WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.820 You know, usually when we look at the map of 00:00:01.820 --> 00:00:04.900 a traditional music career, there is this expectation 00:00:04.900 --> 00:00:10.080 of a very linear geographical progression. Right, 00:00:10.320 --> 00:00:12.320 like a literal road trip. Exactly. You start 00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:14.660 by playing the local bars in your hometown, then 00:00:14.660 --> 00:00:16.600 maybe, you know, you conquer your home state. 00:00:16.620 --> 00:00:18.660 And if you're really lucky, you get a regional 00:00:18.660 --> 00:00:22.019 tour. You just slowly, methodically expand your 00:00:22.019 --> 00:00:23.940 borders. Yeah, it's a very sequential climb. 00:00:24.160 --> 00:00:27.219 And I think we are deeply conditioned to like 00:00:27.219 --> 00:00:29.480 success stories that we can trace with a highlighter 00:00:29.480 --> 00:00:32.280 on a map. You know, tracking the artist step 00:00:32.280 --> 00:00:34.960 by step, city by city until they finally hit 00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:37.340 the coasts. Oh, totally. But then you step into 00:00:37.340 --> 00:00:39.600 the world of electronic dance music and suddenly 00:00:39.600 --> 00:00:42.119 that traditional map is just completely broken. 00:00:42.320 --> 00:00:44.659 It really is. And that's exactly what we're looking 00:00:44.659 --> 00:00:47.280 at today. We're looking at a career trajectory 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:51.000 that honestly defies all traditional geography. 00:00:51.320 --> 00:00:54.340 It's less like a road trip and more like someone 00:00:54.340 --> 00:00:56.700 stood in the American Midwest put on a blindfold, 00:00:56.939 --> 00:01:00.200 threw a dart, and somehow that dart landed dead 00:01:00.200 --> 00:01:03.759 center in a London nightclub. Which is the absolute 00:01:03.759 --> 00:01:07.719 definition of a hyper -connected borderless musical 00:01:07.719 --> 00:01:10.730 landscape. I mean, the old rules of physical 00:01:10.730 --> 00:01:13.870 proximity just do not apply when your primary 00:01:13.870 --> 00:01:16.430 instrument is a laptop and an internet connection. 00:01:16.450 --> 00:01:18.590 Completely. Which brings us to our mission for 00:01:18.590 --> 00:01:21.129 you today. Welcome to our latest Deep Dives. 00:01:21.170 --> 00:01:23.450 I'm your host, and I'm joined as always by our 00:01:23.450 --> 00:01:25.530 resident music industry expert. Hey, everyone. 00:01:25.549 --> 00:01:28.329 So glad to be here. We are tracing the fascinating 00:01:28.329 --> 00:01:30.549 trajectory of an electronic music breakthrough, 00:01:30.549 --> 00:01:33.750 and we're using the career of American DJ and 00:01:33.750 --> 00:01:35.989 producer Jay Faye, who was born Joshua Fagan, 00:01:36.290 --> 00:01:39.409 as our ultimate case study. example to dig into. 00:01:39.670 --> 00:01:41.790 It really is. We're going to figure out how an 00:01:41.790 --> 00:01:44.290 artist builds a career from releasing tracks 00:01:44.290 --> 00:01:47.049 locally in St. Louis, Missouri all the way to 00:01:47.049 --> 00:01:48.870 hitting the absolute top of the international 00:01:48.870 --> 00:01:52.650 charts. And spoiler alert, it involves the intricate 00:01:52.650 --> 00:01:55.530 art of the remix, the rework, and some incredibly 00:01:55.530 --> 00:01:57.849 strategic collaboration. And what makes this 00:01:57.849 --> 00:02:00.409 specific deep dive so compelling for anyone listening 00:02:00.409 --> 00:02:02.290 right now is that we aren't just looking at what 00:02:02.290 --> 00:02:05.010 this artist achieved. We are really pulling back 00:02:05.010 --> 00:02:07.230 the curtain on the mechanics of how electronic 00:02:07.230 --> 00:02:09.449 music actually operates. Right, the nuts and 00:02:09.449 --> 00:02:11.810 bolts of it. Yeah, exactly. We're looking at 00:02:11.810 --> 00:02:15.110 how a beat gets built, broken down, and rebuilt 00:02:15.110 --> 00:02:17.750 to conquer the world. So let's jump right into 