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Guest Mixtape & Interview: Dawn Richard

Posted in Guest Mixtapes, Interviews by Emoke

Dawn Richard aka D∆WN is one of the most electrifying phenomena in the independent music scene. Hailing from New Orleans, currently living in Los Angeles, the queen of pop new wave has been releasing some of the most forward-thinking music of our times. When Dawn is not busy breaking pop star narratives, she loves to play around with Pacemaker and drop some kick-ass mixtapes. Read our interview with the fabulous and super inspiring Dawn while you’re listening to her latest selection.

 

Dawn Richard / D∆WN

 

You’ve recently finished your North American Redemption Tour, how did it go?

Everything went well. We curated a stadium show in small venues, it worked out amazing. Each city brought its own flavour!

‘Redemption’ was the final chapter in The Heart Trilogy. How did it feel to close this circle

It felt like taking a large exhale. I did what I said I would do and with no major machinery. I’m proud of that.

What are you working on currently?

I already have a new album on the way as well as some creative and tech business endeavours.

You came a really long way from working with P. Diddy in Danity Kane to collaborating with Machinedrum in your latest releases. How is your audience keeping up with you?

I have an amazing movement that is open to evolution and transformation. It’s who I am as an artist and I’m grateful they rock with me!

Going independent after topping the Billboard is definitely a ballsy move. What do you think, after trying out both sides, are the biggest challenges and benefits of having control over all the aspects of your work?

I like both sides, I appreciate being my own boss though. I like to have creative freedom to not only perform but work in design, animation, tech and film.

Do you have a dream collaboration you would like to make it happen?

Hans Zimmer would be a dream. I’d like to collab on scoring an independent film.

We will also soon be able to see you on the silver screen as the main lead in Jean-Claude La Marre’s ‘Kinky’. How did you end up in this role and how did you enjoy yourself in this new challenge?

I wanted to try something out of my comfort zone. This was an opportunity to do that.

How do you relax when you’re not doing anything music-related?

I’m always working. Always!

You were born in New Orleans and you’re currently living in Los Angeles. Is there anything you miss from home sometimes?

I miss everything about New Orleans. LA and NOLA are two completely different waves. LA is my work home, NOLA is my soul home.

What are your favourite spots in LA?

Love The Broad, The Last Bookstore and Real Food Daily.

How does a regular day of yours look like when you’re not touring?

Designing set designs, animating for my series, djing for my NTS radio show and yoga if I have the time.

How do you discover new music nowadays? Do you buy records or you prefer digital formats and streaming?

I still buy records, I’m in love with the vinyl sound.

Name 3 artists whose sound you really like at the moment.

Afefe Iku, Kaytranada, Sampha.

Tell us a bit about the selection in your latest Pacemaker mixtape ‘NewSchool’.

I wanted to show love to the different females killing the game. Some indie, some major, all needed.

You’ve been playing around quite a bit with Pacemaker. What do you like the most about the  app, what are your favourite features and what would you like to improve?

I love the mixing options! I love that it gives you references on what compliments your picks. I’d love to be able to speed and slow tracks down in the app, really hoping that can be added! 🙂

 

Follow Dawn:

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Website

Spotify

Soundcloud

 

Tech & Deep House Rhythms 💥

Posted in Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

Meet the Pacemakers! Read our chat with @joebrokken + listen to some great tech & deep house

 

 

Ever wondered who your Pacemaker friends really were? Where do they live, what do they do when they are not busy creating amazing mixtapes? Well, it’s time to get to know them a bit better! To break the ice, we spoke to everyone’s favourite @joebrokken. Read our chat & play his latest mixtape, where vaporwave meets Jimi Hendrix and experimental electronica is the new funk!

 

 

We just can’t get enough of @stevemodz’s heated tech and deep house selections. Expect the unexpected, effortless transitions and some of the hottest vibes with Hot Since 82, Sonny Fodera, Lupe Fuentes etc. Play this at your house party for maximum satisfaction!

 

 

@gbread’s first Pacemaker+ mixtape totally deserves a spot in this week’s best of the best. Just like your favourite double shot espresso – it’s hot and simmering, packed with super energetic bass & tech house grooves, deep bangers and a blast of club-ready beats.

