"Absence equals presence" - Patrick Scallon

In the celebrity obsessed world that we live in, with its instant digital photography, twitter, facebook, and countless other social media tools, it has become hard for musicians to escape stardom. In fact, many music analysts believe that artists have to be more accessible than ever before in order to launch successful music careers in the present (chaotic) music industry. They say that bands should use these tools to connect with fans, that it allows them to create a more personal relationship with their followers and that it's by adopting this strategy that they will be able to sell records. This may be true for certain musicians, however, since the majority of artists are following this tactic, others can benefit by going against the grain. After all, being an artist isn't about following the rules and doing what the marketing representatives at your record label tell you to do. On the contrary, it's about doing whatever the fuck you want. Something that Daft Punk knows too well.

When signing their first record deal in 1996 with Virgin, Daft Punk made sure that they maintained control over every aspect of their music. Thomas Bangalter had this to say about their "partnership" with Virgin: "Many record companies offered us deals. They came from everywhere, but we decided to wait--partly because we didn't want to lose control of what we had created. We turned down many record companies. We weren't interested in the money, so we turned down labels that were looking for more control than we were willing to give up. In reality, we're more like partners with Virgin." (Yahoo) Although this decision obviously allowed them to create the music that they wanted to create, without any compromises, I want to focus on the advantages that this decision brought to Daft Punk when it comes to managing their interaction (or in this case, lack of interaction) with the general public.

Daft Punk quickly rose to fame with the release of Da Funk in 1995, however it wasn't until the release of Around the World and their album, Homework, in 1997 that they really became international superstars. This record was regarded as one of the most influential dance albums of the decade. The success of their debut album brought them a lot of (unwanted) attention. So, instead of constantly promoting their music through interviews, videos etc... they decided to shun the limelight, retract themselves from the public eye and let the music speak for itself. Indeed, anonymity and invisibility have played an important role in Daft Punk's music career. Unfortunately for them this strategy may have had the adverse effect and brought them even more attention than they already had. As Agenda Inc. would say Daft Punk created a sort of "Cult of Impersonality" marketing strategy, where their invisibility became part of their appeal.

From the very beginning, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, adopted tactics to prevent, what they deemed to be, unnecessary exposure. They often covered their faces during interviews (which they rarely give) and photoshoots (that they would prefer to do without). When promoting Homework they blurred their faces in press kits and wore different disguises when speaking to the media. It wasn't until the release of Discovery that they introduced their now famous robot outfits to the world. These suits allowed them to continue to conceal their identity and play-up the whole mystery factor surrounding the band. Daft Punk are so keen on preserving their relative invisibility that when doing an interview in 2006 about their feature film, Electroma, they put black cloths over their heads. Thomas Bangalter explained to MixMag that part of the reason why they don't want to be seen is because they don't want fans to stop them on the street and ask for autographs. They don't want to be idolized. Daft Punk want to distance themselves from their fans, something that's unheard of in today's music industry, but this, of course, only makes fans want to worship these robot gods even more.

Daft Punk doesn't appear in their music videos either. In the music video for Da Funk the viewer follows a boombox carrying dog walking around a New York City neighbourhood. In Around the World there are robots, on top of the athletes, skeletons, synchronized swimmers and mummies that appear in the video, but Thomas and Guy-Manuel aren't among them. The music videos created for the singles off of Daft Punk's Discovery album are all short animated scenes created by Leiji Matsumoto. Daft Punk wants to use this medium to explore visual components besides promoting their band's image. They see music videos as an art form that adds something new to their music, not as an opportunity to boost their egos. By implementing this philosophy, Daft Punk is further reinforcing the secrecy surrounding them and this, in turn, heightens the fans' intrigue and curiosity.

The members of Daft Punk also rarely do live DJ sets, preferring to save their public appearances for their live tours. Fans associate Daft Punk with their robot suits to such an extent that when Thomas Bangalter DJed (wait for the 1:30 mark) three tracks, without his disguise, at Busy P's birthday party in LA last year, some of the crowd in attendance did not know who he was and those who did, went crazy, knowing that they were witnessing a rare occurrence. By restricting the amount of live appearances that they make, when Daft Punk does have a concert, it becomes an extremely special moment between the band and the fans.

Daft Punk doesn't believe in stardom. They created their artificial robot image to (a certain extent) criticize celebrity culture. They don't want to be successful thanks to the fact that they're good looking or because they have a rock n' roll attitude. Artists don't need to be on the cover of every magazine in order to be successful. As I've mentioned before, it's all about the music. Yes, their robot image (one of anonymity, invisibility and secrecy) has helped their music career but it shows that you don't necessarily need to connect with fans in a personal and human way (see what I did there) to succeed. You can just as easily do that by hiding from the limelight, something that's foreign in today's entertainment world, and that's precisely why it works. Daft Punk is a prime example of this.