2011 Nov 04 Everything's Aoki: Steve Aoki at Yugong Yishan Saturday
In a little over 30 years, Steve Aoki has been a DJ, founded his own record label, Dim Mak, launched a line of clothing and even a magazine named Aoki. He’s also known for his raucous live shows, which Beijing will be getting a taste of this month. Here’s what he had to say to us.
You come from a pretty large family. How has that influenced you?
A lot! It’s all about teamwork, and I have an amazing team on Dim Mak.
Your family has a background in restaurants. Did you feel pressure to get involved in that industry?
Yes, but from the age of 13 I decided to stay with music. It was my first calling and I trusted my gut instinct.
You’ve tried your hand at lots of things besides music. That takes a certain amount of fearlessness – where does that come from?
My dad. He was an innovator, pioneer and risked his life to fulfill his dreams.
What haven’t you tried yet?
Well in clothing, I started a line called D1, which we will show in China in January! We’ll ship in winter 2012, so be on the lookout. It’s a premium men's line that I’ve been working on for years!
Your sets look loads more fun than most other DJs.
It’s a bit different than just a DJ set. Lately I’ve really started playing and focusing on performing tracks from my album or tracks that people know from me in the past. I sing some of those, so that makes the show varied.
If you were an athlete, which world record would you most want to break?
I want to beat the Japanese guy that eats all the hot dogs.
What’s the stupidest world record attempt you’ve ever heard of?
The Japanese hot dog eater guy (Takeru Kobayashi).
Which DJ or musician’s records would you most like to break?
That’s just mean.
Steve Aoki’s Dim Mak Records sampler:
“Earthquakey People (The Sequel)” by Steve Aoki featuring Rivers Cuomo
“The Joker” (John Dalhback remix) by Felix Cartal
“Song of Siren” by Dan Sena featuring Del the Funky Homosapien
“Catch Me” by Mustard Pimp featuring Alec Empire
“Black Flags” by Atari Teenage Riot
“Something You Should Know” by New Ivory
If not breaking records, Steve Aoki will be playing them at Yugong Yishan on Nov 5.
Click here to see the November issue of the Beijinger in full.
Photo: Courtesy of the organizers
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