00:02:17.750 --> 00:02:20.229 the foundation phase. Every artist has one, you 00:02:20.229 --> 00:02:21.370 know, that period where you're just trying to 00:02:21.370 --> 00:02:23.889 make a dent in the universe. For Jay Faye, we're 00:02:23.889 --> 00:02:28.069 looking at the year 2012. Ah, huge year. A massive 00:02:28.069 --> 00:02:29.849 year. And I want to set the scene for you, because 00:02:29.849 --> 00:02:31.770 this wasn't just a slow trickle of music while 00:02:31.770 --> 00:02:34.409 he figured out his sound. This was an explosive 00:02:34.409 --> 00:02:37.590 entry characterized by sheer relentless volume. 00:02:37.650 --> 00:02:40.490 It was a total blitz. I mean, the output is staggering 00:02:40.490 --> 00:02:42.490 when you look at the dates on these source materials. 00:02:42.650 --> 00:02:44.849 OK, let's unpack this, because on Valentine's 00:02:44.849 --> 00:02:48.569 Day, February 14, 2012, he drops his debut EP, 00:02:48.949 --> 00:02:52.580 Bonkers, via the Young Robots label. Right. Then, 00:02:52.919 --> 00:02:55.360 less than two months later, on April 3rd, he 00:02:55.360 --> 00:02:59.080 releases his second EP titled OPS, but this time 00:02:59.080 --> 00:03:02.409 on TNA Records. Yeah. That is two entirely different 00:03:02.409 --> 00:03:05.370 EPs on two different labels in under eight weeks. 00:03:05.569 --> 00:03:08.189 Which is wild. In the traditional pop or rock 00:03:08.189 --> 00:03:10.610 music industry, that schedule would give a PR 00:03:10.610 --> 00:03:12.409 team a collective heart attack. Oh, absolutely. 00:03:12.550 --> 00:03:15.289 You're supposed to milk one release for an entire 00:03:15.289 --> 00:03:17.689 year, touring it, promoting it, you know, really 00:03:17.689 --> 00:03:19.490 stretching it out. But wait, because that is 00:03:19.490 --> 00:03:22.430 just the original music. In that exact same calendar 00:03:22.430 --> 00:03:26.030 year, 2012, he releases eight different official 00:03:26.030 --> 00:03:29.150 remixes for a wildly diverse roster of artists. 00:03:29.289 --> 00:03:32.219 Eight. It's just, it's a lot. It is. I want to 00:03:32.219 --> 00:03:33.680 read this list just to give you a sense of the 00:03:33.680 --> 00:03:37.639 spread here. He is remixing Bro Safari, Baraka 00:03:37.639 --> 00:03:41.080 Somsistema, Bailey Smalls, Felix Kartal, featuring 00:03:41.080 --> 00:03:45.319 Maja Iverson, Craze, Starslinger, Phono, and 00:03:45.319 --> 00:03:47.789 The Hood Internet. It is a massive undertaking 00:03:47.789 --> 00:03:50.110 for a single producer. It is. And I actually 00:03:50.110 --> 00:03:52.469 have a major problem with this strategy. Doesn't 00:03:52.469 --> 00:03:55.030 this violate the most basic rules of supply and 00:03:55.030 --> 00:03:57.110 demand, and frankly, just human burnout? You 00:03:57.110 --> 00:03:58.569 would think so, yeah. I was trying to picture 00:03:58.569 --> 00:04:00.629 this work rate. It's basically like a chef deciding 00:04:00.629 --> 00:04:03.689 to open two brand new original restaurants. In 00:04:03.689 --> 00:04:06.990 the span of two months. Yes. And while he's trying 00:04:06.990 --> 00:04:09.810 to run those two new spots, he is simultaneously 00:04:09.810 --> 00:04:12.750 doing guest chef takeover spots in eight other 00:04:12.750 --> 00:04:15.349 kitchens all around the city. Usually, if you 00:04:15.349 --> 00:04:16.930 spread yourself that thin, the food is going 00:04:16.930 --> 00:04:19.110 to taste terrible. You burn out and you release 00:04:19.110 --> 00:04:22.199 garbage. How did he not just dilute his brand 00:04:22.199 --> 00:04:24.199 with all of this? Well, what's fascinating here 00:04:24.199 --> 00:04:26.939 is the underlying strategy of that specific work 00:04:26.939 --> 00:04:29.199 rate and how digital music production really 00:04:29.199 --> 00:04:31.420 differs from traditional bands. Okay, how so? 00:04:31.720 --> 00:04:33.639 When you're producing electronically, you aren't 00:04:33.639 --> 00:04:36.860 booking expensive studio time or, like, coordinating 00:04:36.860 --> 00:04:39.759 