The Life Story of Phat Phillie

The world famous DJ who played at multitudes of clubs and high profile festivals, who along with his excellent DJ career, had a hip-hop career. The cult figure of Croatian rap, manager of the Blackout Crew, journalist and radio presenter are just some of the things which can be attributed to this artist in his long career. Next up we give you the rest of the story about how Filip Ivelja became Phat Phillie.
We all know you as a cult figure of Croatian hip-hop and a world-renowned DJ, can you tell us more about who Filip Ivelja is when he isn’t a world famous DJ?
I’m a family man. Tomo’s and Malena’s dad and Sarita’s husband. I spend more of my time in the kitchen then behind a record player, I go to a dad’s club at Malena’s kindergarten and to the market in search of organic groceries. I love food, cooking, watching culinary documentaries and of course the TV series Vikings. I’m also interested in everything related to great white sharks.
What’s the first thing that pops into your head when someone says hip-hop?
Hip-hop is music that I fell in love at first listen way back in 84’. Nothing has ever occupied me as much as hip-hop. I love it when we’re doing well, I love it when we’re doing badly too. I’m loyal to hip-hop in the sincerest possible meaning of the word and I don’t use it exclusively for my own well being: through my activism and volunteering I always try to make hip-hop be represented in the best way possible. I’m very grateful for having had such a wonderful time in hip-hop for the past 32 years.
Which performance are you most proud of? What do you see as your greatest accomplishment up to this point?
Hm, there were many, but I’d single out the 2009 New York gig which was on my birthday and alongside greats such as DJ Premier, Scratch and Tony Touch. My greatest professional accomplishment is surely the organization of the Fresh Island Festival on the island of Pag and winning the Golden Plaque for gold certification of the posthumous album The Big Picture of the late Big-L.
Have you ever dreamed of such a, I daresay global success and shows all over Europe with some of the most famous hip-hop artists and producers?
When I was starting, I never dreamed that my career was going to develop in such a way. As the years progressed, I began to take my job more seriously and through gaining acquaintances I accomplished international cooperation, from putting out beats for our producers to having my gigs abroad and booking American rappers all over Croatia and Europe. The main pillar of my career is the radio show Blackout which I’m hosting for 23 years. Recently I’ve also started working on Radio Student on Thursdays.
You accepted the invitation of the Pannonian Challenge organizer and will be performing this year. Looking at all of your achievements and elite shows which you’ve been part of, what does this performance means to you?
I’ve been following what’s going on with your festival for some time through media and by communicating with my dear collegue Jurica Barać. It’s a great pleasure to be a part of your musical program this summer, in combination with my brother Bizzo Bodega. I’m also looking forward to the amazing fiš paprikaš and gemišt in Kopački Rit.
What can we expect from Phat Philly in the future?
The Fresh Island festival on Pag is currently my main focus, followed by the summer tour which starts at the first part of July in Tuhelj through Fresh Island, Osijek, Dubrovnik, Ibiza, Amsterdam, Prague among other places. I’m currently in studio with the British band The Brand New Heavies which I’m working on a new album with and am helping producer Koolade from Zagreb in finalizing his international debut.