Nick Dresti is known throughout the world as “Space Cowboy,” the official DJ of Lady GaGa. He is also the protégé of Norman Cook, the illustrious “Fatboy Slim.”
After spending the bulk of 2009 on the road, Nick Dresti found inspiration from the sights and sounds he encountered as a performer on Lady GaGa’s Fame Ball Tour. The resulting byproduct, Digital Rock Star, is his fourth studio album, which captures the essence of these experiences. “Falling Down” serves as the lead single.
Upon review of Digital Rock Star, DJ Space Cowboy managed to squeeze some time out of his busy schedule and settle down for an interview with Clayton Perry—reflecting on Norman Cook, the origin of his futuristic moniker, and the loyalty of his Japanese fan base.
In previous years, you have used other pseudonyms, like “DJ Supreme” and “Loop da Loop.” At what point did you decide that you wanted to be “Space Cowboy?”
Well, my early works were done when I was in college. At the time, I was trying to enter engineering college – much to my parent's horror. But I went to work in a studio and the senior owner called me Space Cowboy all the time. He was crazy about my work and kept me on. So that's how that name came about. And from that, I was always interested in futuristic stuff, and I always thought that Space Cowboy should make music that sounded like they came off of a spaceship.
Multiple sources cite you as being a protégé of Norman [“Fatboy Slim”] Cook. In fact, your first album, Across the Sky, was released on his label, Southern Fried Records. When you look at the early years, is there a specific influence that he had on your career?
Norman is a special guy. I learned from him that evolution is good and it’s OK for a man to change his style, so he can go underground and go over ground, and go underground and come over ground again. It’s all about coming with a fresh sound. He's a master at that, and I learned that from him. He has been very successful for many years doing that and has had a great number of smash records. And I admire him greatly. He also experienced the darker side of celebrity and fame, which was very good for me because we were able to talk about that. I saw what could happen for me down the line when you experience a great deal of success in a short amount of time, which was a very beautiful thing. Norman has experienced a great deal of success worldwide. So, he explained to me how people change and how people lifestyles change and the way that the people around them change. He really taught me a lot about relationships, and how they change and evolve.
Article comments
1 - Marie Curie
I like him, he always have magic music
2 - doug m
This guy is known throughout the world?