DESCRIPTION
The stars must've been aligned just right when Nick van de Wall (better
known as Afrojack) saw his first ray of light. Music was his first love
since his early youth. He started playing piano when he was only five.
Being a very creative student, Afrojack spent most of his time listening
to all kinds of music while studying. It was no surprise that it didn't
take him long to turn the tables and start making music instead of just
listening to it.
At the age of 11, Afrojack gets hold of a program called Fruity loops.
At this point in time his talent and passion for creating music truly
surfaces. Rapidly acquainting himself with and appreciating Fruity
Loops, it becomes his program of choice, which he uses to this day.
Afrojack finishes school and decides to proceed with his musical career.
Not being able to make a living out of it yet, he starts to work
part-time in bars and catering. Now he has more than enough time to
discover the club scene in Rotterdam, starting with his first night out
in the old club Las Palmas when he was only 16 years old. After this,
many club nights, side-jobs, small DJ-gigs for the fun of deejaying and a
lot of studio time followed.
In 2006 he sets off to Crete (Greece) deejaying for five full months
straight in every club that would have him, learning the craft and
making his first ‘flight hours’. It was also in Crete where he landed
his first small hit, called ‘F*ck Detroit’. When returning home to the
Netherlands, he was fired up and started producing more and more tracks,
determined to get ihis productions released on a label. With a little
help from Sidney Samson and Laidback Luke, Digidance decides to give it a
shot, and it worked; ‘Afrojack - In Your Face’ scored #60 in the Dutch
Top 100 and #3 in the Dutch dance Top 30. Not too bad for the first
release of an 18 year old kid.
In 2007 Nick starts performing
under the name Afrojack, determined to try to make it to the top as a DJ
and producer. Track after track and remix after remix follows and he
even starts his own label ‘Wall Recordings’. Afrojack is rarely seen
outside of his studio. When he's not deejaying, he is producing and it
starts to pay off. His tracks start being supported by international
DJ's like Josh Wink, Dave Clarke, Laidback Luke, Fedde Le Grand, Marco V
and Benny Rodrigues.
In 2008 he hits the clubs with ‘Math’ and ‘Do My Dance’ and both tracks
get picked up by every big name in the industry. Afrojack hooks up with
the Partysquad to add vocals to “Do My Dance”and a couple of weeks
later, the ‘Drop Down (Do My Dance)’ co-op mix is born. This track hits
the Dutch top 20 and gets crowned "Tune of the Week" by the biggest
Dutch radio stations. Afrojack starts appearing at many important
festivals, like Mystery Land, Tomorrowland (Belgium), Extrema Outdoor
and Sensation.
The world heard more and more from Afrojack in 2009 and it didn’t take a
long time for David Guetta to notice Afrojack’s talent. They decided to
meet up in the studio, which resulted in ‘Toyfriend’, a collaboration
between the two, and an Afrojack remix of Guetta’s track ‘Sexy Bitch’.
Afrojack also played at David Guetta’s ‘F*** Me I’m Famous’-events.
Befitting his position as the leading figure of the Dutch new wave, his
success stretches far beyond his home turf; 2010 has seen him become one
of the most in demand DJ/producers of any nationality.
With a peerless reputation as a producer , his signature style is
bringing him the kind of remix requests that most dance artists will
only ever dream of. (for example Lady Gaga’s ‘Alejandro’ and Madonna’s
‘Revolver’)
Gig-wise, he’s rocked the world’s biggest floors including Pacha Ibiza,
Miami Ultra Music Festival and Electric Daisy Carnival in LA.
Afrojack’s rise to fame as a producer has brought him a roll call of
A-list champions – from Pete Tong to David Guetta, and Josh Wink to
Fedde Le Grand, along the way collaborating with some of the world’s
most respected producers and artists like David Guetta, Steve Aoki,
Diplo, Kid Cudi, Pitbull and Black Eyed Peas.
His most recent single, ‘Take Over Control ft. Eva Simons’, is currently
one of the hottest club anthems on the planet, not least in the UK
where it’s been championed by Radio 1’s Annie Mac and Pete Tong. The
track also hit No 2. on Beatport and has already reached over 1 million
views on YouTube.
Respected by his colleague DJ’s for his production skills and loved by
clubbers for his dancefloor bombs and energetic performances, Afrojack
is setting new standards in the industry.
