Already a Global Superstar, David Guetta Looks Forward to a 2025 That Promises to Be Bigger Than Ever.
David Guetta is not only one of the leading acts in the world of electronic music, he’s undoubtedly one of the biggest artists in music. Hailing from France, the 57-year-old DJ/producer/artist, boasts a career that spans four decades – and he shows no signs of slowing down.
If anything, Guetta’s success has only continued to grow over the years, catapulting the 14-time GRAMMY nominee and two-time winner to superstardom. Securing a space in Spotify’s Top 5 most-played artists in the world, amassing over 40 billion global streams, and selling over 50 million records worldwide, Guetta is truly a force. He’s a chart-topper, award-winner, and superstar DJ, and yet, at the forefront, his humility, passion, dedication, and love of the music and DJing shine through.
As a true tastemaker, Guetta became a master of his craft in the 1980s. From a young age, he would DJ and create his own opportunities throughout Paris, and eventually other parts of the globe. Promoting his own events from the start, he learned how to maneuver the business side of the industry, while discovering new trends and introducing music to nightclubs within his city.
He’s become a festival headliner, club connoisseur, and top-tier hitmaker – and let’s not forget about the time he played a live-streamed DJ set at the top of the Empire State Building in 2020. Guetta has always discovered new ways to be groundbreaking. He’s rich in music history and extremely knowledgeable about DJ culture, which comes as no surprise given his years of commitment to the craft. Appreciative of the many styles and genres of music, Guetta was the first to introduce electronic dance music (EDM) to mainstream and pop radio. His blend of house, hip hop, pop, disco, funk, and more, seemingly created the perfect formula for stateside crossover success.
Our recent sit-down with Guetta came just as he was preparing for yet another career milestone. This year’s Ultra Music Festival in Miami was a celebration of its 25th anniversary edition – and true to form, Guetta was a major part of the festivities. During Afrojack’s set at the main stage, Guetta joined him with Sia as surprise guests. Leading up to their on-stage entries, Afrojack played one of David’s earliest crossover hits, “Sexy Bitch” (feat. Akon), then came the first-ever live performance of their 2011 smash-hit, “Titanium.”
Weeks before taking the stage, Guetta revealed to us that “Titanium” probably still is his favorite record that he’s ever produced. Additionally, Guetta was filled with anticipation upon sharing the news of his LIV residency debut at Fontainebleau Las Vegas. The premier nightlife and daylight destinations boast some of the world’s most sought-after talent featuring a roster of John Summit, Tiësto, Dom Dolla, and now, David Guetta. That’s not the only residency we got to speak with him about. This season, he’s making his [UNVRS] residency debut in Ibiza, which will be in addition to his existing residency at Ushuaïa.
In our discussion, Guetta also expounded on his songwriting process, the DJ craft, re-joining forces with Sia for their new “Beautiful People” collaboration, the return of F*** Me I’m Famous, his Future Rave project with MORTEN, and so much more, DJ LIFE unpacked a nearly 40-year career with an industry icon, and here’s how our discussion with the powerhouse went down.
DJ LIFE: Can you take us back to the days of when you were a DJ and club promoter?
David Guetta: I started to DJ when I was 14-years old, and I would play at weddings and parties at my school. I would do photocopies and promote my parties. Back then, it would be $1 to get in; just to pay for the orange juice [laughs]. This is how I started… this was before house music or hip hop even really existed. I know, it sounds crazy, but it’s true! At the time, I was playing funk, and then I started to play professionally in a club when I was 17. The club was a gay club, and I was playing disco/funk and New Wave, like Depeche Mode and New Order, which was the music that was huge in the gay scene. I was told I had to play this style of music, and I didn’t really like it at first. But basically, that combo of early electronic music with Yello and Kraftwerk with the disco and funk that I was playing, funnily enough, was the foundation of what my music is today. Because I was working in a gay club, I looked into what the music was like in gay clubs in America. Now we’re talking about 1987, so I learned of house music, warehouses, garage, and that’s when I started the first house music night in France. Every Monday night in that club, I would do a house music night because the club was empty on Monday nights.
DJ LIFE: How did those days in the clubs compare to the scene today?
