We chat to Fergie about the chances of managing Manchester United, listening to Johnny Cash
and find out what some of his tattoos are all about.
Q:
You share a nickname with quite a famous duchess... Have you ever had situations where people were expecting to meet her instead of you?
A:
Ha Ha……hasn’t happened yet, although when i checked in to my hotel in Bulgaria a few weeks ago they had me down as Alex Ferguson ( Manchester United Manager )
Q:
You've been DJ'ing for more than half your life, yet you've only just entered your 30's... What were you up to while other kids were busy with school work?
A:
The Djing all started in Larne in Northern Ireland. Me and school didn’t agree and I left school at 13 and pestered the local promoter to give me a job at the club….brushing the floor, cleaning the toilets and clearing the tables…but I didn’t care because he let me play on the decks and eventually I got to do a the warm up set but my first actual professional gig….the first one that I actually got paid for…… was at Airport 2000 in Antrim which at the time was one of the biggest clubs in Northern Ireland…… I remember finding it hard to put the needle on the record as my hands were shaking so much….I thought I had it made….I was 14 years old!
Q:
You were mentored by the late great Tony De Vit... How did this meeting come about? And how much would you say this meeting changed you as a person?
A:
Most people will know the story of how I met Tony De Vit who was a great inspiration to me. Tony was playing at the club on one of the nights that I was warming up and he heard me play and invited me over to England and introduced me to the club scene…Tony took me under his wing and I really appreciated his guidance and advice. I was lucky Tony helped me a lot not just about DJing but about the importance of reading the crowd, making time for your fans, getting down among the crowd but I was also very focused and knew that I wanted to be a DJ …I think about Tony a lot and I know that he would be pleased about how things have turned out for me…I still miss him. Sometimes when I look back its feels like I’m reading a book about someone else….the people I have met and the experiences I have had are way beyond what I would have ever imagined. Its crazy to think that my first ever tour was actually in South Africa for Vibe Magazine! I played in Durban, Cape Town, Pretoria, Bloemfontein, it was a great experience and I met a good friend called Flavio de Stfanis…(hey Flavio if you are out there please contact me) The crowds in South Africa were amazing and I still hold those first memories of playing there with Tony close to my heart. I look forward to my return and who knows perhaps I will bring some of the old tracks I played when I first came all over a decade ago :--)
Q:
A lot of Hard-House's biggest DJ's including yourself, Anne Savage, BK and Lisa-Lashes have moved on to things like Breaks, Electro, Techno and Trance... What would you attribute this to?
A:
Changing my music was one of the biggest challenges I have faced as it was such a drastic change it took a long time to re-establish myself….. the best part of the past 10 years. It has been a tough journey with lots of ups and downs but it gave me a great sense of fulfillment as I was leaving everything I had built up to try some thing new and i feel i helped open the door for other djs to make the move. As a dj I have played quite a mix of music from house to the harder end of that genre and lots of weird bits in-between. I have never been afraid to try out different styles of music some good choices and some not so good but I have had a great time along the way finding out what I liked. I would say over the past 6 or 7 years that I have never felt more passionate about music whether that’s been playing it in clubs or making it in the studio.
I was pigeon-holed for such a long time with the whole hard house label, which was ok as that’s were I made my name and enjoyed playing it for a long time, but I felt that hard house changed quite a lot so it was time for me to move.
To say that I will never play hard music would be presumptuous. If I play a 3 or 4 hour set I still like to kick the arse of it but that’s all part of the journey. As I said before I’m playing the best music I have ever played, some of it’s hard some of it’s not. It’s all just great music!
Q:
Trends come and go, and while some things manage to stand the test of time, a lot of things seem to fall away... Like for example in "Dance Music Culture", your average "raver" used to dress a certain way... And the harder and faster the music was... The better... But today the scene in general seems to cater to a wider audience... Where do you see Dance music going in future?
A:
Yeah I think that was the case for a while but I think we are now in a much better place as I think the term techno is so broad now and less genre specific its all back under one umbrella so to speak which helps to keep everything fresh and lost of different aspects of techno merging together. I think its good to have a sound but to also be flexible, people want to hear different things now so its good to keep moving about with styles but still try and have your own.
Q:
What would we be surprised to find out about "Fergie"?
A:
I played for Northern Ireland Under 16s…I might have been a footballer instead of a DJ but I just had to follow the music
Q:
Are your tattoos decorative or is there a story behind them?
A:
The very first tattoo was just a Tribal Tattoo on my arm…I got it done in Ibiza and they guy who done it was so proud of it that he put a big picture of it in his window…however what happened then was that a lot of my fans who were in Ibiza to support me all went to him and got the exact same tattoo…..at the clubs we looked like we were in some kind of gang!
I have ‘Lost in Music’ tattooed across my stomach. When I changed my music I didn’t want to be ever pigeon-holed again…I just wanted to be lost in the music and to go wherever it lead me.
I have the word ‘Maktub’ tattooed on my forearm. I am a big fan of the author Paolo Cuellol who wrote a book called The Alchemist which was where I first came across the word MAKTUB, it’s an old Arabic proverb that means..’ It is written’. I was never a big reader but this book was different….I would go as far as to say that what I read in it changed my whole outlook on life.
Q:
What's playing on your MP3 player/ Ipod/ Car radio at the moment?
A:
I like nothing better that driving with the car hood down with Johnny Cash ‘ Get Rhythm’ blasting out…. TURN IT UP!
Q:
Where would we find you when you're not DJing or Producing?
A:
I love just chilling out with friends…talking about life’s experiences and just messing about playing old records from way back then!
Q:
What can we expect from "Fergie" In the near or distant future?
A:
I recently released my first album ( Dynamite & Laserbeams ) and I just heard that it has won the IDMA Award for Best Album 2010… I am very proud of it…I love every trak on there so I’m pleased that people liked it enough to vote for it. I am just completing a remix project for my album…..I picked a handful of producers who have inspired me the most over the past year and asked them to choose a track from the album to remix so that’s very exciting. Also, keeping to the Excentric philosophy which is to push new talent , we will be releasing our first compilation on Excentric Muzik with the super talents of Mr Henry Von who is one of the most promising dj/producer around and it has been a privilege for me to watch him grow and develop within Excentric Muzik fold.
Check out more on the legendary Fergie
Interview by Johan De Kock
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