It is a passion that can only be practiced at night. When they put away their records, most French people are asleep. The early risers have already wolfed down their breakfast and put on their shoes for a Sunday jog. Like astronomy enthusiasts, DJs know they have to wait for the black curtain to come down before they can take the stage. In the middle, mixing late is even a sign of glory. The later you are programmed, the more you are part of the “big names” of the evening. Mixing from 4 to 6 a.m. to end a club party is a dream that all young DJs dream of one day realizing. But for how long ? How do you live your life as a DJ when you are over 40? How do you recover from an evening of work that ends at 8 a.m. when you have children to wake you up? As part of our #20Minuit series, we asked the question to several DJs who we will describe as “experienced” to see how they live at night after several decades on the decks. One thing is certain: not everyone is equal.
- How their profession has evolved with age
They all started at 17 or 18 years old. An age where you can take it all and where you can sleep during the day. Over the years, the daily life of DJs has greatly evolved. “When I started mixing, I was 16 and still in high school. I went to free parties at the weekend and I mixed at the Grand Rex every Wednesday. On Thursday morning, it was complicated to go to class at the university. I got up but I was like in a parallel world, it rocked me and I fell asleep, ”says Elisa do Brasil, who started in drum’n’bass almost thirty years ago. “When I started, I mixed in rave parties very late at night, with all the excesses that entails. Today, I prefer events such as festivals or open air. Going to play in a club from 3 a.m. to 5 a.m., I admit, I lost it a bit,” admits the experienced Yuksek.
With experience and notoriety, all the DJs we interviewed admitted to having slowed down to protect themselves. “There was a moment when I accepted everything. Because you feel like the more you’re seen, the more you’re going to be in demand. I was a bit stupid, ”acknowledges Agoria. The 47-year-old DJ explains “having greatly reduced today”. “I take six or seven dates a month, no more. »
David Asko is a bit younger. Despite a super neat lifestyle without alcohol or drugs, the 44-year-old DJ must sometimes preserve himself: “I try to have breaks several times a year. I’ve been traveling a lot lately so in June, I allowed myself three weeks without anything. I need to do fewer dates. The desire is there, but the physical does not always follow. A follower of dark, pulsating techno, he often has to wait until late at night to get to the turntables.
- What they do before playing
“I like to visit the city before playing. I like to take the time but often it is complicated. When you go to bed at 7 a.m. or 8 a.m., you are all off, ”says David Asko. Like many DJs, he often treats himself to a nap when he has to mix late at night. “I leave home as late as possible, even when I have a plane to catch. I like to enjoy the family. I often arrive late in the city where I play. I have dinner with the team there and then I go to bed at the hotel to take a 30-minute to 1.5-hour nap,” confesses Agoria. Elisa do Brasil has a somewhat similar ritual: “I often sleep a little. I take a shower, I put on makeup, I do my nails. It allows me to see if I’m shaking. » A « classic » morning ritual except that it takes place there at 10 or 11 pm « I like to have a few drinks too but not too many so as not to be upside down. I often pass in the room to see how it sounds, how is the atmosphere, the public, ”says the one who is a mother of two children.
Before playing, Yuskek also likes to have a few drinks on the spot. “In general, I don’t sleep too much before. Sometimes a ”power nap” of fifteen to thirty minutes. There are always guys in the business who will tell you that they don’t drink or smoke. Me, I like to have a few drinks, to put myself in the mood. »
- How do they fall asleep
Like sportsmen who linger for several hours to find sleep after their match, electronic music artists sometimes have to wait to evacuate the bass and kicks of their minds before closing their eyes. “After playing, I always need an airlock to come down. I need an hour and a half or two hours, for my ears and my body to calm down,” says Yuksek. The four other DJs we interviewed all testified to having acquired the ability to fall asleep over the years. “In general, I sleep very well. I’m lucky not to need a lot of sleep and to be able to sleep under any conditions. On the train, on the plane. What is the most tiring is to make a series of journeys”, explains David Asko. His luxury? “Being able to go home to sleep after a set. It’s super rare but it’s so good!
This luxury, Florent Le Gall has it every Friday and Saturday evening. Resident of the 1988 Live Club nightclub in Rennes, the 47-year-old DJ never goes to bed “never before 7 or 8 in the morning”. “I never get up before 2 or 3 p.m. Of course, it takes me longer to recover, but my rhythm hasn’t changed. When I get home, I shower, I have breakfast and I go to bed. I fall asleep very quickly. I’ve never had any problems sleeping,” explains the Rennais.
To find a healthier pace, Elisa do Brasil took up yoga. For several years, the drum n’bass specialist has been giving lessons during the week. “It brings me back into balance. Before, I could spend my days sleeping. Now it feels like yoga is cleaning me up from the weekend. On the other hand, on Sunday when I played the day before, I am useless. My children know it and leave me alone. Frankly, it takes a force of nature to hold on. »
- Why they love to play by day
This is a phenomenon that has amplified with the health crisis. Restricted by curfews and health restrictions, many collectives organizing electro evenings have taken over slots during the day. Increasingly popular, especially by parents who can no longer go in the evening, these daytime events generally take place between 4 p.m. and midnight. In addition to pleasing the public, they make artists happy, happy to be able to lead an almost normal life on a sunny Sunday. “The night is good, I’ve always liked it. But sleeping is good too. I had my daughter at 25, it was super rare in the industry. On weekdays, I got up at 8 a.m. and on weekends, I went to bed at 8 a.m. It was super complicated, ”says Yuksek. From the height of his 44 years, David Asko also relishes these events organized during the day. “When you are my age, you are very happy to play at 10 p.m. You can enjoy your evening and go to bed at 1 o’clock. Once in a while it’s great. The party is different when it is done at night. »
In addition to preserving the privacy of the artists, these events also make it possible to reach a different audience, in a setting that is often less conducive to excesses and excesses. “At night, you sometimes have bad behavior. You have girls who won’t want to take the risk of going to a club to avoid having hands in their ass or things in their drinks,” analyzes Yuksek.
- Their little career failure
Inevitably, in a long and staggered career, there are failures. While he was still enrolled in college, the Lyonnais Agoria often mixed very late at rave parties organized around his home. It’s not easy for him to go to class the next day: “I remember giving a presentation in class where I was talking about the rave scene. I wanted to show an image other than that of drugs and boom boom. And there, my nose started to pee blood in front of everyone. I was slammed. He will eventually drop out of school to devote himself to his career.
Yuksek remembers a trip to Barcelona. In a city where “nothing happens before 2 or 3 in the morning”, the French DJ had opted for a big nap at the start of the evening. “Over there, you know you’re going to play super late. You do not have a choice. I had slept in my hotel room. I slept so well that I didn’t hear the alarm clocks, or the calls from my promoter, or the calls from the front desk. They had ended up going up to my room. I had been sleeping for four hours. In ten minutes I was ready and I arrived in the box, I was out of step. I was having my breakfast with 110 decibels in my ears in front of a crowd of angry guys. And then, how was it? “Not really my best memory. »