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Published June 19, 2014
Los Angeles native Deorro has been making waves the past few years with his chart-topping hits such as “Five Hours”, “Dechorro”, “Yee”, “Bootie in Your Face”, and “Lose It”. He’s collaborated with some of the biggest names in EDM: Diplo, Steve Aoki, Hardwell, R3hab, Gareth Emery, and Krewella, and toured all over the world playing at some of the biggest festivals and nightclubs. We sat down with Deorro at Sunset Music Festival in Tampa, FL to discuss his career, success, and why he decided to quit DJing.
You used to go by the name Tonic, why did you change your name to Deorro?
Back then, there was a popular alternative-rock band called Tonic and their lawyer contacted me and threatened to sue me if I didn’t change my name. I talked to my manager at the time and he said it was a good problem to have because you are considered a threat. I was skeptical at first because I had good amount of fans and thought it would be hard to transition to a new name. I was fortunate enough to have good fans that were fans of my music and not my name.
How important do you feel social media is to your career?
Social media is a perfect way to keep in touch with everybody. A lot of people use it as a marketing strategy to brand themselves and I do the opposite. Whenever I have a new song, I may only post about it once. There are some exceptions when I work with other artists or labels when you have to follow certain rules and guidelines. Social media is my way of connecting with fans and letting everyone know who I am and what I’m all about. I’ve gotten offers for people to manage my social media, but I just tell them to get the fuck out of here.
Your production style is unique with a lot of different influences; what are your thoughts on the current state of EDM?
One thing I want music to do is to take more than one certain road, not just Big Room, Electro, Melbourne Bounce, and so on. I want EDM to consist of brand new genres. I think what is stopping producers from evolving to new sounds is that they are going into the studio with the mentality of “let’s make the next #1 Beatport track” and they limit themselves to what they hear on Beatport charts. It shouldn’t be like that; they should be like “let’s just start something weird”. When I made “5 Hours”, I went into the studio knowing I didn’t want the track for DJ sets…it’s not going to have an intro for DJs, and that’s why I think that’s why that song came out so different because I never thought about someone playing it on stage. It (5 Hours) was what I was feeling at the time, and that’s what music is lacking. It’s not about making the next hit; it’s about being creative and doing what you like…it’s art. Pablo Picasso didn’t try to make the next big painting, it was all about what he was feeling at the time and that’s music should be like.
Photo by Panda Funk Media
Recently you decided to put a hold on DJing/touring to focus on producing and Panda Funk. Can you tell us more about Panda Funk?
I’m going to finish out the rest of my planned shows this year and focus on Panda Funk. Panda Funk is a movement about helping each other out, growing as a family, not about money or branding, and keeping the heart of music alive. We do have our own label and we are giving these talented producers a place where they can be heard whereas some of these labels that only care about the money won’t give them that chance. My goal from the beginning when I became successful was to help out as many people I can.
Can you tell us about any upcoming projects?
I’m working on a collab with MAKJ, it’s going to be dope.
What’s in your DJ bag?
I don’t have a DJ bag…I have a “DJ pocket” with SD cards, USB sticks, and headphones.
Deorro with Jon from Smash The Club
Where do you see yourself five years from now?
I hope to see the Panda Funk tour going with all kinds of people from different cities.
What three guys would you bring on your Panda Funk tour?
I’d love to take care of my own bros, so they would be on there along with Will Sparks and Joel Fletcher. If we have the Panda Funk tour going, I’d love to have a DJ contest in every city and have some of the best local DJs showcase for the first part of the concert.
Follow Deorro (Los Angeles)
Website: deorro.com
Facebook: facebook.com/deorro
Twitter: @deorro
YouTube: youtube.com/user/deorroTV
SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/deorro
