When first meeting Dimitri aka TEEMID, you may find yourself thinking: ‘Wow, such a young man!’ Yet, appearances can be deceiving. “People always tell me I look really young, but I'm actually 27. I was born in Belgium, but grew up in France near Bordeaux and that's where I started DJing and producing.”
In case you were wondering, there’s a reason he calls himself TEEMID. Being rather introverted himself, his name derives from the French adjective ‘timide’ meaning ‘shy’. Like a good Bordeaux wine, he’s gotten better with age. TEEMID first came into touch with electronic music at home. “My brother is 15 years older than me and when we were young he used to babysit me with his friends. They were all into Techno – mainly Belgian and German stuff from the 90's – so I guess that must have rubbed off on me. It was tracks like 'The Real Hardcore' by NRG, 'TC 1992' by Funky Guitar or 'Jam & Spoon' by Stella. When I was 8, I came across my brother's Techno collection and used to listen to his records on repeat. I still listen to some of them now, like Jaydee's 'Plastic Dreams'.“
In 1995, at age 11, TEEMID had his musical epiphany. “One morning I saw the video to Daft Punk's ‘Da Funk’. I bought the album and totally fell in love with it, with the French style and their use of samples. Fresh music by Daft Punk, Superfunk, Stardust and Armand Van Helden really got me going.” He finally got into DJing, when he was 18. “I was still studying economics, but I knew all the local DJs and it struck me that I could start to live my passion and become a professional DJ. I basically taught myself, after doing some summer jobs and using my wages to buy turntables and mixer. I worked hard at it, getting inspired along the way by the resident DJ at my local club. I used to buy my music at my local record store, scouring all the House compilations to find the best tracks.” After patiently honing his skills, he became a resident DJ at a local club. There, TEEMID learned to analyze the crowd; to understand what they want and when. “This was very different from DJing in Paris, where the crowd is so much more into the music. That changes everything.” He has since continued gaining experience and learning the ropes with regular DJ gigs in Paris and first bookings from all over Europe. He performs his DJ sets on real decks, without the help of a controller, but would love to develop live shows with visuals in the near future.
Reminiscing about his time as a resident DJ he admits: “I love touring now. As a resident DJ, it felt a bit like being in jail, but now each gig is great. People come to listen to my music and smile. That's what I enjoy and what I've wanted for some time now.” Steadily moving ahead, TEEMID continues to enjoy playing in more intimate settings. “I prefer smaller venues, where you can connect with the people right in front of you and actually speak to them. That's cooler.” TEEMID spent 4 years playing uplifting House music at a local club, night and day, before slowly venturing into his own productions. “I was always into the production side of things, but I just couldn't afford the hardware. At that time you needed a pro computer, so I spent more time focusing on mixing.
When I was 23, I bought a studio and things took off from there. I started with Fruity Loops, but then I noticed that all the headliners at the time were using Logic. I bought a Mac, the software, a monitor and a keyboard and I was pretty much set to go. I remember Logic was sold along with a huge, 300 page long tutorial book. I'm pretty sure it's the only book I've read from cover to cover.” Hugely motivated, TEEMID started to search for his own sound. “At the start I dug funky tracks, mainly to sample them. Later on, the new House scene influenced me a lot. Flume, Darius, Cherokee, Disclosure, Kaytranada, Bonobo and Kygo, to name a few, gave me the confidence to pursue making the kind of music I love.“ At the same time, TEEMID’s covers and remixes have an equally strong Pop vibe to them. “Pop influences me too. Artists including Breakbot, Coldplay, Jamiroquai, Moby, The Ting Tings, Empire of the Sun, Phoenix, Jay Z, Kanye West and Ryan Leslie are all on my iPhone. I listen to everything. You have to be open minded.”Meanwhile, after years of producing, TEEMID has developed an obvious affinity for Deep House. “I can't really put my finger on it, but Deep House evokes a lot of emotions. It makes me travel without moving. Artists like Jimpster, Dennis Ferrer, John Tejada, Maya Jane Coles, Kerry Chandler and many more helped me fall in love with the genre. Now it's my music. EDM to me is disgusting; a horrible sound that's been getting on my nerves for the last 2 years.” In his remixes and covers TEEMID relies on his trademark use of highly distinctive vocals. “The remix process is simple. I start by searching for acapella versions of famous pop songs on SoundCloud or YouTube. A lot of girls and boys do really personal covers, bringing a new dimens