Guetta: It’s kind of crazy what I’m going to tell you, but at that time, you would play what the [club] owner would tell you to play. You would play the records that belonged to the club because there would be a resident DJ that would play six days of the week, and I would play the one day [they were] off. Because I was not the resident and it’s so hard to play with other people’s records, I came with my own records. I told the owner, “Look there’s this new music, and it’s called house music.” At the time we actually called it “acid house.” So, I asked him to let me throw a party playing only house music, you just give me my regular fee, which was probably the equivalent of $80 for an eight-hour set. Then I would promote the party with my own time and out of my own pocket. This was actually how I got my start as a club promoter, but it wasn’t the other way around. At the time, it was like a crusade for new music, and that was house music. So, I would make the smiley fliers, go to every club, and let them know about this new type of music, and you need to hear it, you need to come.
DJ LIFE: How did that work out?
Guetta: I ended up making the [Monday night] party, where it was house music only. I became a promoter because that was the only way for me to play the music that I wanted to play. For so many years, I was a club employee, and they wouldn’t let me play the music I wanted to play. And honestly, I feel like this is a good example of how to look at business. If they’re not going to book you, book yourself. They didn’t believe in me playing house music because they thought it was too weird [at the time], so I became the promoter for those nights. This is how it is now – of course, there was no social media then – where if you really believe what you’re doing, you put yourself out there, you can be your own agent.
DJ LIFE: So, you basically became their resident DJ?
Guetta: After I became I club promoter and started those house-music parties by 1988, so this was still very, very early on. There really was nobody playing this style of music in France, and actually my only competition was Laurent Garnier. At the time, he was living in the U.K., and he would come once a month to play in Paris. With that, I built a real audience of people that would follow me to the different clubs. At that time, there was no such thing as a “resident DJ,” the concept just didn’t exist. I became very popular in Paris, and I would go around the city playing the off day for each DJ at the best clubs in the city. And because I was coming with my own music, people started to realize that when I played, the music wasn’t the same [as it was on the other nights]. I would also go out and promote myself. Back then, I was crazy, and I was going out every single night of my life. You didn’t really get paid as a DJ then, it was better to be the waiter or bartender than the DJ. Once I realized I had people following me to different clubs, I decided not to sell myself as a DJ, but little by little, become my own promoter.
DJ LIFE: And where did things go from there?
Guetta: Once I was more established as a promoter, I then opened my first club, Les Bains, which was one of the best clubs in Europe. Then I opened up Queen, and I started the concept of inviting international DJs. I was looking at what Ministry Of Sound was doing and thought it was so fucking cool. Around 1992, I started to invite guys like Frankie Knuckles and David Morales, and I would learn from them. I would ask them, “What synth do you use?” Or, “How do you make that bassline?” Because imagine, now you can just go on YouTube and find something the same week a record is released, but at that time, it was like a fucking mystery [laughs]. I know it might be hard to relate, because it’s so different. I had this club called Les Bains Douches, and it was very cool. Downstairs was DJs and house music, while upstairs was celebrities, supermodels, and Hollywood’s finest. I remember Prince did a private concert there, and Destiny’s Child, even though the club was small – and they did these for free.
DJ LIFE: When and how did you begin your F*** Me I’m Famous parties?
Guetta: I ended up being a club owner, but I was not happy because, for me, it was always about the music first, but I ended up taking care of business, which was not making me happy. As a form of provocation, I started the concept, F*** Me I’m Famous, because I was so tired of that fucking game. This is what I was seeing in my club every day, famous people and all these girls surrounding them – and me, I was about the music, you know? So it was like a provocation, but I never imagined that one day I was gonna be famous [laughs]! When started F*** Me I’m Famous, it was almost more like a satire. In the late ’90s and early 2000s, I was playing a tech-house party called Scream that was very big. Pepe Roselló, the owner of Space Ibiza came the party. You have to remember, at this time, I had no hits. I really had no name outside of France. [Roselló] liked the music and thought the party was super cool, then asked to speak to the DJ. When I went to say “Hi,” he asked me if I wanted to play at Space in Ibiza. And this is how it all started… I played my first show there a year later and then launched the F*** Me I’m Famous events with my ex-wife. She would take care of the dancers, the visuals, the production, and all of that, while I would take care of booking the DJs.
DJ LIFE: Do you recall what DJ set-up you had initially or what you first learned to play on?
Guetta: Oh yeah, of course! So… [laughs], every weekend when I was not going to school, I would go to this shop where I could see the Technics SL-1200s. I would touch it and just stay there looking at them for hours, every Sunday. At the time, I couldn’t really afford it, so I bought one turntable, which was a Denon with the elastic, and bought a mixer to go with it. I definitely couldn’t afford to have two turntables, so I would listen to the radio, and I would learn how to mix from the radio to my [one] turntable. On the turntable, I had to control the speed with my fingers. This should also tell you why it’s not very hard for me to mix now… [laughs]. It’s so funny because when people say, “Oh, he’s playing a pre-recorded set,” I’m like, why the fuck would I do that? This was how I started, so now it’s so easy for me to mix. For years, I was playing like that and moving the speed with my fingers, until one day I had enough money to buy two turntables, which this time were the Technics.
