DJ Cristian Poow

By Steve Tsepelis

You are a native of Argentina and still reside there. You have great passion and knowledge of all kinds of music. You even teach at a college there. Tell us about how you got started in the music business, DJing and the club scene.

I started working both Dance and Latin music in 2002. Latin was predominant in clubs here, and I was a classic freaky teenager: studying and partying. My father made me listen to Giorgio Moroder when I was a kid. At that time the 80’s sound became my favorite as I discovered Enigma, Depeche Mode, Visage, Jean Michel Jarre, Laurent Garnier, Gigi D’agostino. I wasn’t very interested in classic house or progressive in my youth. My destiny was to study Engineering or IT, but Music Production came along and I couldn’t escape from it anymore. So I began to produce my first home-made remixes which rapidly started to sound in the biggest clubs of Buenos Aires, and that introduced to important DJs until one person offered me a DJ  spot in a club and play my music.

How is the club scene in Argentina different from the U.S.?

Thankfully I get to know both scenes and they are very different from each other. The American scene is a leader. Argentina has not generated enough Dance Music influence, at least not for the interest of America, but the rest of the world has always well received Argentinian trance and progressive DJs. The local scene has maintained a huge underground movement since the early 90s. Nowadays we are not far from what happens in America and Europe because of social media – people have access to new music in a blink of an eye, no matter where they are. You may find EDM, EPM, Minimal/Techno, Progressive, Deep House and also Trap music is in serious motion, with a lot of exponents. Argentina had entered a new era of Music Production, leading brand new markets.

When did you start Dbeatzion Records? What kind of music do you release on it?

I started it in 2009, with melodic progressive house. After almost ten years, I have gone through almost all of the known styles. You may find personal releases and a catalogue of more than 500 records with more than 400 artists that have participated. Eastern Europe producers are on top right now, with many American and from other countries too. I like having music that apart from sounding good, engages with the moment we live and the colleagues that we have. It’s important for us to support each other before dreaming on getting support or airplay from David Guetta or Robbie Rivera to name a few. A dozen miles away, along with my Brazilian friends, I have developed a team I am highly proud of, as we all know that music is a way to keep learning, not some train station called “Success” or “Fame” where you get to arrive and stay for nothing. I think a #1 top-selling song is the most challenging thing as the question then is “where to go now?”

You have remixed Katy Perry, Rita Ora, Jonas Blue, Noah Cyrus, and The Pet Shop Boys to name a few. You just finished a remix of the new Christina Aguilera called “Accelerate” and the artist Kygo.  Your mixes are very popular in gay clubs here in America, played by some of the biggest DJs.

I actually started producing in 2002, as I said.  Some months later my bootlegs and records were being played by famous DJs but it was not until I started an official career that I got to remix some people I was a follower of, then opened my first label and that connected me to the American market where I am doing my best work. I want to point out the fact that I did not know proper music theory back then, I just used my ears to EQ and mix drums and samples onto songs for making mashups or reworks and then encouraged to write my first music patterns for a remix (i.e. piano layers or plucks). I have to say it was pretty important to not stop learning. The gay audience likes to dance, and my music does that for them. They like to have fun on the dance floor and in turn are very fun to play for when you are DJing.

Last year you had success entering the Billboard Dance Chart as an artist with a song called “Shake Ur Bumpa.” How did it feel seeing your name on the Billboard Dance Chart as an artist?

It was truly shocking. You work for years and years, for the love of music, being in different stores’ charts here and there…  but Billboard represents a whole new level. It puts you on the spotlight, where major acts can see your name but also your story., “Shake Ur Bumpa” is entirely a Club song! Pure groove, percussion and vocal chops, but no lyrics. And then I saw me competing with the biggest stars like Daft Punk, Sean Paul or David Guetta. Let me point out that my manager had the eye here, as he thought this might be the  real thing for the Billboard reporters and American nightclubs. And it was.

What inspires you to keep working in a very competitive music industry and where do you see your future?

The main inspiration is the very music, as we live in a rapid era. As soon as you are finishing listening to a record, there are millions to choose from next. Now that we behave as companies because of how we define ourselves in our profiles, the responsibility is huge. An ordinary music producer or DJ has to be trained on marketing, community management, booking and who knows what else…   The more competitive the industry becomes, the more exciting and attracting it is for me. What if it was just about making music and sitting in your chair? Quite boring, right?