EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Div Eadie & DJ Zitkus

Hey,

Div Eadie: Hey, how’s it goin? 

DJ Zitkus: Hi guys! 

Who are you? (Tell us more about what you do in life, where you live, your age, your real name, what elements could define you, …)

Div Eadie: My name David Eadie, I am 31, I am a DJ and Music Producer from Glasgow, Scotland, and have been doing this for around 16 years, I currently go under the alias ‘Div Eadie’. 

DJ Zitkus: I am a full-time promoter having built various brands over the years. I am from Glasgow, Scotland, 34 years old & my real name is Paul Zitkus. 

What’s the meaning behind your artistic name?

Div Eadie: Div is a nickname for David in Scottish culture so I figured why not use that as my artist name paired with my surname and I think it has turned out quite unique.

DJ Zitkus: My artist name is my 2nd name. This is quite an unusual name which I used as my artist name since I was about 15 years old learning my trade as a bedroom DJ. 

How did it all start for you?

Div Eadie: I can remember learning how to use a set of vinyl decks at a young age and continued to practice till I was good enough to play in clubs and I would send out demos to get slots in bars and nightclubs back then. I have always been into music and being fascinated with how it was made so I thought I would give it a go and now here we are today. 

DJ Zitkus: I started at around 15 years old. I had very basic skills but was brought up during Scotland’s PCDJ era. This basically involved adding acapellas to tracks and releasing them via MSN & Yahoo messenger. This was massive across the UK & Ireland with tracks being shared via Bluetooth on mobile phones. 

Which style(s) of music are you currently producing? 

Div Eadie: Progressive House, Deep House, Euphoric Hardstyle

DJ Zitkus: Various genres, Hardstyle releases with Div 

Why did you choose it/them?

Div Eadie: I have always had a connection to Progressive House and it has been the core of the Div Eadie project since the beginning. I will continue to make this genre but as times change I feel adapting to other styles is a good thing, I love euphoric hardstyle as of the past few years, and has grown on me massively. I recently started making some Deep House which should be released at some point too. I wanted to start this type of feel-good mellow piano music for the nice summer days we are gonna have in the future! (hopefully haha)

Why are you producing music? And more globally, what does “music” mean to you?

Div Eadie: Music means the world to me, it’s a universal language we all know and love dearly, my passion drives me and it feels good to be able to express my emotions and how I feel through my work and touch others in the process. 

Where do you get your inspiration?

Div Eadie: I think inspiration just comes naturally to me when i listen to other peoples music, maybe some rock music classic or more recent stuff, also I do try and write melodies as much as I can, most of the time that triggers something inside me that I feel I can continue to expand on that.

What is one track that never gets old for you no matter how many times you hear it?

Div Eadie: Angels & Airwaves – Anxiety

According to you, what is the best way to develop a business in the music industry?

Div Eadie: I think good old honest hard work and building good relationships with people you can rely on and trust is important in this industry that would be a good start.

DJ Zitkus: I have promoted various brands through the years. My main brand ‘I Am A Raver’ was built on a great idea, hard work & a great team.

What has been your favorite gig (show) so far?

Div Eadie: Playhouse, Chengdu, China 2019

DJ Zitkus: Too many to pick from but always love a show in my home city Glasgow at The Classic Grand & in the capital – Edinburgh at The Liquid Rooms. I have a weekly summer residency (pre-Covid) in Magaluf at Boomerang with my ‘I Am A Raver’ brand which is unreal too! 

Do you live from your musical activities? If not, do you plan to make a living from music in the future?

Div Eadie: No I don’t live from music at the moment not unless I was DJing but due to the pandemic everything came to a stop apart from continuing to produce and release music. I hope things get better this year moving forward in the world and we can eventually get back to playing shows!

DJ Zitkus: Yes, through promoting events.

Do you have stuff in preparation, future collaborations, or personal projects?

Div Eadie: Yes, I have a lot of projects and collaborations coming, the work needs put in for them to ever see the light of day though lol 

DJ Zitkus: Working on some new material with Div & some other projects I’m hoping to have finished over the summer

And for the producers out there:

In what Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) are you currently working? And why that one?

Div Eadie: I currently work on Ableton Live, the reason for switching to this several years ago from the likes of Cubase and FL was that I felt it was a progression for me and I felt using this DAW was really helpful in my workflow, end of the day you should work on whatever is easiest for you to optimize your results.

On average, how much time do you spend in the studio on a typical day or week?

Div Eadie: 10 hours a day every day with breaks in between, I take 1 or 2 days off a week to clear my head or spend time with family and friends. 

Do you have any technical tips to share with us (composition, sound design, mixing, mastering, or anything else…)?

Div Eadie: Mastering man, wow, can be super frustrating but its a craft of its own in my opinion, generally if the mix is good the master will bring it to that next level but if the mix isn’t quite there yet you are only gonna make things worse by putting stuff on it in the mastering stages, always refer back to your mix if your master doesn’t come out the way you had hoped and work out what to make headroom for or what needs to be added, cut, removed or whatever. 

Let’s talk “Greatest Mistake”

What was your inspiration for this track?

Div Eadie: Soon as I heard the vocal I knew straight away I had to do a hardstyle track something just clicked in my head and I was away writing a melody on my keyboard and believe it or not that melody was made within the week and I started building from there.

How fast did the track come together?

Div Eadie: Over the course of 2 months almost every day.

What is the story behind this track?

Div Eadie: The story behind the track is that of a relationship that has come to an end and she has a lot of resentment or regrets over it all. He/She is their ‘Greatest Mistake’.

Finally:

Any important people in your life you wanna mention, thank, or talk about?

Div Eadie: I would like to thank my Mum, Dad, Sister, and the rest of my family for the continued support over the years and for putting up with my crazy antics from time to time.

DJ Zitkus: I would like to thank my wife Karen who has always supported my dreams when I decided to become a full-time promoter, my Mum for getting me my first set of decks & all my family, friends, and supporters who keep my dreams alive

Anything you wanna add to end up this interview?

Div Eadie: Thank you very much for the interview and I hope everyone enjoys ‘Greatest Mistake’ 

DJ Zitkus: Thanks for the interview and hope you’ll enjoy the release!

Thank you very much for your time!

Div Eadie: Thank you! 

DJ Zitkus: Thanks guys!