Maxime Ducou, who will be performing at the Delta Festival this summer, has released a danceable summer hit set against the backdrop of a sunset.
Persevering, Maxime, who is completing his engineering degree specializing in mechanics at the Aix-en-Provence campus, juggles his studies with his musical creations.
He talks about his passion and explains how he managed to make a name for himself. It's also an opportunity to discover his first single, released last April.
Where does this passion come from? How has it evolved since you started?
My passion for music comes from what it's made of: the instruments, the story it tells, and the emotions it conveys. Having no musical training, I started mixing on my own in my bedroom in 2015, watching DJ videos on the internet. Then I wanted to create my own style. So I took music theory lessons, bought equipment, and invested half of my apprentice engineer's salary each month to be able to convey my vision of music.
How do you relate your music practice to your chosen field of study?
I aspire to be who I want to be. And it is undoubtedly thanks to my engineering studies, which required hard work, rigor, and pragmatism, that I learned to give myself the means to achieve my ambitions. I work tirelessly to improve myself.
Can you tell us more about your creative process?
My creative process unfolds in stages. I contemplate my surroundings and initially seek to convey my mood at that moment. Then I write down what my music is saying on a piece of paper. I then go through a "mathematical" phase, juggling chords to convey the desired emotion. The X factor in my "musical equation" is this unknown quantity that I try to grasp when I compose in order to express my artistic soul.
The search for instruments continues this creative phase. This step is the most important for me because it is my musical sensibility that guides my choice of instruments. I am therefore constantly on the lookout for new sounds and new instruments to enhance my style.
You've already DJed in public. How did you make a name for yourself?
It is thanks to my community, and more specifically my friends, that I was able to reveal my passion to the world. Their immeasurable support was invaluable during my first performances in 2019 in front of more than 5,500 people (student festival at the Docks des Suds in Marseille and Bal du Bapt's). I will also be performing on the 360 stage at the Delta Festival in Marseille , which will bring together nearly 80,000 festival-goers at the end of August.
This series of dates is the result of perseverance and self-sacrifice, which have enabled me to make my work known. I searched on social media, among my contacts, and on the street for the chance to perform on stage one day. It wasn't always easy to deal with setbacks and disappointments, but I never gave up.
Can you tell us more about your first single? What future do you see for your practice?
It was in this context of resilience that I released my first single with the evocative title: " I Just Can't Give It Up ," which means "I can't give up." This song is intended to be a summer dance hit with a seaside and festive backdrop. Music is not an art that you practice alone; it is an art that you share.
This constant desire to share pushes me to go further. Why not make music my profession? The succession of projects and positive feedback encourages me to continue along this path. So I am now preparing the release of my second single, which will be available on all platforms by mid-July.
