Photo by Studio Johannes Bauer and graphic design by Michael Clasen. Courtesy of @studio_johannes_bauer.
DJ Steffen Berkhahn, better known as Dixon, is the Berlin DJ known for dominating Resident Advisor’s Top 100 DJs list for four consecutive years, his melodic and experimental house tunes and for only giving one interview per year. SLEEK caught up with the elusive nightclub figure ahead of Barcelona’s Sónar music festival and the Sónar+D innovation conference. We asked the Berlin-native, who has been playing clubs for 25 years now, to answer some questions about his favourite Berlin club (no surprise on this one), being voted the most popular DJ on the planet, DJ’ing in the age of social media and his upcoming gigs this weekend at the celebrated festival.
Courtesy of the artist.
As a native Berliner, what is your favorite Berlin nightclub, both to DJ at and attend?
Berghain and Zur Klappe.
People are often comparing today’s Berlin nightlife to its “heyday” in the ’90s, or complaining how “commercial” it’s become. As a veteran of the scene, how do you think it’s changed?
We now have a club structure that is well established and known worldwide. But that is just the surface of what happens in Berlin nightlife. There are many places you have to discover and that offer great alternatives.
And I have to say that in 1993 everyone was complaining that the nightlife wasn’t like it was in 1991 anymore. Nostalgia is a bitch.
It’s become a running joke that everyone moving to Berlin wants to be a DJ — what’s the best piece of advice you could give all the wannabe DJs?
Settle into whatever scene you like. Build a good crew around you and find your own style.
There’s often something totally unexpected in your sets; what’s your secret to providing something different every time and keeping crowds entertained?
Patience. And the confidence that I have enough bangers on my stick that I can always get the people back on the dance floor if some of my more experimental tracks go wrong.
Do you find it more or less difficult to play a festival versus a club?
Festivals are more difficult for me. I love to play long sets and take people on a journey, and festival sets are usually too short to do so. And as more people are on the dance floor, less experimentation is usually possible. There are always exceptions — some festivals have such an amazing setting simply because people are more open.
You’ve been tapped by Givenchy’s Riccardo Tisci to produce the soundtrack for his runway show — what are the challenges of translating your music to a fashion crowd?
You don’t translate the music to the crowd. You rather try to reflect on what is shown on the runway and on the vision of the designer. So, it’s a ping pong of ideas between the designer and the music selector.
Do you think that social media plays a role in the success of a DJ’s career today?
Undeniably. It is the most important media of today and as it always was — if you have the media behind you, you will make it. Nowadays, you control the most important part of the media yourself. So thinking that social media does not influence how DJs are ‘making it’ today is not reflecting on the media reality of today.
You also played at Sonar last year. What sets it apart from other festivals you’ve played?
Sonar has an amazing balance between commercial and experimental, both in their music programme and also in their daily talks and workshops.
Who are you most excited to hear speak at Sonar+D, or which activity are you most looking forward to?
I am thrilled to be able to play on the same day during sundown at our own Innervisions event and then the sunrise at Sonar Festival. As far as I know, this is the first time Sonar is doing this with an artist. But due to this I will unfortunately not be able to attend anything during the day at Sonar+D.
Is it true that you only give one interview a year? And if so, what’s behind that philosophy?
Yes. That was my guideline for the last years. I believe that interviews can be seen online everywhere around the world. And the questions for DJs hardly update from year to year and neither do my answers to these questions. But with Innervisions, Together We Dance Alone, Transmoderna and Lost In A Moment we are running very different brands right now that sometimes need some more explanation.
Courtesy of the artist.
Dixon will be performing at Sónar Festival on 20 July. Alongside the music festival, Sónar+D — an international conference exploring creativity — will take place from 17-19 July.