Some DJs prefer to wear masks or helmets while DJing. Why they do it could be for marketing purposes, privacy, vanity, or just plain old fun! Whatever their reasons, we are shining the spotlight on the top 10 DJs who wear masks or helmets!
10. Dr Lektroluv
Dr Lektroluv is green-faced Belgium-based techno DJ known for his energetic live sets. He also bears an uncanny resemblance to Frankenstein.
9. 2 Faced Funks
2 Faced Funks are an up & coming Dutch duo that starting wearing pink masks during their DJ sets as joke. On their official Facebook page they say, “We had been DJing as a duo for quite a while, when we decided to throw a special birthday party for one of us. We bought some cheap, pink masks and advertised with the fact that we managed to book 2 world-famous DJ’s. That night sold out completely, with 1500 people dancing to our set. That was the moment we decided to take the 2 Faced Funks project to the next level. And it works! We’ve had several masks in the meantime, but really wanted to cut loose from the alien-image some people had of us. So we emailed Rogier Samuels (Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit) and he worked on a more friendly-looking, gentlemen type of mask.”
8. Mike Candys
Mike Candys in a Swiss DJ/producer who is currently ranked #67 in DJ Mag’s Top 100 DJs. He wears a smile head during his DJ sets and according to his official Facebook page, “It’s NOT for sale anywhere cause I created it myself and won’t sell it.”
7. DJs From Mars
DJs From Mars are an Italian duo famous for wearing cardboard boxes on their heads while DJing. In a interview they explained why they wear the boxes on their heads saying, “It was from one of our first videos called “Who Gives a F**k about Deejays”…. a boxhead man was the main character of the video concept…when we started doing our first gigs we tried this weird idea, and it worked immediately! Everyone wanted to take pictures with us, everyone wanted to stay in the front of the two boxhead weirdos, it was very different from usual DJ sets when everyone dances like no one’s spinning….so we kept it going on.”
6. The Bloody Beetroots
Italian Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo, better known as The Bloody Beetroots wears a mask that resembles a more sophisticated Mexican wrestling mask. According to his official Facebook page he wears it as “a declaration of ominous anonymity that defers the spotlight to his long list of productions, projects, films, art, manifestos and musical incarnations emanating from his Bloody Beetroots production epicenter.”
5. Cazzette
Swedish duo Cazzette are the byproduct of Avicii’s manager Ash. They wear giant cassette masks with LED tickers during parts of their show. In an interview they spoke about how it all started saying, “That was Ash – he came up with it. It was really inspired by Daft Punk, of course. The cassette is pretty cool as a theme. It’s not like our production is very big right now, but we hope to build it up in time. That’s what’s cool about Cazzette as a name – you can take it and build things around it. The heads are just the beginning. We don’t wear them the whole time – just for 30 minutes out of an hour-long show. They get heavy, and they make it hard to breathe. You can get pretty dizzy after a while. Seeing can be a problem, too: I can’t wear my glasses under the mask, so I’m blinded a little bit. But you know, it’s part of the show.”
Photo cred: Rukes.com
4. Joachim Garraud
Joachim Garraud is well-known in France for being David Guetta’s co-producer in the beginning of his career. He is now more famous for his solo work and the space invader brand associated with his music and live performances. In an Interview he said, “By giving an alien mask to some people, they’re not shy anymore. They’re just behind these small pieces of plastic, but they’re completely somebody else by wearing this mask. And they party like hell.”
3. Deadmau5
Joel Zimmerman is the Canadian DJ/producer better known as Deadmau5. The story behind the name according to Wikipedia, is that he found a dead mouse inside his computer after dismantling it. He then became known as the “dead mouse guy” among friends. Joel tried to change his name to Deadmouse in an online chat room, but it was too long, so he shortened it to Deadmau5. He was given the idea to wear a mouse head based on the logo by one of his friends, Jay Gordon of the industrial metal band Orgy.
Photo cred: Rukes.com
2. Nicky Romero
Nicky Romero became associated with a V For Vendetta mask after a video for “Toulouse” went viral on YouTube in 2012. The video was directed by Timo Pierre Rositzki and has had over 120 million views to date. The history behind the mask comes from a stylized depiction of the leader of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot against the British Parliament. The mask became a symbol of protest movements against the government and establishment around the world after it was used in the 2005 movie V for Vendetta starring Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaving.
Photo cred: Rukes.com
1. Daft Punk
Coming in at #1 are Daft Punk in their LED robotic helmets. Daft Punk have not allowed their faces to be photographed since May 2006 and started wearing the robot helmets shortly thereafter. In a 2013 interview with Rolling Stone magazine Thomas Bangalter explained, “We’re interested in the line between fiction and reality, creating these fictional personas that exist in real life.” Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo went on to say, “We’re not performers, we’re not models – it would not be enjoyable for humanity to see our features…but the robots are exciting to people.” It’s rumored the impressive helmets cost $65,000 to make.
Honorable mention: twoloud
Mysterious duo twoloud have kept all details about themselves a closely guarded secret since landing on the scene late last year with the track “Big Bang.” All we really know about them is that they work closely with EDM mainstay Tiësto. There are no official press photos of the duo. All we have is the video below from their recent performance at Ministry of Sound London. They are wearing masks of some type to conceal their identity.
What do you think of our picks? Who is your favorite masked DJ?
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