Girl Talk would be OK with having fewer fans

Don't misunderstand: Gregg Gillis still loves what he does.

As Girl Talk, Gillis samples other artists and creates brand new songs out of those tunes. But for all of his success packing venues and outdoor music festivals, Gillis told CNN he would be content if his career reverts back to the earlier years.

"I'd be really comfortable if I had, like, 50 total fans again like 10 years from now, and I was back to the day job and it would just be this cool little thing that happened," he said.

As an artist who borrows liberally from other artists' hits, he gets a kick out of hearing his own work sampled.

"I've heard it a few times and it's been cool," Gillis said. "I'm always excited when what I do, someone else uses it in the way I'm trying to use the source material."

And while he doesn't consider himself a "DJ" per se, Gillis said he understands why there's been so much attention to those like Skrillex and David Guetta, who were the toast of last year's Grammy Awards.

"I think it's a cultural shift," Gillis said. "I think it will be a defining moment of this generation, this electronic music thing. I've always felt a little isolated from it, but I am a fan and I'm excited that it's happening."

"Now I think young people are trying to find something to identify with and they wanted this next level of having their own style. I think [this type of electronic music] kind of raised the bar for youth culture."