Coyu, the electronic DJ and Barcelona native, made a quick trip out to the West Coast of the United States last weekend. Performing techno music, Coyu had his first stop in Seattle, followed by San Francisco and onto Los Angeles.
As the founder and owner of his own label, Suara, Coyu officially resides on the other side of the world. The record label is home to many artists, while the expanded merchandise brand thrives largely.
If Coyu isn’t caught up on those projects or working on his latest tracks he’s overseeing the Suara Cat Foundation he’s created. With such a busy resume, Respect My Region was lucky enough to connect with him just minutes before he went to play. Check out our interview with Coyu below and follow up with him on Instagram.
Exclusive Coyu Interview
(This interview was edited for clarity)
RMR: Congrats on the album sample release. We’ve come to understand you’ve been working on your album for the last 7 years. After working on it for that long, at what point have you realized that it may be finished, versus a year ago or maybe a year from today?
Coyu: Well the funny thing is, it’s still not finished. I still have to finish a
RMR: To me it sounds like you’re a perfectionist
Coyu: A little bit, a little bit, this album shows different sides of myself. It’s not just a bunch of club singles, there are some tracks that are very, very different to what I used to release or play. There’s trip-hop, there’s drum and bass, there’s rhythm bass, so very different genres. Something that, probably, people would say it wasn’t Coyu’s sound.
RMR: Did you pick up those sounds over the years?
Coyu: Yeah, I’m a music lover. I love very different genres. The problems in our scene, the techno scene. The electronic music scene, the business, they are very protective. We live in a moment where divisity, the media likes to tack you with a sound. When someone tries to do something a little bit different, I think the reaction of the scene and the media isn’t good so I was a little afraid to show all my sides.
RMR: Have you been getting the feedback that you have hoped for?
Coyu: Sure, for the album sample? Oh yeah definitely. I’m very happy with the feedback so far. I was scared to show that different side of myself. At the end of the day I think it’s going to be something good for not only my career, for everyone and for me as a person.
RMR: What was your main source of inspiration when creating and putting your songs together?
Coyu: There’s nothing that’s my main inspiration. It’s just day by day. It’s just my experiences I have everyday when I’m on the road or when I’m at home with my friends and people. Sounds, people, cities, food, but mainly experiences.
RMR: What originally sparked the idea to start Suara Music years ago?
Coyu: Suara is 10 years old now. It was the sub-label of my first label, which was called A Typical Farm. The thing is, Suara became bigger than the main label, so I stopped releasing music on A Typical Farm and I put all my energy in Suara.
RMR: Where were you at when you wanted to create a label?
Coyu: Since I was 18, I have been working and involved in the music industry working as a musical journalist and working as a booking agent. I have always been interested, I had my own radio show, so I thought
Coyu in Mixmag’s Lab on Location: ADE
RMR: What does it take to be able to create all you’ve been able to put together – like your music, your brand, your label and cat foundation?
Coyu: Well I think I have a lot of energy. I am very passionate with the things that I love, basically music and cats. It’s my life. I also love fashion, but cats and music is my everything. I try to spend some time with the cats, some times at the office working for the fashion brand, for the label and have some time for the studio.
Sometimes it’s difficult to manage everything. A lot of people are sending you emails or phone calls. Suara isn’t a big company, but we are around 20 people working between the label, the foundation and the store, the fashion brand. Sometimes it’s not easy.
RMR: What has been a challenge that you’ve had to face so far in the uphill climb of getting to where you’re at?
Coyu: I don’t have the time to do everything that I like to do. Sometimes it’s difficult, to me, to say no to some people to some offers. I think I will try to slow things down a little
RMR: Where would you like to see Suara and your brand go in the future?
Coyu: It’s difficult to say. I would love to do a lot of things. Probably a restaurant? Try to combine techno with food. But, for
RMR: What has been your most exciting and memorable event or moment you’ve experienced so far? Something that sticks out to you?
Coyu: It was in 2012. I played at Sonar Festival in Barcelona and it’s one of the biggest festivals in Europe, and it’s my hometown, Barcelona. And I played the mainstage for 20,000 right before Richie Hawtin. It was a proper experience, not only because it was a large crowd, but because it was the festival that got me into electronic music when I was 17. I remember listening to artists and then a few years after, be there playing on the mainstage before Richie Hawtin, one of my heroes, it was pretty surreal.
RMR: What does a typical day in the life of Coyu look like if you aren’t touring?
Coyu: I try to wake up early. Like 8-830, something like that, then breakfast. I workout, I go to the gym or I head to the studio or I work on the label, and then I go to the office and then I go to see my cats. Suara we have one building, two different floors. The first floor we have the store and the cat house upstairs.
RMR: Last question here, but is there a place that sticks out to you that is under the radar that people need to visit?
Coyu: Well my favorite place in the world is South America. They love to party and they like to party hard and for days; they have crazy energy. They party and party and party, they have no end and they love that you play 10 or 12 hours and they stay on the dance floor from the first minute to the last.
Check out Coyu’s 4 Track Album Sampler Below!
