John Gibbons is an Irish DJ who has been at the forefront of the electronic music scene in Ireland for over a decade. Starting out as a DJ at just 15-years-old, Gibbons quickly progressed into a famed position in Dublin’s growing club scene.
His new mega, ultra, colossal smash ‘Would I Lie To You’, was released in the UK about a month ago. The track is currently no. 1 on the global shazam chart, receiving airplay across BBC R1 and has rapidly hit over 1 million streams on SoundCloud. With this in mind, we caught up with the man and spoke to him about this single, electronic music scene in Ireland, his favourite football player and more! Read our chat here. :)
Shantanu – Hi John, how are you feeling after the overwhelming response to your new track ‘Would I Lie To You’?
John – Excited is probably the most prominent feeling right now. Excited to finally be putting my music out to a receptive and ever-expanding audience, excited at how incredibly well the single is being received and excited about what the future holds with so many opportunities presenting themselves at the moment. It’s wonderful!
Shantanu – Have you had an opportunity to visit India yet? Would you like to do a tour here?
John – I’ve never been to India despite a couple of false starts in recent years with some bookings that never materialised. It’s a country that has always fascinated me culturally and one that I’d absolutely love to tour. It’s incredible to watch the progression of the Indian club scene and how quickly the country is becoming a major player in global terms. I can’t wait to hopefully experience that at some point in the near future!
Shantanu – How is the electronic music scene in Ireland right now? Who are some of the best young artists there presently?
John – Following a very sharp decline at the turn of the decade as the aftershocks of Ireland’s recent economic freefall were felt, the electronic music scene is in a very healthy place again with many progressive and forward-thinking promoters successfully occupying new clubs and spaces and a heretofore unseen level of diversity emerging in a musical sense. It’s almost as if there was a necessary cleansing of the scence which has allowed a new breed of creative people in music to emerge from the shadows of what had become a stagnant scene. I’m very excited about what the future holds for dance music in Ireland. Some of the best young artists currently emerging from Ireland include Eden, Junior J, Garreth Maher and Jay Prior – most certainly names who have a real chance of becoming huge global stars.
Shantanu – You’ve shown a lot of versatility in your tracks with ‘Colder’ and ‘All I Need’ and now ‘Would I Lie To You’re being so different from one another. What else would you like to try and blend into your upcoming works? A bit of Reggae or Dubstep maybe?
John – I’ve always been influenced by many kinds of musical styles and my back catalogue reflects that with several different styles and genres being represented over the years, and a natural evolution in my production to the point where I’m at now – which is a place that allows me to draw on and combine these different influences be they house, pop or anything in between. Ultimately my goal with music is to create something that I want to play in my own sets and that will also elicit a reaction both from those listening at home or in the clubs, something that doesn’t take itself too seriously and has an element of fun at its core. Interestingly I’ve experimented with both Reggae and Dubstep recently in the studio and love both styles so don’t be surprised if at some point in the future you hear these genres being represented in my music in some way. I definitely want to draw on some Drum & Bass influences in the not too distant future too!
Shantanu – Which artists would you like to collaborate with right now and why?
John – I’d love to do a track with Florence Welch from Florence & The Machine. I think she has such an incredible vocal range and depth that if utilised properly lends itself beautifully to dance music. The Weeknd is another artist who I could make a lot of incrediible studio noise with, he’s brilliant!
Shantanu – Who were some of your early musical influence?
John – I grew up listening to the music my parents exposed me to and accordingly have retained a huge love for acts such as Dire Straits, Queen, Fleetwood Mac and Elton John among many others. As I began to listen to music a bit more independently I started gravitating towards a lot of hip-hop and then had my eureka moment when I first heard Snap’s ‘Rhythm Is A Dancer’. This single song opened me up to dance music for the first time and I began to devour everything from Prodigy and Leftfield albums to DJ sets from Carl Cox and Tony de Vit along with everything in between. More recently and in the studio I’ve been hugely influenced by producers such as Calvin Harris, Skrillex, Eric Prydz and even Max Martin for a wide variety of reasons.
Shantanu – What else do you have planned for 2016-17? An album maybe?
John – There will certainly be another single before the end of this year and I plan to begin touring in the next couple of months as ‘WILTY’ gains ground in a number of different territories. An album is quite likely for 2017 too although that hasn’t been set in stone yet. Rest assured though, there’ll be lots and lots of music and plenty of live shows!
Shantanu – Which city or club is your favourite place to play at?
John – From the clubs I’ve experienced so far I don’t think there’s a better one than Lush! In Northern Ireland. It’s an absolute behemoth in terms of European clubbing and it’s testament to the atmosphere and reputation of the club that A-List artists who generally don’t play gigs of less than 5,000 capacity make ubiquitious exception here. It should be on everyones global clubbing bucket-list! The best event I’ve ever played at was Technogeist in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. It was one of my first ever international gigs and I had been in no way prepared for the scale of the event – a single stage, 50,000 people in attendance and a peak time slot. It was at that moment I realised that not only did I want a long-term career in dance music but that I would consider nothing else. Amazing!
Shantanu – If you had to play a gig today, which song would you definitely like to play in your set?
John – The obvious choice is ‘Would I Lie To You’ at the moment but if I were to exclude my own tracks I think I’d go for ‘Bagdal’ by Rob & Jack ft. Sanjin. It’s a monstrous ball of pure energy that works on every floor, every time!
Shantanu – Favourite footballer?
John – Of all time, Henrik Larsson of Sweden, Barcelona and Celtic. Currently playing it has to be Lionel Messi, there’s simply no-one who can touch him!
Shantanu – Thanks John! Wish you the very best. :)
John – It’s my pleasure. Hope to speak again soon!
