FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Music

Bieber's Awesome and Punk Will Come Back, Says Skrillex

"If you get an opportunity to work with the biggest artist in the world, what would you say?" Skrillex told Rolling Stone.
Photo credit: Jason Nocito

Sonny Moore, aka Skrillex, has no problem working with Justin Bieber and doesn't think Deadmau5 should have a problem with it either. And he thinks punk will make a comeback…someday. Those are a couple of notes that we took away from the superstar producer's interview with Rolling Stone.

In a piece that was posted online today from the June issue, Rolling Stone spoke with Moore about the current state of his career and EDM itself. "You just gotta go on with that feeling of inspiration," the producer said when asked about the success of his duo act with Diplo, Jack Ü. "And a lot of times you end up somewhere you don't ever expect to be."

When asked about working with Bieber and being chided by fellow DJ Deadmau5, he said: "If he was a real friend, he would come to me…rather than blowing it up all over the Internet…and I would say to him, 'I enjoy working with Justin Bieber!' I'm a fan of his voice. And if you're a producer and you get an opportunity to work with someone who's the biggest artist in the world – for better or for worse – what would you say? Would you say no?"

Asked what it would take for Moore to get excited about rock, he criticized the genre for not being dangerous enough, stating: "Music's gotta be dangerous, and that's what I feel like rock has lacked. The most dangerous music right now is electronic music and hip-hop. The best artists take limited resources and create the most out of them, and that's what people are doing with computers and samplers…But the kids are going to inevitably start punk bands again. It's going to happen."

He also offered his appraisal of the currently discussed EDM-bubble: "A lot of people who ask about the state of EDM don't know what they're asking. Are you asking me how long people are going to make EDM? Or are you asking how long people are going to make computer music? Because people won't stop making music on the computer until computers go away. But as far as a certain culture and aspect of EDM, yeah, I do believe that it will go away, because the ratio of businesspeople is trumping the ratio of actual artistry."