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You Don’t Need To Be Famous To Write About Fame. Staring off the cover of DJ magazine’s latest issue, Miss Kittin (aka ‘Dark Little Poet’ aka ‘artist, pop star, DJ, electroclash survivor and poet’, as DJ dub her) is both famous and presumably well used to riding round in limos, though chatting to Benedetta Skrufff she insists she’s only done it once.
“It happened with Sven Vath after I’d worked with him, I went to see him playing and later he invited me to an after party,” she reveals.
“The people from his office had rented a limo with zebra seats for him as a birthday present, so there were ten of us in the car and it was really funny being driven along the highway. Especially when we had to stop at service stations because all ten of us were desperate for a pee. But it was nothing like I imagined in the song.”
And significantly, when she dreamed up her seminal electroclash lyrics, her life was as far from limousines, Frank Sinatra and even Sven Vath, as any Hollywood rags to riches clubbing narrative could contrive
“Just picture this scene,” she says (sounding exactly as she does on the records- her regular voice is exactly the same).
“I used to go to many illegal parties all night, and I’d go home, still on drugs, switch on the TV and watch the music channels, and all you’d see would be those hip hop guys in limos, surrounded by girls in bikinis. There I was, all super dirty, wearing my army boots, shaved head, off my head, watching these videos . . . of course I laughed at them, and eventually I decided to write my feelings down.”
As well as writing Frank Sinatra during her early morning comedowns, she also penned the limousine themed lyrics to Felix Da Housecat’s genre crossing anthem Silver Screen Shower Scene, which both kick-started electroclash and changed Kittin’s own life irrevocably, when the track became one of the biggest club hits of 2000.
“When my career begun I never thought it would have taken this turn, I never even thought I would have become a DJ,” she admits.
“I started making music with The Hacker, decided to talk on some tracks and next we meet DJ Hell. He asks for music; we deliver him music . . . bang, the rest is history. And then there’s this legendary Chicago DJ who wants me to put some vocals on his new album, and sure, of course I do it.”
And four years after Felix took her in the studio for his album she’s sitting in a Central London luxury hotel to talk about her own album, a highly eclectic record called I com that encompasses hip hop, techno, electroclash and her own unique sensibilities and slant on life.
Skrufff (Benedetta Ferraro): “The album is really varied in style, did you create it with one specific vision?
Miss Kittin: “The whole concept for the album was to include a lot of influences that inspire me as a DJ or as a music lover and if you think about it, it’s like my DJ sets. I literally went to the studio with a book of notes and went through all my ideas, one by one, with one of the producers Thies Mynther and we picked together the ones we thought would work. I told him what I had in mind musically, he then pointed out which styles would work best with whichever lyrics I had noted in my book. He made it easy, because we had a guideline to combine the music with this sort of imaginary world I had already jotted down in my notebook. It was fun. Perhaps some people thought I made this album in order to impose myself as an artist, which I can assure you is not true. I loved the collaboration and the input I have received throughout.”
Skrufff: Did you consider involving The Hacker more closely?
Miss Kittin: “No really, because I don’t think he would have liked to follow me in all these crazy, different styles I explored. That’s not his philosophy, so I did it on my own. He did, however, collaborate on one of the tracks.”
Skrufff: People now have a certain image or idea of you, how conscious were you of people’s expectations?
Miss Kittin: “That didn’t concern me. I wasn’t conscious about it because I’m not interested in this part of the job. Everybody thought it was risky for me to expose myself, but if you don’t take risk, you never do anything. Everyday life imposes a certain code of behaviour on you, sometimes you want to shout in the middle of the street, but you don’t do it because you don’t want people to think you’re crazy. As an artist though, you need to express yourself in the most genuine way, so the answer is to just do it. I’m pretty good at that.”
Skrufff: All your previous records seem to reflect this untainted approach with your vocals recorded on top of the tracks, seeming to tell a story . . .
Miss Kittin: “Sure, that’s because I recorded them spontaneously. That’s the key to everything I do. If I think too much about things, if I start to intellectualise, then I loose it. For instance, when I did (mix CD) ‘Radio Caroline’ I had just moved to Berlin, I had all my possessions scattered on the floor, and I was in that frame of mind. I was honest, there was nobody there to judge me so I went with the flow, I had confidence in myself, and in what I was doing. Of course, by being honest sometimes you might end up being a bit cheesy too, but that’s the charm of spontaneity. If you’re interested in someone, then you should also be interested in their faults.”
