Mousse T. in an interview: “You can’t achieve this magic on your own”

He is one of the most famous producers in Germany, celebrated global success with the songs “Horny ’98” (1998) and with the Tom Jones song “Sexbomb” (1999), which he wrote and produced. But Mousse T. (real name: Mustafa Gündoğdu) was already a well-known name in the music scene for years – albeit more behind the scenes. He made a name for himself as a remixer, working for Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Missy Elliott and a wide range of other international superstars. His latest trick: two remixes for the young artist Becks. As part of NEX STAGE by glo, the ace producer brought his young colleague into the studio to work on two new versions of her song KLIPPE AUS FÜHLEN. In addition to the “Mousse T’s Main Mix”, another remix was also created, the “OG Mood Mix”. We asked Mousse T. to talk in detail about his career, remix culture, his collaboration with Becks – and learned some exciting anecdotes. For example, why Mousse T. once turned down an order from Daft Punk.

Before you became an internationally successful producer in the late 1990s, you were already a sought-after remixer. You’ve created remixes for many superstars – I’m thinking of your 1997 remix of Michael Jackson’s GHOSTS, but also your work for artists like Missy Elliott, Quincy Jones and many others. Can you describe the way there?

Of course, the first requirement is to have fun with it – I’ve always had that. My path would actually have been marked out differently: If my father had had his way, I would have become a doctor. I started DJing during my studies, had a keyboard at home and produced my first things in my home studio. Even back then I had contacts with record companies. No matter how good you are, if people don’t know about you, it’s of no use to anyone. I always had friends who said: “Hey, here you have a piece of music, why not do something of your own with it.”

The remix culture started in the early 90s. This was really a completely new thing. The task was basically to expand the audience. Let me put it bluntly: If you have a Scorpions song that’s a pop-rock ballad, you want to try to expand the audience with a remix – for example with a dance version, a reggae version or a radio version .

I built up a name for myself relatively quickly because I somehow always managed to do it in a groovy way. It didn’t really matter to me whether it was reggae, pop, rock or something else. I made Fury in the Slaughterhouse’s most successful radio hit at the time with “Radio Orchid” – that was my remix. That was a great thing for me, but also for my Hanoverian friends. Basically, I was relatively open in terms of genre.

Then at some point you make a name for yourself in the industry. People say: “Okay, he can handle a song, he does it respectfully.” And at some point you get bigger and bigger names. For me, that ultimately resulted in a Grammy nomination in 1998. The “Remix” category was announced for the first time back then. That was basically the first huge peak.

A remix is ​​an art form all its own. Would you say remixing has also exercised your producer muscle, so to speak?

A very good question. The remix culture basically comes from the end of the 70s, when the disco wave started in New York. In the club they looked: “Okay, now I have a record here, but I would like to see if you could maybe just play the vocals or put it on top of something else.”

You partly managed that with DJ culture, but partly you didn’t. Then you had the tapes brought to you, the 24-track tapes back then, and the guys in the recording studio really remixed them – in the sense of: “We’ll see which part we use, where we make the voice louder.” There Then it was about rearranging.

At some point it became so cultivated that when you made a remix you basically composed something new. You have produced new. Most of the time I just used the artist’s voice and completely built a new guise around it – whether that was a cool R&B version or a dance version.

How much creative freedom do well-known artists give you when remixing?

Of course, I now have a lot of creative freedom. Nowadays people call and say, “We want your sound.” But of course the artist always has veto power. Sometimes artists just need to get used to their own song again. With “Radio Orchid” for example – I made the remix, played it to the guys, and it sounded so different to the original. The lead singer, Kai Wingenfelder, ran out of the studio with a very red head, calmed down for half an hour, came in and said: “Yeah, that doesn’t sound so bad.” Basically, the artists ultimately want you bring your stamp and your sound.

For your two remixes for Becks and her song KLIPPE AUS EFÜHLEN, the artist was in your studio with you – I assume that’s not the usual way of working for remixes.

Exactly, when remixing the message is often something like this: “Watch out, here are the tracks, do your thing.” Nowadays you have a bit of a leap of faith and people know that the concept fits. Here at Becks the approach was different. We said: “We want to get a taste of creativity and see what works.”

David Morales is a good example. If he remixed someone like Mariah Carey, then he was the first to establish the saying: “Watch out, dear Mariah, come to the studio again. I have an extra idea.” This makes a remix even more special. Then you really have a USP that you develop and people don’t say: “Oh, that sounds like the original with new beats.”

Our approach with Becks was similar. I was extremely impressed by the song because it had such a dance DNA, with this 125 bpm groove, but also basically had a ballad attitude. The original immediately sparked a creative idea in me. We recorded new choirs which I then used in my remix.

But I also knew: I wanted to do a remix that enhanced the original, i.e. presented it differently with my tricks, but was still close to the original. At the same time, I also wanted an alternative version that was a bit freer.

In the “Main Mix” you included a short hook consisting of vowels at the beginning, which is actually the hook line. This is not present in the original song.

Exactly. We all know that the 90s are massively back. I wanted to see if I could make the thing a bit 90s-like and perhaps present it in a different harmonic way. That was a playground for me because I had all of Becks’ voices there. You can easily chop it up with the computer and re-import things. That was the concept: with a new groove and new harmonies.

So the “OG Mood Mix” is the one that was closer to the original?

Exactly. There are also completely new elements in it that we have basically developed from scratch. Because of this, I think Becks trusted me to say: “Hey, come on, offer another version.”

For you, the essence of the song was, so to speak, the atmospheric, solemn element, but which also already has this dance BPM DNA in it? Can you say it like that?

You can say that, yes. And I think that’s what fascinated me so much. You still had that dance thing in there, even in the original. Nevertheless, the voice, which has its very own aesthetic, sounds ballad-like. That wasn’t so easy to achieve in the “main mix” – that is, in this 90s thing mix. With that ethereal voice, without it being ridiculous when you blast down a dance speed. That’s kind of an art. I think we managed to do this quite elegantly. You still have a version that works on the dance floor – but with that elfin voice.

How did this collaboration even come about?

That’s a beautiful thing. For me, art and patronage are very important. Glo’s NEX STAGE has done a great job of cultivating this by giving young artists the opportunity to fully concentrate on their art without having to worry about their rent.

My example is Michelangelo: He would not be who we know today if he had not had the time and means to paint the cathedral in Florence through the Italian church. Art and patronage – or today perhaps corporate jobs – are very close to each other and are now essential. The mechanisms have changed. You can make money with a name through live music, but the music industry itself is a tough boat.

You had your first big global hit at the end of the 1990s with “Horny”, then with Tom Jones and “Sexbomb”. You saw up close this complete shift in the industry that led to patronage becoming so important.

Probably yes. Although, when it comes to patronage, you don’t always have to equate it with ignoble money. This is also the case if you help with infrastructure or network. For example, we do it like this: I can’t put a million on the table for every artist, but I say: “Hey, come on. Open door principle. Go to the studio, do something, audition.”

In principle, of course, I noticed exactly this transition. With “Horny” there were still physical records that were actually sold either on CD or on vinyl. “Horny” we made, I have no idea, 120,000 vinyls – ourselves, on our own label. That was a massive turnover. You don’t have anything like that anymore today. But there too: There is always the 360-degree cake, and the individual cake cuts just shift. At the moment it is the case that live income or perhaps even income from corporate jobs simply makes up the larger part. Who knows what will happen in the future.