DJ LIFE: And you got better, I assume.
Guetta: Later on, with the rise of hip hop and DMC, I was scratching and doing all the tricks of that time, like DJ Cash Money, I remember. I was completely crazy with it, training every day to master it. I was using the two Technics, there wasn’t even any Pioneer yet. I remember when I started to play in Ibiza, it was a rotary mixer because guys like Frankie Knuckles and Louie Vega, this is what they were using… and I hated it, it was a nightmare [laughs]. You wouldn’t be able to switch out equipment at clubs like this in Ibiza then, so you played with what they gave you. It would be whatever mixer they provided.
DJ LIFE: How about your current DJ setup? What’s the same and what’s changed?
Guetta: Now it’s four Pioneer CDJs and a Pioneer mixer, I’m all Pioneer for my DJ setup. Pioneer to the max!
Very early on, I would come with a sampler, a drum machine, things like that. But you have to imagine, at that time, house music or “acid house” was completely new and experimental. There was no such thing as phones yet either, so the people would really be into it. It was transformative. It was new world. My feeling, especially when I play festivals… I don’t really get the point of doing that. I appreciate the art of doing it, but I think if you play a small club, people can see what you’re doing. When I was playing those smaller shows, it was super-avant-garde-type of people. Nowadays, there’s nothing crazy about adding sounds to an instrumental or doing a mash-up. My point is, why would I make my life complicated doing something like that live when I can create the perfect mash-up that’s well produced with the perfect buildup, I can add some pads, some changes, and make it better.
DJ LIFE: You’ve already mentioned some legendary names. Who were your early inspirations then and who do you appreciate now?
Guetta: Who influenced me the most when it comes to that was first Masters At Work in the old days. Secondly, more than anyone, was Erick Morillo. Erick was the first DJ that I saw playing with Pioneer and playing with CDs. I saw him making loops on the fly, playing a cappellas over [an instrumental], and using filters. At the time, there was no filters on the mixer, so he would come with external filters. I remember thinking, “Wow, fuck!”
When I would get together with guys like Sebastian Ingrosso, Steve Angello, and Axwell, we would spend the entire night watching Erick play. The four of us would be in the DJ booth in Ibiza every week, partying like crazy, and we were really like his hype guys. Not only that, but we would learn from it. The guy has been a little bit controversial, and I don’t like to be part of that because I know he brought so much to the culture… so much.
DJ LIFE: How so?
Guetta: All these techniques we see now would not exist without him. All of the foundations of modern-day DJing, at least for me, come from him. I’m not talking about playing festivals for 100,000 people; I’m talking about a DJ set at a club. At the time, it made so much sense to make a loop on four bars and then play with the external filters, delays, and a cappellas live. You were able to just put people in this hypnotic state where after two minutes, you bring the bass back and watch the whole club scream and go crazy. This is a different job than what I’m doing now.
DJ LIFE: Can you break down your thoughts on the current state of the industry?
Guetta: I think it’s important to acknowledge that there’s DJing, and there’s entertainment. What I was describing before was the art of DJing. People go to a dark club to see a DJ that’s not necessarily an artist; they aren’t going because they want to hear that DJ’s original music being played. With club DJs, people are going to see a DJ because they might’ve heard there was a good DJ playing. This is what I used to do. I would DJ for eight hours per day, six days a week, and I would play any style of music. Anybody is able to a one-hour set of only the same music – that’s so fucking easy! What I’m talking about is the art of DJing: Taking people on a journey, having musical culture, studying music from the ’80s, ’90s, 2000s and understanding all of it, and bringing that into what you’re playing. This is DJing – and this is a culture that is a sub-culture.
