Photography by Christopher DeVargas; grooming by Nicole Del Rio; styling by Luca Falcioni; styling assistant Tanner Blake Jackson
Under the sun, among lush greenery and towering palms trees sits Tao Beach Dayclub at The Venetian, an Asian-inspired paradise spread across 47,000 square feet. And in the middle of the tropical oasis, rocking the crowd from a DJ booth, is world-renowned musical star Zedd. The multiplatinum Grammy winner is signed to the dayclub roster for the first time this season, so Las Vegas Magazine snagged the chance for an exclusive interview and a fun photo shoot promoting his new gig. Don’t miss his performances the rest of the summer, including this Friday, Aug. 24 and Sept. 14. (He also plays at the dayclub’s sister venue, Omnia nightclub at Caesars Palace, throughout the summer and fall).
THE END
This summer is big for Zedd. Not only did he play Tao Beach Dayclub for the first time, but come Aug. 30 he releases his new album, Telos. It’s a highly anticipated album, his first in nine years. A basic definition of the word “telos” is “fulfillment,” “accomplishment” or “goal,” but it can also mean completion or an ending. The definition says it all, Zedd said. “For the album name I wanted something short. One word. Something interesting enough that you’d want to Google what it means. And the definition of the word is something that I can really deeply connect to. (It’s) one of fulfillment and accomplishment, and this is how I really feel about my album, Telos. It’s on a level of complexity that I didn’t think that I could reach, and I’m very proud of it. But also, while I was making the album at some point, I genuinely burned out working on it for many years ... I thought it might be the last piece of music that I would ever make. So the end is part of the definition; there was a good chunk of time when I thought this is going to be my last release ever.”
After he made his 2015 album, True Colors, he admitted he was a little burned out on making music because of how much he put into it. He needed some time away from the studio and some mental freedom.
“I genuinely didn’t have anything to say,” he said. “I didn’t know what to do that would justify me making a full-length record. I just think it took me nine years to feel like it’s the first time again. Your first album is like exploring a world you’ve never seen before, and then you’ve explored the world and then you’re trying to find corners of that world that you haven’t explored yet, and after the second album you’re wondering if there are any more unexplored areas in this world that you’ve explored. And for me it took nine years to forget about all that and feel like I am now painting a brand-new picture.” And Telos is a complete picture of Zedd, so to speak. He had a hand in every aspect, playing some instruments and spending more time with artists he collaborated with. For the first time he felt more comfortable expressing himself.
“It’s the most I’ve been involved in absolutely every element of an album,” he said. “Musically it’s very me, and I didn’t make any compromises. … It was everything I wanted to do. Everything my soul really craved. The commercial success of the album was never really a thought when I was making this album. This is an album that is a concept album from front to back. It’s meant to be listened to in one piece. Most songs are connected except for somewhere I wanted there to be a break. It’s really a journey that I wanted to take people on. I wanted people to feel the way that I used to feel when I listened to music as a kid, (how it) just deeply inspired and changed me and educated me. I would love for the younger generation to get that same feeling that I used to get back in the day.”
THE MIDDLE
Back in the day, around 15 years old, Zedd took a job as a studio drummer at a studio in Kaiserslautern, Germany, where he grew up playing music. He started classical piano at age 3, and by his early teens he was playing the drums in a rock-metal band with his brother. But it was in that studio that Zedd picked up a CD from Justice, an electronic music duo from France. “And I listened to this Justice album, and it was everything I have loved about Daft Punk’s Discovery, which is the first electronic album I ever listened to, but this was on a different level of production,” he said. “I had no idea how to make electronic bass and sounds; I just knew how to write music and record music and produce music, but I never tried electronic music. That album really made me want to learn how to make that kind of stuff.”
So, for fun, he produced his first album of electronic music and shared it with his friends, who encouraged him to continue down the path. “I just made electronic music that felt good to me,” he said. “I made my songs and made an album. I never released it, I just did it to get good at electronic music. And that was my electronic upbringing, and then from there I made Clarity.” Zedd’s 2012 debut studio album, certified platinum, set him on the path to becoming a worldwide electronic music DJ phenomenon. The accolades are plenty, including a Grammy Award, 12 platinum singles, a VMA for Best Dance Video, 13 songs on Billboard’s Hot 100, the cover of Forbes and headlining gigs at festivals like EDC, Coachella and Lollapalooza. And here in Las Vegas, Sept. 2 (his birthday) has officially been declared “Zedd Day.”
“I would have never believed that I get to live the life that I get to live,” Zedd said. “I always knew my life would revolve somewhere around music. Whether I was going to be a studio musician, or my band was going to be successful. I didn’t know what it was going to be, but I knew my life was going to be in music. The last thing I would have ever had on my bingo card was I would become a DJ and move to America and get to play shows in front of thousands and thousands of people. I never thought that would be the case and I’m truly, truly lucky, and I have to remind myself of that every time I feel some sort of sadness that—I’m living the dream.”
THE BEGINNING
While putting Telos together, Zedd really thought it might be his last hurrah, but now that he’s completed the album and had a little time to breathe, “I might be ready to write some new music,” he said. And not only does he seem inspired once again, but he also seems more sure-footed than ever.
“This is the most confident that I’ve ever been in the music I created,” he said. “I think you can never control how people will receive your music. What you can control is you do everything you can to make sure it’s you that really loves it. It’s really hard to do sometimes. Everyone says they don’t care about it, but truthfully once you have success it’s so hard to completely forget about it. It’s kinda like success is a one-way street; you can’t forget about what success does to you, and it maybe just took enough time and a pandemic of being uninspired and all those experiences that I’ve collected for me to make the mental choice: ‘I’m going to create an album for me and me only.’ And I’m lucky to be on a label that has given me complete freedom. They were the last ones to hear it. There were no restrictions. It was a passion project.”
Along with the upcoming release of Telos, Zedd was also signed for the first time to a residency at Tao Beach Dayclub. “I used to not enjoy day shows at all because I was lacking all the production,” he said. “I felt naked without all the lights, and I’ve really grown to like day shows—specifically this year. I’m not sure if it’s because the crowds have gotten better, but it’s literally my favorite dayclub that I’ve ever gotten to play. There’s something equally intimate and grand at the same time. I felt very connected with the crowd. I could hear them. I didn’t feel like I was on a pedestal far away. And everyone seemed so happy and smiling the entire time. It really made me feel happy. I felt like there was just such love in the place, and it’s a beautiful dayclub. I really, really enjoyed playing there.”
It seems that this year, for Zedd, the tide has changed. He’s found musical inspiration again and he’s totally vibing when it comes to live performances. So what was once possibly the end is now just the beginning, and his future looks brighter than ever.
Tao Beach Dayclub, The Venetian. 702.388.8588
Styling credits on Zedd (left to right): RTA jacket ($995) and jeans ($285) available at RTA and rta.com, RON DORFF shirt ($60) available at RON DORFF and rondorff.com, STEVE MADDEN sneakers ($129.95) available at STEVE MADDEN and stevemadden.com; NAHMIAS shirt ($695) and shorts ($575) soon available at nahmias.com, LAGOS bracelet ($850) available at Nordstrom and lagos.com; Golden Goose shirt ($610) and sneakers ($585) available at Golden Goose and goldengoose.com, RON DORFF pants ($330) available at RON DORFF and rondorff.com; RTA shirt ($160) and shorts ($120) available at RTA and rta.com, Golden Goose sneakers ($615) available at Golden Goose and goldengoose.com
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