DataTransmission – In Conversation with Franky Rizardo
The New Year has arrived once again and although we bemoan the passing of time, the promise of the year to come still excites and motivates us. At the moment, our friends at Halcyon SF are very excited for 2019 and the imminent return of FLOW founder and Defected Records favourite Franky Rizardo for a special Data Transmission showcase, on Saturday, January 26th.
Franky, let’s forget about resolutions and talk about “Promises”! Your remix of this Calvin Harris & Sam Smith track is haunting.
Of course, we want to know how this opportunity came about.
I had heard Calvin was looking to get a more diverse remix package for his latest single and I was actually recommended to commission one. Calvin and his team got in touch, they loved it and the rest is history – it’s probably one of my favourite remixes I’ve worked on and I still play it a lot in my sets.
Your 2018 tour schedule was intense with far flung destinations such as Hong Kong and Indonesia. Any cool new locales you’ll be touring in 2019 that you are particularly excited about?
I’ve been very lucky in that I’ve been touring for quite a while now, so I’ve managed to check off a lot of spots from my bucket list. I’m playing some cities new to me in South America this year, which I am really excited about, and I’m really pleased to be touring the US much more frequently this year.
You’re well known on the festival circuit, with your Defected Croatia residency and your own Flow Freedom Festival in the Netherlands. Which other festivals are you itching to play?
I’m really looking forward to play Tomorrowland this summer – we have our own FLOW stage for the first time!
What do you have planned for Flow Freedom Festival this year? What motivated you to add something as daunting as producing a festival to your already busy schedule?
There is a message behind the festival, and when we were given the chance to do our own production in our hometown, we didn’t really have many reasons not to do it. I’ve got a really strong crew who work with me on FLOW events so it doesn’t cut too much into the rest of my plans.
Where do you want to spend more time in general in 2019?
I took a nice bit of time out this month so I’m ready to be back on the road – as I mentioned, I’m really pleased to be coming over to the US more in 2019 and also touring South America.
This past year witnessed the loss of so many legendary venues in the global club scene. It was really quite shocking to lose so many of our favorite institutions when it seems like dance music is thriving and brands like DEFECTED are experiencing so much success. The tides are changing, what do you think the flow is now?
It’s definitely sad that places are closing, however I think that creates a double down of people regrouping and thinking about how to push the boundaries of the scene. Especially in Europe, a lot of new exciting places are opening and there seems to be a thriving scene.
Check out the original article by Grahame Farmer on January 24, 2019 on Datransmission here
