Every now and then a DJ and/or a producer emerges who manages to do everything right. With each release DJ’s end up picking it and playing it. One of those names in the house music scene today is DJ Meme. The Brazilian born producer and dj is with out a doubt one of the best remixers in the scene. As a DJ, he is traveling all over the world pleasing crowds from Indonesia through Russia to UK.

A few weeks ago, Soul to Unite set down with Meme – he was in Rio De Janeiro, Brasizl and we were in Tallinn, Estonia – to talk about his career, current activities and house music scene in general.

I’m on Skype here with DJ Meme, one of the hottest producers and dj’s out there in the house music scene. How you doing?
Hey my friend! What’s up? I’m fine and you?

I’m good, I’m good. How’s Brazil?
Brazil is sunny right now, sometimes rainy but mostly sunny! Really fine!

Before we talk about the present day. Let’s take a look back. Is it really true you started to DJ at the age of 11?
Well, I didn’t like soccer. So in Brazil if you don’t like soccer you have to find something to do. So I started to make parties in my building for some other kids. I said to myself – listen I have to do something so I’m going to do these parties on the weekend. And call the people so I’m going to make friends.
I wasn’t doing the party just for that, not to be a DJ. There wasn’t an idea to be a DJ at that time.

What kind of music did you like to play at that time?
At that time it was disco!

What kind of equipment did you use. Tape recorder or something?
As I told, it wasn’t about the equipment or music – it was about to the party. There was a small mobile turntable. It’s like a case, size of a one turntable. If you take off the case, the case is already a speaker. I don’t know how they call it…

I see what you mean. In the 80s and 90s you were remixing a lot of world class musicians – Shakira, Toni Braxton, Ricky Martin. How did you get there?
That was more of the 90s, around 95, 96. In 1986 and 1987 I started to remix for Brazilian artists. At that time I was getting experience, trying to change popular rock and brazilian music to dance music. So I was in the studio for 10 years remixing and everybody in the record companies knew me.
At one time, Sony Music was doing a remix album of an Columbian artist. When they came to Brazil, they said to we want to do it with Meme. The remix that I did was number one in Columbia. And after that they asked me to remix a newcomer, called Shakira. The remix was very well recieved in America, Columbia and in other Latin countries. Then they started to give a lot of things to remix, bigger artists. Like Julia Iglesias, Ricky Martin, Mariah Carey. It was good at that time. Major companies were doing remixes which they are not doing anymore. And that launched my international carreer.

You had a lot of success, tons of awards, gold and platinum records. You are now focusing more on being a house dj, house producer. Have you left the mainstream remixing completely?
The thing is, I’ve always been a DJ. At that time, in the 80s and 90s, there was no dance music in Brazil. So what I had to do is to remix popular music. So I was playing house at night and remixing pop music during the day.
When the music industry started to fail in 96-98, I had to stop doing that. I wasn’t making money any more. This is the end of the line.
I stopped to work with mainstream companies. In the old times you had many remixes, it’s different now. They don’t spend money on remixes.
I stopped doing that and concentrate on my gigs, on my remixes and on the underground scene. It was natural.

One of the tunes we feel this year is your original production Chanson Du Soleil. How much of your time goes into production of your original tracks and how much to you spend remixing?
That’s a very good question. My answer is controversial. The thing is I really love remixing. I like to remixing more than to make original tracks. I love to work with different people. All my ideas go to something that already exists. A remixer is more like an arranger. I think I’m more like that.

I bet you get a lot requests to do a remix. How do you decide which tracks to remix?
Another very interesting question, again. It has to touch me. This is very funny – every time a hear a song, I start to imagine that in a different way. When I play a song somebody wants me to remix, I try to feel something or imagine something. If nothing happends I refuse. It doesn’t matter what it is. And it’s good too, beacuse you shouldn’t be doing everything. If you see the house scene today, there’s a lot of songs sang by the same people. I don’t think these people be singing a lot of songs every time, people get tired of that. You should really pick what you do. And you don’t have to do everything, you have to do special things.
I can do two, three remixes a year but those tracks are going to have my all concentration, all my strenght, all my imagination.

Earlier this year you’ve remixed Bah Samba, Joey Negro, Hanna Heis. What are you working on right now?
Well this is funny, controversy again of what I’ve told – I’m working on two original tracks. There are some things coming out that are ready. A new remix of Marc Evans called “This Thing Called Love” for Defected. Do you remember Mone, from the 80s, Strictly Rhythm? She is back on Strictly Rhythm now. I did a remix for her with strings and everything, they asked me to do so. There’s something I did for Pino Music in Swizerland which is coming out too. I’m working on a remix for Diamondhouse Records.

You’re very busy in the studio but also travel a lot. I’m following you on Twitter and I can see you being at the airport again. What are the hottest places you’ve been recently?
Well you know soulful music scene is smaller than before, right. I’ve been in Ibiza for one week and the only soulful music party that was there was the Purple Music party. I was playing there actually. But I’ve been in Portugal, I’ve been to Cardiff which has the one of the biggest soulful parties of the world which is Lamerica. With my friend Craig Bartlett, he has been doing it for 12 years.
Two or three months ago I did a party in Moscow which was amazing. I did a party in Indonasia which was amazing too. And there’s the Southport Weekender, two times a year, whicih is the biggest warehouse of soulful music.
There is always a small place for soulful music.

Now to end the interview I’m going to ask you one or two tracks that really stand out of the rest right now?
Well. I was in England, there was a mess with my luggage so I had to stay there for three days. So I went to this small place with Joey Negro and Spen. Spen played a new track by Dennis Ferrer called “Hey”. This track is my favourite right now. This is not out but I need that track to play. That’s my favourite right now, it’s amazing. Really an amazing track. I’m waiting for it to come out. I think it will be a hit.