. 

DJ Stresh: Alors c’est un mix qui sort un peu de ce que j’ai l’habitude de jouer. Je mixe toujours plein de styles de musique différents, là c’est un mix influencé de vibes brésiliennes et de futur Beats… Il y a mon remix de Jamiroquai dedans aussi et plein d’autres choses. 

FP: A propos de ce remix de Jamiroquai, Jazzy Jeff l’a joué dans un live récemment après te l’avoir demandé directement. Qu’est ce que ça fait qu’un artiste que tu admires depuis que tu es très jeune te demande un morceau que tu as fait et le joue derrière ? 

DJ Stresh: C’est bizarre, c’est trop bizarre ! Je réalise même pas vraiment en fait ! C’est presque pas réél. Je pense qu’il faut le vivre pour le comprendre. 

Pour la petite histoire, il m’a demandé le track il y a un an environ et l’a joué lors de son premier live fait en quarantaine. 

Un jour, je me réveille et je vois que j’ai reçu un message de Jazzy Jeff avec la photo d’un écran d’un DJ en train de jouer mon remix à Londres, en me demandant “C’est toi qui a fait ca ? Envoie le moi stp !”. J’étais super flatté qu’il me le demande et encore plus qu’il le joue ! Parce que je me dis qu’il doit avoir tellement de musique en stock ! 

FP: Si on veut en écouter un peu plus de toi ou connaître ton actualité, comment on fait ? 

DJ Stresh: Alors pour la musique, c’est sur Soundcloud et pour tout ce qui est vidéos et actualités, c’est sur Instagram. 

FP: Le mot de la fin ? 

DJ Stresh: Je viens tout juste de sortir un nouveau remix du morceau « Talk » de Khalid, il est disponible sur mon Soundcloud. Merci à Footpatrol pour l’invitation et j’espère que le mix vous plaira.

Footpatrol: Hey DJ Stresh, thanks for taking a minute with us. Can you introduce yourself for those who don’t know you ?

DJ Stresh: Hi, I’m DJ Stresh, from Paris, I’m both DJ and beatmaker. I won the 2016 edition of the Red Bull 3Style France and I was France vice champion of the DMC the same year. I’ve also been stage DJ for some rappers (Youssoupha, Ali, Rocé…).

FP: Do you remember the moment you decided you wanted to be a DJ ? 

DJ Stresh: Yeah, I was really young. I started with break dancing. I used to train with a friend whose brother was a DJ and we listened to his tapes. I went to his crib, I was looking at his material and I started being into it. Then, like everybody, I started doing mixtapes with my cassette deck when I was about 12. I really started learning to mix when I was 13, at a community center workshop. It took me some time to buy my material because it was very expensive at the time. I bought my first turntable at 15, and then used my first pay check to buy the whole package. I practiced and it was on ! 

FP: Were there any artitsts who inspired you and/or inspire you now ? 

DJ Stresh: Of course ! And most of them are the same from the first day. When you dig a bit, you obvisouly discover some new ones. But I grew up with Cut Killer, Q-Bert, the Skratch Piklz, the Beat Junkies, Jazzy Jeff… By the way, I only discovered that Jazzy Jeff was a DJ in 93, when they released “Boom, Shake the Room” with the Fresh Prince (Will Smith). Before that I only knew him as Jazz from the “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”.

FP: Today, you have multiple roles : party DJ, competition DJ , stage DJ, Beatmaker, a bit inventor with the development of Phase, Head of DJ City France… Can you tell us more about each experience ?

DJ Stresh: Actually, when I was young, I was looking at DJ’s like Cut Killer and Funk Master Flex who were at the same time party and technical DJ’s, but also beatmakers. It was not necessarily obvious at the time, and that made them special. 

I never closed doors when it comes to music, DJind and everything that goes with it. Because as a DJ, you can play in parties, make beats, found you own label… I’ve always loved music, so any opportunity to work with music and do new things are welcome.

