[dropcap size=big]T[/dropcap]his past Saturday, Foundation Nightclub played host to Dyro, the dutch DJ that exploded into the scene back in 2013 under Hardwell‘s wing. And holding number 27 on the DJMag Top 100 list in the midst of creating an independent record label, WOLV Records, Dyro has proven he’s here to stay.
As he’s evolved with the industry, we’ve witnessed Dyro’s ability to not only be a creative artist but also an incredible businessman and designer. His label has a striking resemblance to himself and his rigorous love of good music.
Dyro truly has matured, displaying a more refined and dirtier style than ever through his releases and label. But don’t think that his success has changed him. In our interview with Dyro, he was still that humble DJ we all have come to know and love.
Check out the interview below!
YE: Welcome back to Seattle, Dyro!
D: Thank you! I love Seattle..I’m happy to be happy to be back here, there energy is always good. I think I’ve been here once for the Halloween Freaknight show and once here at Foundation, actually. So this will be 3rd time? But I’ve also played once at the Gorge Amphitheater for Paradiso which I think is just a little outside of Seattle.
YE: And has your tour been a success thus far?
D: Ya! It’s been good, I’ve been really tired though, but it’s been good.
YE: Ya how is it being popular at such a young age of 23?
D: It’s uhm..of course it’s fun. But people don’t always see like how much work it can take or that you put in it. I mean you’re traveling every single day you’re on a plane every single day, [laughing] it’s not all like private jets and partying it’s like commercial shitty airlines with non-reclining seats and crying babies. It’s not always fun but uh you know i like it…i love it.
YE: Of course and that all started back in 2013, when your professional music career took off. How have you changed and developed as an artist since then?
D: In the beginning, I of course started to work with Hardwell and my music was a bit different in the beginning. I’d say almost bit more happy and progressive. But you know, as an artist I get bored alot and I feel at that time I was still evolving and finding my way in music and I think ever since I started my label I basically stopped everything and in my opinion, kind of started over.
YE: So you feel as though starting WOLV records helped refine your style?
D: Ya definitely. The record label is basically I’d say is grimy…dark. We don’t sign music just to score hits, we sign music because it’s good music and if we truly like it. Were not out there just to get hits.
YE: And do you feel like that’s what the music industry has turned its focus on?
D: Yes, [nodding] definitely. It’s a bit commercialized for sure. And I’m not trying to move away from that in my record label or anything, it’s ok to make money. We’re all still spending time and you have to make money somehow you know? But it doesn’t have to be only about that. I think music has to come first. And if you’re good at something you should make money doing it. I guess it’s just when money trumps creativity that it becomes not ok.
YE: I’ve heard you even listen to the CD’s you get from people!
D: Ya, I tried to give my CD to Hardwell one time, [laughing] I don’t think he listened to it though but ya actually, funny story about that! I think it was the third release on my label and we had a show in Amsterdam, I think it was for DJ Mac. Anyways, these two kids gave me a CD and it had a super cool drawing, it was actually really weird, but they gave me this CD and I actually listened to it and ended up signing the song. So ya, people can give me a CD and if I remember when I’m back home going through my luggage, i’ll give it a listen.
YE: And you said you kind of like more of a dark and mysterious style for your record label, do you feel like it’s a direct reflection of you as an artist?
D: I definitely think so you know? All the songs I make we release from the label as well. I mean unless they’re collaborations or with people with other um you know ideas for the song, which is ok. it’s definitely a reflection of myself. I’m basically running it myself too. Of course we have distribution and bigger companies we work with but it’s just me and a friend of mine that run it.
YE: It must have been hard to give up a little bit of control for something so close to you!
Ya, but its an really good old high school friend. [laughing] I’m a little bit of a control freak when it comes to my label. It’s kind of hard to let stuff like that go but you have to. You have to you know…you can’t just keep doing everything yourself.
YE: So where did you find the biggest pressures come from ever since your debut on Revealed Records?
D: You know…I think myself is a big thing. I…demand a lot from myself. I always want to be better than my older self. And I always want to serve best than what I made before and like make something even better and better. But that’s not always how it works. I’m always trying to evolve and change.
YE: Do you find yourself trying to evolve with the music scene or straying away from what’s popular?
D: No, I always intentionally try to do something completely different. I just don’t want to look at charts or what other people are doing to see what works and say “I’m going to do that too.” That’s not what I am. So that’s probably the biggest pressure actually is finding something new while staying relevant at the same time. Cause’ you know, it takes a lot of work [laughing]. That can be hard…trying to find the balance of being creative AND relevant.
YE: Do you sometimes find it hard when you’re playing live to retain that individuality?
D: Uhm well that’s what also brings some pressure to me [chuckling]. I’m actually not a stage person at all, I’m an introvert. When I first started touring I had a lot of difficulty on stage, a lot of anxiety [laughing]. Not any more though, but every like once in awhile I find myself on stage feeling like totally super awkward and I’m just like trying to get it over with and go home. Which is totally ridiculous because there are so many kids out there making music that would love to be in my place and I’m just trying to get out of there! But at the same time there’s days that I have where I’m totally completely excited. It’s kind of a battle I think!
YE: Is that how you decide on your live playlist sets or do you base it more off of the crowd?
D: Hmmm…how I work is I like have a big list of all the songs that I play and try to keep up on my computer. Whenever you get to a new city just start playing the first couple of songs, which are usually the same and kind of you’re routine, to test the waters and see how they respond. You change what you’re playing to that reaction and try to adapt to the crowd.
YE: What can we expect for this new year from you and your record label?
D: I actually have a new EP coming, on Feb 22nd I think! It’s actually the first EP I’ve ever put out! It has four songs. It has Loopers and a vocalist named Joe Taylor. There’s this one song with a vocalist from holland, called The Prince, that’s more of a trap song. There’s one song that features these two rappers from holland, they’re like really hard-core rappers called Dope D.O.D., that are really sick. And just an original of mine. So ya, four songs.
YE: It seems like you’ve been deriving some inspiration from hip-hop and rap. Will this be reflected in your EP?
D: Ya ya ya, definitely! It goes all over the place, though. There are two songs that are the regular 130 that I usually do, but there is also a 150 bpm song in there and a 90 bpm one. I don’t feel like music should be like always the same tempo, ya know? I try not to I guess restrict myself to a certain sub-genre.
YE: I’ve read that you’re kind of trying to stay away from that 128 bpm range, is that true?
D: Ya a little bit. Not necessarily stray away completely, but if you’re playing like an hour or an hour and a half set and you’re only playing 128 bpm it gets boring for me and the people out there [gesturing towards the awaiting crowd]. I like to give people a break and play what keeps people on their toes and dancing!