Meet the Pacemakers #1: @joebrokken

Posted in Meet the Pacemakers by Emoke

Ever wondered who your Pacemaker friends really are? Where do they live, what do they do when they are not busy creating amazing mixtapes? Well, it’s time to get to know them a bit better! To break the ice, we spoke to everyone’s favourite @joebrokken!

joebrokken

Where in the world do you live?

I live in Seattle, Washington USA.

We only see a username and sometimes a picture when it comes to users. Who is behind your username?

Oh, well I’m a music lover, a husband, a pet owner, and a designer.

How did you discover Pacemaker?

I downloaded Pacemaker two years ago when it was first featured in the iOS App Store.

What is your favourite thing about Pacemaker?

I love that Pacemaker keeps getting better and more fun to use, but my favorite thing about the app is the community of music lovers it has created. I am connected with musical friends all around the world and I love that. Pacemaker has created a social network where people are smart, kind, and sharing ideas – it’s so cool!

What would you improve in the app?

I’d like to see some more advanced info about the tracks I’m mixing. Pacemaker does a lot of heavy lifting for me when it comes to matching tracks, but I would like to see the key signature of each track any way. It would help me find songs that go together even though they may have a different BPM.

If you could pick just one favourite user in the Pacemaker community, who would that be?

I would have to say every user I’ve had a dialogue with. The people who are engaging and want to have a conversation about music like tefoden, provocateur, proudspark, capturingphi, stanfitz, jonas and many many more keep me going and make it fun to share.

Name one of your most favourite mixes from another user on Pacemaker.

Every once in a while a mix drops that is so fresh and new everyone else wants to take a crack at it. I remember when tefoden dropped NOISE // RNB // NOISE, everyone was like, WOW what is that? That mix taught me a lot about contrasting sounds and the importance of having contrast in a mix. Yes, we want smooth seamless transitions but not at the cost of sounding boring. So for the next few mixes I played with the idea of contrast and I noticed this theme popping up in mixes from other friends on Pacemaker. It was like everyone went up a level together by listening and collaborating with each other.

How do you usually discover music, what are your favourite sources?

Our local alt-radio station KEXP states that most people find their “type” of music in their early 20’s and stick with it for the rest of their life. KEXP is on a mission to undo all of that. They want to create a scene where people discover and love new types of music for a lifetime. I couldn’t agree more with that mission. I am always digging around on record store blogs and meandering down algorithmic paths on Spotify to find artists I’ve never heard of. Pacemaker makes it really easy to find new music because people with great taste from around the world are always dropping mixes with artists I’ve never heard of.

How much time do you usually spend on creating a mixtape?

Some flow right through me in a couple of hours, while others take weeks and lots of research. It’s hard to say.

What do you do when not mixing on Pacemaker?

I’m into the local music scene here quite a bit. I went to the Flaming Lips, Mark Farina, Fleet Foxes, and Father John Misty recently. It was like a DIY music festival. When I’m not getting down with my bad self on the dance floor I like to go outside and have fun in the fresh air.

joebrokken

Did Pacemaker change the way you’re listening to music? If so, in what sense?

Pacemaker taught me how to choose just the right thing to listen to. I didn’t know that I had good taste in music until I saw other people who I greatly respect commenting and enjoying my mixes. Just a few weeks ago it dawned on me that OMG I have good taste in music.

Have you had any DJ experiences before joining Pacemaker?

Nope.

Are you making music yourself in any way?

I am a pianist first and a drummer second, I like making tracks on my computer. But more than anything I’m enjoying Pacemaker as a musical outlet these days.

Name 3 of your current favourite artists.

Bicep, Svarte Greiner, and JD Emanuel.

Who would you like to see posting a mixtape on Pacemaker?

LAUREL HALO!!!

Name one of your own mixes that you’re the most proud of.

I’ve been putting these meditation mixes together for a while now, and when I’m working on one I can feel the music coming through me. It is one of the purest expressions of self that I have found and I’m always surprised when other people like them. For me it is really hard to mix popular music because I like to live on the fringe. So I have to say that I am most proud of Headphones and Chill #3, It should be called Netflix and Chill because that mix is sexy. I took a crack at really mixing some popular music and making something new with it. I pulled all the stops and used everything I’ve learned about mixing to create the smoothest sexiest mix possible. Everyone I play it for remembers that mix and says oh, you have really good taste in music, what was that?

