Name: Beatkozina
Members: Mehdi Naami (DJ, musician, producer), Gregory Jouandon (jazz drummer, pianist, composer, and producer)
Nationality: Moroccan (Mehdi Naami), French (Gregory Jouandon)
Current release: Beatkozina's "Nusrat Passion" is out via Afroterraneo.
Recommendations: Mehdi: Naïssam Jalal & Rhythms of Resistance, the album is called Un autre monde. I just discovered this amazing artist and some of the tracks are extremely beautiful. I'allow you discover the music.
And the book that follows me everywhere is S.O.S. Bonheur by Van Hamme and Griffo - it’s a comic strip
Gregory: The album Kind of Blue by Miles Davis. “The rite of spring” by Igor Stravinsky.

If you enjoyed this Beatkozina interview and would like to know more about the duo and their music, visit them on Instagram, Facebook, and Soundcloud.  



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

Mehdi: Music is a feeling! It flows trough my whole body (skin, hair, eyes, deep into my heart … ) with different emotions: goosebumps, I often cry. I listen with open eyes, the same way as when I kiss, always with open eyes!

I should I try to close my eyes when I kiss :)

Gregory: I can listen to music both ways, and both ways it's a spiritual and cerebral connection to a cosmic dimension. Honestly I mostly enjoy music that allows me that kind of connection
 
What were your very first steps in music like - and how do you rate gains made through experience versus the naiveté of those first steps?

Mehdi: I started my first musical steps playing self taught guitar in different small bands in Morocco (Funk / Blues / Reggae / Raï / Rock …) and also DJing and promoting small events in my home town.

I then got introduced to electronic music while studying in France, where my professional musical journey began. I played in different bands with a wide range of influences such as reggae dub / gypsy jazz / jazz rock / gnawa / electro dub / world music … all these things led me to where I am now and you can hear most of these influences on the Beatkozina sound.

Gregory: I started out practicing drums with small bands at jazz school. So my perception of music was driven by my role in music: drummer. Then I studied piano, and started collaborations in various artistic fields from different cultures, such as Cuban music, Moroccan music, musical shows, electro music or indian music.

These experiences obviously led me to another level of music perception and I started to see music more as a producer.

According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music meant to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

Mehdi: I think I personally had those kind of deep experiences very early! My parents remembered me when I was 4 or 5 years old after listening to a Moroccan Andalusian Singer doing a Mawal and saying: this music revived my heart.

Music is a spiritual thing! It has always been for me and still remains so nowadays.

Gregory: I must admit that these studies are right in my case. I have been raised with afro-american and seventies music, therefore the groove and the psychedelic dimension in music will follow me all the way…However I realised since then that much more elements could emanate from music - such as spirituality, and intellectual approach. Entertaining music also started to be something that interested me.

I think I now constantly mix these different approaches. The mix will depend on the context I'm working on.

Over the course of your development, what have been your most important instruments and tools and how have they shaped your perspective on music?

Mehdi: As an African and Moroccan, my first musical language was and remains percussion. We bang the drums on any occasion :) It helps me a lot as a producer.

Let’s say bass and percussion for the rhythm and guitar for the melody - these are my main instruments.

Gregory: Obviously by practicing drums I always had an accurate perception of the groove in any music style as well as the understanding of the architecture of music based on the coordination of different rhythm patterns.

What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

Mehdi: The main approach is to combine different musical spheres in one piece and make it all sound in peace and harmony. And sharing it with a crowd on the dance floor or simply in your living room is what makes us wake up every morning to create.

Gregory: I'm probably still looking for the best way to combine elements so that people feel the music with their body and mind simultaneously

Paul Simon said “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What's your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

Mehdi: As a DJ, I always listen to our records with a perspective of making people dance first. Everyting else follows from there.

Our sound draws its energy from the Afro matrix as well as a wide range of influences from North African, the Middle East, Indian traditional music, jazz and Afro- Latin music.

Gregory: Depends on what step I‘m in. When I‘m deeply focused on composition or beat making I have a more mechanical perception. Once I'm satisfied with this first step, I usually take a few days before listening to it again to get a more "overall sound" impression, as Paul Simon said.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?

Mehdi: For me it’s definitely the sound of the ocean! I grow up in a small city in front of the Atlantic Ocean. The sound of it punctuated my days and my life as a kid and later as a young man,  it’s something that I miss in my life now! It gives me inner peace and harmony

Gregory: Birdsong is definitely part of the sound design on earth. You can easily identify repeating patterns, call and response, melodic form. No need to say how inspiring and relaxing birdsongs can be ….

From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

Gregory: Minimalism can be a quest at some point. Another time you want to combine as many elements as possible and make them work together.

I actually think we can compare artists to scientists, they both need to constantly experiment with new things, and doing it from an extreme point of view can be helpful

From symphonies and traditional verse/chorus-songs to linear techno tracks and free jazz, there are myriads ways to structure a piece of music. Which approaches work best for you – and why?

Mehdi: I always say that the most difficult part of creating an electronic beat or an afro house track is the arrangement! It’s all about the storytelling. We worked with a lot of talented singers that come from the traditional verse / chorus tradition and we had to reinterpret their vocals to suit our story telling.

Gregory: I use all these different methods to structure pieces of music regarding my approach as a versatile music producer. It depends on the track I‘m producing

Could you describe your creative process on the basis of one of your pieces, live performances or albums that's particularly dear to you, please?

Mehdi:”Nusrat Passion” is a piece deeply rooted in Beatkozina’s love and respect for Ustad Fatih Ali Khan’s music and legacy.

We’ve been working on exploring musical paths between electronic music and other traditions while creating space for collaborative performances. That is how the feathery voice of Abirah Shah, whose work aligns with Nusrat Fateh Ali khan’s tradition, came to play.

Gregory: Most of our creations were the result of an experiment, like a scientist. Like I said before, I'm constantly looking for new combinations and sometimes, when the magic happens, you start working in a more intuitive and emotional mood to make it a piece of music and not just an essay ...

Sometimes, science and art converge in unexpected ways. Do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you're making music?

Gregory: I would say that the mixture of rational and intuition that drives us in a creative process is akin to a scientific approach. But we have never really used scientific insight to initiate any creation.

How does the way you make music reflect the way you live your life? Can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

Gregory: In the beginning, the way I played music directly reflected my life. Gradually, as my music became something more tangible, my life started to be driven by my musical philosophy

So ultimately my life is now a reflection of my music.

Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn't or wouldn't in more 'mundane' tasks?

Gregory: I've noticed that most of the great musicians I've had the honor of meeting throughout my life are also great cooks … It all comes down to the ability to be creative in any setting …

Music is the most immaterial thing and the most tangible thing at the same time. Nothing can be really compared to it.

Every time I listen to "Albedo 0.39" by Vangelis, I choke up. But the lyrics are made up of nothing but numbers and values. Do you, too, have a song or piece of music that affects you in a way that you can't explain?

Mehdi: There are many but here is my top 4:

Yann Tiersen - "La Noyee "
Bugge Wesseltoft & Henrik Schwarz - "Kammermusik"
Dhapher Youssef Quartet - "Les Ondes Orientales"
Richard Bona - "Dina Lam"

[Read our Yann Tiersen interview]
[Read our Bugge Wesseltoft interview]

If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?

Mehdi: I’ve got no special wish for the future! But maybe more analog less digital! More vinyl, less streams!
 
Gregory: I don't have any wishes about it. I think music has its own destiny, but I'm very curious what music will be tomorrow