(By: Nicole Di Donato)
Thugli, a Toronto-based DJ duo comprised of Tom Wrecks and Pat Drastik, performed on day one of 6 Fest.
The pair hyped the crowd up by playing their remixes of popular hip-hop and pop songs as well as their original song “Sic’ Em.”
6 Fest is a two-day outdoor music festival that took place on Oct. 9 and 10. Presented by the Ryerson Students’ Union, the festival featured many top-charting rap, hip-hop, EDM, and pop artists.
Thugli wanted to perform at 6 Fest because it gave them a chance to play at home in the city.
“Anytime we have the chance to play at home, we love [it.] Toronto [has] such a good vibe and always has good energy, and I feel like it’s a melting pot for some of the greatest music that’s out right now in the world,” said Wrecks. “Whenever we travel to different countries, whether its China or Australia, everyone acknowledges Toronto and it’s really cool to be here at this time because there’s just so much talent and amazing music thriving and art in general.”
.@THUGLIMUSIC performing at #6Fest. Stay tuned to @RUtvNews for our interview with the DJ duo! pic.twitter.com/IToHcn30PW
— Nicole Di Donato (@nicolekdidonato) October 20, 2016
The pair says they enjoyed performing at 6 Fest.
“It’s always fun playing at home. It just feels right every time we’re DJing in Toronto, it’s always a good time,” said Wrecks.
.@THUGLIMUSIC hyping up the crowd with Drake’s “Child’s Play” #cheesecake #6Fest pic.twitter.com/a1C9wuEfGe
— RUtv News (@RUtvNews) October 9, 2016
Wrecks described how the duo first met as teenagers and bonded over their love of skateboarding and music.
“Pat had these broken turntables [from] the pawn shop. We became friends skateboarding and then we started hanging out and he started showing me how to DJ and how to scratch, and then it started evolving from that,” said Wrecks. “I think it was just the love for music, the love of the culture, and then we started entering DJ battles and it evolved into making music production.”
Wrecks and Drastik say it is easy to make music together as they have known each other for so long and know how each other work.
“Developing ideas is very easy for us because we’ve developed ideas [together] for such a long time, whether its just DJ battles or scratching or creating music,” said Wrecks. “I feel like we’re the perfect match as far as bouncing ideas off each other.”
“And we’re best friends so it’s easy, we’re not forcing anything,” added Drastik.
The pair brings their passion for the art of DJing to life on stage and their chemistry is undeniable.
In 2014, Thugli, director Amos LeBlanc and Ohji Inoue won the MuchMusic Video Award for Director of the Year for their song “Run This.”
Wrecks attended Ryerson for the RTA program a couple years ago.
“The reason I went to Ryerson is because I wanted to focus on music and Toronto is the hub,” said Wrecks. “In 2003, I moved here for Radio and Television Arts and I ended up staying here in Toronto and then Pat eventually joined me here after all his DJ battles and accolades, and Thugli was born.”
Thugli performed alongside Grandtheft, Pusha T, and Diplo on day one of 6 Fest.
Drastik was especially stoked to be sharing the bill with Pusha T.
“Pusha T is probably one of our favourite rappers,” said Wrecks. “If anything, I think we’re super geeked to meet him tonight so that hopefully in the future there’s going to be a Thugli and Pusha T song in the making.”
To find out more about Thugli, check them out on Twitter, Facebook, and SoundCloud.
Check out our interview with Thugli’s Pat Drastik from this spring’s Bestival Toronto.
