Hailing from the deep woods of Germany is Wanderlust Music head-honcho and iridescent producer, Pretty Pink. Merely two months following the release of a highly lauded deep tech record, Anne Ka – alias Pretty Pink – is returning with her latest single, ‘Move It’, a club-primed tech-house reimagining of the 1993 classic from Reel 2 Real, ‘I Like To Move It’. DMCWORLD checks in for the low down…
As an artist with such a deep house style, what inspires the name Pretty Pink?
I used to like the color pink a lot, but the name also implies femininity. It is a good contrast to my sound, which is very deep and hard. If you read my name, you assume I’m a girl yet don’t expect my sound.
As an artist from the deep forests of Harz Germany, how did you find your way into the German club culture?
That was rather a coincidence. I have been interested in art, graphics and creative processes altogether since I was young. After school I used to make flyers for clubs and discos in the area but the love of music has always been there at the same time. From New Wave of Depeche Mode to Indiesounds like Placebo to Electro and Techno I liked everything. One day a Resident DJ at one of the clubs couldn’t make it and I was asked to step in, I was totally excited and jumped into the cold water. Vinyl’s 3 Minutes matching, no real mixing. After that I was totally enthusiastic in playing records and practiced, practiced, practiced…
German club culture has had a heavy influence on your deep house style, how do you bring this culture with you into sets outside of Germany?
For me electronic music is very international, I don’t differentiate into countries. I am happy to get to visit so many great places and explore music and people through my job. And there is nothing better than people who like to dance to my music and have fun.
How do you use your social platforms to connect with fans?
All social networking platforms present a good opportunity to stay in touch with my fans. Through my social platforms I show them many moments of my tour life, some new inspirations I found or just some cute pics of my dog. Musical platforms are ideal for me as a musician to reach my fans beyond Germany. Instagram is a lot of fun, I am a woman, I love to be inspired by the many pictures and could scroll for hours! And on Facebook I regularly go live with my “Deep Woods” radio show. It’s great that there are so many different platforms and networks!
As a strong female influencer in the electronic scene, are there any other female artists that inspire you?
Yes of course, Nina Kraviz, Charlotte De Witte, Peggy Gou are some of the women which inspires me a lot!
Who are some artists that inspired you to ignite a career in dance music, and why do you think those artists have found success?
The biggest inspiration for me is the variety of the music, there are a plethora of good musicians with different styles, so at first, I was really into Indie Pop like Nirvana, Placebo GoGo Dolls, Depeche Mode. I remixed a lot of Indie Stuff into my electronic danceable tunes, I made my own edits out of their tracks to play them in my live shows. Also, the 90’s & 80’s with Electronic Pop inspired me a lot, that is why I produced my new tracks, ‘Move it’ and ‘Rider’ – a combination of a makeup from Real to Real – I like to Move it and the Nightrider Theme. During my time of being DJ and getting to know others, a very big inspiration for me is Kölsch, a Hamburg DJ mixing Techno and Melodic House. There are so many different styles of music and musicians that influence me – I think it’s very important to be a music open-minded person and to find your taste.
How do you think your fan base thus far has influenced your career? If there is anything you could say to your fan base, what is it?
Without my fan base my career wouldn’t be where it is today. There is a growing number of friends discovering my approach, and that’s cool. I have a really loyal and ever-growing fanbase scattered all across the planet, that makes me very proud!
Pretty Pink is not only an artist, but a brand. What words would you use to describe your brand, and how did you begin to build that for yourself?
What makes “Pretty Pink” a brand is above all the fun I have in my job! When I step on the decks, I literally turn up! Then I’m in my element and people feel that. “Pretty Pink” is giving people a good time with her music. The brand also stands for Female Power! I have been working independently for over 13 years, and do many things on my own. I have founded my own music label and I am my own girl boss. Another important point is the closeness to my fans – whether via social networks, live at gigs or on the road while shopping – I’m always happy to have a good time with people!
How do you incorporate your skill for graphic design into your brand?
I still love graphic design, it’s my hobby and I can let off steam at Pretty Pink and my own music label “Wanderlust”. I design logos, covers and website graphics. I can say that the brand “Pretty Pink” is 100% me – from the music to the cover for the singles.
If you could pick your favorite show you’ve played thus far in your career, what would it be and why?
I think all shows and also festivals have been epic, I can’t name just one! This summer was amazing with all the festivals I played. I also did vlogs on this thematic, so I let the people be part of my experiences, and show them some backstage situations on each event I joined. You should check hey YouTube channel and you might find some shows and festivals you’ve never heard of before to visit.
How would you describe your signature style?
My signature sound is a combination of groovy strong baselines with a variety of synth melodies. Forming inspirations from other genres to uncommercial club anthems is my mission. Personally, I think everybody is on a journey sound wise, you never stay with only one sound, I love to mix music and different sounds. As time passes and trends fade the flow takes you and as a creative person you never stand still. That’s the exciting thing about making music and creating sounds.
Although days off probably come few and far between, how would you spend an ideal day off?
Oh, that’s easy. When I have a day off, my time is spent full of sleeping, some good food, friends and with my cute dog Mimi. I love this contrast to my tour life!
Tour life can get hectic; do you have a personal mantra or anything you use to push yourself to stay positive and productive when times get tough?
I have no personal mantra or quote, that pushes me, I’m a person full of energy, so I can’t stand still by nature.
Since releasing so many great singles thus far, are there any album plans in the works?
Yes, I work on so many things, album, new merchandise, my own fashion-label. So, stay tuned and be curious!
Ideally where do you see Pretty Pink in 2 years? How much growth would you like to allow for yourself in this amount of time?
Oh, in the next two years, I will develop on my own, my music, my tour life! So I would love to play gigs in the USA and again in Asia or maybe Australia and New Zealand. And of course, my other “babies”, my own music label and soon: I will start my own fashion label – stay tuned!
www.facebook.com/prettypinkmusic
Pretty Pink ‘Move It’ is out now…
