Mark Jenkyns

Paradise favourite and the name behind one of this summer’s biggest Ibiza tunes, Mark Jenkyns has experienced something of a renaissance in 2017. With his name firmly back on regular rotation across Beatport charts and high-profile events like Printworks and Warehouse Project alike, we caught up with Mark for a look back at the year which saw him hit the #1 spot, close Paradise at DC10, and graduate from university.

 

It’s been a big year for you Mark, which bits have stood out in particular?

I think that ‘Sirens’ going to #1 on the House chart would have to be my main one – it was definitely the right decision to release that one on Hottrax. Away from releases, closing the Paradise closing party at DC10 with my best mate is right up there too, what a way to end the summer.

We saw that you recently graduated – what did you study and what made you decide to go back to university?

Yeah, I did a BA (Hons) degree in Music for Industry – I think that when my son came along, it made me think a bit differently about stuff and made me take stock of things. To be honest, it was the best thing I could have done as it removed my thoughts from 4/4 club music and helped give me some clarity

Did the music industry in the textbooks match up with your experiences of it in real life?

Not at all – it’s definitely a lot more formal in the books than it is in real life! I guess I’ve only experienced a snapshot of what the music industry is from DJing, so it did open my eyes to a lot of things. But on the flip side, it introduced me to a whole new world in education – because I hadn’t done any academic work for over 10 years, being thrust into the world of assignments and essays that require you to reference everything and everyone was a whole new ball game, and something I don’t really miss.

Do you think that you had an advantage having experienced the industry before starting the course?

Well, for one it got me straight onto the final year which helped, although looking back at it the first two years would have been great to do as well. But yeah, I did have a bit of experience however the topics covered on the course were totally different from the club world – for example, in the ‘making music for moving image’ module, I chose a video game sequence. It definitely opened my eyes a bit to see what else the music industry can offer.

Has the degree affected the decisions you’re making moving forwards in terms of your DJ career?

It’s made me realise how much I love DJing and producing music, and made me want to further this as much as I can. I want to see where the DJ path takes me, but I would also like to teach at some point I think too.

How important do you think qualifications are in the music industry?

Well, they open doors to an extent, depending what you want to do obviously, but you don’t need to be referencing Wagner (1813) if you want play fabric!

Is it important for DJs to have a ‘plan B’ away from the DJ booth?

Depends really, if you’re making 30k a gig for years then you may just want to sit back and spend it when you finish, but I think most people have other ideas and ventures in their heads… wAFF for instance wants to act when he’s finished.

You mentioned earlier that you might like to teach one day – how would you take your experiences from the industry into the classroom?

Yeah, it’s something I would love to do one day – maybe open my own electronic music school, but something that is a little bit more boutique and relatively small so it’s more hands on.

And finally, as we move into 2018 what have you got lined up on the music front?

Currently, I’ve got a Resonance Records EP with Andre Salmon, a Viva Music EP and a Hot Creations EP all signed and due to be released from January to March. I also have a few remixes and I’m working on some new personal stuff that will aim to branch out a little.

https://www.facebook.com/markjenkynsmusic/