Now, what I explained, to me, is for the clubs. Once you get onto a stage and you perform as an artist because people love your music or your hits, even if they’re underground hits, the minute you take that stage, it’s entertainment; it’s something else. You have people that come and don’t understand what you’re doing. There are sometimes people who come and think you’re making the music live. My point is, I never want to…
DJ LIFE: This makes a lot of sense…
Guetta: I was a little upset when I saw that deadmau5 was saying that all big DJs play pre-recorded sets because that’s absolutely not true. I’ve never done that. My point is, why would I do that? Today, you have a system of light that works perfectly, you can set a time code for the track, separate it, so why would you find yourself locked into doing something like that? Of course, I have a skeleton of what I might want my DJ set to be, but if I see the crowd is really into Future Rave, then I’m going to play more Future Rave. If I see that they really want to hear my hits, then I’m going to play more of my hits. If I see they’re into melodic techno, then I’ll play more of that. What I’m saying is, DJing is still there, even if you’re an “entertainer.” Otherwise, I would shoot myself, it would be so fucking boring [laughs].
DJ LIFE: Well, don’t do that…
Guetta: I’m not telling anybody what to do, but I just know, personally, I would never want to do that because I would be so bored. What’s funny is when you read [social media] comments, kids today might not really realize how easy it is to “mix” – anybody can do it today, so why is there a need to play a pre-recorded set? There’s even a sync button now for those who are inexperienced or who really don’t know how to mix. It’s so important to understand how to properly be able to mix on the spot and in the moment.
DJ LIFE: A completely different world from your upbringing…
Guetta: My son is actually learning to DJ, and I taught him how to mix in the moment for the first time at his birthday. He was preparing his set, and I was, of course, helping him. Now, he plays a completely different style. He prefers U.K. Garage and more of the underground. I was helping him, and I said: “OK, you prepared a set, but I want you to have two different playlists – one with more underground, and then one with hits. This way, if you lose them, you go to the hits, but if you see they’re into it, you go with more underground.”
DJ LIFE: So, for you, what’s the difference between a “DJ” and an “entertainer”?
Guetta: Once you’re onstage, you’re there to put on a show. So, the production needs to be sick, your set needs to be as perfect as it gets. When you’re playing a 90-minute or one-hour show, it’s not as much about taking [the audience] on a journey or taking them to this hypnotizing place and play a loop for three minutes. People don’t have the energy for that during these sets. When I’m playing these kind of sets, I’ll prepare some of the mash-ups or edits, and I’m also preparing a set where none of the records you hear in my set can be heard elsewhere.
DJ LIFE: That makes for a special show…
Guetta: Because even when I’m playing my hits, I play a version that’s unique, so that it’s basically like a concert. For these kind of sets, I’m giving you an experience that you won’t get again or hear from anybody else. First, I’m playing only my own productions – my own original music, remixes, or edits, even done in the moment, but it’s my own take on it. In that sense, I’m giving what I want to give as an artist, not just as a DJ, and that’s entertainment.
DJ LIFE: And DJing?
Guetta: DJing is when you know all about the culture, you know every single style of music, and not just that, you’re able to mix live in the moment, go from those different styles, and really take people on a journey. As a DJ, if I want to play a mix that’s two- or three-minutes long, I can, but at a festival, I can’t do that because I’ll lose the crowd. It’s two different jobs, and I think they’re both honorable. It’s just that with one you’re a DJ, and the other you’re an artist. When you accept that, I think you become better as an entertainer.
DJ LIFE: Let’s talk about production and studio time…
Guetta: I would separate two aspects of production – at least for me. There’s the songwriting component and there’s the production. When I started, I would make beats that were very produced, and think, “Wow, this sounds so fucking sick! The bass is so huge,” or whatever. From there, I’d take the beat that got the best reaction [in my sets], and I would go into a session with a songwriter. I felt like when the people reacted the best on the dance floor, that was the best thing to do.
DJ LIFE: And now?
Guetta: I absolutely never do this anymore. Because, first, this is a classic mistake – and I’m talking even famous DJs make it – is that there’s a misunderstanding of what songwriting is. Songwriting is not about production. You can be the world’s best producer, but it’s not going to influence an artist or songwriter. What makes a songwriter inspired is a good chord progression, great melodies that indicate where it could go within its own melody.
DJ LIFE: What’s that process like for you?
Guetta: Every year during the month of May, I do songwriting. Because of my residency in Vegas, every May when I’m there, I go to L.A. to write. So then, I go into the studio and play chords on the piano, and I’m talking about basic as fuck, sometimes I’ll have a guitar player with me, but that’s it – no drums, nothing else. This, to me, is songwriting. Then I have a collection of songs, and I want to say that this is what makes the difference between people like Calvin Harris, myself, Swedish House Mafia, The Chainsmokers, Martin Garrix, and some others, is that many other producers just wait to receive demos. But then you sometimes are stuck with these heartless, soulless demos. In this world, these songwriters are doing two songs in two sessions per day and shopping them around to hundreds of DJ/producers until you find the fastest one to claim them. But in my opinion, in cases like this, you’re getting something that’s so impersonal.
