Bob Sinclar told TNT about smash hit World Hold On and his visit to the Playboy mansion…

Your real name is Christophe Le Friant. Why did you choose the name Bob Sinclar as your stage name?

The name comes from the 1974 French movie Le Magnifique, about a superhero. It’s very funny, and I found the name
very exciting and very disco-superstar.

Your first big club hit was called
Gym Tonic which borrowed some
lyrics from Jane Fonda’s fitness
video. But she took a little while to come to the party, so to speak …
She said ‘no’ at the beginning. She
didn’t like dance music because
at the time she was a gay icon
but she didn’t want to be one. House music
for her was gay music. But I was signed with Warner at the time and she was also signed with Warner who convinced
her to allow the sample for US$75,000 (£46,600) that
I had to give to a charity.


How did you feel when your tune Love Generation became one of the World Cup anthems in 2006?

I was really happy. Usually for that kind
of a sport you usually have a very aggressive and energetic song like Jump
by Van Halen, so I found it amazing because Love Generation is about this happiness and love emotion. I was
really happy because I gave this
song to the crowd and they took
the song for weddings, for balls.
I even had a request for the song
for a money transfer company in Jamaica for a TV ad because the
song begins, “From Jamaica to the world … ”. Everybody wanted to
use that song for something.

You’re a big fan of the 70s music – was that the sexiest decade
in your opinion?

Absolutely. ‘73-’83 was
a period of time in the world when everything was happy. We had
the oil crash of ‘74 of course but
everyone was happy, enjoying life,
it was before Aids – all these things contributed to make disco explode around the world.

On your new album The Knights
Of The Playboy Mansion, you and
Dimitri from Paris both come at
disco from very different directions …

We have two different aesthetics
– Dimitri has a huge collection of
records and he is looking for the small, small label and the very independent, underground disco at the time and
for me, I love the crossover. I love it
when the music becomes very popular.
I love all the disco hits. For me, it is all about the dancefloor.

It was your second time at the Playboy mansion – what did you get up to?

What was amazing was that the dress code for girls was lingerie and the ratio between girls and men was three quarters girls and one quarter
men – can you imagine that?

Did you go into the jacuzzi in
the grotto?
No, no, no, no, no, no because I’m a bit shy, you know. When I see 50 girls in
a jacuzzi my body said I had to go but
my head said ‘non’.

What song is guaranteed to get you on the dancefloor?
I will never be on the dancefloor again because I’m from the other side. The blood that runs in my veins is for making people dance. I enjoy so much to be behind the turntable and to see people smiling and to give them a treat and make them happy.

What did you have for breakfast this morning?A plate of food. Cereal, like cornflakes, a glass of milk and
a chocolate croissant.

» Knights Of The Playboy Mansion
mixed by Bob Sinclar and Dimitri
from Paris is out April 4 through Defected.

 

Interview by Alison Grinter