Love Story 2: The Artist
There are many reasons why Pete Tong has been called
'The most powerful person in dance music' by Muzik Magazine. Or even
'The god of dance music' by The Independent. It might be the fact that on a weekly basis, there are more than
30 million live listeners to his BBC1 radio shows 'Essential Selection' and 'Essential Mix'. It might also be the fact that
Daft Punk, Underworld, Tiësto, Basement Jaxx, Justice, Eric Prydz and pretty much everybody in dance music hope to get him to be the first to introduce their music to the world. Maybe it's the fact that since releasing
the first ever house music compilation in the UK -- 'The House Sound of Chicago Vol 1' in 1986 -- he has sold millions of compilations for brands such as
Pacha, Ministry of Sound, Cream, Mixmag and
his very own FFRR label where he's signed such artists as
Orbital and
Goldie.
As the icon that he is, Tong was the inspiration behind the film
"It's All Gone Pete Tong". As a producer he has assembled the
music for movie soundtracks such as
The Beach, Human Traffic and
24 Hour Party People, and has produced his own material under various guises. He's one of the biggest crowd pullers in clubland, including his legendery residencies at
Pacha Ibiza and
Ministry of Sound in London, and headlining slots all over the globe. It seems as if everything Pete touches turns into a long-lasting memory. Which explains why he's one of the most sought after figures in a scene that's built around music that turns into an experience.
The dance scene has changed a lot since Pete started, but one thing remains the same:
"People love music, make no mistake about that, whether and how they buy it right now is one thing, but people still want to party... it's our job to come up with new parties, new nights, new venues, new themes to keep the scene fresh and exciting." Pete still sees his vocation as he did when he started out, playing other people's records to get an audience dancing.
"We need to constantly remember why people want to come to clubs - which is simply to have a great time and feel the music." And here we are, ready to do just that.
LOVE is delighted to have Mr. Tong play
his debut gig in Finland on a night that will be remembered for a long time.
www.myspace.com/petetong -
www.petetong.com
www.youtube.com/user/InventaProductions
www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/petetong