David Guetta quotes: on why worrying about hits is a slippery slope, preferring people over things, holding onto his fortune and more.
“I think my secret to success is just doing what I love and working hard. I have been doing this for a really long time, so by now, I know my ways by now. Doing what you think is right makes you stand out from the crowd. I think in the end it’s all about passion.”
“I’m not the type of person to live in fear. I think positively.”
“It’s the original creative idea. The field and the application of knowledge is more important than the name one makes. Collaboration is healthy and one should be receptive to it.”
“The thing is that there are different stages in life. Usually, the most exciting phase is the beginning, because your motivation comes from love and positive energy. You don’t expect anything, so you just try different things, and you are more experimental. After that you get into the second phase, when you are on top of your game, and then you become scared. Where your driving energy had been passion, it becomes fear, and that definitely is not good when it comes to creating.”
“When you’re too relaxed it’s not good to create.”
“Ego is the worst enemy. We all have it, because if you have some talent, you usually are aware of it, and it is very easy to think: ‘Oh, I am so good I don’t need anyone.’ But I think we always need someone else.”
“It’s always good to see new tricks and a new approach. And sometimes patience and perseverance are required.”
“It’s about getting the best out of people.”
“We are one energy. Together we can make a change.”
“You can always try the same thing your entire life but it becomes a little boring. It was not really making me happy to apply the same formula again. I think it’s more challenging and more exciting.”
“Actually, because of new technologies, my full studio is on my laptop. And I have a little keyboard in my bag. I can make everything I do come from my laptop. Even when I go to a big studio, all I do is plug in my laptops. That’s the way I do it.”
“My parents were extreme left so everything was against the system. I was walking barefoot in the streets of Paris when I was eight. When I started to DJ they hated it, because for them, nightclubs, and all of this life, was terrible and fake.”
“I had the most reversed education possible. Every parent wants their son to be a businessman, respectable. Me, it was the opposite. When I had an artist career my mom was like, ‘Oh finally, I’m proud of you!'”
“I always knew I wanted to make music and share music. I followed my dreams and my passion. And voila! And now it means not just me, but our community, have a voice. There was no internet, Twitter, Facebook or Instagram back then; now people with shared passions can unite their voice to share their values and thoughts, be heard, and make a difference. It’s amazing. Everyone can have a voice, and, as one, it can be incredible.”
“Music. I live it and breathe it. It wakes me up in the morning, puts me to sleep at night and is with me all day.”
“Music at large is what I enjoy. It’s the essence of my soul. It wakes me up in the morning and puts me to sleep at night. I can’t imagine my world without music. I love to make people dance; it’s a way of bringing people together regardless of religion, nationality, sexuality, belief.”
“I’m not limited.”
“I’m totally not a nostalgic person. I always look to the future and as much as I’ve enjoyed the ride until now and the different phases, I’m more excited about the next music.”
“I’m a DJ first. I wanted to use my success to introduce newer fans to what my culture is about and where my inspiration comes from.”
“I always just think of making people dance. That’s my first priority.”
“I want to party in space because I make alien music.”
“I’m happy and in a good place, and in love with the number one important thing: making music to make people happy.”
“It’s nice because success has allowed me to have a blast on stage, to be in the studio with amazing people, but I find it all a bit bizarre.”
“I’ve been through different phases. The first phase was the ambition coming from nothing to going into pop, and that was a beautiful journey. And then there was a moment where you just get scared because when you are at the top all you can do is fall. So your energy changes from positive, like love and passion, and it becomes negative energy, like a fear or falling. I’m now in a third place which is like… I don’t care, I just wanna have fun and make music! I don’t have huge ambitions because I don’t have any need to make more money, I have enough. I just want to make the music I love and share it with the world. So it’s not a business ambition, it’s more like… a quality of life ambition, a happiness ambition!”
“I feel like I am now in the third stage, which is, ‘I don’t give a f*ck, I just want to have fun.’ I love music in general, and I love doing different things. So I just did.”
“I’ve been trying to not be so obsessed with numbers. That actually brought me way more happiness and more creativity in being a producer. This is actually a really big problem for any artist. When you start to have huge hits, it brings so much to your life that you want to keep doing it. But in order to keep doing it, you become a little safe. Creatively, that really messes you up. I just realized that I was obsessing with making hits, and that was not necessarily the best way to make quality music. It’s always about finding the right balance.”
“I don’t do this for the money, I don’t do it for record sales, I don’t really care about that. I just want to make beats.”
“What motivates me to continue to create music is that magic moment when I’m going to play one of my records for the first time onstage, or when a song becomes a hit and everyone is singing along to it. They are some of the strongest feelings I can get in my life.”
“The first thing I bought for myself when I started making money as a DJ was a house. It’s funny, because I didn’t grow up with money, and my entire life I was always scared to be poor. Again, you have to understand that when I was making the choice to become a DJ, it was a huge risk. You can’t compare it with now where there’s risk but there’s also a chance to become rich. At that time, there was no such thing as getting rich from being a DJ. So, when I started making money, my obsession was to have a house in case something happened. If music didn’t work, I would have a place to sleep. I saved everything to buy an apartment in Paris.”
“Actually, I don’t buy many things. I don’t really care about owning stuff—which I know sounds strange. Until relatively recently, I didn’t own anything. I’ve always felt that owning is being owned. I still don’t have a car. I have a house in Ibiza, but other than that I prefer to rent or stay with friends when I travel. It’s a better way to be. I like people more than things.”
“I know we all seem to live super-glamorous lives, but I have to be very disciplined. I’m so busy, I never notice the time passing; a year goes by in a flash.”
“It’s funny, because this has kind of stayed with me my entire life. I was always feeling that someone was going to come wake me up in the morning and say, ‘This was all a joke and you need to give it all back.’ I’m always worried something is going to happen. I think it’s a poor person complex. Now I’m rich for life, but I still have this complex. It’s gotten a little better in the last two or three years.”
“I am bulletproof, nothing to lose, fire away, fire away.”
“I wanna be a nice guy.”
“I’ve already done a lot of crazy stuff in my life. I’ve come back to my original energy, and just want to have fun and experiment. I just want to be happy and do what makes me feel good. Travel, have fun, make music with friends. I like living in the moment.”
“Inside a soul, there is a hero to discover.”
“Take care of yourself, and do unto others as you would have done to you.”
Related: Skrillex quotes.