DJ LIFE: It doesn’t work for you, then…
Guetta: I think I’ve named a few DJs/artists that happen to be the biggest, but there’s a reason for that. It’s because we go and we write, so that’s a big, big difference. After that, I have songs for the entire year. Of course, I’m still going to listen to demos, because sometimes there are rare cases – and it’s very rare – where they work. But in most cases, I’m almost always in the studio writing and, then afterwards, I work on the production. Knowing that out of 10 songs, only one of them is going to be strong, why would I produce all of them? That would just be a waste of my time. So, I live with them for a few months, and then I see which ones I’m getting tired of. From there, sometimes I’ll even make a mash-up. I test it, and I’ll see that people love those vocals, and then I turn it into my own production. This is something, I think, makes me different from a lot of the other producers.
DJ LIFE: How about your DAW? Your go-to plug-ins?
Guetta: Production wise, I work with Ableton Live. Importantly, I changed on the way. Again, I’m all about results. In the way that my philosophy is towards DJing, it’s the same when it comes to production. Of course, I can do mash-ups on the fly, but why would I, when I can do it better in Ableton? So, in the same way, you have those people who say, “Analog, it’s so much better!” But since I’m traveling all the time, how do I do that? Because of that, I do it all in the box.
DJ LIFE: No hardware?
Guetta: Once in a while, for fun, it happens that I’ll use analog synths, if I’m doing a two-month writing camp in LA. But, I tend to feel like everything really can all be done right within Ableton. I used to use lots of plug-ins, and I have almost everything, but now, I tend to simplify everything. That means working really basic. [Xfer Records] Serum is my main synth, and again you’ll have lots of producers saying, “If you’re a real producer, you don’t use Nexus.” My answer is: Why? You’re only going to make your life easier. I’ll use Serum, but any basic sound that I need, I’m going to go into (reFX) Nexus, because the sound is already produced and sounding great. So, if I need some strings or piano, they’re there. I make a lot of mash-ups, especially for Vegas, and sometimes you want a classic sound from a record. So, if you type the name of the song or artist, you’ll find it. If I want to make a mash-up of a classic, I’ll find the sound, because when I make a mash-up, it’s produced like a copy of the original sound. Those are the foundations, as far as I’m concerned.
DJ LIFE: Any other plug-ins we should know about?
Guetta: Let me open up my sessions and see what else I’ve been using the most… FabFilter, I use a lot, Limiter, and Pro-Q. And then there’s mastering… of course, for mastering I use [iZotope] Ozone because I think it’s really good and very complete. I use mostly plug-ins from Ableton, so delays, reverbs, compressor. After trying everything, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s better to limit myself to what’s in Ableton and not killing my CPU.
DJ LIFE: You’re not alone.
Guetta: Actually, I’m quite happy with everything they provide. I just don’t like the synths in Ableton – they sound good, but they’re not user-friendly, in my opinion. Sometimes I’ll use [U-he] Zebra because it has that real analog feel, but to be honest, if you work really well on sound design in Serum, you can also get it sound more analog. So, my advice would be to not try to use a million things, but use what you do have well. There’s also one reverb that I have to mention because it’s fucking sick to do creative stuff, it’s really, really insane… the KSHMR Reverb. One other thing that I would advise is Mixed In Key Live, which is extremely useful. Sometimes when you want to double check the tone – if you’re playing a sample or a an a cappella – Mixed In Key Live works great.
Sometimes the detector in Ableton isn’t as good, so I always have it going. Oh, I definitely can’t forget about OTT by Xfer Records, VPS Avenger, and Trackspacer from Wavefactory, which is amazing… amazing! Trackspacer is really good for something like, if you have a piano and a voice, it will lower the frequencies of the voice inside of the piano in a very easy way, and it’s very easy to use. If I’m doing a Future Rave set, I won’t use that, but if I’m leaning more pop or EDM, I would use Native Instruments Kontakt or Omnisphere by Spectrasonics if I need a good acoustic bass or atmospheres. I know this seems like a long list, but I think if I was just starting out now, I wouldn’t make my life as complicated with all of these because a lot of this comes down to personal preference.
DJ LIFE: So, that’s what you’d recommend to those just starting out?
Guetta: Yes, the main message or takeaway, especially if I was speaking to a beginner, I would say: Don’t use anything outside of Ableton except for Serum and Nexus. All the rest, you can really do within Ableton.
