His story is one which is noteworthy; at the age of 17, he’s done more than most people my age, from playing at the Rain Nightclub in Las Vegas to Lollapalooza and slots on tour with some of the current EDM greats. Cole Plante, albeit young, is not just “good for his age” though, he’s great; regardless of how old he is.
I got a chance to talk to him on the Neon Lights Tour with Demi Lovato, Fifth Harmony and Little Mix. The tour was a perfect fit for him as his remixes of Demi’s “Neon Lights” and Fifth Harmony’s “I Don’t Wanna Dance Alone” have been very popular amongst their fanbases. “(Demi) approached me and of course I had to say yes!” said Plante.
The tour has been going very successfully for the DJ. “Very busy but very fun,” Plante told me of the three day nonstop leg they were currently running. It has also been a very interesting tour for him because of the age range he’s been catering to. “The crowd has been a lot of younger girls…ages 12 to 17 which means you have to be careful,” Plante warns.
There is no defined set when he goes out to perform and, because of the crowds, there’s a lot of trial and error in his approach highly focused in Mainstream radio hits and dance music.
The life of a DJ is always changing, though, as the lifespan of a song can be a few weeks to a month. Plante tries to stay relevant by being current on blog sites as well as using beatport.com for new sounds and tracks to use. His many influences also keep him trying new and interesting things such as using both classical and alternative samples. It also doesn’t hurt to be able to play a traditional instrument and he breaks out his trombone during sets from time to time. “It’s advantageous to play an instrument. It expands your tastes and is unique to add to pieces. It also helps in production to understand the different sound and layering them,” Plante said.
Genre bending mashups were one of the topics on the rise, so we took time to discuss them. Rock mashups are a personal favorite of Plante’s for their high energy and ability to hook people. He even enjoys overlaying some accapela tracks in his music now and then. “A year ago I would have said I’d never mix in country,” Plante said. “But looking at ‘Wake Me Up’ by Avicii and Aloe Blacc, everything’s fair game now. The genre has come a very long way.”
When asked about how people view electronic music, Plante is looking to break the stigma. “Our genre is musical just like any other song or artist performing today. There are so many different layers just like layering instruments over a melody. For my personal music, I try to think like a listener when I write so I’m not hearing the same thing over and over in the scene. We need to show people that this stigma is just that.”
Looking towards the future, get ready for new music and remixes from this talented young DJ. Besides going back into production there are remixes coming your way of Demi Lovato’s “Let It Go” from Frozen and some work on Beatrice Miller’s (of X Factor fame) new single. It was a pleasure talking to Plante and I can’t wait to hear more from him in the near future!
