“Detroit” and “techno” are as inseparable as “Beijing” and “duck.” Carl Craig is Detroit techno’s Da Dong, the next-generation pioneer who picked up the baton and pushed on to the next level.

On background

“My mother came from Georgia, my dad from Detroit. I used to go down south in the summer, stay in Detroit during the school year”

“My parents were very protective, but my mom, coming from the South, grew up at a time when politicians would make promises like, ‘Vote for me as governor and I’ll kill all ni**ers.’ That sort of thing will make you nervous”

On the music industry

“If you’re selling 500 copies, then f**k what everybody else is doing. Five hundred copies ain’t shit, so let’s just put out music that’s fresh and interesting”

On Detroit then

“Detroit has a special capacity for futurism – it helped techno through technology. A lot of the creation story of Detroit techno involves a bigger context of science fiction. I’m not really a Trekkie, I still don’t know all the Star Wars dialogue. I’m not that kind of cat, but it influenced me through my friends”

“One of the first Jeff Mills tracks used dialogue from Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. If you talked to Derrick May, he was all about philosophy and space-age shit”

On Detroit now

“It’s as run-down as it’s portrayed. City in decay, empty lots, broken-down factories … it’s that bad. I was sheltered to some extent by my family, but I’ve seen things. I should do that Rutger Hauer speech at the end of Blade Runner! ‘Attacked ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion ...’”

“I could live anywhere in the world, but my skill as a traveler is necessary in Detroit. Me and others like me are like the modern-day griots, here to pass down what we’ve seen”
On giving back

“What I want to do with the Carl Craig Foundation is to show people you can make a great living doing something you love. We did something at the Detroit School of Arts to show the kids the professional aspects of the industry. They already have good equipment and good teachers, but we brought in established engineers and studio owners to talk with the kids. Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson came in, as well as Mr. Porter, who produces for Dr. Dre and Eminem. It was really good for the kids, but equally for the people who came in”

Carl Craig passes his wisdom down to Beijing at Lantern on Dec 8.