I’m actually currently working with Nicky Romero on a mastering plug-in, which is going to be called Faster Master. My idea is to simplify and to make things more efficient, but this is what I’m dabbling in at the moment. Basically, you make a beat or a remix, and you want to play it that night. A super-expert is going to analyze your song and do what’s right, and from there, you can modify each preset. You’re actually the first to know [laughs]!
DJ LIFE: Let’s dive into you and Sia joining forces again on “Beautiful People,” 14 years after your smash-hit “Titanium.”
Guetta: I’m really, really excited to be working with Sia again. I mean, with “Titanium,” those were some of the best years of my life, and probably my favorite record out of everything that I’ve produced. I think she might be the best songwriter in the world. Since we’ve always brought love to each other, it’s a big deal for me to be working with her again. We actually have two records that we made together, and “Beautiful People” is a great story. It’s a little bit like when I did “I’m Good (Blue)” [with Bebe Rexha].
DJ LIFE: Why’s that?
Guetta: Well, I had [“I’m Good (Blue)”] on my laptop for 12 years. I could never find a way to produce it… it was so hard. I don’t know why, but it was just so difficult. And then finally, we get there. The reaction on that record was amazing. We’ve gotten such amazing feedback on that record. You know how I know? When I have so many DJs calling me asking if they can remix it, and you think to yourself: This is a good sign [laughs].
It’s all very exciting. I also have another record [with Sia], but [“Beautiful People”] is very DJ-friendly, and the other one is very pop. I love her – she’s the best! She sings like nobody else, and she writes like nobody else – so it’s really incredible!
DJ LIFE: Let us dive into your new Las Vegas residency at LIV and what you’ve got coming up for the rest of this year.
Guetta: This year brings two massive challenges. After 13 seasons at Wynn, I’m moving to Fontainebleau, so this is a huge deal and big challenge in my life. It’s a combination of being scared and excited. You know, when we spoke, I was like, “I don’t know… I feel like the club is too small.” And they came back and said, “OK, we’ll make it bigger for you!” They showed me such motivation that they really seduced me, and wanted me to be happy. We truly spoke about everything and the pool party, for many years, I was making the craziest numbers in Vegas at Wynn. They’re really transforming the venue, so I’m going to do one club party there and then everything else will be the pool party. I’m working my ass off, when I tell you, every single day – at least the past two weeks and leading up until then. I’ll be preparing the mixes, making the mashups and edits for my sets for at least 8-12 hours per day. I’m coming to these shows with exclusive new content. I have so many remixes that I’ve made only for these shows… it’s going to be really cool!
DJ LIFE: What makes playing Vegas different for a DJ?
Guetta: Vegas is like a very specific market. It’s like Ibiza and Vegas are almost the opposite. Vegas is actually a very, very produced show, meaning musically produced. So, I’m spending every day making the craziest edits because I don’t want to have one minute that’s not full-on when I’m performing in Vegas. I use some very electronic drops, but also some vocals that everybody knows, usually some classic American songs. That’s just the Vegas vibe, mixing some crazy electronic drop with a recognizable vocal, and I’m going like full-on, feel-good, party, sexy – that’s the idea. There’s something unique about Vegas because, even with Ibiza, I do the pool party and the club – but the pool party when I play it’s like 9 p.m., so the people come dressed. There’s no other place, at least that I know of, where there’s people in bikinis – only in Vegas you see that [laughs]. The vibe is Vegas is everybody having fun, dancing around in the pool – so it needs to be uplifting, sexy, and about positivity.
DJ LIFE: And what’s the next challenge?
Guetta: The next challenge right after that is Ibiza. I’m still doing Ushuaïa, which is also the pool party in Ibiza, but instead of Hï – which is the same owner – I’m gonna be doing [UNVRS], which is a bigger club. Until this summer, I was the only DJ in Ibiza to have two shows in one week – now Calvin Harris is also doing two shows a week at Ushuaïa. I’ve been doing this for years and years, but there was a slight problem at Hï because the club was smaller, at least to Ibiza scale. Because it was fully booked from June through October, some people were complaining that they couldn’t see me and that they’d be blocked, and not only that, they also were saying it was so packed that they could barely even move. We won’t have that kind of problem with [UNVRS] because it’s way bigger and even has a real stage. Most importantly, it is the most insane club that I have ever seen in my life! This is a once in every 10-years type situation with the level of production in this club… I don’t think anything exists or will exist in the coming years that’s at that level.