James Murphy

I'm a DJ, and I live in Williamsburg, and I run an independent record company.

There's kind of a limitless amount of things I want to do, and when the path seems to open, that's when I try to do a thing.

I don't prepare very well. I'm always sort of wrapped up in what I'm supposed to be doing in the moment, and then I suddenly appear someplace, and I'm really not prepared.

I'm always surprised by how optimistic and open sometimes people who are very successful are.

The vast majority of kids in my school went on to college. That's just what you did. And I remember feeling like, 'No, I'm not doing that.' The idea that college was next, that it was a given, meant it was of no interest to me. So I didn't go.

One of the big things that broke the band up for me, which I've become much clearer on over the years, was that I had no desire to be famous.