Madeon
Born in the French city of Nantes, music geek Hugo Leclercq’s passion for imitation guided him into the world of music production. Aged 16, he purchased a Novation Launchpad and within hours had created Pop Culture – a three-minute, 39-song mashup that’s swelled to fifty million views on YouTube. The video thrust Leclercq to notoriety, giving birth to the stage name Madeon and the release of his debut EP The City in 2012.
Influenced by French house and electropop, Leclercq spent the next three years recording his debut album Adventure in the basement of his parents’ house, igniting a production career that would eventually see him work alongside the likes of Ellie Goulding, Coldplay and Lady Gaga. Propelled into the festival circuit, Leclercq swiftly moved to Los Angeles to build a home studio and begin working on his sophomore album, Good Faith, adding vocals to his ever-increasing range of talents.
Take us back to the Pop Culture YouTube mashup you made using the Novation Launchpad. What impact did the success of that video have on you?
“It changed my life, which was my hope. I recorded it at 16, the day I got the Novation Launchpad, shot it on my iPhone and waited for the right time to release it. I went on vacation with my parents but had no internet to check the reaction, so I went to a web café and saw it had millions of views already. Suddenly there was a whirlwind and I knew my life was never going to be the same. I was relieved that people connected with the idea and that I’d found my preferred format in which to perform.”
You looked pretty skilled at using the Launchpad. Had you already experienced using similar production tools?
“No, but a lot of my hobbies involved my hands. I did a lot of magic and puzzles so I had a movement style that was informed by that. My memory’s hazy but I’d tested the concept based on an Akai MPC-style layout just to makes sure, although was not a difficult piece to perform. I tried to make it more visual by accentuating my hand movements but it was actually quite trivial to rehearse and manage. I was more interested in the idea of being able to improvise and show there was a clear connection between my brain and the music you heard through using this tool.”