Skrufff: How did you develop this confidence in yourself?
Miss Kittin: “It develops over the years and probably it started when I was very young, when I used to shut myself in my room, making my own private world. I used to draw and paint, a lot of my time was spent creating things, and my granddad was also an artist, so he was very inspiring to me. Then I became independent, had my experiences and for sure, like any artist I had problems with authority, nevertheless I did what I needed to do. I think it all came from me trusting my own intuition and following this driving force I have inside me. It may all look crazy from the outside, but in the end everybody had to agree with me. We all have this ability, but people give up too easily because our society doesn’t encourage abstract thinking, everything is expected to fall into the ranks. To me though, that’s the essence of being an artist.”
Skrufff: There’s a method in your madness then . . ?
Miss Kittin: “Absolutely. There’s no point in acknowledging your energy if you don’t channel it somehow. I try not to waste my energy, instead I’ve learned every time to go a little bit further inside myself and I’m proud of that. The process seems more interesting that the final result, because it’s a lifetime work.”
Skrufff: DJ mag describes you (amongst other things) as a ‘pop star’, is that a term you’re comfortable with?
Miss Kittin: “I don’t describe myself as a pop star; not at all. Though I can understand why people would say that because I think I represent something the market was waiting for. For some reason, I don’t know why yet, I came at the right time in the right place, and now I’m here.”
Skrufff: Is it a good or bad thing?
Miss Kittin: “I think it’s good. If you succeed in what you do it’s definitely good, if you don’t it means you’re on the wrong path. I won’t complain if people take an interest in me and what I do; of course not. The reaction was a little extreme though, but I think that’s a reflection of the times we’re living in where people project themselves on to celebrities. I don’t have a problem if some people recognise themselves in what I do, but as soon as that happens, there you have it: pop music. The moment people start singing your song in the shower it becomes pop music. This I understand, but I’m not ready to follow the rules of the market, so in that respect I don’t consider myself a pop star, no.”
Skrufff: Do you tend to follow the rules more as a DJ?
Miss Kittin: “To a certain degree, yes, I think I do, not as a singer though and that’s why it works for me. On the same token, how many people have tried to imitate me and have not succeeded? There must be a reason of ‘why me’? But I’m not here to judge, I don’t make that my business. I leave that job to journalists and critics… they are here to analyse, aren’t they?”
Skrufff: Am I here to analyse you? I knew I wanted to be a journalist since I was 6 years old, and I still doing it for the love of meeting special people . . .
Miss Kittin: “That’s brilliant. I also love meeting special people, but once I also wrote ‘never meet your idols’… because it’s never the way you think it is. I love the fact that people can have their own idea of who I am. Nobody needs to know my personal life. Would you like the masses to know what you do and who you’re fucking? I don’t think so.”
Skrufff: On the subject of fame “Frank Sinatra” certainly came out from a burst of imagination, and you wrote that before being famous . . .
Miss Kittin: “True. I do have a vivid imagination, for sure. Was I a visionary in that moment? Who knows. That was one of the first songs I ever wrote, where I came out with that ‘speaking’ thing. You don’t really need to be famous to write about fame, and when you are famous you tend not to talk about it.”
Skrufff: How do you feel looking at your picture on the cover of DJ magazine in a red low cut dress, red lips et all?
Miss Kittin: “It’s a nightmare; honestly it is, but I don’t think I’m alone on this one, I truly believe it’s every woman’s problem. So here I go, look at my wrinkles, the outfit is too small and it won’t fit, I look so fat, my skin looks bad; I hate it. I don’t even pretend not to care about my image because in a way I do, not that I care about what people think, but I do care about how I feel inside. If I feel good, then everything is OK. The truth is I don’t look good in photos and I never did. I never liked being photographed and I think I never will. As a woman you carry this weight, a man can get away with going on a shoot looking dishevelled, we can’t.”
Skrufff: You’ve managed pretty well so far though, I’m thinking about that nurse outfit you used to wear, for example . . .
