drag

Interview: NERVO

Mim and Liv NERVO have taken the world by storm.

DJs, songwriters, models and sisters Mim and Liv Nervo are masters of multitasking and world domination.

After working with a multitude of artists, like Rihanna and Miley, they hit it big co-writing and producing David Guetta and Kelly Rowland’s hit ‘When Love Takes Over’ in 2009.

The two then jetsetted into international success, becoming one of the most influential DJ duos in the world, earning residencies in Las Vegas and Ibiza and performing on the globally reaching stages of Tomorrowland and Creamfields.

Setting their sights on their own recording career in 2011, NERVO wrote, produced and collaborated their way to number one slots on multiple music charts with tracks like ‘You’re Gonna Love Again’.

With their new song ‘It Feels’ on the way to radio airwaves, NERVO hung out with Fashion Journal to talk music and fashion.

Who has been your top or favourite artist to collaborate or work with so far?

Mim: They’ve all been amazing. We recorded with Beth Ditto from Gossip a few weeks ago, she blew my mind. She was so sweet, talented, hard working.

Liv: It’s hard working with other artists, especially if they’re vocalists, you both have a vision of how you want to hear the song. You’re constantly trying to get on the same page, so it’s really exciting to get someone who wants to work with you and keep trying new things, like Beth.

Tell me about your different approaches when writing and producing as NERVO and then writing for other artists.

Liv: For us, we write something that we know will work well in our sets and will make a good single. Saying that, though, the last song we’ve been working on is it a bit different to our normal set…

Mim: If we’re working with an artist, we put on a hat, like if we’re writing with Rihanna, we think of Rihanna’s musical style and work with that. But now, since we’re so busy with our music, if we write a song and think of a certain artist, we can reach out to them and if they like it we get together and work on it together.

You’ve been a very important link in the chain between pop and EDM and making it mainstream. What do you think are the most common factors between the two genres?

Mim: I think everything goes in cycles. I think people were getting a bit bored of the music that was playing before dance music. For us, working in pop and DJing, the shift has been organic.

Liv: I read somewhere that in a recession, dance music does better, because the culture behind dance music is to go out and have fun, be free and not talk about money. Dance music and raves were so huge in the 90s because there was a recession in the 80s and people wanted uplifting music and a good time. Having people like David Guetta and Calvin Harris working with both genres has really has flown the flag in bringing dance music to the pop field, working with Rihanna, Akon, everyone.

What’s the best and worst thing about being a model?

Liv: Haha, models, we wish!

Interviewer: You’re signed, you’re official, own it!

Mim: It’s hard to try to look good all the time! We work with what we’ve got- we wouldn’t be with an agency or have modelling jobs without our music.  

Liv: The best thing is the photos that come out at the end.

We fight about…

Liv: We don’t fight about much, but one of us is dating someone and isn’t around as much, the other needs to work a little harder…

Mim: We don’t fight much at all, considering we’re together all the time.

What you don’t know about being famous is…

Mim: We get lots of free stuff.

Liv: Free stuff is amazing.

Mim: Since we travel so much, we give it to our friends. Another thing is that we’ve got wardrobes all around the world – we live out of suitcases and can’t carry everything around, so we have stuff in every city we work in.

My weirdest fan moment was…

Liv: We get followed by fans all the time, cars follow us back from clubs a lot. One time I didn’t know we’d been followed and this guy knocked on our hotel door, it was so creepy.

If I wasn’t a DJ or producer, I would be…

Liv: Trying to make music.

Mim: Yeah, I just think it chooses you. Writing music has always been kind of like our therapy. We used to sit at the piano, and instead of talking, we’d tell each other stories by playing and singing, just for fun.

Every day I dress like…

Liv: Myself.

Mim: A She Boss.

My worst fashion moment was…

Liv: I was really into dark purple lip liner when I was 14.

Mim: I have tried it so many times, and it’s never worked – putting coloured streaks in my hair.

My favourite Australian label is…

Liv: Ksubi

Mim: I love Discount Universe.

Liv: Oh yeah!

A good party needs…

Mim: Good music and sunshine.

Liv: Good people!

Lazy Loading