After 28 years of producing exceptional, futuristic beats spanning across multiple genres, the legendary French DJ duo Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo (better known as Daft Punk) split up.
The duo revealed their break with this eight-minute short film that dropped Monday morning (22nd February), named Epilogue, taken from their 2006 film Electroma. It’s fitting that the icons are going out in a dramatic cinematic fashion.
Publicist Kathryn Frazier confirmed their breakup to Pitchfork, although no reason has been given as of yet. Whilst we wait for the official statement on why the iconic duo split, let’s look at the lasting influence the pair has had on the music industry.
Daft Punk’s career has been iconic – from influencing the 90s rave scene, to bringing back disco and somehow staying relevant in their 28-year span. The pair have won six Grammys, and raked up a whopping 98 soundtrack credits – most notably Tron: Legacy, a soundtrack that has been praised continuously since its release in 2010.
Daft Punk helped to define French house music and helped to bring it to recognition on a global scale. Their 1995 breakout hit Da Funk was nominated for a Grammy (unheard of for electronic music at this time) and holds up as a great tune even today. Their use of synthesisers help build their futuristic robotic image, which has influenced countless bedroom producers and musicians around the globe. (Very often, we’ve seen those bedroom producers turn into major musicians, e.g., David Guetta, Don Diablo etc.). As their music recognition continued to flourish, the pair started to branch out into funk, disco, techno, synthpop, and rock. Now, the ‘Daft Punk sound’ is easily recognised – and not just by electronic fans.
Their music has been sampled by many musicians, perhaps the most notable being Kayne West's Strong. This version helped bring the pair greater recognition amongst various genres such as R&B, rap, and pop. West’s version reached #1 in seven different charts, including the US Billboard Hot 100 & UK singles chart.
Here are some clips with other leading musicians discussing Daft Punk’s contribution to the music industry:
A-Trak (discussing how he introduced Kayne West to the duo)
Voted the #1 DJ in the world, French DJ and Producer, David Guetta, revealing how Daft Punk influenced him
KING of Disco, the legendary Nile Rodgers talking about working with Daft Punk
Relive the glory
If you’re feeling nostalgic and want to listen to all of Daft Punk’s biggest hits, you can find them at our Voice Spotify playlist here.
That playlist is so good but I don't know if that makes this news better or worse!