five band members to show up on time. You're 00:04:39.759 --> 00:04:42.560 working in a software ecosystem where ideas can 00:04:42.560 --> 00:04:45.920 be sketched, tested, and exported rapidly. Right, 00:04:45.920 --> 00:04:48.500 you just need your laptop. Exactly. But beyond 00:04:48.500 --> 00:04:51.069 just the workflow, flow, remixing other artists' 00:04:51.449 --> 00:04:53.509 tracks acts as a highly effective, deliberate 00:04:53.509 --> 00:04:55.689 form of musical networking. I'm still stuck on 00:04:55.689 --> 00:04:57.610 the logistics, though. How does a kid in St. 00:04:57.689 --> 00:05:00.410 Louis even get the isolated audio tracks to remix 00:05:00.410 --> 00:05:03.350 an artist like Baraka Somsistema? Are they just 00:05:03.350 --> 00:05:06.170 cold emailing these global acts? Sometimes it 00:05:06.170 --> 00:05:08.810 is a cold email, yeah. Sometimes it's labels 00:05:08.810 --> 00:05:11.050 connecting their artists behind the scenes, or 00:05:11.050 --> 00:05:13.290 sometimes they're entering official remix competitions. 00:05:15.040 --> 00:05:17.360 The logistics of acquiring the audio of the stems 00:05:17.360 --> 00:05:19.680 is only half the battle. Think about the cross 00:05:19.680 --> 00:05:22.500 -pollination happening here. Braca Sam Sistema, 00:05:22.540 --> 00:05:25.279 for example, is a massive Portuguese group famous 00:05:25.279 --> 00:05:27.819 for kuduro music. Let's pause there for the listener 00:05:27.819 --> 00:05:30.040 for a second. What does kuduro actually sound 00:05:30.040 --> 00:05:33.259 like? Oh, Kuduro is this incredibly energetic, 00:05:33.519 --> 00:05:36.259 fast -paced electronic dance music that originated 00:05:36.259 --> 00:05:40.439 in Angola. It has this frantic, heavy, complex 00:05:40.439 --> 00:05:43.199 percussion, usually sitting around like 130 to 00:05:43.199 --> 00:05:46.300 140 beats per minute. And it has a very specific, 00:05:46.300 --> 00:05:50.000 dedicated global fan base. So when Jay Faye remixes 00:05:50.000 --> 00:05:53.000 a Kuduro track, he is effectively... introducing 00:05:53.000 --> 00:05:55.560 his signature Midwestern bass heavy production 00:05:55.560 --> 00:05:58.620 style to a pre -existing dedicated fan base that 00:05:58.620 --> 00:06:00.819 might never have heard of him otherwise. So he's 00:06:00.819 --> 00:06:03.160 basically hacking their audience. It is a brilliant 00:06:03.160 --> 00:06:05.920 algorithmic hack, but executed manually. You 00:06:05.920 --> 00:06:08.259 know, before Spotify playlists and TikTok algorithms 00:06:08.259 --> 00:06:11.060 entirely dictated music discovery, the remix 00:06:11.060 --> 00:06:13.100 was the algorithm. That makes so much sense. 00:06:13.339 --> 00:06:15.959 Right. You take a song people already love, you 00:06:15.959 --> 00:06:18.339 inject your unique production DNA into it, and 00:06:18.339 --> 00:06:21.490 suddenly... Fans of Starslinger or Craze are 00:06:21.490 --> 00:06:23.490 checking the liner notes going, who produced 00:06:23.490 --> 00:06:25.670 this remix? I need to hear more from this JFAY 00:06:25.670 --> 00:06:28.670 guy. You're building your name across multiple 00:06:28.670 --> 00:06:31.449 different geographical and genre scenes simultaneously. 00:06:31.670 --> 00:06:33.589 You can only hijack other people's audiences 00:06:33.589 --> 00:06:36.889 for so long, though, before your own sound starts 00:06:36.889 --> 00:06:39.360 demanding its own spotlight. And I think that 00:06:39.360 --> 00:06:42.300 brings us perfectly to 2013, which really feels 00:06:42.300 --> 00:06:44.920 like the incubator phase. Yeah, that scattershot 00:06:44.920 --> 00:06:47.720 networking in 2012 really pays off. The industry 00:06:47.720 --> 00:06:49.600 actually starts paying attention to his solo 00:06:49.600 --> 00:06:52.040 work. Right. The groundwork starts yielding tangible 00:06:52.040 --> 00:06:54.600 results. When you prove you can deliver high 00:06:54.600 --> 00:06:57.500 quality remixes reliably, you level up to bigger 00:06:57.500 --> 00:06:59.600 platforms. And we see that shift in the