Oakie: No, I'm certainly not bigger than U2. The original song was a great song and all I did really was rework the music and keep the integrity of the artist and give it more of a beat to dance to. I never thought it would become more popular than the original.
DJ B: It's kind of nice when something exceeds beyond your expectations like that, I'm sure.
Oakie: Yes, it does. Well, I've done remixes for various different artists and I do think it's important to keep the integrity of the artist. So you know it's their, it's fundamentally their work but it's a different interpretation.
DJ B: So, I also notice from your bio that you're getting ready to celebrate a big milestone birthday here at the end of August, and I'll let people find out on their own just exactly what milestone that is. But I was just wondering, as you approach that signpost in your life, have you given any thought to where you've been and where you are now and where you'd like to be?
Oakie: No, I think I'm certainly enjoying it, I'm very fortunate to have traveled the world through a box of records and dance music, electronic music whatever you want to call it, seems to be becoming more and more popular. But for me, I'm just taking part and kind of living as much in the moment as possible, and I don't plan too far ahead. The next thing I plan to do is I am going to go back in the studio and work on a DJ mix album. I haven't done a mix compilation for three years now and I think it's time for me to kind of get a little bit back to the grassroots and do something that really represents me as a DJ. So, that's kind of where I'm at really.
DJ B: Bunkka came out last year and you also, it looks like you were busy in 2002 actually. You had a couple of other CD's, a couple of mix compilations come out as well.
Oakie: Well, those mix complications, as I was just explaining, they weren't new. That was the crafty record company rehashing a mix compilation from seven years ago.
DJ B: Are you talking about a Voyage Into Trance?
Oakie: Yes, that was really I felt really disheartened with the record company, because I felt like they were cheating the public. They took an album that was released over seven years ago, put a new sleeve to it and rereleased it in America, saying it was a new album.
DJ B: A newly "packaged" album.
Oakie: Yes, absolutely.
DJ B: How about Bust A Groove?
Oakie: Bust A Groove was something that I did ten years ago and it was the first thing that I done, and it's a DJ tool. It's there to help DJ's only, it's just bass and drums and rhythm, and they did the same thing; repackaged it, repromoted it like it was a new album, and I just feel that the record companies are cheating the public.
DJ B: So, your next project then is going to be getting back to you, taking and applying the Oakenfold magic to other people's tunes. Can we look for another artist CD from you any time in the near future?
Oakie: Yes, absolutely. From the end of September, I will go into the studio and start working on Bunkka 2, as such.
DJ B: That's a working title no doubt?
Oakie: Yes, absolutely, yes.
DJ B: Getting back to where you are now versus where you want to be, there's been quite a bit made of your sort of having conquered Europe and dance music being more widely accepted there, and then trying to bring the gospel to America as it were. So I was wondering if I could get you to talk a little bit about that, about what your hopes are for sort of elevating dance music a little more into the pop culture mainstream in the US.
Oakie: Well, I think first of all dance music started in America. It's really an American sound that came to England, we may have gave it twist and brought it back but it certainly came from America and there has been great American DJ's and good producers that have been working very hard in America.