The life of a DJ is not always easy and just an endless “party” as many might think, and being one of the so called super star DJ in electronic music is making things sometimes even more complicated. Not only that everybody expects absolute perfection from your performance, as a super star you are so much more in the focus of attention of so many people that you can not imagine.
One example of the problem you can have when you are not perfect is David Guetta and the dozens of videos on YouTube, documenting failures of the soundsytem or other technical or artistical malfunctions at some of his shows; or the boys from the Swedish House Mafia, who received a lot of negative response last summer when a video came out, showing Steve Agnello at Dance Valley 2011 festival playing without using any head-phones (allowing the strong assumption that he was not mixing any tracks but just using a pre-recorded set).
Angry reactions, critisism and hate receive not only the “pop stars” of electronic music when they fail, it can also hit an artist as Richie Hawtin in the face who is considered to be less commercial, such as in the following story:
Last month a little thoughtless statement brought an proper shit storm on Richie Hawtin. On 19.10.2011 he had shared on Facebook a photo of another DJ, pulling a record bag behind him, with the following comment:
“Is this “DJ” pulling records behind him? Is this Berlin 2011 or NYC/Detroit/Chicago 1988? How far wa’ve come and how little we’ve progressed!”
That this un-diplomatic formulation would cook up the emotions of some vinyl DJs and vinyl enthusiasts, was clear. But what befell Hawtin in the following hours as reaction to this post was really massive. Responses were numerous, and exclamatory.
The whole wave was topped by this disgusting “Hawtin Vinyl-Nazi” image:
Probably himself most surprised by the reaction to his post, he removed the entry along with the image, and instead posted this statement:
„As I walked down the street in Berlin last night a DJ stepped in front of me pulling his records and it sparked off nostalgic thoughts of the past, present & future.?? I never imagined the outpouring of emotions and comments from my post. My apologies to the DJ and anyone who took my comments personally – it categorically wasn’t my intention to suggest vinyl DJs are in any ways ‘lesser’ than digital.?? It’s not a dislike for vinyl that drove my comment, only a love of technological innovation & development. Twenty years ago when I first started DJing I found turntables & vinyl extremely exciting and inspiring (as much as any of you now starting for the first time or those who continue this tradition). Respect to everyone who finds happiness and inspiration in doing anything creative or musical. But for me – personally – I enjoy the challenges that I find in new technologies: technologies that continue to challenge my skills & inspire my creativity.??
Everyone has their own ideas in their head & each of us have the freedom to use whatever instrument they feel most comfortable with. For me, as everyone already knows, the turntable has been replaced by the computer & other gadgets that I use today. But as I said, that’s just my opinion… ? After all, isn’t that why we call it Techno? „
What is for sure, that with his first post Hawtin had failed to find to right tone to express his thought. But his apology also shows clearly that he for himself is simply treading other ways, new ways. And, that he does not want to diss any vinyl DJs, nor prented being something better than them.
Above all, we must not forget that “Digi Hawtin” can still play with vinyl like few others.
Vinyl fans / Richie haters totally overreacted, or should we just evaluate this story as a typical case of distorted perception on “fake book”?
When you read Hawtin’s initial post, it actually does not has any negative, it’s rather sentimental, maybe philosophical. Though with a touch of arrogance (but arrogance can be forgiven, because it is for a superstar DJ heavy anyway not to run around all the time with a puffed up ego), but in the end, who cares?
Philosophical, because what he means is maybe only the development of music in recent decades, which has been completely transformed from acoustic instruments, made mainly of wood, metal and leather, to almost exclusively digital productions. So what Hawtin really wanted to say was: „The technology has changed, but we are still DJs.“ Or something like that.
And even if not, does it really matter what he had exactly meant with that? And isn’t it true that in the case of celebrities like Hawtin, Guetta, Angello everything is put on the gold scale, and especially negative news blown up and multiplicated, just because some sensitive or envious people have nothing else to do than to wait for the moment when something goes wrong, to be able to shoot out their criticism?
Hanging out on “fake book”, taking part in a person’s life (who does not even know your name), and worse, getting emotionally involved, is sick enough. But only somebody who is nastier and more evil than Hawtin (might be) himself, sits down to design a Adolf-Richie graphics with Photoshop! This is more than sick, it’s mega sick!
Richie Hawtin has, as far as we know, never in his life started a war against 5 nations in the same time, and has not slaughtered hundreds of thousands of vinyl DJs in gas chambers, just them for being “of another kind”, or for having different believes in what techno music should be.
First Conclusion: Forget about becoming a super star DJ! It’s a lot of work, and still – there will be always somebody who will not like you.
Second Conclusion: Only those who have time and nothing better to do in life are getting excited about such bullshit as an inconsiderate comment of a DJ.
Third Conclusion:
Words by Rica/CaminoPR