Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangalter made a rare live appearance during a surprise DJ set with Fred again.. in Paris.
On Saturday (Oct. 25), the duo went B2B at Paris’ Centre Pompidou as part of Because Beaubourg, a two-day celebration marking the 20th anniversary of French record label Because Music. They were joined by fellow DJs Erol Alkan and Busy P.
The performance marked Bangalter’s first DJ set in 16 years. During the set, the French musician spun a mix of Daft Punk classics — including “Contact,” “Rollin’ & Scratchin’,” and “Digital Love” — as well as The Chemical Brothers’ “Galvanise” and Jonny Greenwood’s score for One Battle After Another, according to NME.
Saturday’s performance was also the final show at the Centre Pompidou before the venue closes for renovations over the next five years. Check out the livestream here.
“Last night I got to play with Thomas Bangalter, Erol Alkan, Busy P at the Pompidou Centre in Paris, the last night before it closes for 5 years,” Fred Again.. wrote on Instagram. “Thomas told me in this lift on the way down to the show that the first time he fell in love with electronic music was in this building in 1992. He also told me hasn’t played a proper set without the mask on for 24 years. I didn’t know what to say to either of those things and I still don’t.”
The electronic producer added, “All I said to him at the end is that I hope it isn’t 24 years til the next.”
Iconic dance artists flooded the comments to share their excitement. “Legendary!!” Tiësto wrote, while David Guetta added “wow,” accompanied by several raised-hand emojis.
Daft Punk’s last live performance took place alongside The Weeknd at the 2017 Grammy Awards. Since the pioneering French electronic duo announced their split in 2021, Bangalter has scored several projects, including a French ballet and a comedy film inspired by Salvador Dalí.
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