Electronic dance duo Daft Punk leaves the music industry after 28 years of music

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Hannah Mirsky, Music Beat Reporter
February 24, 2021

The electronic dance music duo, Daft Punk, released a heartfelt goodbye to their fans on Monday revealing the end to their 28 years in music.

The video began with both Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo suited up like robots, which had been their persona since the release of “Discovery”. The duo walked together through an empty desert until Bangalter slowed down and eventually to a stop. Once de Homen-Christo realizes, he walks back and the pair stand facing each other. After some silence, de Homem-Christo understands Bangalter won’t be continuing on with him. With that, Bangalter takes off his Daft Punk jacket and turns around. De Homem-Christo is faced with the decision to let Bangalter self-destruct or have him continue walking unwillingly and ultimately flips the switch.

For 60 seconds, we watch Bangalter walk away rather emotionless, as would a robot until he explodes in black and grey dust. The video ends with a screen showing the year the band formed to the year it was disbanded and concluded with their 2013 hit “Touch.”

The news was confirmed through Daft Punk’s publicist Kathryn Fraizer but did not state a reason for the breakup.

Despite the abrupt end to the duo who changed the electronic dance scene at such a pivotal time for the genre, music artists like Zedd, Steve Aoki, Pharrell Williams and Odesza.

 

While Daft Punk began in the undeveloped dance music scene in Europe back in the 90s, their first album had a lot of hype before its release. “Homework” was released in 1997 and it wasn’t as progressive as it seemed looking back. Nothing that would signify the commercial success they would receive in their sophomore album “Discovery”.

Daft Punk’s comeback stage at Coachella 2006

Daft Punk was influenced by the music of the past like disco and heavy metal rock arena music but used robotic and futuristic sounds to create a futuristic vibe to their music. Disco and pop music had gradually been incorporating synthesizers and the techno sound in the genres in the late 70s and 80s, but it was in the 90s when artists like Daft Punk, Paul van Dyk, The Chemical Brothers and Moby would use electronia to create a new genre of music. What started as underground club music grew immensely into a genre for everyone who wants to dance and feel good at the moment. Daft punk knew exactly how to shape their older influences and images of music from the future into music that people want to dance to now.

The two released four full-length albums throughout their careerー1997’s Homework, Discovery released in 2001, 2005’s Human After All and 2013’s final release Random Access Memories. In that time, Daft Punk recorded the smash hit “Get Lucky” with Pharrell Williams, which went four times platinum in the United States and diamond in their home country France. The song went on to win Best Record and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 2014 Grammy Awards. The same year, Random Access Memories won Record of the Year and Best Dance/ Electronic Album.

Daft Punk on the 2014 Grammy Awards red carpet (DAN MACMEDAN/WIREIMAGE.COM)

Artists like Kanye West sampled Daft Punk’s “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” in his song “Stronger,” which both turned out to receive a huge amount of commercial success. One of the last artists to have collaborated with Daft Punk was The Weeknd with the beginning and ending tracks “Starboy” and “I Feel It Coming.”

The duo might have called it quits, but Daft Punk has created such a substantial amount of electronic music to bridge techno used in 80s pop music into what this generation could call EDM. Their influence is and will continue to be heard by the biggest artists today. Watch their parting video “Epilogue” below.