Exron Exclusive Interview: Claptone at Miami Music Week 2022

On Wednesday of Miami Music Week, Exron has the divine pleasure of interviewing the legendary masked man, Claptone. A musical wizard who some say began his career under a different name while spinning vinyl, the mysterious producer reached worldwide recognition with his breakout single “No Eyes” in 2013. We met to interview Claptone in a beautiful suite of the SLS hotel ahead of his performance at Hyde Beach.

The sold-out event featured performances from both established hitmakers and promising up and comers, ending with a sunset performance from the witch doctor himself. Fatboy Slim, James Hype, Ferreck Dawn, and LP Giobbi all set the stage while we chatted with the beloved headliner.

We entered the room to find the bird-like producer perched on a couch, ready to reveal some of his biggest secrets. The first question that came to mind was how the name Claptone relates to the masked persona that he has embodied for nearly a decade. “That’s a pretty easy answer, I’m not sure if people can read that but….” he explained, then gesturing towards his looming gold mask, iridescent and shining in the fluorescent lights.

But more specifically, why the mask? We inquired, as Claptone has chosen to remain unknown since the launch of the project. “The question for me is why the sound, you know. The idea for Claptone came because if you clap your hands like that you have an organic snare. And I work with that a lot in my sound. I love the organic touch the sound brings.

“You know I strive to be human but I’m not. That kind of answers the other question as well. You know I’m torn between being human and something else, bird-shaped-like. And with my music I try to become more human and understand more about human life and be more interactive with the human species, in a way.”

We were then curious to know Claptone’s recipe for success as a producer and DJ in this industry, as his career has blossomed with every passing year. “Passion, luck, maybe love. Because they go well together. But those are the three words.”

In a recent post the masked talent shared that his curated event series ‘The Masquerade’ were inspired by Ibiza, and more specifically the club Pacha. We were curious what elements Claptone strives to bring to other cities when hosting Masquerade events to bring the feeling of Spain worldwide. “I always look at Ibiza at least for Europe of being the birth place of a mix between hippie and what back then was dance music. Coming together and starting a Balearic sound and going into house, so the early roots for European house they go back to Ibiza, and I’d love to bring that feeling because for one it’s very sunny, and also it has this eclectic vibe to it.

“Back then, in the early days of house, the songs they didn’t have to match or whatever. You wanted to create a vibe or a feeling. And that’s what I try to do with the Masquerade as well. Create more of a vibe. What helps me with that is that I’m able to curate the musical lineup. So I can decide, I have a big say depending on the budget who we can book and how this flows musically and I want to make this a whole beautiful journey for the people. Bring the flow of the music, and obviously of course I want to support the chance for the people to really let loose and if they want. to wear a mask, be something else, be someone else, that night. And see people they might not connect with in normal life, but through music be able to connect on that night. And create something special to bring people together.”

We then noted that the curated lineup included house talents like LP Giobbi, Fat Boy Slim and more. We asked Claptone how he thinks these chosen artists have been changing the landscape of the genre. “Wow so Ferreck Dawn has been around for a long time, he’s a staple for Defected which is one of the essential if not THE essential house labels. It doesn’t stop, he continues creating good house music and he’s a great guy. He has a unique style and I really wanted him to be on the lineup.

“LP Giobbi I played with her for the first time not so long ago because she really took off kind of recently. The first time I played with her was in LA at the Exchange which was a little over a year ago. And yeah I love what she did on stage, I love the energy she brings, the positivity. I also play a lot of her songs in my sets. James Hype, the same thing. A very fresh and new producer from the UK who has been introduced in the US already but will definitely be on the rise in the next few years. He just finished a remix for me that’s going to be out. All of these guys bring different stuff to the table, but it is well connected to what I do with the music.

“Fatboy Slim is basically the godfather of the idea of that kind of house that I play and also the big big movement that he created back then with lots of funk influences and breakbeats in there. I always admired that. Great DJ as well. Just a legend and a great pleasure to have a guy like that with that rich musical history I’m always a sucker for that. Even when he was in that band The House Martins and only a bass player I loved the music they did. It takes me back, I love to integrate a legend with super fresh talent.”

We were curious why Claptone decided to encourage the idea of masks on the dance floor, as typically the entire crowd joins in with their own replicas of the famous face covering. Many believe that the hooked gold nose could be reminiscent of a medieval witch doctor, but the DJ explained more of the intended purpose of the unique look.

“What I also like about the mask is that it brings a lot of different history to the table. You know, its a venetian Carnaval mask, you can also see it as a golden bling bling hip hop thing, you can see a bird in it if you want, you can see it eyes wide shut, it pops up here and there and people can have a lot of options to connect with it, beneath the surface of the mask, whatever they want. I want to open it up and not narrow it down to the people.”

We heard rumors that there might be more than one person involved in the Claptone brand or project, as the artist has been noticed to be more than one place at a time in the past, so we asked the producer for more insight on the matter.

“Yeah I mean I work with a big group of people, of management, but all the DJs I named before they work with other people for the brand. You have a social media manager, you have PR agent, you have a videographer, so it comes together. You work with different artists, you cannot be a one man show. Even though to the outside world it sometimes looks as if you’re the one man who does all this, you have a booking agent, a travel agent, it takes a village to build one Claptone.”

Claptone recently released his third studio album, Closer, in 2021, so we were curious how he felt his sound has evolved since releasing his first album years prior. “I feel a big evolution in sound. I got more confident to do what I wanted to do, well it’s ben a journey to be honest. I mean I started this as a club thing and as a B-side recorded “No Eyes” and it suddenly took off as a song and I didn’t really expect it then. When it got successful I tried to create an album that I would want to listen to at home, with a lot of songs but in a house format and having achieved that, on the second album I tried more tempos, I played around, was more open. By the third album, Closer, now I think I got even more open to the idea that if it’s pop music it’s pop music, I don’t care. I can still be a club DJ at the same time, but who wants to listen to an entire album of house music that has no vocals? So I pushed it even more, I got more daring, and I think I created some great songs with some amazing vocal talent. With an amazing producer like Stuart Price, a legendary producer, who also comes from DJing but starting producing Madonna, The Killers, lots of Pet Shop Boys, you name it, it was a pleasure learning from him. Pop music is different than dance music production.”

Since dropping the album, Claptone has released a few remixes for the single “Feel This Way”, so we were curious why it’s important that he curate remixes for his original tracks. “When you put out an album that’s more consisting of three-minute vocal songs, you wouldn’t play that out on a party. Maybe one of two of those, but not too many. For me it’s important to translate them to the dance floor and I don’t do it for my own music because I feel pretty stupid trying to reinvent what I already wrote, I do that for other people that’s great, it’s a pleasure, but not such a pleasure to do it for your own music. So I pick some of my friends and people who I think can translate it very well onto the dance floor.”

Claptone closed out the weekend with a back to back performance with Vintage Culture at Ultra Music Festival, a once in a lifetime performance that left the mainstage packed. Having played at countless festivals across the world, we asked what he thinks makes Ultra, Miami, and his show there so special. “It’s one of the biggest festivals and most renowned in the world. It hasn’t been happening for two years, people are super keen on it. It’s going to be amazing, because it’s going to be mainstage slot and it’s going to be the first back to back with Vintage Culture that I’ll ever do. So yeah it’s going to be pretty crazy!”