“At the beginning, I would sometimes play seven hours per set and then have to go to school the next day,” says Timo Beridze, 19, a full-time Business Administration student from Georgia.
Relatively young for a second year as a degree-seeking student at Anglo-American University, Beridze seems to know what he expects from life. Choosing to study and live in the Czech capital, he never gave up the work he began back in Tbilisi as a DJ.
Hoping to build his own business in the future, he explains that his degree choice was influenced by his father’s occupation: “I was always interested in management, which I had the chance to experience through my father’s nightclub, G.U.R.U.”
With one record out titled Condor Got Problems – released through the Australian electronic label Beef Records, headquartered in Prague since 2011, Beridze began DJing eight years ago.
“My first gig was in a night club called Two Side, in Tbilisi at the age of 12,” he says. Beridze had the opportunity to play with his favorite artist at the time. Magik Johnson, a DJ and producer from New Zealand, offered him the chance to play together before his set.
“It was unbelievable for me to play with a DJ I admired so much,” he remembers. Influenced at a young age by his father’s tapes and vinyl collection, Beridze began discovering various styles of music ranging from jazz to hip hop via alternative and soul. Artists such as Miles Davis, Incognito, Carl Craig and Herbie Hancock fueled his interest in music.
Nevertheless, his passion for house only grew. David Morales, the internationally acclaimed Grammy-winning house music DJ and producer and Francois K, widely considered one of the forefathers of house music, were at the top of his inspirationregister. “I loved all these electronic sounds I could hear,” he says.
Today Beridze points out that managing both lifestyle – studying and DJing – didn’t come naturally. “At the beginning, I had a lot of difficulties to adjust the school time schedule with my job at night, and sometimes it has been really hard.”
He says his love for his job does not revolve around the money he makes. “I enjoy playing for a nice crowd who enjoys and ‘feels’ the music I play,” he says. Yet nothing compares to the feeling of having composed your own song.
Having worked on the EP Condor Got Problems for five months, he explains that the process was intense. Traveling and studying had major impacts on the time needed to finish his first record.
“I try to compose music like the one which inspired me mostly,” he explains, “music that has energy, a soul that will never die.”
Beridze’s first record received a popular welcome on the house music scene. 5Magazine, a North American online journal dedicated to house music, described his solo EP as a representation of a solid understanding of ‘stripped back grooves.’
With the support from artists on the current electronic scene, Beridze feels that he is at a turning point in his life. “Many good things would never have happened if I hadn’t come to Prague to study,” he says.
Still uncertain about his future plans, he clarifies that his major goal is to never stop the action. “I will continue writing music as long as I can,” he ads.
Beridze has had the opportunity to play in some of the most renowned nightlife institutions in Prague. Chapeau Rouge, Le Clan or Roxy, which has an incredible guest history – Faithless, Air, Royksopp and Deadmau5. However, he admits to never plan what he will play for the night. “It’s all from the heart,” he says smiling.
