Watch Gaslamp Killer, Elliphant Create Frenetic Track on iPad in New Ad
Los Angeles hip-hop/electronic DJ-producer Gaslamp Killer wasn’t thinking of endorsements, sponsorships or Grammy commercials five years ago when he began incorporating an iPad into his manic sets.
“I had no idea there were people reporting back to whoever the hell at Apple,” Gaslamp Killer tells Rolling Stone. “It came out of the blue, like, ‘We’ve been watching you, dude. We think you’re great.’ ‘Uhhh, excuse me? Is this a fuckin’ prank?’ I didn’t believe it was them.”
The musician stars in a new iPad ad with Swedish indie-pop singer Elliphant and British producer Riton that will premiere during Sunday night’s Grammy telecast, but is viewable above. Directed by So Me, the animator behind Kanye West’s “Good Life” and Justice’s “D.A.N.C.E.,” the clip was filmed on an iPad using only the Manual Camera app.
For Gaslamp Killer, who uses the iPad in both his live sets and recording studio, the product has become an essential tool. “It changed the game,” says the producer. “I became known for it. Another DJ said, ‘Instead of that bulky, big controller you’re using, you can use two turntables and this tiny iPad.’ I was hooked instantly.”
As GLK continues work on his follow-up to his 2012 debut album Breakthrough, fans can get a glimpse of the producer’s style in the ad; a remix to Elliphant’s 2014 song “All or Nothing.” The producer, singer and Riton all wrote, recorded samples, created music and performed the track live using only iPads.
After touring with Charli XCX on the singer’s Girl Power North American Tour, Elliphant will perform at next month’s South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas. Riton has released numerous albums under his own name in addition to alter egos Carte Blanche and Eine Kleine Nacht Musik. Gaslamp Killer will debut new material this April when he performs with a 13-piece band at Coachella.