data, 00:06:59.740 --> 00:07:02.980 clearly. In January 2013, Jay Faye gets a solo 00:07:02.980 --> 00:07:05.480 track called Dibby Dibby featured on a compilation 00:07:05.480 --> 00:07:08.480 album released by T &A Records called Moombahton 00:07:08.480 --> 00:07:11.500 forever. And simultaneously, his remix game elevates 00:07:11.500 --> 00:07:14.360 to much heavier hitters in the UK, right? Oh 00:07:14.360 --> 00:07:17.180 yeah. He's remixing Friction, and he does a track 00:07:17.180 --> 00:07:20.259 for Scream featuring Scruffyzer, P -Money, and 00:07:20.259 --> 00:07:24.120 Reeker Dan called Kingpin. Plus a remix for Amplify 00:07:24.120 --> 00:07:27.319 Dot's Track Outlaw. Which is huge. Scream and 00:07:27.319 --> 00:07:30.120 Friction are massive foundational pillars in 00:07:30.120 --> 00:07:33.079 UK bass and drum and bass music. That is a very 00:07:33.079 --> 00:07:36.420 serious evolution from the 2012 roster, but that 00:07:36.420 --> 00:07:39.379 compilation album placement is just as crucial. 00:07:39.600 --> 00:07:41.560 I want to focus on that compilation, actually, 00:07:41.779 --> 00:07:43.540 because I think a lot of us hear a compilation 00:07:43.540 --> 00:07:46.279 album and we just think of like a random mixtape 00:07:46.279 --> 00:07:48.100 you burn for a road trip. Yeah, a bunch of random 00:07:48.100 --> 00:07:50.279 hits. Right. But in this context, I was wondering, 00:07:50.420 --> 00:07:52.839 is a curated genre compilation like Mubat and 00:07:52.839 --> 00:07:55.500 Forever essentially acting like a tech incubator? 00:07:55.639 --> 00:07:57.519 How do you mean? Well, like a startup showcase. 00:07:57.790 --> 00:08:00.550 An artist puts their specific product, their 00:08:00.550 --> 00:08:03.170 single track on display, in this highly curated 00:08:03.170 --> 00:08:05.829 environment alongside other promising startups, 00:08:06.189 --> 00:08:08.589 just hoping it catches the eye of a major investor. 00:08:08.970 --> 00:08:11.290 That is a perfect analogy. Compilation albums 00:08:11.290 --> 00:08:13.430 in dance music aren't just collections of songs. 00:08:13.490 --> 00:08:16.569 They plant a flag in the sand. They are definitive 00:08:16.569 --> 00:08:19.850 cultural statements. So by releasing a track 00:08:19.850 --> 00:08:23.269 on Moombahton Forever, JFAY wasn't dropping a 00:08:23.269 --> 00:08:26.009 single into the void. He was explicitly aligning 00:08:26.009 --> 00:08:29.399 his sound with a very specific, highly hyped 00:08:29.399 --> 00:08:31.920 movement. And for anyone listening who isn't 00:08:31.920 --> 00:08:35.399 deep into 2010's electronic sub -genres, what 00:08:35.399 --> 00:08:37.759 is Moonbottom? Like, what are we physically hearing 00:08:37.759 --> 00:08:40.679 when we play that record? Imagine taking a classic 00:08:40.679 --> 00:08:44.080 pounding house music beat, but you slow the tempo 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:47.279 way down to about 108 beats per minute and you 00:08:47.279 --> 00:08:49.840 infuse it with the rhythmic groove of reggaeton. 00:08:49.940 --> 00:08:52.960 Oh, nice. Yeah, it has this thick tropical swinging 00:08:52.960 --> 00:08:55.679 bounce to it. At the time, the entire industry 00:08:55.679 --> 00:08:57.940 was watching Moon Button to see if it would become 00:08:57.940 --> 00:09:01.320 the next global pop trend. So all the major ladle 00:09:01.320 --> 00:09:03.799 A &R scouts, the big festival headliners, they're 00:09:03.799 --> 00:09:06.039 monitoring these compilations like a menu for 00:09:06.039 --> 00:09:07.980 what to invest in next. Exactly. They use them 00:09:07.980 --> 00:09:10.789 for. curatorial validation. If Teen A Records 00:09:10.789 --> 00:09:13.049 says J -Face Track is the sound of Moonbottom 00:09:13.049 --> 00:09:15.070 Forever, the rest of the industry takes note. 00:09:15.409 --> 00:09:17.769 Which perfectly sets up the next domino to full. 00:09:18.250 --> 00:09:20.929 Because that showcase track, Dibby Dibby, did 00:09:20.929 --> 00:09:23.029 exactly what an incubator product is supposed 