Nile Rodgers on Collaboration
By now, you've no doubt heard at least parts of one of the hit albums of the summer, Daft Punk's 'Random Access Memories.' Nile Rodgers the guitarist on the album, for those that don't know is one of the greats involved in the creation of this record. Amongst my own circle of friends, I have heard many mixed reviews of the album and I'll admit it was a bit of time before I came to love it myself. This video and it's accompanying series is one of the reasons.
Mr. Rodgers, while talking about his career collaborations with Chic, Duran Duran, Bowie, Madonna, and others, he touches on the what I find to be central force for why I do what I do: collaboration. He is no doubt a great guitarist. He knows it, yet he speaks about striving to play a secondary role. In doing so, he finds that his contributions are not so secondary.
The biggest thing I respond to in this video is passion for his art. It is the people and collaborations that make any artform worth pursuing. This conversation about creating something new and fresh is one that is repeated in production meetings, design meetings, coffee shops and bars from one side of the city to the other, and all over the world. Any good production is not a solo endeavor, it takes a team of talented people to make something great.
"...the best collaborations in my life are when the people you work with are as good as you expect, and then even better than that-- You realize, that the person brings more to the party, because you inspire that artist to go to another level, as they do you." - Nile Rodgers
