StopBeingFamous: You're playing Las Vegas tonight--what do you do to prepare? Lots of alcohol? Cartwheels?
Steve Aoki: I'm pretty square. I hate alcohol. I don't do any drugs.
SBF: Wow. No drinking?
SA: No, I drink. I drink and get drunk and do stupid shit, which is why I hate alcohol. But drugs? I was one of the lucky survivors of my friends. Most of my friends do drugs and it's around me all of the time. Coke here, coke there, heroin, speed, crack, all of that shit. Eating it, chewing it, snorting it, smoking it, shooting it. I feel lucky because I'm old now, and I'm past that impressionable period of time where I wanted to experiment. It's like when you go to war and come back with post-traumatic stress disorder.
SBF: Last week, you played shows in Dublin, Paris and Berlin. Today, you're in Las Vegas; how does it feel to arrive in a new city, a new country every day? Are you able to soak it all in, or does it feel like a perpetual dream?
SA: Yes, especially when you lump it all together in a sentence. In 2008, I had a hectic schedule. Within that year, I flew over 310 flights. I was in L.A. maybe five days of every month. I toured Europe maybe five or six times because I had a residency and a visa. I constantly was flying out to Spain in the summer because it was my home-base while I was in Europe. I toured Asia four times. I did Australia, South America and Canada. I was in Canada maybe twice a month; Canada is actually an insane party country. I'm more received in Canada than in major cities in North America. There are a lot of great artists there: MSTRKRFT, Cartel, Thunderheist---just a lot of good stuff coming out of Canada. It gets overlooked for whatever reason, but I fucking love that place.
SBF: Which do you prefer--shows or festivals?
SA: Shows are okay, but festivals are fucking great. With festivals, it's always a memorable, historic night in my life--but when it's a show, it's hit or miss. In the smaller cities, the shows are usually more epic because those kids are not jaded yet. Big-city kids are more cynical--they're done partying by the time they're 21. The age group I see, especially in Europe, are young. On the last European tour I did with Bloody Beetroots, the shows were filled with super-young kids, mainly like 17---they raged until six or seven in the morning. I literally played until 7am.
SBF: What was it like for you in the early stages of your career? Take us back.
SA: In the earlier years, I didn't even look at myself as an artist. I wasn't even a producer. I would get remixes done, but I never considered what I was doing as serious. It's funny, even now, I don't take what I do seriously--but I do. It's weird--it's just become my life. In the early days, I played not so much to promote my name, but to promote my label. I was playing records; I didn't even know how to mix. Through time, I learned everything I needed to know. I've only been DJ-ing for six years.
SBF: In general, what are your ideas on fame--particularly your own? Do you sometimes long for anonymity?
SA: That's a good question. I don't really consider myself famous. I feel like I'm an extremely busy person. Actually, when I'm at my shows and all of these people are trying to get photos, I can't help but feel, you know, special. There's probably a certain amount of people who know what I'm doing, but they also know about everyone I respect in the world that I'm in.
SBF: Considering the time it takes you to tour and run your different companies, how are you able to make new music?
SA: It's time management, man. I have good management, they keep all of my production work in line, with all of the different labels. I have four remixes that have to be finished by the end of February, plus my first single of the year. A lot the stuff that I put out is done on the road. When I was in Europe, I did a track with Laidback Luke--it's a fucking monster of a track. I was also in the studio with Bloody Beetroots and we recorded five songs with a live band. Most people don't know, but before I was DJ, I was a singer in a hard-core band. I did a lot of screaming. All of the songs I mentioned will be released on Dim Mak [Records] soon.
SBF: Where does Pase Rock fit into the equation? I understand he's on Dim Mak as well.
SA: Pase is an old friend; he's part of the family. I consider the Dim Mak family kind of like the Lakers. We have different people in the game at different times. Pase is unique; he's a great DJ and part of the Dim Mak management team. Speaking of Dim Mak management, most people don't know that there are two sides of it. We have Deckstar, which manages all of the club DJs, like DJ AM and Kid Capri; it's more on the Hip-Hop side of things. Then there is Dim Mak Management, which handles alternative artist like Peanut Butter Wolf, Super Black, Pase Rock and myself. Super Black is someone you're going to hear a lot about in the next eight months because he's a really big figure in music, but he goes under an alias. People don't know who he is and we're going to unveil his identity later on. The production for his album is by the Crookers, Boys Noize and Armand Van Helden.
SBF: On the fashion side of things, Dim Mak has done collaborations with Diesel and Supra. As a musician and artist, is it a stretch for you to talk facts and figures in executive meetings?
SA: I stay on the creative side of things, 80 percent of the time. In terms of the financial side, it gets handled by my business management team. They handle the money going in and the money going out. My management helps me with all of the deadlines. As you know, each company has their own schedules and their own deadlines for the season. My shoe deadline is coming soon, with Supra. I actually have a meeting about that today. We're coming up with new designs. We just locked in a European distribution deal with Dim Mak Collection, and we have to finish Spring 2010 by the end of February. It's really important that I have teams handling all the deadlines.
SBF: Do you get a rush from meeting deadlines? Are there moments when you can sit back and take in all that you have accomplished?
SA: Yeah, there is that kind of relief at the end, but then I'm back in the game again and it doesn't stop. I haven't had a vacation in 10 years. Actually, I don't think I'll ever have one. There is no time. If I take a break, there's going to be a bunch shit that fucks up. I've already accepted the responsibility. If I don't do it, it's not going to happen. It's fine with me. It's part of my personality.
SBF: Do you have any non-cliche advice for aspiring DJs and musicians?
SA: The most general thing has probably been said a million times--be true to yourself. Do your own thing, the way you know how to do it. There was a period of time in my life where I looked up to someone so much that I tried to emulate that person and it was me. If you're trying to emulate another person, it will never come out right. End of Interview.
