Derrick Gee is the Elbphilharmonie’s new ›Creator in Residence‹

Hamburg, 24 September 2024: The new Creator in Residence at the Elbphilharmonie is the well-known Australian content creator, presenter and DJ Derrick Gee. Throughout the 2024/25 season, the social media star is set to take his nearly one million subscribers across various platforms on a musical voyage around the Elbphilharmonie. Describing himself as a »professional music fan«, Derrick Gee has grown an international community of music lovers, primarily on TikTok and Instagram. He shares his knowledge and experiences with them, in humorous and well-informed videos. Whether he is unearthing hidden treasures from the Tokyo jazz, country music or UK garage scenes, taking a closer look at loudspeakers and headphones, or reflecting critically on the impact of streaming platforms on our listening behavior, Derrick Gee has made it his mission to open up the sometimes inaccessible world of music listening to everyone. The American magazine The New Yorker regards him as a formative figure of a new generation of »online culture curators«. Besides a string of videos for Derrick Gees’s followers, content on the Elbphilharmonie’s various digital channels can also be expected. The Elbphilharmonie became the first concert hall in the world to appoint a Creator in Residence, for the 2023/24 season. The videos posted by the Korean-American YouTuber Nahre Sol about the Elbphilharmonie have been viewed millions of times.

Derrick Gee launched his TikTok channel at the beginning of 2022 and very quickly became a highly regarded voice on matters of musical taste, the music business and hi-fi. After studying design at the University of Technology in Sydney, the music connoisseur with the distinctly nonchalant baritone voice initially started work as a graphic designer, developing and producing television formats. From 2012 onwards, he began making a name for himself with the weekly online radio show »Finetooth Radio«. This was followed by gigs as a DJ at the renowned British NTS Radio, at the high-end listening bar Spiritland in London’s King’s Cross and SiriusXM. As Creator in Residence 2024/25, he will be spending several months in Hamburg with his young family. And seeking answers at the Elbphilharmonie to a range of very different questions: What’s happening right now with live music in an increasingly digital culture of music listening? What music do the artists of the »Brazilian Legends« Festival at the Elbphilharmonie recommend? What does listening to music mean for people with dementia and their families? And how does programming a symphony concert differ from preparing a DJ set? To satisfy his curiosity and discover insights, Derrick Gee will be attending concerts, talking with artists and employees, and even performing as a DJ on stage in Hamburg’s iconic concert hall.

Derrick Gee, Creator in Residence 2024/25 at the Elbphilharmonie: »My work celebrates and investigates all styles and expressions of music with curiosity, excitement and a sense of humour. I’m excited to poke around every part of the Elbphilharmonie, from the back rooms to the musicians taking part in its impressive programme. I hope to use my fresh perspective to uncover parts of this prestigious world not normally accessed by the general public. I’m not afraid to say ›How does this work?‹, ›Why does it sound like that?‹ or ›Why is this important?‹. As long as my curiosity guides me on this journey, I’m more than confident that my community will be along for the ride.«