Daft Punk on MuchMusic (partially found TV interview of Daft Punk; 1997)
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Screenshot of Daft Punk in "Much Music Commercial (1997)"
Status: Partially Found
In 1993, Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo formed Daft Punk. The French duo became a powerhouse of the dance music world. Throughout their career, they evolved their image greatly. From 1993-1996, they appeared as their normal human selves but around the end of 1996, began wearing masks to all of their photo and video shoots. Then in the 2000s, they had robot costumes made which they would wear for all future public appearances as Daft Punk. Thomas and Guy-Man officially brought the project to a close in 2021.
About the interview
On March 1st, 2010, YouTube user NostalgiaVision uploaded a video titled "Much Music Commercial (1997)" which they describe as "a random Much-Music commercial (they) found on an old VHS tape."
Notably, Daft Punk appear in the commercial for a split-second as Guy-Man exclaims "Bonjour, c'est Daft Punk.” (an isolated clip of Daft Punk). They are both wearing transparent masks which was standard for the “Homework era.” This type of footage is incredibly rare though because Daft Punk did not do too many television appearances at this time, as they mostly stuck to magazines. But the existence of this clip implies that Daft Punk were featured in an episode where they were probably interviewed as was standard for the show.
So what is known?
Daft Punk appeared on the Canadian TV show MuchMusic sometime in 1997, however, the episode they appear in cannot be found. No details about the episode other than this clip have been found. It is believed that it would have been filmed in early April of 1997 since that is when Daft Punk were in Canada to play a few shows and promote their new album Homework. Looking at a spreadsheet of known Daft Punk sets, it is believed they were in the area from around April 4th - 12th but it’s possible they could have been there slightly earlier or later.
In late 2021, YouTube user Bill Welychka had uploaded some highlight reels of MuchMusic. It turns out Bill used to be a VJ (Video Jockey) on the show and did many interviews. Daft Punk did not appear in their 1997 highlight reel but it was decided that they should be reached out to since it seemed like they had access to some old footage. When asked if he recalled interviewing Daft Punk he said he didn’t think he ever did. Unfortunately, his account was suspended so his response is no longer available. MuchMusic had several VJs so it isn’t a huge surprise that one doesn’t recall interviewing Daft Punk.
Going foward
Going forward more former VJs need to be reached out to. There is a chance that whoever interviewed them has a recording. There is also a chance that MuchMusic themselves (now known as “Much”) have the ability to find and upload the interview like they did with their Spice Girls interview from 1997. Perhaps someone who works there can be convinced to dig it out.