00:09:23.029 --> 00:09:26.909 to do. It caught the ear of a major player. leading 00:09:26.909 --> 00:09:29.370 us straight into the 2014 breakthrough. The alchemy 00:09:29.370 --> 00:09:31.730 of the rework. Yes, the rework. Yeah. Because 00:09:31.730 --> 00:09:34.669 in February 2014, we get the release of the massive 00:09:34.669 --> 00:09:37.309 breakthrough single, Dibby Dibby Sound. But look 00:09:37.309 --> 00:09:39.789 at the credits on this. It is credited to DJ 00:09:39.789 --> 00:09:42.590 Fresh versus Jay Faye, featuring vocals from 00:09:42.590 --> 00:09:45.590 English singer, Mrs. Dynamite. That is a powerhouse 00:09:45.590 --> 00:09:47.909 main stage lineup right there. It really is. 00:09:48.220 --> 00:09:50.220 But here's where it gets really interesting. 00:09:50.840 --> 00:09:52.799 I'm looking at the mechanics of how this song 00:09:52.799 --> 00:09:56.100 actually came to exist, and I am genuinely confused. 00:09:56.200 --> 00:09:58.950 That's tripping you up. Well... The sources note 00:09:58.950 --> 00:10:01.870 that this 2014 hit heavily samples Jay Faye's 00:10:01.870 --> 00:10:04.769 original 2013 instrumental track, Dibby Dibby. 00:10:05.210 --> 00:10:06.909 How do you sample yourself? Did you just rip 00:10:06.909 --> 00:10:09.509 his own audio file and slap DJ Fresh's name on 00:10:09.509 --> 00:10:12.029 it to get radio play? Not at all. It is a much 00:10:12.029 --> 00:10:14.309 more involved structural process than simply 00:10:14.309 --> 00:10:16.850 repackaging an old song. The sources show that 00:10:16.850 --> 00:10:19.129 Jay actually reworked the song with DJ Fresh. 00:10:19.450 --> 00:10:21.830 Right. And then Mrs. Dynamite's vocals were added 00:10:21.830 --> 00:10:24.289 later. To wrap my head around this, I pictured 00:10:24.289 --> 00:10:26.789 it like real estate. It's like Jay Faye built 00:10:26.789 --> 00:10:30.169 a really great sturdy foundational house in 2013 00:10:30.169 --> 00:10:33.169 with that moon batten track. The framing is excellent. 00:10:33.350 --> 00:10:36.830 The location is great. Right. But then a wildly 00:10:36.830 --> 00:10:40.250 famous architect, DJ Fresh, comes along, tours 00:10:40.250 --> 00:10:43.350 the house and says, I love this structure, but 00:10:43.350 --> 00:10:45.190 let's renovate it together so we can sell it 00:10:45.190 --> 00:10:47.629 for millions. I love that. So they knock down 00:10:47.629 --> 00:10:50.129 some walls, add a new roof, reinforce the base, 00:10:50.529 --> 00:10:52.669 and finally they bring in a celebrity interior 00:10:52.669 --> 00:10:55.529 decorator, Mrs. Dynamite, to finish the rooms 00:10:55.529 --> 00:10:58.470 and give it that final, undeniable curb appeal. 00:10:58.789 --> 00:11:00.730 This raises an important question for anyone 00:11:00.730 --> 00:11:03.289 listening who might be used to rock, pop, or 00:11:03.289 --> 00:11:05.950 country music. In those genres, a song is generally 00:11:05.950 --> 00:11:08.809 written, recorded, mixed. And then it is considered 00:11:08.809 --> 00:11:11.129 a finished, static object. You don't usually 00:11:11.129 --> 00:11:13.110 go back and change the drums a year later. Right, 00:11:13.190 --> 00:11:15.230 it's done. It's pressed on a CD or vinyl, and 00:11:15.230 --> 00:11:17.769 that's it. But in electronic music, a track is 00:11:17.769 --> 00:11:20.370 incredibly fluid. It is raw material. It's more 00:11:20.370 --> 00:11:23.419 like clay than marble. Exactly that. What we 00:11:23.419 --> 00:11:25.700 are seeing here is the collaborative alchemy 00:11:25.700 --> 00:11:28.620 unique to the dance music industry. You have 00:11:28.620 --> 00:11:31.240 an instrumental club track, J -Phase Original, 00:11:31.379 --> 00:11:34.120 Dibby Dibby. It works great for DJs and underground 00:11:34.120 --> 00:11:36.340 clubs. But DJ Fresh, here's something bigger. 00:11:36.570 --> 00:11:39.990 Yeah. DJ Fresh, who is a veteran at manufacturing 00:11:39.990 --> 00:11:43.149 mainstream radio -friendly chart hits in the 00:11:43.149 --> 00:11:46.370 UK, here's the potential for a larger audience. 