The bearded man in a flashy colour t-shirt, working on his MacBook in a coffee shop in Maida Vale, has all the physical features of a nerd. After exchanging a few words with Massimo Latelli, I finally erase any doubt: he is a nerd 100% deejay nerd.
Nothing to do with Bob Sinclair’s style, Massimo Latelli, aka Liquid Life, is a guy in his thirties who has chosen to follow his dream by responding to an imperative: ‘no regrets’.
Born in Lamezia Terme (Calabria) he spent most of his life in Rome, studying communication and working for an Italian big company as business analyst.
‘My friends gave me a three-week trip to Australia for my graduation and they did not know that this trip would have changed my life forever’.
In such a far away country Massimo realized that there was no time to lose behind the conventions of a regular life. ‘In Australia I realized that living according to my values would be possible and I could become a professional deejay’.
Massimo left his permanent job in Italy and joined a school for deejays in Melbourne . ‘It was a liberating act for me, the right time to finally focus on my passion for music’. He started devouring discs and books on the subject and became an expert of tech house and deep house. ‘That there is always something more to learn, I guess this is very geeky but I like to know everything about my passion’.
In September 2014 Massimo moved to London in order to improve his deejay skills. ‘The music scene here is thriving’, he said. ‘I wanted to challenge myself with a more varied audience’.
He started a course at the London Sound Academy in Camden Town and joined the deejays union brand Love United.
‘Thanks to them I had the opportunity to discover the disco music industry in London and the chance to play my music in the most important clubs and venues, such as the Ministry of Sound. The greatest experience ever for a deejay’.
Massimo has collected important special appearance in most of the popular clubs of the city, such as the Lightbox in Brixton or the Zigfried von Underbelly in Hoxton, which will be his last gig in London.
‘A great opportunity to say goodbye to all my friends’, he says a little reluctantly. ‘The time has come for me to continue my journey around the world, but I will bring with me the most important lesson this experience gave me: the human approach towards each other’.
