Me - 4 years old....
Q: Hans, tell us a bit about yourself.
A: Well……… I’m 43, originally from the Netherlands and I’ve been living in London since ’99.
Q: You are the founder of www.W-A-I-S-T-E-D.blogspot.com; can you tell about that?
A: Sure. I started W-A-I-S-T-E-D in 2008. I was trying to find a website/blog that had stuff that I was interested in; Music, Art, Design, Fashion, Literature and (Gay) lifestyle/news.
All I found was sites that “focussed" on just one thing, for example just Music or just Fashion…
I wanted something that was more diverse, so decided to do my own blog instead.
Q: Did you have any idea what creating a blog entailed and how did it all together?
A: To be honest, I didn’t have a clue! I had to learn most myself, with a little help from a few people I met on other blogs.
I made a big mess of it at first, but (Hopefully) learned from my mistakes.
Q: How was the overall response to W-A-I-S-T-E-D?
A: To my surprise, it was very good; people seemed to like the diversity and within about 2 ½ years, I had 300.000 hits; I guess that speaks for itself.
Q: There are so many blogs out there, in your opinion, what makes W-A-I-S-T-E-D different?
A: in a way, W-A-I-S-T-E-D is sort of my (Online) diary; you can tell by my posts what kind of mood I’m in; happy, sad, creative, depressed, etc. etc…
And then there's that diversity in posts.
I can jump from something from the 80's to the latest Home Couture Collection by
http://www.mrs.me.com/ in a flash.....
Q: How do you keep up with what's happening within the music industry these days?
A: I don’t go to clubs anymore (The last time must have been about 6 years ago), so I check music magazines and see what’s happening around the globe music wise.
Somehow I still manage to keep up with what’s happening in the music industry.
(I think)
Q: You started another blog called http://www.tete-a-tete-s.blogspot.com/ 2 years ago;
what is that one about?
A: There a lot of artists/designers/writers/DJ’s/singers etc. who/who’s work I admire and I thought it would be interesting to do a blog with interviews with those people.
Paul Burston by Trademark
Shauna Jensen
Peyton
Wayne G
Freemasons
Stewart Who? By Trademark
Matt Pop
Paul Goodyear
Q: So who have you interviewed for Tete-a-tete so far?
A: Author Paul Burston, Artist Mark Wardel (Trademark), Vocalist Peyton, DJ Wayne G, DJ/Producer Paul Goodyear, the brilliant singer Shauna Jensen, Freemasons, Stewart Who?, Producer/Remixer ErekMcQueen, Remixer Matt Pop and the fabulous Drag Queen Vanilla Lush.
Q: You also have another blog called http://www.cre8ions.blogspot.com/ what’s that exactly?
A: I am an artist/designer and cre8ions is where I showcase my work.
Over the years, I have created various pieces and they are all on there
(For sale – hint)
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: Ha! I have just been commissioned by Paul Goodyear to design the front cover artwork for the upcoming release on his brand new label http://www.goodyearmuzik.com/
I am very excited about this and look forward to a long & creative collaboration with
Goodyear Muzik.
In addition, I keep on creating my own Artwork and would love to have my very own exhibition!
Kylie
Q: Going back to music, who are your favourite artists?
A: Kylie is definitely in my top 10. Then there’s Peyton, Mathilde Santing (a female Dutch vocalist), Hurts, Will Young, Japan/David Sylvian, Erasure.
Bronski Beat – Smalltown Boy
Q: What is your all-time favourite song?
A: Oooooooooooooooh, that’s an easy one: Smalltown Boy by Bronski Beat.
I was fortunate to see Jimmy Somerville perform this live & acoustic during the Gay Games in Amsterdam in ’98 and just thinking about it gives me goose bumps again.
Wayne G
Q: Staying with music: Who are you favourite remixers?
A: Wayne G (My all-time favourite), Paul Goodyear, Freemasons, Edson Pride, 7th Heaven,
Offer Nissim, ErekMcQueen, Matt Pop, Gustavo Scorpio.
Warren
Becks
Posh
Q: What is your favourite hang-out?
A: Er………………. My living room, together with the bf and our beautiful cats Posh & Becks.
Pinot Grigio
Q: What is your favourite tipple?
A: Pinot Grigio (Ice cold)
Q: You are to host/have the perfect party; who would be your dream guest list and why?
A: Warren (the bf of 11 years), Harvey Fierstein (Torch Song Trilogy), Annie Lennox, Paul Burston, Peyton, Wayne G, Paul Goodyear, Mark Wardel and my dear friends from Amsterdam Peet, Lianne & Paul + Caro & Arjan.
Note:
Strangely enough, this was by far the most difficult Tete-a-tete I have ever done,
as it's (obviously) all very personal.
I hope you enjoyed this insight into me & my little world.
H.Xx
