Jan Delay / Beginner
In summer 2011, Jan Delay gave a concert in Hamburg, Germany, to bid farewell to his “Bahnhof Soul” era, a solo career characterized by a mixture of funk and pop music. The musician will now collaborate with his former band ‘Absolute Beginners,’ which first formed in Hamburg in the early 1990s with a combination of English Rap and an iron will. Six albums and minus one member later, the band was renamed ‘Absolute Beginner.’ Then, after a seven-year break, Dennis Lisk, Guido Weiß und Jan Philip Eißfeldt reformed again simply as ‘Beginner.’ Their next album is expected to be released in Summer 2012. It will be interesting to hear what the trio produces after years of separation, especially given the different inspirations that have influenced each member.
We sat down with Jan Delay to look back at the early days, when he wore Starter jackets, hoodies, Doc Martens, down vests and denim overalls – a completely different look to the one he sports today.
Diane Pernet
Big names don’t sound big when Diane Pernet speaks of them. She virtually knows all about those in the creative world. But exactly who knows about this veiled lady? She rigorously dresses in black, never takes off her darkly-tinted sunglasses, never goes out without red lipstick and always has a turban topped on her head. Doing everything possible to look tall, the 5’2“ “statuesque” lady is indeed a principal force within the creative world. Her opinion is dominantly influential and can be a decision-maker as far as the careers of artists, filmmakers and fashion designers.
Although considered as infinitely extravagant, even the insiders of the creative industry consider Pernet as somewhat strange. Some say she looks like a witch and expect her to be as mean as Cruella de Vil in the 101 Dalmatians. But with her voice as smoky as a bar on the corner, Pernet proves the opposite. She loves colors. This is apparently not for her clothing but for her interior as she says. Her flat in Paris is as vivid as an art museum. From her back room, she can spot the top of the Eiffel Tower.
Shortly after arriving back in Paris from the London Fashion Week, she walks us through her neighborhood in the seventh arrondissement. She says it is the first time in her life that she has left home without a heavy bag. Carrying her keys and her Blackberry in her hands, she feels kind of free. She talks to us about talent, persistence and her visions on the art and fashion world.