Renowned DJ GREG, who is recognised for his unique sound, talked about his musical path and how he uses his music to highlight his Mauritius roots.
Shraddha Neware
Mauritius-born and raised in Paris, DJ GREG is popular for creating his genre of music with different elements. The talented artist has now started his Indian debut tour and grabbed the attention of Hyderabad’s night scene!
Growing up in Mauritius, significantly influenced his musical style. The budding artist speaks to us about what shaped his musical journey, maximing, “As Mauritius is a multicultural island, I’ve always been listening to a lot of different genres of music. And in my DJ set or compositions, you can hear a lot of different elements that most artists and producers would not bring together.”
Navigating his identity as a Mauritian and playing a predominantly European music scene, the artist said, “I don’t really speak a lot about my identity as a Mauritian artist. I let the music do it. I think that’s why there is always Mauritians showing up at my gigs. They understand my message.”
Basically, when it comes to his music contributing to representing his roots, the Mauritian artist says that it’s not his music but the sounds from the island.
GREG, who finds his biggest musical influences in ‘djing dad” Ben UFO, Jarreau Vandal and Teki Latex, shares, “Meeting the Boukan record crew, and later joining La CREOLE Collective has definitely helped to shape my musical direction. Being part of the web radio Rinse France played a big role too.”
Having met such a diverse set of people, and incorporating that influence into his music, the DJ is keen on showing his heritage through his creations. The inspiring artist further speaks to us about the influence of Boukan Records and La CREOLE, “Both crews are about blending sounds that I love, from UK club to Afro or Caribbean music. They really defend this identity, which is the most important part of it. Before meeting them, I didn’t know anyone or any crew that was doing this. It’s also two rare parties where there is no limit for a DJ, you can almost play everything you want.”
The multicultural artist described his creative process as being mostly instinctive and not overthinking when blending different genres like Jungle, Kuduro, Shatta and GQOM in his productions. “It’s different for my sets because it needs to keep the transitions smooth to get the crowd’s attention and not break the vibe. I find a sort of link between different rhythms or melodies and sometimes it can also be a word or just a specific sound,” the ingenious DJ said.
Being a DJ, he is someone who constantly experiments with a diverse range of genres to maintain a cohesive sound on the dance floor. Therefore when playing a set, the only thing he has on his mind is to keep the crowd dancing! Because if they are not, he feels that he is missing something.
Working in the field of music production, collaborations with other producers such as Le Dom, Krampf and King Doudou, is quite organic for him.
He shares that these collaborative experiences helped his workflow and achieve certain sounds, textures, arrangements and his vision of music production.
The musician emphasised that without community, he doesn’t exist. As a resident at the Rex Club in Paris, he now runs his own set. “I think people started to notice that I only booked my favourite DJs and friends, and not doing line up with a business way of thinking. They know that if they come to my parties, even if they don’t know all the DJs, they are going to have a good time. Globally, I use my Rinse Show to reach a worldwide audience.”
The active artist has reportedly played at some notable festivals and venues like Berghain, Dekmantel Selectors and Primavera Barcelona. He said that whenever he is playing, he never prepares his sets, but goes with the flow! One of these festivals had a lasting impact on him, called the Horst Music and Arts Festival of last May.
Technology, he further says, plays an important role in his music and he only produces music virtually on his laptop.
Talking about the advancements in his field, the tech enthusiast shares, “I’m always aiming for new plugins to enhance my creativity or achieve better sound quality! I’m seeing more and more plugins that work with AI, the revolution is not done yet.” He further shares his opinion on the future of electronic music, saying, “It is about breaking the frontier between music genres. It’s already happening, but I think more and more producers and DJs will follow this path. I will just keep working as hard as I can.”
His favourite tools and software for music production are Max 4 Live, Random and Vital as a synthetic.
He was the first ever Mauritian DJ to do a boiler room, was invited for a guest mix on legendary Hessle Audio’s Rinse FM Show and did b2bs with artists. And this is something that he’s been really proud of. He also desires to do his own events in Mauritius.
The Eau Coulée Smart City EP fame, on a concluding note shares, “I took a lot of time to work on my design, so the upcoming releases will sound way better than my two previous releases. More collaborations with friends will also come out!”
Well, as he’s working on new music, we certainly can look forward to more releases!
