My Ultra gigs! But every gig is an adventure, can’t wait!
TMN: Talk to us a little bit more about Ultra and WMC. That week is actually a music conference where you see pretty much everyone in the industry. What does it mean to you to be the young buck hanging out with some of the guys who have been doing this for decades?
I look up to a lot of these guys as they accept me into their scene. It’s crazy. Same with Tiesto. I started making music because I loved what he was doing, and right now we’re Skyping on a weekly basis; sending eachother new tracks, talking about useless stuff and it’s cool.
TMN: Looking back at your career’s trajectory, it has to be kind of crazy to go from a young school kid to an internationally recognized musician. How have you handled the attention you’ve received over the past year?
Well it all just happened so fast. Still feels unreal sometimes. Hard to say how I exactly “handled” it.
TMN: Well, we know that you still stayed in school throughout all of this. Was it difficult to handle both at the same time? What kind of limits did you set for yourself to ensure that you still did well in class?
I stopped my regular school about a year ago and I switched to a special producer academy, which I am attending right now. They are really catering to my schedule and adjusting the homework to my schedule. It’s really great. I’m in my last year of school and soon I will be completely done, and be able tour more.
TMN: Speaking of that trajectory, we’d like to know if you had some sort of mentor as you went through everything. Was there a specific DJ or Label head that really helped you through all of the insanity?
TMN: Let’s talk about what was probably the most defining moment of your career, the release of “Animals.” Spinnin’ Records released just a snippit of your tune with no artist information. What was it like seeing blogs, music publications and music lovers randomly guess at who was behind it all?
That was crazy. The buzz about this release was insane. Never expected it to turn out that huge.
TMN: At any point did you want to go onto the comments and tell them it was you? You had to be anxious watching that all unfold.
TMN: We know you get asked a lot of questions about “Animal,” so we’ll wrap it up after this one. With hundreds of remixes coming out, which has been your favorite to date?
Oliver Heldens, his remix is massive and my favourite!
TMN: Alright, let’s change gears a bit. We know that you were inspired by EDM after watching Tiesto play at the Olympics. From there you began saving up your money for your first DJ set up. Did you have any interest in playing music before that moment, or was that “the one?”
Yeah I played Spanish guitar for quite some years!
TMN: Did your parents get you into playing Spanish guitar, or was that an interest you developed on your own?
I developed that on my own. My parents fully supported it, and they put me in guitar lessons without knowing I would get into producing later. They thought it was very important that I have a musical education. I played the guitar for 6-7 years, and after a while I installed a program into my computer to produce music, and I saved up money to buy a DJ set. I started messing around, and at a certain point Spinnin’ noticed me and signed me.
TMN: Your first gig was at the age of 13. On a side note, I was playing roller hockey in a parking lot with my friends at 13. What was that first DJ gig like? What type of set did you throw down? Any trainwrecks, or did you pretty much nail it?
I was super nervous, but it went great. I was so hyped!
TMN: Do you remember what the crowd was like? Was it packed? Were people vibing your mixes?
No, it was not busy. There was only friends of mine. I played tracks of my own (and the tracks were really shit), but for me I was really happy to be playing my music for people. It really helped me become more confident in what I was doing. It gave me more motivation. It wasn’t a very special gig, but for me it was very special.
TMN: Your first show had to be quite the rush for you. Have you had other moments in your career that made you step back and say, “holy shit! I can’t believe that just happened!”
TMN: As you move into 2014, you’re still very early on in your career. What are some of your personal aspirations for your path as a musician?
I want to produce more number one hits! And I want to do as much cool collabs as I can! Playing my music all around the world.
TMN: Speaking of aspirations, you have to have some artists that you’re anxiously wanting to collaborate with. If you could pick three musicians to start a new track with today, who would you pick?
Calvin Harris, Tiesto, Lana del Rey.
TMN: With only being in the limelight for a short amount of time, we feel that people don’t know much about the “real you.” If you could tell our readers and your fans one thing about you that they probably don’t know, what would you fill them in on?
I am a boss at sleeping. I can sleep anywhere and anytime!
TMN: If you were forced to only listen to one band/DJ/musician for the rest of your life, who would you pick, and why?
Sorry this is too hard, I can’t pick just one!
TMN: Alright, then how about this: What’s the last album you listened to start to finish?
Flume!
TMN: Name three things that are on your rider for every show.
Water, CDJ’s, something to eat.
TMN: What was the first album you ever purchased?
Actually, the first album I bought was Tiesto – Parade of the Athletes. It was what he played during the Olympics.
TMN: If you could make a guest appearance on any TV show, what would you pick?
Ridiculousness on MTV
TMN: Alright, last one. We ask this to everyone we interview. If your music were an animal, what would it be?
A bird.
TMN: Any particular reasoning behind that?
Yeah, I would love to be able to fly. That would be sick. I hate being on long flights, but I think it’s amazing to be in a plane or helicopter, seeing the world from a different angle. I don’t want to be a bird forever, but I would love to be a bird for a day and shit on several people I don’t like (laughs). Just to see the world from above.