FP: There are two roles which are not music related only :  developing Phase and being at the head of  DJ City France. Can you telle us more ? 

DJ Stresh: To make it simple, Phase is a connected object that allows DJ’s to play with their encoded vinyls without using the arm or the styli for the turntable.

I’ve been in contact with MWM for a while, as I took part to the Mix fader promo video. I used to visit them often at their office. The  stage DJ experience made me realize that the use of turntables in live is full of hassles : the rumble (editor’s note : vibrations due to basses that impact the turntables), the material is too old and not or not correctly revised so that it doesn’t work like it should… In fact there are too many things to handle so that your performance is successful. I was watching the guys who play on controlers, or Ableton or CD turntables, who just come with their USB key or cable and it’s on ! With vinyl turntables, you can sometimes think the DJ messed up, but it’s actually the hardware which is capricious. So I thought it would be great to have a wireless cartridge, with no arm, that would be directly connected to the computer for the radio signal. The only people I knew who could have the technology and engineering to do it were MWM, as they did it with the Mix Fader. At the same time, they were developing their own radio signal so they said “why not !”. From then a prototype was made and the commercialization started last year.

FP: And at the end, which is your favorite hat ?

DJ Stresh: That would be the original one, being a passionate DJ, who digs for new music, mixes, trains at home, as it’s the way we all started. And you do all that to mix in parties, make people dance and generate reactions. 

FP: In 2016 you were vice champion of the French DMC and national champion of the Red Bull 3Style. You competed in the World Finals of the 3Style in Chile. Tell us about the experience.

DJ Stresh: The Red Bull 3Style is a DJ competition that started 10 years ago. The first edition took place in France and the first winner was French, Karve, who changed his name to Aleqs Notal now. 

I started DJing in 1998. Between 98 and 2016, it’s been a long time ! I had participated to some battles, but never on the national level. And some day, I see the announce on FB saying there are a few days left to register. I told myself “try your chance”. Back in the days, you had a lot of pressure on battles, especially the DMC which was the main one, because you had a crazy level in France !! We had legends like Pone, Crazy B, Netik, Trouble… huge huge huge DJs ! So it was tough to emerge ! I know we are quite a few DJ’s who didn’t dare to do it. 

So I had nothing to lose, if I win, great, if I don’t it would still be a great experience. But I was curious ! So i sent my demo, was selected and ended up winning the national title. 

For the World Finals, it was another story ! You carry the weight of the counrty on your shoulders ! You still have two sets to prepare, one for the qualification round and one for the finals if you go through. Lack of luck for me, the future world champ was in my leg, so I couldn’t male it to the Finals. 

But it remains an amazing experience ! I’ve met a lot of people and it offered me great opportunities and good visibility. This competition puts you in the lights as a DJ per se, and as a person. 

FP: A while ago, you shared this quote on your socials : “I stopped making beats, to start making music…”. Can you develop what was on your mind ? 

DJ Stresh: I might repeat myself a bit, but I’ve been stage DJ for quite a few artists, and when I started making beats, it was to submit to rappers. When I wrote that quote, I wanted to point out that, in people’s mind, a beatmaker works for a MC, but it often has that “disposable” aspect. This “factory” facet, and I think lots of beatmakers will relate, is sometimes ungrateful because you’re don’t get any recognition. For example, you can send 5-10 beats to an artist, he could do a demo on it, but at the end your track is not even on his album, but you had no clue.  Everybody in the music biz has lived this. 

But besides that, doing beats, it’s the beatmaker’s thing, who works on his own, when making music is more combining the musicians’ knowledge. I’m more in that state of mind, I wanna make music, but don’t want to stay in my comfort zone. If there are musicians around me who can help to arrange, produce and structure a track, and why not invite other artists to collaborate, that would be different from the usual pattern, this is the difference between a beatmaker and a producer. I’ve always called out musicians on most of the tracks I produced ! At the end it can come up as instrumentral music, like we’ve had in the last few years with artists like Kaytranada, TroyBoi or all that Soulection does. This is something that was kinda neglected, but I think it’s good for music to do it.The message is roughly “Let’s stop being only a foil to other artists and let’s make our music live by itself !”.

