5 Things We Learned From the Zedd Documentary

Zedd’s Moment of Clarity documentary dropped yesterday, and watching it might have been the best 28 minutes of my day so far. I gained a lot of respect for the dude learning about his past, his work ethic, and his relationship with his industry team. Here are the top five takeaways from this cinematic glimpse into Anton Zaslavski’s life as an electronic musician.

1. He’s a perfectionist

Zedd doesn’t hire randoms to help with live show production. He’s completely involved in every aspect, from the mesmerizing visuals (which he says are just as important to him as the music) to the stage setup. This way, he can ensure everything is exactly the way he wants it. Referring to the concert experience he says, “It has to be 100% right or I don’t love it”.

2. He’s besties with his manager.

Dave Rene, who Zedd met through dear friend Skrillex, is more of a brother to Zedd than a manager. Rene calls their relationship a “close connection” in an industry where most managers don’t even know where their artist works or what studios they spend time at. Rene and business-oriented co-manager Tim Smith have been with Team Zedd since even before the German producer was well-versed in the English language.

3. He’s ridiculously productive.

So productive, in fact, that his team jokes there must be two of him. Zedd is so multidimensional as both an artist and a human being that he can go from “telling a joke, to completely being a fool, to 100% enveloped in working on his music,” according to Rene.

4. He’s a prankster.

We dare you not to smile at 13:50 when he dumps loads of chips all over a peacefully sleeping buddy. Can we request a sequel documentary dedicated to these antics?

5. He was first signed as a metal act.

And it gets better: he was only 12 (which makes us question what he was doing in his preteen years). He and his brother started a metal band together, which he wanted to keep alive, but proved too difficult to balance with the whole ‘Zedd’ thing.