Miss Kittin: “When I started playing out live with The Hacker, nobody wanted to see a girl with a microphone on the stage. Techno parties with a girl singing live? Err, don’t think so. So I had to use any weapon in order to bring attention on us. Michel was all right behind the keyboards, but I had the rough end of it… and I still do. So I went and spent £30 in a fetish shop for that nurse outfit, which I wore four times, and six years later people are still asking me about it. This is just to show you the power of image.”
Skrufff: Do you feel more comfortable on a stage rather than in front of the camera? Presumably, you’ll have to perform live at some stage?
Miss Kittin: “I feel at my best when I’m DJing, but as far as performing, no, I’m not obliged to do it. Of course, the record company would love me to and I think that people would like to see me performing live, though right now, it’s the last thing on my mind. I feel exhausted even thinking about being on the road. On the other hand, I don’t want to make a mistake. As an electronic music artist I’d have to hire live musicians, gear up the whole show, which can easily be a failure. Maybe in a year’s time, but for now DJing is what I know best, so why not continue with that and make it even more special?”
Skrufff: Do you still feel DJing is something selfish?
Miss Kittin: “Oh yes, and music is too. If you do it for the people who come to see you, you’d become addicted to the crowd and that could become a problem. When I was younger, I used to think that as a DJ you should educate people by playing more obscure tracks, for example. Then I met Eric Krug, this French DJ who really put it into perspective for me. “Educate?” He asked me. “Who do you think you are?” I remember taking it really badly at the time, then I understood he was right. The most honest way to do it is by having fun doing it, as an entertainer you should, first of all, entertain yourself.”
Skrufff: Why do you always go on about Laurent Garnier?
Miss Kittin: “Because he’s been a very inspirational and influential figure in my life. I used to go and see him every Thursday with my friends who knew him and even then he’s always been very friendly to me. Of course, in time we have become good friends and he’s always given me plenty of good advice. To be a good DJ you must have a big heart and Laurent certainly has it. He’s a giver and you can witness that whenever he plays, as he manages to sexually charge the atmosphere, he amazes me. It’s always a big lesson for me to see him playing.”
Skrufff: Your have talked at length about having been exploited when you first started. Is it right that you got no money at all from all your Felix Da Housecat tracks?
Miss Kittin: “When my career begun I never thought it would have taken this turn, I never even thought I would have become a DJ. Then, I start making music with The Hacker and I decided to talk on the tracks, next we meet DJ Hell, he asks for music, we deliver him music… bang, the rest is history. Then there’s this legendary Chicago DJ who wants me to put some vocals on his new album, and sure, of course I do it. Then again, there’s another producer from Zurich, who also heard what I’ve done with Michel, he also wants me to do something, also he’s not too far away and he’s a friend… so there we go again. Of course, the more you do the more experienced you become, but then there has to be a limit, otherwise you become a microphone whore. In my collaborations it’s never been the case that I sing, then I leave. I always write my own lyrics, I’m always behind the music, I want to know what they do with my voice, as a DJ I have a sense of how the arrangements should work and when the voice should come in, and of course if I’m not there it becomes very frustrating for them.”
Skrufff: Did you get any money from that Detroit Grand Pubbhas track, “After School Special”?
Miss Kittin: “That was also a very strange scenario. Their label asked me for vocals for an artist I really loved. I did the job, sent the tape to the label in Detroit, Detroit Grand Pubbhas were in the office when my tape was played, so they asked if they could keep it. At the label they said yes without asking me, but as it turned out the track sounded great, so I was at least happy about that. When Detroit Grand Pubbhas signed for an album deal with a big record label, I was still without contract so it was a horror to clear the whole thing up. Since Detroit Grand Pubbhas are no longer with that label, their lawyers are urging my lawyers to sign whatever contract they have, because it’s either that or nothing at all. I have learned my lesson, for sure. Now I don’t do anything without a contract unless I know the artist very well, and even then you can never be too sure. Obviously you have to take risks if you want to work and I don’t regret anything, because it’s all been part of the process and I was very lucky because I’ve retained my name. I’m still Miss Kittin.”
Miss Kittin’s debut album I Com is out on May 17, on Mute Records.
http://www.misskittin.com
Interview By: Benedetta Skrufff (Skrufff.com)
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