FP: Are there any tracks or artists of the moment that you would like to share with us ?

DJ Stresh: I really liked Kaytranada’s last album. I also like the Dutch scene : Jarreau Vandal, Jaël…

Actually, I have so many things in mind, I don’t even manage to give you any names !

Dreamville too ! I like them a lot, especially Lute and J.I.D.

FP: Let’s get away from music for a minute. You’re not absolutely unsensitive to sneakers and clothes, are you ? 

DJ Stresh: Absolutely not !! I would even say it’s a weakness ! I don’t consider myself a big collector, but I can’t deny it, I really love sneakers ans clothes. I think music, sneakers and fashion are elements that intertwine, these are cultures that have been linked very early. Some styles, some brands or some sneakers models are part of Hip Hop culture, thus of my everyday life. I’ve been soaked by brands that I saw in the 90S, like Jordan, Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, FUBU, Fila… which made keep an eye on fashion and accumulate quite a lot pairs and clothes. We grew up seeing sneakers that we wanted but couldn’t have. 

FP: Speaking of it, do you have a favorite pair ?

DJ Stresh: No, I love sneakers too much ! I can’t pick only one !

But i can tell you about the very first pair that blew my mind !

It’s the Air Jordan XIII. When it came out, I remember that a lot of people had it. It was the one Busta Flex was wearing on his album cover. I was wondering what it was, because the branding on these is not so obvious, you only have the Jumpman on the tongue and the holographic bubble on the side. It was futuristic at the time, but I loved it !  

FP: Back to music ! Tell us more about the mix you prepared for us. 

DJ Stresh: I went out of my comfort zone for this one. I always play different styles of music, here it’s full of brazilian vibes and Futur Beats. My Jamiroquai remix is featured in it, along many other things.

FP: Speaking of this Jamiroquai remix, Jazzy Jeff played it in recently in a live, after he requested it directly from you. What is it like that someone, who you’ve been looking up to from your younger age, comes to you to request one of the track you produces and plays it after that ? 

DJ Stresh: It’s weird man, it’s so weird ! I don’t even realize ! It’s almost unreal. You have to live it to get it I think.

For the record, Jazzy Jeff asked me for the track about a year ago and he played it in his first quarantine live show. 

One day, I wake up and see a message from Jazzy Jeff including a picture of a DJ’s computer screen playing my track in London, and asking me “It’s your track ? Please send it to me !”. I was gassed that he asked for it and even more that he played it ! He must have so many tracks in his library ! 

FP: If we want to listen to your music or mixes and know about your agenda, how do we do ? 

DJ Stresh: For the music, it’s on Soundcloud and for videos and agenda, you can go on Instagram.

FP: A final word ?

DJ Stresh: I just released a new remix to « Talk » by Khalid, it’s available on my Soundcloud. Thanks to Footpatrol for the invitation and I hope you’ll like the mix.

Recently we’ve found ourselves spending this time looking back at some of the projects we’ve been apart of and the agency’s that have worked alongside us and helped make these visions come to life. For this next edition, we’ve digitally sat down with James and Aldo from Midnight Club to get a detailed understanding into their processes and work.

Take a look through our interview with the duo below for a look into how Midnight Club works and of course, how they’re spending their time during this lockdown.

Footpatrol : Hey guys, how are you? Thank you for taking the time to talk to us today! We have worked together in the past and know all about you but for our audience can you give them a little insight into yourself and what it is you do?