00:11:46.529 --> 00:11:49.009 So they take the original stems, the isolated 00:11:49.009 --> 00:11:51.590 individual audio tracks of the kick drum, the 00:11:51.590 --> 00:11:54.370 synths, the bass line, and they rebuild the entire 00:11:54.370 --> 00:11:56.490 beat together. They make it punchier, wider, 00:11:56.590 --> 00:11:58.590 and more aggressive. And then the vocals get 00:11:58.590 --> 00:12:00.470 layered on top of that new architecture. Right. 00:12:00.470 --> 00:12:02.570 In electronic music, we call that the top line. 00:12:02.809 --> 00:12:05.549 They lay a vocal top line over this newly renovated 00:12:05.549 --> 00:12:08.940 beat. Mrs. Dynamite brings this incredible, energetic 00:12:08.940 --> 00:12:12.000 reggae dance hall vocal delivery that acts as 00:12:12.000 --> 00:12:15.100 the perfect glue. It completely transforms a 00:12:15.100 --> 00:12:18.039 cool underground instrumental into an undeniable 00:12:18.039 --> 00:12:20.720 pop dance anthem. And undeniable is the perfect 00:12:20.720 --> 00:12:23.519 word because the geography of where this hit 00:12:23.519 --> 00:12:25.740 exploded is absolutely fascinating. It really 00:12:25.740 --> 00:12:28.500 is. We have a kid from St. Louis, Missouri, creating 00:12:28.500 --> 00:12:31.179 a track that gets renovated by a UK drum and 00:12:31.179 --> 00:12:35.419 bass legend with vocals from a British MC. So 00:12:35.419 --> 00:12:37.659 what does this all mean when we look at the actual 00:12:37.659 --> 00:12:40.240 charts? It means we get a front row seat to how 00:12:40.240 --> 00:12:42.340 hyper -regional the spread of dance music really 00:12:42.340 --> 00:12:44.980 is. Global hits don't actually hit everywhere 00:12:44.980 --> 00:12:47.440 globally at the same time. The numbers are wild. 00:12:47.940 --> 00:12:50.690 If you were tracking this in 2014... Dibby Dibby 00:12:50.690 --> 00:12:53.029 Sound reaches number two on the UK dance chart. 00:12:53.330 --> 00:12:55.850 It hits number three on the main UK singles chart. 00:12:56.230 --> 00:12:57.929 And it hits number three on the Scottish charts. 00:12:58.509 --> 00:13:01.190 Total undeniable domination in the United Kingdom. 00:13:01.370 --> 00:13:03.409 Which makes perfect sense given the collaborators 00:13:03.409 --> 00:13:06.049 involved and the specific sonic profile of the 00:13:06.049 --> 00:13:08.250 track. But then you look across the English Channel 00:13:08.250 --> 00:13:12.039 to mainland Europe. specifically Belgium, and 00:13:12.039 --> 00:13:14.820 the data gets so incredibly specific and weird. 00:13:15.179 --> 00:13:17.120 Oh, Belgium chart data is always a trip. In the 00:13:17.120 --> 00:13:19.120 Flanders region of Belgium, the track hits number 00:13:19.120 --> 00:13:21.919 40 on their main chart. But in the Wallonia region 00:13:21.919 --> 00:13:24.340 of Belgium, it completely misses the main Ultra 00:13:24.340 --> 00:13:26.980 Top 50 chart. Instead, it hits number 40 on the 00:13:26.980 --> 00:13:29.679 Ultra Tip chart. Ah, the infamous Ultra Tip. 00:13:29.840 --> 00:13:31.379 I had to look this up because it sounds made 00:13:31.379 --> 00:13:35.019 up. The Ultra Tip is literally a chart. specifically 00:13:35.019 --> 00:13:37.799 designed for the top 50 songs that are bubbling 00:13:37.799 --> 00:13:39.700 under the main chart. It's the almost made it 00:13:39.700 --> 00:13:41.960 chart. It's a very specific metric. I am just 00:13:41.960 --> 00:13:44.539 marveling at the weirdness of global music metrics 00:13:44.539 --> 00:13:47.840 here. It's like a movie becoming a massive record 00:13:47.840 --> 00:13:50.539 breaking blockbuster in New York City, but only 00:13:50.539 --> 00:13:53.080 playing at one single indie theater in Los Angeles. 