Skrillex: ‘AI can go viral, but you can’t have that feeling of being seen if there isn’t a human on the other side’
The US artist gave his first formal interview in a decade with Berlin-based culture magazine 032c
Skrillex has opened up about AI and humanity in art, his early career, the rave community and more in his first interview in over a decade.
In the latest issue of Berlin-based culture magazine 032c , the US artist, real name Sonny Moore, discussed his views on AI-generated music in conversation with British-Swedish artist Ecco2K . “I was thinking about Al the other day when something hit me really deeply”, he shared. “I think the value of art can almost be measured by its ability to make someone feel seen. Or at least that's true for me, as a listener.”
Moore continued: "When I go back to Justice or Daft Punk or Metallica, it hits so hard because there's something familiar that hadn't been done before. It makes you think: ‘They get me. They’re on my wavelength. They’re speaking to me.’ Maybe there are some Al songs that can go viral, but you can’t have that feeling of being seen if there isn’t a human on the other side.”
The discussion came as Skrillex reflected on the importance of taking creative risks and embracing the criticism that can come with pushing boundaries. “[Resistance] is something I prepared myself for, even in From First to Last”, Moore shared, referring to the MySpace-era band he fronted before developing his dubstep sound. “We weren’t hardcore enough for the tough hardcore crowd, but we were more aggressive than Fall Out Boy. I had pink eye shadow and got called all sorts of things. I can’t tell if it was intentional or if I was just so self-unaware, but I would always just go for it. I would open up the Legos and just start building.”
Elsewhere in the conversation with 032c , Moore spoke about his early production journey, including the period between From First To Last and the emergence of Skrillex, when he collaborated with Atticus Ross and Noisia while exploring his own solo projects. He recalled creating 2009’s ‘ Mora ’ from his Sonny project in GarageBand before moving on to more advanced production tools including Pro Tools and Ableton.
“Songs like ‘Bangarang’ were made on Snowball mics or laptop mics,” he continued. “Hearing it first in this dull, lo-fi version and then pushing the character out of it, is what gets you somewhere interesting. Starting from something imperfect forces you to end up somewhere you'd never expect.”
Skrillex also discussed his then-upcoming two-day event at Kraftwerk Berlin, CONTRA , which took place at the end of May and featured Ecco2K headlining alongside Krossad bandmate Bladee , Blawan , Knock2, and more, with Skrillex also performing.
“This idea came from one of those ‘f*ck it, victory lap’ moments,” Moore said. “I wanted to create something genuinely unique. I wanted to reverse-engineer some of the best experiences I ever had. I really feel like, in this era of Al and smartphones, it's more important than ever to create spaces where people can just be present together and feel something the way it's meant to be felt. How do we break the mold?”
“You can’t fake it, no matter how hot something is. That’s why Daft Punk don't play shows anymore. I feel the same; I’d rather hang up the boots. I have to find an authentic place [that excites me] first,” he continued. “With CONTRA, the question became: how do we rethink what production even means and build something fresh with a line-up that reflects that?”
Elsewhere in the interview, Moore recalled how his breakout 2010 EP ‘Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites’ was released with a marketing budget of just $2,000.
“People thought it was part of some massive machine that people were dumping heaps of money into, but it was just good timing and natural virality,” he said. “... With Skrillex, I wanted to make music I liked to DJ. That’s it. I just wanted people to come see me live, jump around in a room, and create a real, shared space, that is all I want my music to do.”
You can read Skrillex’s full interview in the Summer 2026 issue of 032c , available now via the magazine’s website .
Following June’s surprise album, ‘SOMA’, Skrillex returned with the collaborative single ‘Rumpta’ this week, alongside Solomun. Both releases follow 2025’s ‘ F*CK U SKRILLEX YOU THINK UR ANDY WARHOL BUT UR NOT!! <3 ’ LP, and mark his transition into the “ independent” chapter of his career after departing Atlantic Records.
