From his humble beginnings in Holland, to the multi-award winning, platinum-selling producer he is today, Day After Festival talent Afrojack is one of the most sought after talents in the world – and with two Grammys to his credit, it’s easy to see why.
Born Nick van der Wall in his small hometown of Spijkenisse, Afrojack started producing at a very early age, “I guess my story really begins to when I was eleven. I started to make music just for fun on my computer. After that, a couple of years past I started to make some music in my home town Spijkenisse, and every once in a while I was DJing at my school parties. Since I was seventeen I only started to make music for clubs.”
Honing in on creating his own club sound, in 2006, the then 18 year old jetted off to Crete and DJed at every and any club that would have him, “…I went to a Greek Island, Crete for five months. [Crete] was all about partying, drinking and going wild. During this crazy period I was also busy producing.” Still buzzing from his experience once he returned home to the Netherlands, Afrojack was determined to make more music and get it out on a label. All of his hard work started to pay off when he received a little help from Sidney Samson and Laidback Luke. Dutch imprint Digidance decided to give the 18-year old a shot and thankfully, it worked.
Afrojack’s debut single “In Your Face” scored #60 in the Dutch Top 100 and #3 in the Dutch Dance Top 30 – not too shabby for a first release. The following year in 2007, the determined musician released a seemingly constant stream of remixes and releases. Never resting on his laurels, the budding talent started his label Wall Recordings where he released a handful of his early hits like “Math” and “Drop Down (Do My Dance)” in 2008.
The snowball effect is probably the simplest way describe Afrojack’s career since then. In 2009, he joined forces with Major Lazer and lent his talents in the studio for the mega-hit “Pon de Floor.” In 2010, he was fervently requested remixer for artists like Benny Benassi, David Guetta, and Lady Gaga. Though he was already well-known to the dance music community, in 2011 he exploded with the release of “Take Over Control.” The track was an instant worldwide club and chart hit and the record went platinum in the U.S.
The “snowball” has only continued to gain speed as he’s started writing for pop artists around the world like co-writing and producing the worldwide hit “Titanium,” Pitbull and Ne-Yo’s “Give Me Everything,” which has sold over 5 million copies worldwide, and lest we forget his work on Beyonce’s “Run the World (Girls)” and his Grammy nominated remix for Leona Lewis’ “Collide.”
For 2013, Afrojack’s success has only continued to grow. Remixing for the likes of Avicii, PSY and even adding his trademark sound to Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love,” Afrojack’s latest release “The Spark” shows him expanding his musical tastes by featuring what has been described as “effervescent guitar strums and airy vocal harmonies in addition to the usual synths and pounding percussion.” Though his long-anticipated artist album is nearing completion, some tracks are already being tested at a club near you.
Get ready to drop down and do your thing when Afrojack makes his way to Figali Plaza in Panamà for The Day After Festival this January 10-12th. Be a part of the celebration and buy your tickets today!
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