At this point, reflexively dismissing Paris Hilton’s credibility as a DJ is just lazy. The multi-hyphenate mogul has been clubbing for nearly 25 years, immersing herself in the world of dance music first as the scantily clad party child you saw dancing on nightclub tables via Perez Hilton circa 2008 and then, in time, as the DJ behind the decks at said nightclubs.
First learning her skills from the late DJ AM — who ran in the same crew as Hilton, her Simple Life co-star Nicole Richie (to whom AM was once engaged) and a then largely unknown DJ named Steve Aoki in the LA/NYC nightlife scenes of the late aughts — in the last decade Hilton has played venues around the globe, held down a five-year residency at the Ibiza clubbing institution Amnesia and played the world’s biggest dance music festival, Tomorrowland, twice. In her 39 years, she’s attended more Electric Daisy Carnivals, Burning Mans and other sundry raves than most artists on Spotify’s Mint playlist. This status as a professional party person exists as a tangent of the Paris Hilton “brand,” a much-discussed documentary topic that encompasses all of her business pursuits and the high-voiced, sequin-covered persona she plays in the public in pursuit of her ambitions.
And while the criticism she’s received as a DJ has come from both the public and from within the dance industry itself, Hilton really doesn’t care. She just loves the music, calling her time behind the decks a respite from an otherwise relentlessly fast-paced life.
So she says in the recently released documentary This Is Paris, a candid look at how Paris Hilton came to be Paris Hilton™. The doc focuses on the abuse Hilton says she experienced while she was a teenage student at Provo Canyon School, a Utah institution for troubled teens at which Hilton and other former students allege that they were beaten, drugged, put in solitary confinement and subjected to other emotionally and physically abusive behavior. (Since the film’s release, celebrity tattoo artist Kat Von D has also addressed the abuse she experienced at the same school.) In This Is Paris, Hilton says partying was her way of dealing with the trauma. Eventually, what started as a coping mechanism became a pillar of her empire.
On the heels of this doc, Hilton spoke to Billboard about partying away her pain, her love of Avicii and Daft Punk, what she really wanted her DJ name to be and what she wore to her first rave.
1. Where are you in the world right now, and what’s the setting like?
I am home in L.A. I actually just moved back into my house that I have been renovating for over a year. Getting settled in the house.
2. What is the first album or piece of music you bought for yourself, and what was the medium?
The first music I ever purchased was a Madonna CD. She has been my idol since I was a little girl.
3. What did your parents do for a living when you were a kid, and what do they think of what you do for a living now?
My father has always been a businessman, and my parents are incredibly proud of me for becoming the businesswoman that I am and for creating the empire I have built.
4. What was the first song you ever made?
The first song I ever made was a remake of “Heart of Glass” by Blondie when I was with Warner Bros. Records. The original concept of the album was supposed to be pop-rock. I also recorded a remake of David Bowie’s “Fame.”
5. If you had to recommend one artist for someone looking to get into electronic music, what would you give them?
Avicii. He was such a legend in the EDM world, and his music is a perfect embodiment of the genre.
6. What’s distinctive about the place you grew up, and how did it shape you?
I was my parents’ first child, so they were very protective and strict with me. I lived such a sheltered life growing up in L.A., but then moved to New York at 15 and rebeled because of their strictness.
7. What’s the last song you listened to?
I have been listening to my new single, “I Blame You,” produced by DJ Lodato, on repeat. I am so in love and proud of this new love ballad that I am releasing later this month.
8. What’s the biggest misconception about you?
There are so many misconceptions about me I don’t even know where to begin, but I think one of the biggest misconceptions is just because I come from a privileged family and my last name is Hilton, some people assume that I never worked a day in my life and everything is just handed to me. In reality, it is the exact opposite.
Full interview: billboard.com
