Hailing for Tipperary, Ireland, musician Johnny Bourke boasts infinite versatility across his back catalogue. The singer/ songwriter and all-around musician have been growing a loyal fan base with a slew of stellar releases, including ‘Can’t Do Without’ alongside London producer Dimiglio-Wood, who has previously worked with pop royalty, Shawn Mendes. ‘Can’t Do Without’ has been enjoyed over 20,000 times and has received regular radio plays in Ireland. No stranger to the live scene, Johnny has travelled all over the world to perform, with appearances as far as Australia and New Zealand. His latest single ‘Be Someone’ is an exciting glimpse of things to come from Johnny Bourke.
THE INTERVIEW
CR: Hello Johnny Bourke, Glad to have you on Canadianravers how are you doing?
JB: Hi! Glad to be here, thanks for having me. I’m good, the sun is finally starting to show so that just makes everything better.
CR: Where does your love and passion for Dance music come from?
JB: I’m classically trained so you would think I’d be less inclined, but I’ve always just been mesmerized by the power of music that makes you want to dance. Whether it’s at a club or a bar or on the beach there’s something magical about the groove and how it gets inside you. I love being a part of that.
CR: Tell us a little bit of story behind the recent track ‘Be Someone’, producing process, as well as the certain connection to the lyrics.
JB: The idea came to me last year, I was thinking about how much your significant other influences your life trajectory without you even realizing and maybe in some pairings you can only be your best when you’re together so you should just embrace that! The melody and song actually came then when I was jamming some chords on a Juno. I then spent about a week building up the track (the chops and micro-samples took literal days) and then I let it sit for a couple of months. I met up with Saige over Christmas to get her vocals and then I finished the mix in January! Was great fun.
CR: Do you have a ritual while you are producing music?
JB: No not really, the main thing I’ve noticed that optimizes my workflow is to set little goals and don’t over do it. “I’m going to do the drums and bass before lunch”, “I’ll finish a rough arrangement by the end of the day”. Small things like that. When I just launch into a project it can be overwhelming if I don’t have a structure and then it can be disappointing and counterproductive to not meet your goals so I like to set manageable ones and then I’m usually in a good place every time I sit down to work on it after repeated little successes. Lots of short breaks are good too, even going to make a coffee. That five minutes away from the studio lets your brain reset and you often find the answer to a problem you spent the last three hours trying to fix.
CR: Where do you think the scene is headed? One year from now? Five years from now?
JB: I think there is going to be a bigger live scene than we’ve ever experienced. People who never went to clubs or festivals or live gigs are going to start going after the opportunity was taken away, people who always went are going to binge on them, and performers like myself are going to be much less picky about where we play because we just want to be able to perform for people! I think the next few years are going to be really fun. Lockdown has spawned some really great music and continues to do so.
CR: What is the best advice you have received while pursuing your career as a DJs/Producers?
JB: Make the music you like and don’t try to make music that you think other people will like. You will never please everyone. If you like your music then someone else will too.
CR: Growing up, did you always play musical instruments or was it something recent?
JB: Yeah, I always played, I’m a musician first. I studied piano formally and took up guitar when I was about 12.
CR: What is it that you love about the scene? Your subgenre's scene?
JB: I would call it nu-disco the genre I’m rooted in and referring back to an earlier statement I just love how infectiously groovy the music is. Combining classic sounds and samples of the past with modern and fresh elements is just so satisfying and really creates a sense of euphoria to me. How can someone listen to music by Lenno, or Daft Punk, or even Dua Lipa to a certain extent and not want to move their body? So good.
CR: What is one track that never gets old for you no matter how many times you hear it?
JB: I’m biased because I’m listening to so much of them at the minute but “One More Time”, my god, what a tune.
CR: What is 2021 looking like for you? Any new tracks in the making? Anything else our followers should know about?
JB: I’m making so much music it’s a really exciting time. I’ve also got a couple of remixes coming out later in the year so those collaborations have been really fun. I just want to get back to playing live shows so I can put on a spectacle for people to enjoy but in the meantime keep an eye on my socials for the most up to date music, I’m really cheeky, I post teasers of pretty much everything I’m working on. I get too excited when something is hitting hard!
The Lighting Round
Texting or talking? Talking. HATE texting.
Coffee or tea? Both are staples but for the sake of my productivity let’s pick coffee.
Hard liquor or Wine? Hard liquor lol
Cake or pie? Cake.
Hot dogs or hamburgers? Hamburgers.
Xbox or PlayStation? I used to own an xbox but I have no idea where it is.
Movie theatre or arcade? Movie theater.
Guitar or piano? Guitar 🎸
Marvel or DC Comics? I always mix them up, whoever has Batman 🦇
Dog or cat? Doggos all day.
Hot weather or cold weather? I enjoy both in moderation but hot more so.
JOHNNY BOURKE SOCIALS:
