Social StudentDJ Yoda’s career started with Hip-hop influences, but has evolved over the past 15 years due to diverse influences such as Funk, Reggae, Drum ‘n’ Bass and even Country & Western. He has recently released the fourth and fifth installments of his ‘How To Cut and Paste’ mix CD series. Q Magazine declared him “one of the ten DJs to see before you die” and Hip Hop Connection voted him “one of the top three DJs in the world”.
We’re lucky to be interviewing you less than an half an hour before you go on stage at Brownstock. How does it feel / how do you mentally prepare for a performance?
I just don’t get nerves anymore. It can be the biggest or smallest crowd in the world, but the one thing I don’t get nervous about is DJing. Just going out there, there is no pre-stage rituals, I don’t have to puke or anything. I just walk on stage and do it!
Having been a DJ for 15 years, do you still get the same excitement / buzz that you did when you started out?
I couldn’t exist without it! It is what I feel most comfortable doing. If I have a week without DJing, I start to feel a bit weird – it is like a drug!
Q Magazine voted you as one of the “Ten DJs To See Before You Die”. What was your reaction to this and has your fan base increased / changed since this?
My reaction is ‘I can’t take that kind of thing seriously’, because I’d be a big headed bastard if I did *laughs*. Having done a little bit of music journalism, I know the politics behind these awards but it was nice to be recognised – but I take it on the chin.
In 2012, you released Chop Suey – your first album for six years. Were you working on it for six years, or did you take a break from being DJ Yoda for a while?
I was working on it all that time, just really slowly. The main reason was because I DJ and tour so much that I would be away most weeks. I’d end up with one afternoon out of a week to work on it and learnt a lesson doing that. This next album defiantly won’t take 6 years! I want to finish it really quickly!
What has been the highlight of your career so far / your favourite track?
I’d say the same thing for both of them, working with Biz Markie, who was always my favourite rapper when I was growing up. The fact that I made two songs with him was amazing. If I could tell the 15-year-old me that I would be doing that, my head would have exploded! I guess that was a big highlight for me.
What does the future hold for DJ Yoda?
It has been a crazy, crazy summer! Then, the rest of this year is going to be Asia and Australia for more of the same. As I said, I’ve started to work on this new album which I’m getting pretty far, pretty quickly, so hopefully it won’t be 6 years before it is released.
We look forward to hearing your new album and good luck with your performance.