00:13:53.779 --> 00:13:56.960 How does a track utterly dominate Scotland, but 00:13:56.960 --> 00:13:59.759 hover on a highly specific bubbling under chart 00:13:59.759 --> 00:14:03.049 in one half of Belgium? Well, it is a brilliant 00:14:03.049 --> 00:14:05.549 illustration of how cultural infrastructure dictates 00:14:05.549 --> 00:14:07.750 chart success. You have to look at the history 00:14:07.750 --> 00:14:10.889 of these specific regions. The UK has a massive 00:14:10.889 --> 00:14:13.570 decades long sound system culture. Right. They 00:14:13.570 --> 00:14:16.470 have historically embraced heavy bass, Jamaican 00:14:16.470 --> 00:14:19.169 sound clash influences, and high tempo electronic 00:14:19.169 --> 00:14:22.389 beats. It is baked into their radio DNA. So when 00:14:22.389 --> 00:14:24.649 a track drops featuring Mrs. Dynamite spitting 00:14:24.649 --> 00:14:27.549 dancehall style vocals over a heavy rebuilt moon 00:14:27.549 --> 00:14:29.889 button beat, it feels like a natural evolution 00:14:29.889 --> 00:14:32.870 for a listener in London or Glasgow. It is instantly 00:14:32.870 --> 00:14:35.789 recognizable to their musical palette. But mainland 00:14:35.789 --> 00:14:38.649 Europe is different. A country like Belgium is 00:14:38.649 --> 00:14:40.870 divided into distinct cultural and linguistic 00:14:40.870 --> 00:14:44.169 spheres. Dutch speaking Flanders and French speaking 00:14:44.169 --> 00:14:46.970 Wallonia. OK. If that makes sense. Pop radio 00:14:46.970 --> 00:14:49.470 in Wallonia might be leaning towards entirely 00:14:49.470 --> 00:14:52.210 different tempos, perhaps slower, more melodic 00:14:52.210 --> 00:14:54.809 styles of house music or French pop at that exact 00:14:54.809 --> 00:14:57.470 moment in 2014. So the environment just wasn't 00:14:57.470 --> 00:15:00.629 primed for a frantic UK bass track. Exactly. 00:15:00.929 --> 00:15:03.649 The club DJs in Wallonia were likely playing 00:15:03.649 --> 00:15:05.809 it, which is why it hits the ultra tip, it's 00:15:05.809 --> 00:15:08.009 bubbling under, because there is club heat. But 00:15:08.009 --> 00:15:10.070 it didn't cross over to their mainstream pop 00:15:10.070 --> 00:15:12.350 radio in the frictionless way it did in the UK. 00:15:12.590 --> 00:15:15.090 It shatters the illusion that a global hit is 00:15:15.090 --> 00:15:17.389 a monolithic event. Music moves through different 00:15:17.389 --> 00:15:20.429 cultures at vastly different speeds. So after 00:15:20.429 --> 00:15:23.370 you achieve that mainstream chart success, you've 00:15:23.370 --> 00:15:26.330 shared a marquee with DJ Fresh. hit with Ms. 00:15:26.490 --> 00:15:27.970 Dynamite, you were sitting at the top of the 00:15:27.970 --> 00:15:30.190 UK charts looking down. What does the producer 00:15:30.190 --> 00:15:32.629 do next? Do they just move to Los Angeles and 00:15:32.629 --> 00:15:34.710 chase the next pop star? Some certainly try to 00:15:34.710 --> 00:15:37.309 do that, yeah. But the producers who actually 00:15:37.309 --> 00:15:39.950 maintain longevity in this industry usually return 00:15:39.950 --> 00:15:42.149 to their core identity. Which is exactly what 00:15:42.149 --> 00:15:45.049 we see in the final part of our data today. In 00:15:45.049 --> 00:15:48.269 2015, the year after the massive pop success, 00:15:48.850 --> 00:15:51.549 Jay Faye releases a non -album single called 00:15:51.549 --> 00:15:54.690 Trunk. and it is a collaboration with an artist 00:15:54.690 --> 00:15:58.470 named Signal .Noise. A very different vibe. I 00:15:58.470 --> 00:16:00.970 have to point out the contrast here. Yeah. After 00:16:00.970 --> 00:16:03.789 all the glitter and the massive chart placements, 00:16:04.110 --> 00:16:07.129 putting out a standalone track with Signal .Noise 00:16:07.129 --> 00:16:10.110 feels like a very deliberate, purposeful step 00:16:10.110 --> 00:16:13.070 backward. It feels like returning to the underground 00:16:13.070 --> 00:16:15.710 collaborative trenches of the dance world. Why 00:16:15.710 --> 00:16:17.610 give up the pop spotlight? If we connect this 00:16:17.610 --> 00:16:20.139 to the bigger picture. This is the true life 00:16:20.139 --> 00:16:23.039 cycle of a working DJ and producer. It's not 00:16:23.039 --> 00:16:25.100 a straight line up to the pop charts followed 00:16:25.100 --> 00:16:27.220 by a comfortable retirement. You don't just win 