JH: We work at The Midnight Club, a London agency that specialises in strategy and design for adidas. We both work together as concept leads, a role which allows us to work across multiple projects from the earliest stage, developing an idea through to production. This could be anything from designing a store installation, launch event or a visual toolkit for a sneaker release. And that’s how we met you last year, working on the Footpatrol windows for Notting Hill Carnival.

FP: What exactly does your job entail? 

AK: It really depends on adidas’s brand calendar. One day we could be working on a global launch event, the next designing windows for a key London retailer. It’s the rapid pace of the sneaker industry that really drives us. 

FP: What were you doing prior? Was it a creative job or something completely different?

AK: We were both working in different areas of the fashion industry when we met. I was in product design and James worked for a luxury shoe brand. The collaboration really started in 2015 when we both linked up to work on NEUBA, a menswear brand specialising in handwoven fabrics.

JH: We sold the brand to almost 60 stores across Japan, including Dover Street Market and United Arrows before closing shop to join TMC in 2017. When I think back on it, we were lucky to visit so many of the world’s most exciting stores – this really inspired us to start designing experiences and installations for brands.

FP: What we would like to know is how you get from concept to reality. Would you be able to choose ONE project that you have worked on and summarise into 4 steps the process from the client’s initial email to what the consumer sees?

I guess a good example would be the re-launch of the adidas Nite Jogger, one of the biggest shoes to drop last year. The lead time on this was tricky, somebody worked out we had 15 working days to design, build and execute our concept – with Christmas and New Year in the middle. 

1.11th December: we received the brief from adidas. A one night global launch event in London for the Nite Jogger ‘19. The Nite Jogger is a modern remake of the original 70’s sneaker, the first of its kind to feature reflective panels.

2. Present the creative direction to the adidas global team: a 24/7 Peckham high street celebrating the creativity that thrives in the city after dark. Align on the art direction, guest experiences and line-up of talent and collaborators.

3. Find a South London location to bring the entire concept to life in 5 days. This was really tough, but together with a team of 15 carpenters, 8 lighting technicians, 6 scenic painters, 4 sound technicians, 2 event producers, 3 junior producers, 2 graphic designers, 4 runners and 17 event staff – we managed to pull it off.

4. 11th Jan. Launch night for 600 guests; a petrol station with convenience store, mechanics garage, custom spray-shop and photography darkroom, late night cyber cafe, Morley’s Fried Chicken shop,

with a dynamic schedule of product drops, live sets and performances off the back of a lorry. 

FP: Would you have any advice that you could share with our readers? 

JH: Try and find somebody that you can collaborate with creatively, ideally with a different set of skills to yours. Like Jimmy Iovine and Dr Dre.

AK: Exactly. We share the same taste in design, but will often arrive at a concept from very different reference points, anything from contemporary art and spatial design to youth culture and music. 

FP: How are you coping with the current lockdown? Is there anything particular that’s keeping you going?

JH: Succession on HBO. The Preme vs RZA battle on IG live. My veg box delivery. 

The ‘No Problemo’ car radio sessions from @ramdane everyday at 5pm.

AK: Homeland (yes I’m very late to the party). Honing my cocktail game.

Dave Portnoy (if you don’t already follow @stoolpresidente) reviews all the pizza joints in New York, but since we’ve been in lockdown has been forced to review only frozen pizzas.

FP: And finally as it was trainers that brought all us together originally – what would you say is your staple go to for the following:

JH:

Working out – adizero Takumi Ren 3’s for all of those long runs I don’t go on.

Casual everyday – Garwen Spezial for Union LA. Instant classic. 

Impressing someone – I recently got the midnight cowboy loafers by Toga Virilis. I think it’s impressive how little they go with anything. 

Staying at home – adidas ATP tennis sneakers from 1993. Cracked leather and yellow glue stains!

AK: 

Working out – adidas Ultra Boost Uncaged Triple Black

Casual everyday – I rotate both the all white pair and all black pairs of Yohji Yamamoto Superstars

Impressing someone – Tricky one, but I’ve got a pair of the Hender Scheme Superstars

Staying at home – My North Face tent slippers

Thank you, stay safe!

