By Crystal Harrell / Photos By Cora Rafe
On April 20, Grammy-nominated songwriter and world-famous DJ Will Clarke spoke with Coachella Valley Weekly during Weekend 2 of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, ahead of his performance at the Yuma Tent—where he revealed the artistic process behind his new track and what he hopes for the future of his musical legacy.
CV: Thank you so much for joining us. So going into weekend two of the festival, how does it feel to be performing for Coachella-goers again?
Will Clarke: I feel so fortunate to be here at Coachella. It’s maybe like 150 artists on the whole lineup and out of millions in the world, and to have the opportunity to play not just one weekend, but two weekends in a row, is really special.
CV: You had your start in music at a young age. Can you describe what made you want to get into it in the first place?
Will Clarke: I think I always liked electronic music. My brother put me in touch with it, and I kind of started exploring myself. My dad then started taking me to concerts when I was young. It was just always something I always wanted to do. It’s been a long journey and still a long way to go, but I’m really fortunate where I’m at.
CV: You’re based in the UK, so how does it feel to be able to attract such a global audience?
Will Clarke: America’s been my second home for the last ten years, so being able to come to the biggest music festival in America, and one of the most iconic festivals in the world, is amazing.
CV: You’re slated to release a new single in May, “Weekend Love;” can you tell us a little about that track?
Will Clarke: It features a house gospel choir and is a little different than what people are used to hearing from me. I love this record. It’s part of a bigger project I’m working on. This one was more about the collaborative effort and working with a lot more people and bringing people in that are better at me than what I am at certain things–whether that’s key players, singers, songwriters–just getting the best people around me and making friends and enjoying writing music, really. I’m going to open with “Weekend Love,” which is really special to open a big set with a brand-new record that not many people have heard.
CV: What do you hope for the future of your career? You’ve already accomplished so much, but is there more that you want to do?
Will Clarke: So much more. It’s very cliche to say I want to be the biggest artist in the world, but I think for me, I want to be able to bring more people together–communities that are based around music–and kind of give people an amazing experience. I’ve been fortunate enough to do that already, but it’s now time to do it on a larger scale and really grow audiences. But by growing audiences, you’re growing experiences for other people. That’s the main thing for me. And I think it’s making this sustainable for the next 30 years of my life and keeping this going for the next 30 years of my life and longer.