Name one friend who should be on Pacemaker but isn’t.

Octoclops – you know who you are buddy.

Is there a question you always wanted to ask from a Pacemaker user but you never did? Ask away!

@provocateur: what planet did you come from and can I party there?

New York vibes, Hip-Hop & Deep House 🌿

Posted in Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

Dominique Keegan shares infamous Plant Bar’s coolest & loudest memories in a mixtape.

 

 

Everyone in the NYC clubbing scene is probably familiar with Dominique Keegan’s name. One of the coolest dudes, owner and founder of Plant Music, excellent DJ and curator, Creative Director at Kobalt Music and also co-founder (with Marcus “Shit Robot” Lambkin) of the Plant Bar, one of the loudest clubs from New York’s past nightlife. Dom travelled back to the golden era of this infamous club and mixed up a selection of his favourite tracks dominating the dancefloor. Warm up those dancing feet and read our interview with Dom, the man behind the best vibes in the Big Apple.

 

 

@erhanokuroglu started dropping mixtapes just a week ago but his selections have already made a big impression on us. Going through a wide range of genres, we picked one of our favourites to share with you. This party mixtape is filled with the finest of electronic music has to offer, hip-hop, bass music, chillwave and even some deep house.

 

 

Do you feel like taking a little trip without leaving the comfort of your home? @artifakt72’s dub-soaked, psy-ambientish downtempo mixtape is a mystical experience that will definitely take you to places and exercise your aural senses. Just lean back and take in every sound this dubby meandering has to offer.

Dim Mak, Future Bass & Afterhours House 🍄

Posted in Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

The Los Angeles-based record label is back with a crispy future bass mixtape.

 

 

Good news, everyone! DIM MAK, the Los Angeles-based influential record label and music lifestyle brand is back with their second mixtape. This time they’ve mixed up some of their crispiest and most powerful recent Future Bass releases. With a back catalog hundreds of records deep, a history of legendary live events, and a fully formed clothing line, DIM MAK continues its global mission of promoting boundary-pushing music and culture. Push play and get lost in DIM MAK’s energetic world, by any means necessary.

 

 

We are super excited about welcoming Joaquin Jimenez-Sauma aka @jjsauma as a new member on Pacemaker. An exceptional DJ, producer, label owner, sound designer, lecturer… and the list could go on! Being a master of everything music-related, there is a lot to learn from him even by just listening to his mixtapes. Here is a warmly recommended afterhours selection that will keep your party going at least until the sun rises again.

 

 

@tbyh2o is another new member of our community and having only posted two variations of the same mixtape, we can already make assumptions about his exceptional skills. When it comes to picking tracks and mixing them to perfection, he’s a keeper. Check out his first #house mixtape, filled with marvelous grooves and some of the biggest names in the game like Julio Bashmore, Hot Since 82 and DJ Koze.

Deep House Notes from Los Angeles 🌴🌞

Posted in Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

Boost your summer with the best house vibes, great excuse to turn up the volume!

 

 

Matt Saint Will, the captain of Arrivals Records is a zealous producer, curator, DJ and label owner. He dropped his latest EP ‘Notes from Los Angeles’ a few weeks ago, which also inspired him to mix some of his new tracks with a handful of summer essentials. The result is a glimpse of what Los Angeles might sound like, an hour full of pleasant house vibes, a great excuse to turn up the volume.

 

 

Knighthood is usually granted for a great public service and it’s becoming more and more common in the entertainment industry as well. Sir Anthony Hopkins, Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney and the list could go on. However, there is someone you may not have heard of… yet! @sir_gabriel, the knight of Pacemaker, guardian of the finest electro mixtape, ruler of grooves. Check him out!

 

 

You won’t easily find this mixtape by searching for its title in Pacemaker, so let us give you a helping hand here. @ericcvillanueva is a fervent servant of electronic beats and one of his latest sonic getaways is the perfect combination of techno, deep and tech house with a touch of tribal. Top, top, top selection!

House Classics with Dirty Disco Radio 💃🕺

Posted in Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

Let’s do some time travel and revisit some of the most legendary house tracks with Dirty Disco Radio.

 

 

Kono Vidovic, the host of Dirty Disco Radio is back with another special mixtape that invites you to do some time travelling yet stay in your comfort zone. Kono picked some of his favourite classic house gems and mixed them neatly in an uplifting and inspiring potpourri that will brighten up your day and night.

 

 

@capturingphi’s latest mixtape is one of the hottest selections on Pacemaker right now. Blending tech house with techno like a pro, our unstoppable groove master has once again proven that there’s no such thing as a bad party if you’re playing the right mixtape.

 

 

Now that the days are getting shorter and the nights are getting longer, you will need one more mixtape to feed the party animal in you. @mdmlnd mashed up some ripe deep house and tech house beats with some of the tracks playing simultaneously for several minutes.

WHOISJODY & Poolside Deep House Essentials 🍹

Posted in Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

Weekend warmup with some vicious vibes, WHOISJODY is back with another impressive deep house mixtape.

 

 

Our one and only WHOISJODY just released his new single ‘Grand Philly Hustle’ on Taylor Made Recordings. This was the perfect timing for yet another impressive deep house mixtape, setting a proper uplifting mood with his new single as the opening track. Give it a spin and hustle around these smooth summer vibes.

 

 

@incognito mixed up a mighty fine party mixtape by using tracks he discovered in other Pacemaker users’ mixtapes. The ‘❤️ track’ button is indeed magic! Here are your favourite tech and deep house heroes, lots of Spinnin Records gems, Hot Since 82, Weiss (UK), Adana Twins.

 

 

What places pop into your mind when you think about pools, beaches and parties? Probably something like Miami or Ibiza, right? @stevemodz’s massive deep house selection invites you to dance wherever you are and still feel like you’re attending the world’s best party.

DIM MAK Takeover, Trap & Deep House 🎶

Posted in Guest Mixtapes, Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

Steve Aoki’s DIM MAK drops first mixtape, an extravagant selection of trap sounds

 

 

In 1996, Steve Aoki founded DIM MAK and developed it into an influential independent record label and music lifestyle brand. Responsible for launching the careers of seminal acts such as Bloc Party, The Bloody Beetroots, The Chainsmokers, Deorro, Keys N Krates and countless others, the independently owned DIM MAK has consistently pushed new musical movements via its staunch DIY ethos. With a back catalog hundreds of records deep, a history of legendary live events, and a fully formed clothing line, DIM MAK continues its global mission of promoting boundary-pushing music and culture ‘by any means necessary’. DIM MAK has now landed in Pacemaker and here is their first mixtape with an extravagant selection of fresh releases.

 

 

Here comes THE ultimate summer deep house mixtape. Let yourself be surrounded by these proper beach vibes even if you are nowhere near any water. Take a swim in the sounds of Bodhi, Drake, Lone, Lapalux and enjoy the perfect jazzy-sexy waves @wrangle mixed up for you.

 

 

Time to tap your toes and bob your heads, @modal is in the house and delivers the grooviest, housiest, danciest rhythms. Get ready to hear new music and some oldies from Tube & Berger, Todd Terje, Lindstrøm and join us in trying to figure out what’s behind the title of this mix… we want to be hulmeanologists!

Deep & Funky Summer Vibes 🌞⛱🌴

Posted in Weekly Mixtapes by Emoke

Get ready for the summer with some funky beach vibes, deep and tech house.

 

 

@docholliday is a new member of our community and your prominent tour guide on this marvelous summer journey through house music. His funky mixtape really sets the bar high up with its proper beach vibes, a timeless, heavenly mixture of deep house and nu disco. Grab your sunglasses, let the sunshine in and press play!

 

 

Watch out for this techno lover from Gothenburg, Sweden! @ohedner’s loungetech selection is only 20 minutes long but what it lacks in length, makes up in quality. ‘Mjölk’ means ‘milk’ in Swedish and it contains free-range gourmet grooves with some of the most exciting deep and tech house tracks. Perfect for chilling on a warm day, embrace all these hot beats.

 

 

@billionbeatz posted his first mixtape in January and we had to wait quite some time for a follow-up. According to our ears, every minute was worth waiting. House-infused beats and massive techno vibes paired up with tropical drums. Get your summer grooves on!