Marty Guilfoyle is all smiles when we sit down to chat. He’s as bubbly as you imagine as he enjoys a coffee ahead of a jam-packed day.
The DJ is known for his radio show on SPIN where he showcases EDM music as well as Irish artists, including himself in that line-up.
Marty has been making his own music for years and recently has teamed up with Nicole O’Brien for a brand new single, an updated version of Kylie Minogue’s Love At First Sight.
VIP Magazine caught up with Marty over a cup of coffee to chat music, basketball and of course, One Tree Hill.
Hey, Marty! First thing’s first, tell us about working with Nicole. How did that come about?
Nicole followed me on Instagram just before Christmas. But I actually wasn’t actually aware of her because I’m awful with reality TV. When I started following her I listened to her music and her voice is amazing. Then I was going through demos in January trying to figure out who would sing what. One of them was Kylie Minogue’s Love At First Sight and I just knew Nicole would be perfect for it. i DMed her. She laughs about it because she says I was on her hitlist of people to work with this year. So we ended up starting the year working together and the song is coming out soon.
How do you start your day?
The first thing I do, no matter how cold it is, is sit out on my balcony with no phone. I just sit with myself in my robe. Coffee is the standard as well. Because of my lifestyle, I tend to get up pretty late so it’s usually midday when I do this. So I get to watch people going about their day. They’ve already up for six or seven hours. I wonder if they look up and wonder what I’m doing.
Who would play you in a movie?
Zac Efron. [Laughs] We have the same birthday, he’s older, but same birthday. We have so many parallels, he obviously played a character who played basketball, he played a DJ. One year, for my birthday, I posted four photos of me and then four photos of me dressed up like Zac in his films to wish my bestie a happy birthday. He obviously didn’t see it. I didn’t have that prepared. It’s just because we’re birthday twins.
How would you spend your perfect day?
Perfect day, wow. I am a fiend for staying in bed. Not because I’m sad or anything. If anyone wants to come over and spend the day in bed, order a takeaway for lunch and a chipper for dinner and watch really bad shows on Netflix, that is my perfect day. No steps on the watch. I think people would think my perfect day includes a hike. But put in bed for the whole day eating awful food.
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Let’s plan a dinner party, who would be your three ideal guests?
My mam 100 per cent. Over the last couple of years now we’ve become really good friends now, rather than just mother and son. Every Sunday, no matter what, we go to bingo together. It’s so nice. I’ve never felt so young. But I put that time aside. Then, Kobe Bryant, if he was still alive. I love basketball but even if you don’t know anything about it, his work ethic was incredible. Then Dua Lipa.
Tell us the best piece of advice you’ve ever gotten.
The best piece of advice is something that people don’t really like to hear but it’s that sometimes things don’t work out. It’s really, really easy for someone who is doing what you’re doing to say, “Work hard, achieve your goals, you’ll get there”. But in reality not everyone does. I can’t remember who told me that but it’s really stuck with me. Usually the advice is “Work hard, you’ll get there,” but sometimes you don’t. It’s great to have that mentality to put your head down and work but be okay if it doesn’t work out. It’s really negative I’m sorry.
Who is the person you look up to the most?
I want to say my dad. My mam was a hairdresser until she was in her late 20s then she decided she wanted to do law. So she packed up her hairdressers and used her savings to go to college as well as raising three kids. My dad was a fireman so he was doing all that while trying to keep everything going while my mam trained to be a barrister. My work ethic, I get it from him. I kind of curse him for it sometimes because I’m like, “Dad I haven’t slept in a week.” But when I look back at everything he did while I was growing up. He looked after us when my mam was away and he worked nights. The stories he would tell us, like you’d go for a nap at three in the morning and 20 minutes later the alarm is going off and then you’re putting out a fire or a car crash. It’s cliché, but it is my dad.
If you could rewatch a TV show for the first time again what would it be?
One Tree Hill. I am obsessed. I was in America and I accidentally ended up in the town where they filmed One Tree Hill. We got to this town called Wilmington in North Carolina, there was a bridge on Google Maps that said “One Tree Hill Bridge“. But I thought, “That can’t be what it is.“ But yes, the whole thing is filmed there. I went walking around but people live in the houses now so they just saw a man looking into their homes. I was in my element.
What are you bingeing at the moment?
I just finished Wednesday. I loved it. It was so good. So good.
If you couldn’t be a DJ what would you be doing?
I would like to think I would be playing basketball. I went to college on a scholarship but I had to make a decision where basketball and music were clashing. I couldn’t do basketball and go full-time into radio. I ended up making the decision to pursue radio full time. So I had to leave basketball. Not that I regret that but I miss basketball. If there was an opportunity there, maybe. Coaching anyway.
Where is your favourite place in the world?
I love Kerry. Everytime I’m gigging down there I get really excited. If we’re going to go abroad…oh…Bali is so cliché. Macao in the south of China is great. I really liked that. I do want a house in Kerry so that’s what I’m going to say.
What is on your bucketlist?
My bucketlist is to work with Dua Lipa. I interviewed her a few years ago for my radio show and she was so sound. So sound.
Nicole O’Brien & Marty Guilfoyle’s New Single Love At First Sight is out on 3rd of March
