Giorgio Moroder on Britney, Sia, Charli: Inside His First Album in Decades

“I think everybody we approached said yes,” he says of his collaborators, which also include Foxes and Mikki Ekko. “To my big surprise, acts like Sia or Britney were. . .” He pauses. “I was gone for 30 years, right? So I’m not somebody who has had a few hits a few years ago.”

One act that will not feature on the album is Daft Punk. “It would be like, ‘Oh, Giorgio is trying to get them back in,'” he says. “Pharrell wanted to do something, and with Pharrell, it would be different because it’s not Daft Punk. He said yes, but, time-wise, I think he doesn’t have one minute left in his life to do a song.” There was a point when he hoped to work with Lady Gaga, but now a potential collaboration might appear on her next album: “What a talent,” he says. “A great pianist, a great composer, lyricist – it’s going to be great.”

So far, Moroder has recorded about 15 songs, some of which are instrumental, and he estimates that about 12 tracks will make the final cut. An additional four to five songs will be reserved for what he calls the “luxury version.”

Other than a release date, the only detail still being worked out is the title. “I kind of thought it was 74 Is the New 24, but I don’t know what the record company is deciding,” he says. “I don’t know if that title would haunt me in the next few years. When the album comes out, I’m going to be 75.” He laughs and drops the pitch of his voice, mimicking the effect of his signature vocoder as he sings the hook for the would-be title track: “75 is the new. . .” He cracks up before he can finish the line.