Interview: ESKEI83

Published December 13,2013

ESKEI83 is one of the leading DJs in Europe: with more than 150 gigs a year in Europe, Asia, and the United States, he’s rated as one of the best DJs on the scene playing in the hottest clubs and at the biggest festivals. He plays every single genre and brings an incredibly unique style to his sets adding live remixes, turntablism, and originality.

Some of his accomplishments include: First German Red Bull Thre3style Champion, Splash! Festival, Rock am Ring, Red Bull Most Wanted DJ, 8-fold DJ battle winner, and recently took 3rd place (respectively) at the 2013 Red Bull Thre3style World Championships in Toronto. Recently, ESKEI83 took some time from his busy schedule to chat with us.

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1. Where does the name ESKEI83 come from?
It is pronounced and comes from S.K., the initial letters of my real name: Sebastian Koenig. I was born in 1983.

2. How did you get started as a DJ/Producer?
I started at the age of 15 making beats with my computer. I loved the scratch-hooks that DJ Premier did on his beats, and I wanted to add scratches to my beats as well, so I bought me turntables.

3. How would you describe your style?
I come from real vinyl deejaying, no Serato, only two turntables and a mixer plus my record collection. Until 2005/2006, I was playing straight vinyl. I had my own edits cut to vinyl, added much turntablism parts into my sets, quick mixing, live blends and was using a mixer with effects. I was known for – the ‘little’ extra in my sets.

When Serato came up, it gave me even more possibilities to manipulate the music in a club friendly way. I love scratching, turntablism and all that, but at the end it has to be danceable. There has to be a flow. The crowd should be taken on a journey thru my music plus a nice extra on scratches and mixing skills.

4. You reside in Germany, but tour the world DJing in different cities. What is life on the road like? Any favorite cities to play in?
I love it and I hate it. I dreamed of it, traveling the world and now that it’s actually happening, it’s super nice. To see all these places, different cities, cultures and clubs. Meet all these great people. It’s awesome. But it’s always hard to leave my family. I have a beautiful wife and a 1 and 5 year-old daughter waiting for me at home. It’s not always easy to leave but it’s always the best to come home.

My best gigs this year were in London and Toronto with crowds that really love and enjoy music and good DJs performances.

5. What is the nightlife like in Germany?
It’s not that far from what happening everywhere else in the world. It depends on the club or festival. Actually, we are playing the same music as in the states. Trap was totally hot, now Twerk is everywhere. But EDM is different here. I think our House and Techno scene is different to what was happening in the states in the last years.

6. What do you feel is the difference between Red Bull Thre3Style and the other competitions out there?
I think Thre3Style is the perfect competition for club DJs because music selection is really important. In the end it’s all about rocking and entertaining the crowd. It’s not about skills and scratching only, it’s about the whole package. Regular people can judge and understand the DJs because it’s about party rocking. You don’t have to be a professinoal DJ or super deep into deejaying to decide who was better or what the competitors are doing. That’s cool.

7. Without giving away too many secrets, how did you prepare for your Red Bull Thre3Style World sets? How long did it take you to create sets?
Actually I prepare the whole time sets for my gigs and my gigs are Thre3Style alike. So what I did at the world finals was actually part of my current set list. It was here and there compressed and shortened to save time, but you can hear all that in my regular gigs as well.

8. You incorporate live remixes in your sets, what type of tools do you use?
I love the Launchpad. I’m using it for a long time. When the Bridge (Ableton plugin for Serato) came out I was using it therefore, had Ableton in the back and was launching samples. Now I use it as a controller for Serato because it’s super dope. I have the functions of the Dicer layed out on the pads, so I don’t need to switch between the different layers to have access to cues, rolls and loops. Plus, I have samples and FX on it. Super dope!

9. Who are some of your favorite DJs (past or present)?
DJs that have inspired me the most: Z-Trip, Shiftee Craze, Chris Karns, Skratch Bastid, Hedspin, Four Color Zack, Jazzy Jeff, A-Trak

10. What are five tracks you are playing right now?
– Fefe Dobson “Legacy (Klever Remix feat Yelawolf)
– Drunken Masters & Willy Joy “Pow Pow”
– Yellow Claw “DJ Turn It Up”
– Mayer Hawthorne “Crime (Suff Daddy Remix)
– Keys-N-Crates “Treat me right”

11. What is in your DJ bag?
MacBook Pro 15″, Illuminati Serato Control Records, Ortofon Q-Bert needles, Sennheiser HD 25 Headphones, Novation Launchpad, plus a Rane Sixty Two if the club doesn’t own one.

12. Can you tell us something most people don’t know about you?
I can’t relax myself. I’m always in work mode and it’s not easy for me to turn that off. But that’s a thing I’m working on.

13. Where do you see the future of DJing going?
I’m not sure where all this is going. There are people out there playing prerecorded mixes and acting as a DJ, people that are celebrities and can’t do the basic stuff. That’s not cool. That’s why people losing the respect for the work of a DJ, because with a cheap iPad app you can become a “DJ” as well. Regular guests don’t understand the hard effort we put into learning this, pushing it forward, doing crazy stuff and still make it look easy.

14. Where do you see yourself five years from now?
I’m spending the most time in the studio working on my own music. I hope I can drop my own tracks soon. Some of them are already finished. In 5 years, I hope people enjoy the events I’m playing not only for my DJ show but also to see me performing my own tracks live. 

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Follow ESKEI83 (Germany)
Website: www.eskei83.com
Facebook: facebook.com/eskei83
Twitter: @eskei83
SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/eskei83
YouTube: YouTube.com/eskei83
Bookings: booking@eskei83.com