DJing at Frankfurt Airport has a three-year history already, and the feedback has always been great. What paid off especially was to select DJs with tons of experience and a super eclectic program. After all, Frankfurt Airport serves passengers from every country in the world – the audience is as global as it gets.

And then came the brand-new Terminal 3, and things took on a new dimension.

Instead of playing in rather tight spaces, the DJs are now placed in the middle of a wide-open area, the central marketplace of Terminal 3. Surrounded by beautiful architecture and the spectacular art of Tobias Rehberger, and in the middle of a lavish and elegant layout, the DJ’s task is suddenly way more than just to play music.

We always knew that playing for passengers at an airport is not your average gig. No one comes to listen to music or even dance. The audience is accidental, and that makes for a huge difference. The appreciation can be high – but only if the music is regarded as a pleasant experience. At the airport, music is a mood enhancement, not an end to itself. It serves the people.

“Thank you for the music” – a passenger’s gift

Contrary to other terminal buildings, at Terminal 3 you literally play for all of them – everyone passes through the huge marketplace. It’s impossible to not be heard. And just as impossible to be overlooked: the new spectacular DJ booth, another work of art by Tobias Rehberger, is a real masterpiece.

After playing five hour sets on five consecutive days, there are tons of learnings and just as many stories that need to be told. Here are a few insights:

• Joyful Disruption. It was fascinating to watch people walk through the hall. Having passed through security and immigrations, on their way to their gates, eyes focused on where they need to be next. And then suddenly noticing the music, looking, seeing the artful booth, the DJ – and then something interesting happened. They all slowed down and took a look around. Started to appreciate the stunning architecture, the mood, the art. You could see their curiosity rising. It was super evident: the DJs create a joyful disruption on the passengers’ path to their gates.
  
• What are you doing here? That was the most frequently asked question during these five days. They all wanted to know more about what was going on. Is the airport doing this? Do you always have DJs playing here? What’s the idea behind it? My answers were simple and honest: yes, it’s the airport, no, not always, but more frequently now, and yes, we are doing this for you. Not surprisingly, they loved it.
  
• Heartfelt appreciation. Already on day one, someone approached my booth with a smile, and to my surprise gave me a box of «Merci» chocolates. As a small thank you for the music. I almost hugged her. On the third day, I noticed a woman quietly moving to the sounds of the music, and I was intrigued as she seemed to come from somewhere in Central Asia and didn’t seem to be the urban club-going kind of person. Half an hour later, she approached the booth, together with her daughter who translated. She said: “My mother wants to give you a little gift, she likes the music so much.” And then they gave me this little fridge magnet from Tashkent, a smiling man holding watermelons. I was truly touched. And happy. If people from Uzbekistan appreciate what we’re doing, we seem to be doing it right.
  
• A sense of pride. Germans tend to be highly critical of their country and how it’s run, and they are deeply embarrassed about stories of giant construction projects taking years longer than planned, and swallowing billions of additional funds. Their reaction to Terminal 3 is interesting. All of them are appreciative, saying things like “So we actually are capable of doing something right”, or “finally a terminal building that is on par with other great airports”. Also interesting: no one referred to the troubled construction history of Berlin’s new airport. They seemed almost thankful for being given something to be a little bit proud of. Nice.
  
• A few sighs. Terminal 3 is home to most of the North American airlines, and quite a few passengers from the US came up to my booth for a chat. There was a lot of interest in the music. Soul from Finland? A crooner from Delhi? Blues from Timbuktu? The curiosity was lovely. A few of them sighed as well, hinting at the way culture is under threat on the other side of the ocean. One man said: “My country has disappeared. I feel like Tom Hanks in «Terminal»”. I can’t say what I appreciated more – the opportunity to play or the opportunity to have these great conversations. What’s clear though: both aspects are equally important, and our DJs need to be good communicators as well.
  
• Look it’s vinyl. Every morning, I placed my three bags of vinyl on a little trolley and hauled it all over to the booth. More than a hundred pounds of music. It was well worth it. It’s so much fun to see people approach the booth and look at what is being done there. People lift their children up to give them a look, and once I let a little kid from Sri Lanka play with the mixer. So what if the music went silent for a second or two. The laughter filled the gap. Playing vinyl is a deliberate choice – people love it, and it’s a real attraction.
  
• One world. At the end of the five days, I looked at the music I had played, and at what had worked well. The range was just as wide as the mix of nationalities at the airport. Slow stuff for the morning hours (we started at 8am), tunes that made people smile, bouncy stuff for the peak hours around noon – but most of all, it’s music from all over the world. In case you’re curious, here’s a small playlist:
  
  • Jimi Tenor – Is There Love In Outer Space? (Soulful sounds from Finland)
  • Peter Cat Recording Company – Memory Box (Disco from Delhi)
  • Guts – And The Living Is Easy (A wacky version of “Summertime”)
  • Taggy Matcher – That’s The Way (I like It) (A Disco Reggae favourite)
  • The Juju Orchestra – This Is Not A Tango (And it’s not from Argentina. Surprisingly, it’s German)
  • Blundetto – Nautilus (A wonderful version of the Jazz classic, from France)
  • Hird – Getting Closer (Grooving warmth from Sweden)
  • Mulatu Astatke – Yèkèrmo Sèw (How about some Ethiopian Jazz?)
  • Buscemi – Viaje Feliz (Latin House from Belgium)
  • Vieux Farka Touré & Khruangbin – Savanne (Texas meets Timbuktu)

What’s reassuring is that the lovely people who work at the surrounding shops and restaurants were just as happy. They know that their businesses benefit from what we are doing, and they give us smiles, thumbs up, sometimes even coffee. One of them said to one of the other DJs: “We will miss you when you’re gone.”

Fortunately, we won’t be gone though. The retail marketing team at Frankfurt Airport will bring the DJs back during the football world championships this summer. Speaking for all five who played this month, I am super thankful for being part of such an enriching and joyful experience.

Credits:
Frankfurt Airport: Dr. Thomas Frank, Tabea Palmer, Sascha Schmitt, Maximilian Schwartz
Art: Tobias Rehberger
Production: Epp Sales Communications
DJs: Katja Ruge, Matthias Vogt, Michael Rütten, Folker Wrage, Dave