00:16:27.220 --> 00:16:29.399 the game and stop playing. Never. The massive 00:16:29.399 --> 00:16:32.000 chart hit the dibby -dibby sound that is a spectacular 00:16:32.000 --> 00:16:34.539 milestone. It raises your international profile, 00:16:34.679 --> 00:16:36.480 it brings in significant publishing revenue, 00:16:36.679 --> 00:16:39.039 and it introduces your name to millions of casual 00:16:39.039 --> 00:16:42.730 listeners. But the career itself... The day -to 00:16:42.730 --> 00:16:44.730 -day reality and emotional survival of being 00:16:44.730 --> 00:16:48.009 an electronic artist is sustained by a continuous 00:16:48.009 --> 00:16:51.049 loop of creating, collaborating with your peers, 00:16:51.429 --> 00:16:53.409 and releasing independent tracks. It's like going 00:16:53.409 --> 00:16:55.450 back to the gym the morning after you win the 00:16:55.450 --> 00:16:57.490 championship. You still have to do the reps. 00:16:57.830 --> 00:17:00.049 And you critically need to do the reps because 00:17:00.049 --> 00:17:02.570 that peer -to -peer collaboration is where the 00:17:02.570 --> 00:17:06.250 new sounds are actually forged. A track like 00:17:06.250 --> 00:17:09.349 Trunk with Signal .Noise is how an artist stays 00:17:09.349 --> 00:17:11.390 grounded in the scene that birthed them. It keeps 00:17:11.390 --> 00:17:13.349 them relevant. It keeps their ear to the ground. 00:17:13.589 --> 00:17:16.089 If you only chase the pop charts, you lose the 00:17:16.089 --> 00:17:18.869 foundational respect of the clubs. And in dance 00:17:18.869 --> 00:17:21.690 music, the club is your actual home. Without 00:17:21.690 --> 00:17:24.049 the club, you have no testing ground for your 00:17:24.049 --> 00:17:26.630 ideas. That brings everything full circle so 00:17:26.630 --> 00:17:29.529 beautifully. When we trace this journey, we start 00:17:29.529 --> 00:17:32.579 with Joshua Fagan in a St. Louis bedroom. Then 00:17:32.579 --> 00:17:35.579 we move to that absolutely relentless 2012 grind 00:17:35.579 --> 00:17:38.380 of putting out two entirely different EPs and 00:17:38.380 --> 00:17:40.660 hacking the algorithms by doing eight remixes 00:17:40.660 --> 00:17:42.940 in a single calendar year. The Blitz that built 00:17:42.940 --> 00:17:46.319 the network. The Blitz, which led directly to 00:17:46.319 --> 00:17:48.920 the strategic incubation of his solo track, Dibby 00:17:48.920 --> 00:17:51.700 Dibby, on a curated compilation which then triggered 00:17:51.700 --> 00:17:54.140 that incredible collaborative explosion with 00:17:54.140 --> 00:17:57.059 DJ Fresh and Mrs. Dynamite, taking a Midwestern 00:17:57.059 --> 00:17:59.680 kid to the absolute peak of the UK and Scottish 00:17:59.680 --> 00:18:02.630 charts. It's a masterclass in how modern music 00:18:02.630 --> 00:18:05.809 actually travels, not by touring in a van, but 00:18:05.809 --> 00:18:08.470 by sending audio files across oceans. And it 00:18:08.470 --> 00:18:11.569 shows how a hit is actually built piece by piece, 00:18:11.730 --> 00:18:14.029 stem by stem, collaborator by collaborator. Which 00:18:14.029 --> 00:18:15.930 leaves us with a final thought I want you to 00:18:15.930 --> 00:18:18.400 chew on today. The next time you are listening 00:18:18.400 --> 00:18:20.859 to a massive hit song, especially an electronic 00:18:20.859 --> 00:18:23.539 dance track, ask yourself, how many iterations, 00:18:23.900 --> 00:18:25.539 how many self samples, and how many different 00:18:25.539 --> 00:18:28.720 producers' hands did that exact track pass through 00:18:28.720 --> 00:18:31.359 before it finally reached your ears? It's rarely 00:18:31.359 --> 00:18:33.259 just one person. Are we ever really listening 00:18:33.259 --> 00:18:35.779 to just one finished song? Or are we just tuning 00:18:35.779 --> 00:18:38.599 into the final polished stage of a years -long 00:18:38.599 --> 00:18:41.119 musical conversation? Think about that map we 00:18:41.119 --> 00:18:43.680 started with and how many detours that dart took 00:18:43.680 --> 00:18:45.019 before it finally hit the bullseye.