To grab a free copy of The Midnight Club’s latest book release, DM @the_midnight_club

Someone we’ve been watching for a while, DJ and producer Shy One has stepped up and created our next instalment for our Frequent Players Guest Mix series.

Bringing her unique taste of music to the forefront, this latest mix manages to touch most bases for everyone to enjoy.

Footpatrol: Shy One, thanks for being here and spending time with us! For all those people who may not know who you are, can you share with us a bit of your backstory? 

SHY ONE: I’m a DJ and producer originally from Harrow but based in South London. Started out in 03 playing, collecting and making grime and have since then incorporated more styles into my sets and productions. I’m just as passionate about radio as I am club DJ’ing and have held down shows on numerous stations over the last 14 years. 

FP: Jumping straight into it! You have been Djing/producing for quite a while. I read you got your first pirate radio gig at 14, how did you find yourself getting into all of this at such a young age? 

SHY ONE: That was actually a community station based in my youth club in West London but I did eventually get a show on pirate 3 years later with a mate who was the son of a singer. Our parents knew the guy who ran the station from all being musicians/DJs and my mum worked at the youth club which was also were I learned to DJ. I never went out of my way to get involved, having these musical relatives and connections meant everything as there. 

FP: Is there a genre you’ve always liked to play when you DJ or are you pretty open to everything? 

SHY ONE: I’ve gone through different phases and tried to be a more specialist DJ but I realised that’s not me, I can’t stick to one genre and so I feel like the way I play now is an amalgamation of most of my musical phases over the years. 

FP: Moving into your production side, have you been doing that for as long as you have been DJing or did you get into it further down the line in your career? 

SHY ONE: I started making beats a year after I’d learned the DJ basics so about 16 years ago. 

FP: Tough question but have you ever thought to yourself which you prefer more, Djing or Producing? I can imagine they both have their positives and negatives. 

SHY ONE: Ooooh very very hard but DJ’ing wins. I’m a fan first. Other peoples music will always mean so much more to me than my own. Cliché I know but my music is an outlet, a way for me to express myself. 

FP: Moving on to sneakers! Are you much of an enthusiast when it comes to shoes? 

SHY ONE: I used to be really into sneakers, dedicated my 18th birthday to going to NYC to visit all the shops I’d obsessed over from online cos it was a myth getting certain womens crep over here for me then. Over the years my ltitle feet and small pockets got frustrated though I still have a pretty big collection despite getting rid of at least 15 pairs recently. 

FP: Do you remember the first pair you bought with your own money? 

SHY ONE: I’m lucky to have a young steezy mum who’s into sneakers too so she kept me laced from a yute but I think my own pocket money stash might have afforded me a first pair of Huaraches. 

FP: Within your career have you seen much of a merge between footwear and music? 

SHY ONE: I think music and footwear share a history that predates my career. From artists singing about them, fans being identifiable to a particular group/scene because of them, brands using music and music using brands etc. 

FP: Little side track from shoes, I also read that you are part of BBZ, could you tell us a little bit more about what BBZ is and how you got involved? 

SHY ONE: BBZ is a curatorial and DJ collective that I was adopted into a couple years back after being booked to play. We’re a crew of queer black womxn and non binary people who prioritise the experience of LBTQIABPOC. I would do us a disservice to try and speak on more of what we do/ have done. Look us up 😉 

FP: Shy One thanks for spending time with us! Before we let you go we are asking people what they are doing during the lockdown to keep creative, active or whatever they want to do to stay productive. Have you got any inspiration for the Footpatrol followers? 

SHY ONE: My priority in this lockdown has been my own peace. I haven’t tried to force any creativity, I think it’s important to give us time to acclimatise and process what’s actually happening. Only once I gave myself time to do that have I had a desire to create. Take it slow, have a beer.