[HKClubbing]

“The biggest obstacle I’ve faced in my career was starting; I give up work, sold my house and invested every penny into the label; which is now paying dividends massively.”

Coming in at 51 as one of the highest new entries on DJ Magazine’s annual top 100 poll Toolroom Records founder Mark Knight is undoubtedly one of the biggest names on the global house scene, and his profile is certain to go higher with his new Ibiza residency at Amnesia. Starting DJing at the relatively late age of 23, the British star’s career took off when he landed a Ministry Of Sound residency in 2004, an opportunity he’s the first to admit was ‘a pivotal moment’.

“My career has been about measured steady organic growth, there have been no big peaks and troughs,” he says, “And I think this helps breed longevity. There is still so much more know I can do and have to offer. I have never had any big helping hand. Every thing I have done is been through graft and determination to not fail.”

Playing at Amnesia alongside DJ magazine’s latest number one Armin Van Buuren, he’s confident- and ambitious enough- to admit he covets Armin’s spot though points out the two are firm friends, from regular contact on the worldwide DJ circuit.

“It’s one of those situations where you continuously bump into each other backstage at gigs and festivals. Armin has been a big supporter of my music championing Colombian soul and Susan and we are in touch a lot via AIM re. tracks etc.” says Mark.

“I think his professionalism and attention to detail is fantastic,” he continues, “And this, added to the total commitment and passion for what he does makes him both number 1, as well as a good example to everyone else.”

As well as his 7 date Amnesia gig, he’s just launched his latest compilation Toolroom Knights, hosts a Toolroom arena at Dutch mega festival Dance Valley in July and has recently remade Laurent Garnier’s ‘Man With The Red Face’ though it’s Ibiza that he’s particularly exercised about.

“On a personal level this Ibiza residency is a really big deal – Ibiza is the world’s clubbing focal point,” says Mark.

“If you smash it throughout the season the positive effects resonate throughout the rest of the world, which can carry you through to the following year and establishes you on the island. From Toolroom’s point of view the publicity gained through having a regular residency on the island is invaluable to us a tour brand, not only to help us sell our compilations but also with securing events at other venues around the world.”


Skrufff (Jonty Skrufff): Reading your earlier interviews, it’s clear you’re very ambitious and driven: how much did you set out to make a living as a DJ/ producer when you started aged 23?

Mark Knight: “I’ve had a lifelong passion for music but never thought it feasible to make a career of it, so when I initially started DJing it was just for ‘fun’, although the more you are involved in the music industry the more you realise the opportunities on offer. I’m very much a person who when starting something will not stop ‘til I am the very best at it. Once I realised that I could not only make a living from it but also enjoy doing what I do (making music, touring) it was like a red rag to a bull. I live sleep and eat what I do. You have to if you want to be successful. You snooze you loose.”

Skrufff: How important is planning and strategy for success (i.e. how much time do you devote to marketing, promoting yourself alongside the actual spinning/ making music side?

Mark Knight: “Music is like any other business. This is I believe 90% of most people’s downfall.  To use my dad’s favourite analogy (which is you could be selling washing machines) you need to combine your passion for music with good business acumen and strategy to really be successful. Marry these two and you have a winner. So it is important to spend as much time doing both.”

Skrufff: Going into your background: what prevented you from taking up DJing as a teenager?

Mark Knight: “It was one of those situations where I didn’t discover house music until a bit later – I was very much a hip-hop and soul kid prior to this. Within that scene opportunities are far more limited so it was only musical taste that curtailed earlier entry into DJing.”

Skrufff: It looks like landing the Ministry residency was your big break, how did you get it?

Mark Knight: “My Ministry residency was very much a pivotal moment in my career. This was during the period when I had released records such as ‘Acid Test’, ‘Our House’ and my remixes of ‘String of Life’ and ‘Sandcastles’ were blowing up and I was gaining a lot of respect and exposure from all the right DJs. Ministry was an ideal platform for me to nurture and express my musical take on the scene.  It was through sheer hard work and graft that I initially got noticed and given the residency, I wasn’t handed it on a plate. I worked my way up from playing the Bar to the Box. At Ministry you have to earn your stripes, nobody jumps straight in to the main room. I have now gone on to have my own night there, which is every 6 weeks- more than any one else.”

Skrufff: How much difference has entering DJ mag’s Top 100 made to your career?

Mark Knight: “Of cause it helps with your fees. But on a personal level it a great barometer of your own performance. It show how much more you have got to do to be number 1.”

Skrufff: In an interview with 4Clubbers.net you said want to retire by 40: what do you make of all the over 40 DJs still playing: why do you think none have retired?

Mark Knight: “Financial gain. And a passion for music, I hope. It also is like a *; you get locked into a groove a cycle of adrenaline and it’s very hard to come down from living like that. I find it very hard to adjust after coming home from a long tour. I don’t know what to do come 6 or 7pm when I finish in the studio, it takes a couple of days to adjust. So to give up something that becomes your whole life isn’t easy. Look at the Rolling Stones.”

Skrufff: You also said in the 4Clubbers interview ‘We’d love Toolroom to be underground as f**k, but try retiring on underground!’: how much do you want to be rich?

Mark Knight: “Of cause everyone likes to be rewarded for there efforts but more for me personally its about how far can I take it. What mark can I make? This isn’t always measured in money. But it helps.”

Skrufff: How much do you feel extra pressure when you’re playing for a five figure sum as compared to a few hundred?

Mark Knight: “There is no difference soon as you put your first CD on what you are getting for a gig goes out the window the focus is solely to do the very best you can. Your management is there to worry about the money you should have to think no further than how can I make this party the very best I can.”

Skrufff: DJing is notoriously competitive: does it get easier or harder the higher you climb?

Mark Knight: “It’s a struggle at all levels, initially you struggle to get the gigs when you start then it’s a struggle to have the right perception. It doesn’t get any easier, put it that way.”

Toolroom Knights: mixed by Mark Knight. Is out now on Toolroom Records.

http://www.toolroomrecords.com

Article by Jonty Skrufff (Skrufff.com)

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