DJ, producer, and once OWSLA manager Blaise James DeAngelo is opening up about why he left Skrillex‘s record… And it sounds like he made a good choice for himself and the well being of others.
Back in 2015, when Jack Ü was first taking off, Blaise recalls a rowdy party complete with tattoo artists, a ball pit, and a 24-hour live stream which was broken up within after 18. Sound like a lot of fun to us, but for the then label manager, the timing was off.
“I had my first transcendental meditation lesson the next day and you can’t drink for two weeks beforehand,” he reveals to GQ. “Here I was managing this party. I was probably pretty cranky, the tired, sober guy who couldn’t have fun. But learning TM is the best thing I ever did.”
That meeting completely changed his life and his career path. Now three years into it, Blaise has left OWSLA behind to work on Remedy State with co-founder Ben Turner. The organization’s signature three-day retreat focuses on nature walks, breathing workshops, vegetarian cuisine, and informed speakers on wellness and spirituality.
“For a long time the mantra has been sex, drugs and rock’n’roll,” he explains. “We’re not trying to be antithetical to that, or have the naïveté to think we’re going to change that, but what Ben and I realized is that there needs to be a balance. Artists are dealing with late nights, sustained solitude, creative pressures… you really need to take care of yourself.”
Now, music and wellness is mixed into one thanks to Remedy State. The industry could use a lot more of what Blaise James DeAngelo and Ben Turner are working towards.
n. A wellness platform advocating self-care within the Arts & Entertainment industry through mindfulness, exercise, physical therapy, medicine and nutrition.
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